Posted in: Comics | Tagged: blair butler, comic con, Comics, devin grayson, dynamite, gail simone, kelly sue deconnick, leah moore, Mercedes Lackey, Nancy Collins, nicola scott, red sonja, rhianna pratchett, san diego, sdcc

Gail Simone Brings Devin Grayson, Marjorie M. Liu, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Blair Butler, Rhianna Pratchett, Leah Moore, Tamora Pierce, Nancy Collins, Meljean Brook, Nicola Scott, Mercedes Lackey And More To Red Sonja Legends

Earlier today, Nancy Collins posted on Facebook "Just turned in my first main-stream comic book script in 16 years."

Something tells me that an upcoming Gendercrunching episode focused on Dynamite Comics will make for interesting reading.

At San Diego Comic Con, Dynamite will be announcing Red Sonja Legends, to coincide with the character's 40th anniversary.

And just as Gail Simone arranged a bunch of female comic creators to draw covers for her Red Sonja comic, so she's recruited a stunning array of female writers for this series.

They include Marjorie M. Liu, Mercedes Lackey, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Rhianna Pratchett, Leah Moore, Tamora Pierce, Blair Butler, Nancy Collins, Meljean Brook, Nicola Scott, Devin Grayson and more. Here are some quotes;

Devin Grayson: This was so much fun to do and such an honor to be a part of. You've gotta love a project where a character as kickass and awesome and exciting as Red Sonja ends up in danger of being the least interesting woman involved!

Nicola Scott: Red Sonja is such a kick ass character and this anthology is the perfect platform to expand her legend! Gail is never short of a great idea and this is one of her best. As this will be my first writing credit, I'm incredibly honoured to have my name next to some of the best writers in the business."

Rhianna Pratchett (Heavenly Sword, Mirror's Edge): "I treasured my Red Sonja poster when I was kid.  So to get the opportunity to write a story for the character, and to do it in the company of such extraordinary, talented women, is a dream come true.  My younger self is definitely high-fiving my older self."

Leah Moore (Doctor Who: The Whispering Gallery, Sherlock Holmes: The Liverpool Demon):  "It's not everyday that Gail Simone asks me to write Red Sonja.  To be honest, I'm glad, because when it happened, I had to be peeled off the ceiling.  Writing Red Sonja has been a personal ambition of mine for a long time.  She is about the most fun a writer can have.  She's a loner, a grouch, a badass, and is apparently impervious to cold.  I am almost too excited about this project to actually write the thing, which is counter-productive, really."

Tamora Pierce (The Song of the Lioness, Mastiff):  "This is the coolest project ever: new stories crafted by some of the best writers and artists out there, about a woman warrior created by one of my literary idols, Robert E. Howard, spearheaded by my comics goddess, Gail Simone.  I'm honored to be a part of this, and can't wait to see the whole thing.  It will be a ground-breaking, multilayered view of a character who has been brawling through comics for decades!"

Blair Butler (Heart, host of MSN's Nerdcore):  "I'm honored and exceedingly intimidated to be included in this group of talented creators.  Gail Simone is amazing — and her take on Red Sonja is something I've been looking forward to since it was announced way back at Emerald City Comic-Con.  So when she asked me to contribute, I agreed immediately, even though I'm totally nervous about it."

Nancy Collins (Swamp Thing, VAMPS):  "I am thrilled to have been chosen by Gail Simone to participate in Legends of Red Sonja.  I remember how excited I was when I plucked Conan the Barbarian #23 off the spinner rack as a kid, all those years ago, and finally saw a female hero capable of dishing it out with the best of them.  I am honored to have been given this chance to add to Red Sonja's mythos."

Meljean Brook (Iron Seas, Demon Angel):  "I'm absolutely thrilled to be writing a story for the she-devil, Red Sonja.  I first encountered Red Sonja in the movie with Nielsen and Schwarzenegger when I was about eight years old — and I know that movie isn't without its problems, but it's almost impossible to describe how incredible it was to watch a film in which the heroine was just as strong and as tough as the muscle-bound hero.  I loved that she was arrogant, skilled, and never wimped out or waited for rescue, and I immediately went out in search of similar stories about her.  Red Sonja was a revelation to eight-year-old me, and I can trace many of the heroines I write today back to those roots."

It's not just women though. Frank Thorne, who defined the look of the character, will draw a number of covers (pictured) as will Jay Anacleto.

But they are token males. This series will be very female focused. Many of the creators will make their Dynamite debuts, and it also represents the return of the much-missed Devin Grayson to the medium. Some like Rhianna Pratchett will be making their comics debut. Nope, was forgetting Mirror's Edge from Wildstorm…

And for those publishers wondering about their own female creative line up, isn't it embarrassing that just one title will have more female writers than every book you've published this year so far?

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