Women Recount Their Struggles And Triumphs In IDW’s ‘Voices That Count’ This June

IDW is to publish an English translated edition of the Spanish comic book anthology, Voices That Count, this June.

“Voices That Count highlights and uplifts women’s voices, collecting their stories of life, love, and empowerment. Interacting with everything from the realities of gender imbalance in the workplace — through a gender-flipped lens — to toxic beauty standards taking a toll on the body image of young girls, Voices That Count gives women a space to recount their struggles and triumphs.”

As you would imagine from that synopsis, this collection has been produced by all-female creative teams, and aims to dissects what it means to be a woman in today’s hyper-masculine world.

Here’s IDW editor Megan Brown with more on this new collaboration:

“We are so excited to bring this wonderful anthology to English audiences. In a world where the fight for equality is ongoing, it’s unflinching, heartfelt stories like those in Voices That Count that help us understand different hardships and perspectives, and ultimately show that we are not alone.”

This collection, featuring a cover illustration by Esther Gili and translated by Diego Jourdan Pereira, contains the following stories:

• “Julio” by Julia Otero and Ada Diez
• “24 Hours” by Lola Garcia and Agustina Guerrero
• “The Bug” by Diana López Varela and Akira Pantsu
• “Empowered” by Estefanía Molina and Ana Oncina
• “Loneliness” by Eva Amaral and María Hesse
• “Sexier” by Leticia Dolera and Raquel Riba Rossy
• “Turtle Steps” by Sandra Sabatés and Sandra Cardona
• “Over a Banana Skirt” by Almudena Grandes and Sara Herranz
• “Mzungu” by Patricia Campos and Sara Soler

For some, this graphic novel is more than just another comic book gig. Here’s just three of the Spanish creators with their take on this progressive new book:

“Taking part in this anthology has symbolized a kind of personal catharsis for the possibility of giving courage to other women to fight against those pitfalls, sometimes self-imposed, that form in a society where there are still fewer female authority figures in the public-political sphere than male. All this came about through a deep reflection on the impact of life role-models.” – Estefanía Molina

“The different situations (herein) are a wake-up call for us to stop punishing ourselves for being ambitious and to believe more in ourselves. Being part of this project has made me feel even more united with my colleagues.” – Ana Oncina
 
“Joining this project has been the most rewarding experience. It is the most personal work I have done so far, a tribute to the struggle of the great women in my life, and this gives it added emotion. Simply wonderful.” – Sandra Sabatés

Look out for Voices That Count available Wednesday June 14th, 2022 from IDW Publishing