Blog

From the Archives: Umbral gives girls in comics the adventure they need

by Madeleine Nesbitt This post was originally published August 8, 2014 Umbral is a comic that very much depicts the hero’s adventure story– that of King Arthur, or perhaps Frodo Baggins. There’s magic, thievery, a kingdom at risk, and secrets galore. Any typical male adventure hero would fit into this environment, but, thanks to creators Antony Johnston…

Read more >>

Some thoughts on going abroad, before actually going

by Joneka Percentie I’m leaving the country for the first time this weekend and I am a mess in every sense of the word. These last few days before my departure I’ve felt a strange combination of anxiety, excitement, and confusion. I’m getting on a plane flying across the equator and landing in the southern…

Read more >>

Black Women Directors is the perfect Tumblr for your summer movie needs

by Joneka Percentie SPARK’s ongoing Black Women Create  project highlights Black women working to create complex characters and fighting limited representation in the film and television industries through writing, directing, and producing. That’s why I was so excited to come across this tumblr called Black Women Directors, which has the same mission. Black Women Directors…

Read more >>

Annalise Keating and Claire Underwood aren't "Strong Female Characters"–and that's why I love them

by Annemarie McDaniel I watch quite a bit of TV, from the classic one-episode-a-week shows on primetime television to newer habits of binge-watching an entire season on Netflix. The shows I watch are all wonderful in their own unique ways, but there are two shows in particular I can’t stop obsessing over: How To Get…

Read more >>

I'm too young to vote, but I'm still stoked for Britain's General Election

by Georgia Luckhurst It’s funny, but until about two months ago, I really couldn’t have cared less about British politics. In the UK, where a historically two-party system forms our political culture, the political scene appeared tired to me: overwhelmingly dominated by middle-aged white men who didn’t really seem particularly interested in the lives of anyone who…

Read more >>

"I was writing books I wish I had when I was in high school": an interview with author Sara Farizan

by Montgomery Jones Every month, the  SPARK Action Squad reads and discusses a book together as part of our monthly #SPARKreads book club. Last month, we read If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan, a page turner of a novel about an Iranian high school girl, Sahar, who is in love with her best…

Read more >>

Guest blog: Speaking out is hard, but we have to do it

by Sara Gibbons Recently, three high school girls in South Portland, Maine spoke out about their right to not say the Pledge of Allegiance, and the backlash was truly astonishing. Online trolls commented on their story calling the girls “ingrates,” “witches,” and “attention whores.” If you spend any time on the Internet you’re I’m sure…

Read more >>

The Sisterhood of Night, like teen girls' lives, is complex and complicated

by Georgia Luckhurst, Montgomery Jones, Dee Putri, and Elisabed Gedevanishvili When a teenage girl says she’s the victim of a secret network called The Sisterhood of Night, a quiet suburban town becomes the backdrop for a modern-day Salem witch trial. Based on the short story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Steven Millhauser, “The Sisterhood of Night”…

Read more >>

Contact Us!