Sina Grace
Sina Grace has worn many hats in his many years in comics but is mainly known for his work as a writer, artist, and general gal about town.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Grace got his start making comics as early as high school, when he worked as an editorial intern at Top Cow Productions and spent weekends working the register at Hi De Ho Comics in Santa Monica. From there, he split his time attending University of California, Santa Cruz and self-publishing zines, mini-comics, and his first-ever series, Books with Pictures.
From there, Grace entered the harsh world of fashion retail while continuing his pursuits in comics and illustration. During this time, he released the new-noir urban fantasy, Cedric Hollows in Dial M for Magic, illustrated the all-ages book Among the Ghosts for Amber Benson, and began a decade-long collaboration with Shaun Steven Struble on the webcomic The Li’l Depressed Boy (which would later be published by Image Comics). Grace’s life would change dramatically when getting an email about getting into editing comics.
In 2010, Grace left retail to embark on a career as Editorial Director for Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Imprint at Image Comics. In those years, he continued to work on his own pursuits, ultimately taking the plunge into full-time freelance work with his first autobiographical memoir, Not My Bag (which recounted previously mentioned retail hell, in gothic fashion). The freelance work continued with the Image Comics series Burn the Orphanage that Grace co-created with Daniel Freedman, then continuing on to his illustration duties on Michael Stock’s Penny Dora and the Wishing Box. He followed up Not My Bag with memoirs Self-Obsessed and Nothing Lasts Forever, the former of which has been adapted into a YouTube webseries that Grace wrote and starred in.
As a writer, Grace’s big break came from taking on the Iceman series for Marvel Comics. Across three volumes, Grace explored Bobby Drake’s journey coming out of the closet and becoming a stronger superhero than ever before, while also paving the way for greater representation in comics. His drag queen superhero, Shade aka Darkveil, made international press and cemented the character as a pop culture icon. From there, Grace has enjoyed writing for Archie Comics with Jughead’s Time Police, Boom Studios with the creator-owned Ghosted in LA and Go Go Power Rangers, and IDW with Jem and the Holograms and Read Only Memories.
Grace continues to work as an illustrator, contributing art to musicians Jenny Lewis, Tegan and Sara, Childish Gambino, Colleen Green, and more. Clients include Cameron Crowe, Stars, and Capitol Records.
He continues to live in Los Angeles, where he can be found in coffee shops working on whatever the next thing may be."
Photo by Lindsey Byrnes.
