Myrick, Leland 1961-

PERSONAL:

Born 1961; married; children: one. Education: Graduated from the University of Missouri at St. Louis and California State University at Los Angeles.

ADDRESSES:

Home and office—Pasadena, CA. E-mail—info@lelandmyrick.com

CAREER:

Comic book writer and graphic novelist. Renaissance Arts Academy, Los Angeles, CA, staff member overseeing information technology and testing. Owned a web development company.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Kellogg Excellence in Education Award; three-time recipient of the Ralph Flynn Memorial Communications Award; Apple Foundation grant.

WRITINGS:

The Sweet Collection (collection of comics), Adept Books (Starr, SC), 2000.

Bright Elegy (graphic novel), Adept Books (Starr, SC), 2004.

Missouri Boy (graphic novel), First Second (New York, NY), 2006.

Writings and illustrations featured in Dark Horse Comics, GQ Japan, and Vogue Russia. Creator of the "Sweet" series of comic books.

SIDELIGHTS:

As a child, Leland Myrick was an avid reader, an interest that followed him through his college years as he earned degrees in English and education. He gained an early appreciation for comic books as a result of his family's weekly outings to the bookstore for fresh reading material. Myrick went on in adulthood to create his own series of comic books, a collection called "Sweet" that read much like a compilation of graphically enhanced short stories. The books were published independently, which gave Myrick the opportunity to have a hand in each step of production, including outlining, penciling, inking, and layout.

Myrick moved on to the format of graphic novel with 2004's Bright Elegy and 2006's Missouri Boy, which gave readers the opportunity to learn about his life growing up in rural Missouri by means of a series of vignettes. Tina Coleman wrote in a review for Booklist that the stories in Missouri Boy "touch and connect us as readers, encouraging us to remember our own youth." The book was called "gleeful and precise" by a Kirkus Reviews contributor. Kliatt reviewer George Galuschak appreciated the novel's "quiet, powerful moments" and found it "chockfull of vibrant imagery."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 15, 2006, Tina Coleman, review of Missouri Boy, p. 61.

Kirkus Reviews, August 1, 2006, review of Missouri Boy, p. 32.

Kliatt, January, 2007, George Galuschak, review of Missouri Boy, p. 32.

ONLINE

Leland Myrick Home Page,http://www.lelandmyrick.com (March 8, 2007).