The first Lakes International Comic Art Festival Podcast of 2022, features a great chat with a new comic creator, Lancashire-based artist and writer Mollie Ray, whose first graphic novel, Giant, will be published by Faber and Faber, supported by a grant from the Society of Authors.

Mollie – one of leading comic web site Broken Frontier’s “Six to Watch” last year – is a graphic novelist and illustrator from Cumbria based in Lancashire, with a passion for writing and illustrating stories. 

“My work tends to unfold from poems or thoughts capturing a feeling or experience, exploring emotional, personal and often challenging subject matter,” she says. “Visually, my work is often whimsical, however grounded in reality, comfort and home, not dissimilar to the Magical Realism genre in traditional literature. 

“I take a lot of inspiration from my home in Cumbria, with most of my stories taking place in natural spaces. I work in a range of mediums, including ball-point pen, pencil, coloured pencils and coloured inks.”

Her first graphic novel, Giant, due for release in 2024, is inspired by the journey my brother faced after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and how her family was affected.

Podcast hosts Ian Loxam and Nikki Bates also look at the latest news about the Lakes International Comic Art Festival, including the latest announced guests heading to the new home of the lakes in Bowness in October. You can also hear the Podcast team’s brand new advert for this year’s event.

• Listen to Lakes International Comic Art Festival Podcast: The Interviews – Mollie Ray