On Tuesday, Janelle Asselin announced via email that Rosy Press, the romance-focused comics publisher she founded in 2014, is becoming a part of Emet Comics, a small comics press run by Maytal Gilboa.

Emet is currently best known for publishing Zana, a sci-fi comic about apartheid by Jean Barker and Joey Granger. Zana and Rosy Press's anthology comic Fresh Romance were both nominated for the 2016 Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics in February, which ultimately went to Ms. Marvel. In her email, Asselin mentions that Emet Comics prioritizes diversity, which makes her more comfortable handing over the reigns of Rosy Press to Gilboa.

Asselin, who is a former editor here at ComicsAlliance, previously announced that she was shuttering Rosy Press indefinitely and leaving comics behind. While that appears to still hold true, and comics is a poorer world in her absence, it's exciting to know that Rosy Press will keep going, with new projects expected to be announced in the future, and previous projects staying on shelves. Emet also plans to honor Rosy Press's commitments to creators and readers.

 

Art by Kevin Wada
Art by Kevin Wada
loading...

 

In her letter to friends and supporters of Rosy Press, Janelle Asselin wrote:

When Maytal Gilboa of Emet Comics reached out to inquire about keeping Rosy Press going, it was an exciting moment. I'd known Maytal when I lived in Los Angeles and I knew before we even spoke about Rosy Press that above all, she would be someone for whom diversity in comics would be a priority. Once we spoke, though, I knew a lot more than that.
I know for sure, now, that Maytal is the right person to keep Rosy Press going, as part of her Emet Comics empire.
Maytal knows every inch of the Rosy Press business and is well aware of any of the company's outstanding obligations, so rest assured that if you are owed something by Rosy Press (whether it's a single digital issue or a print edition or even a high five [j/k]), you will get what you paid for. If you have files you still haven't downloaded from the Rosy Press site, you should do so now, although obviously we will try to make the transition as smooth as possible. The print edition that's available through Oni Press will remain available and for sale (and obviously you should go buy that if you want it because it's beautiful and great and fabulous). Our creators will be taken care of as well, and have been in the loop as we went through this process. Ultimately, the priority is to get the creators' work in front of as many readers as possible, which is what we all want. But there will also be new offerings from Rosy Press and Emet Comics that will further the business in ways that I could only dream of.
Rosy Press is named after my grandmother and my niece and I sport a rose tattoo on my arm that was drawn by multiple Rosy Press artists. To say that Rosy Press will always have a piece of me is a bit of an understatement. So suffice it to say that I would not entrust my sweet precious comics baby to someone that I felt would not care for it well. Please carry on the immense amount of support you have given me over my years in comics and give it all to Maytal and the team at Emet Comics.

 

Art by Marguerite Sauvage
Art by Marguerite Sauvage
loading...

More From ComicsAlliance