Spotlight post by James Sturm, Director and Cofounder of The Center for Cartoon Studies
As director of The Center for Cartoon Studies (CCS), I had worked on putting together a graphic guide about democracy and governance. The book circulated widely and Stark County Mental Health & Addiction Recovery (StarkMHAR), a team responsible for engaging and educating middle school students, came across it and reached out to see if CCS would be interested in creating a graphic guide to mental health.
These projects seem to happen when the right opportunity meets the right cartoonist at the right time. When this opportunity presented itself, I immediately thought of Cara Bean. Cara is an exceptional cartoonist who recently did a month long residency at CCS where she was working on a graphic novel that speaks directly to kids about mental health. I was thrilled when Cara created the space in her busy schedule to work on this.
Starting with an outline of the topics StarkMHAR provided, Cara went to work fleshing out the comic. We worked through many drafts getting input from StarkMHAR along the way. In addition, we sought feedback from other mental health professionals and from Dan Nott, the lead cartoonist for the Democracy comic book.
Once the comic was finished, CCS graduate student Ivy Allie, jumped onboard to help with production and coloring. Ten thousand copies were delivered to Ohio the first week in October 2020 and the book is available for free online as a PDF and can be purchased in print as well. From start to finish the project took about 11 month to complete. I can’t speak for Cara, but I found working on this book during the pandemic a balm. Reading and rereading each draft and engaging with the comic’s warm and charming artwork was a perfect antidote to doom scrolling.
Let’s Talk About It: A Graphic Guide To Mental Health is designed to destigmatize the conversation around mental health addressing everything from stress to anxiety to addiction. The book also looks at how the brain affects behavior, shares ways to stay mentally healthy, and directs readers towards resources for those who need help.
Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for creative ways to interact with young people about their mental health felt urgent. Now, even more so. I’m hoping this comic creates and holds a space for anyone who is struggling with their mental health or is looking to help someone in their life who is struggling. I invite members of the graphic medicine community to help spread the word about this valuable resource. Check out cartoonstudies.org/mentalhealth for more information.
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