Jamila Rowser facts for kids

Jamila Rowser is an American writer who creates and publishes comic books. She is famous for her award-winning graphic novel, Wash Day Diaries. She also started her own publishing company, Black Josei Press, to help other women of color share their stories.

Before writing comics, Jamila ran a blog called Girl Gone Geek from 2010 to 2016. On the blog, she wrote about things she loved, like cosplay, video games, and anime.

Early Life and Education

Jamila Rowser was born in England. Her mother was in the U.S. Air Force, so her family moved around a lot when she was growing up. She lived in many places, including the Netherlands, Germany, Hawaii, and different parts of the United States.

Jamila is Afro-Latina, which means she has African American, Dominican, and Puerto Rican family roots. After moving around, she went to college at the New York Institute of Technology and earned a degree in communication.

Building a Career in Comics

In 2010, Jamila started a blog called Girl Gone Geek. She wanted to connect with other people who loved "nerd culture" topics like Star Wars and Doctor Who. She also created a group called Geek Girl Brunch, a fun meetup for women and non-binary people to talk about their favorite nerdy things.

Black Josei Press

Jamila founded her own publishing company called Black Josei Press. The company focuses on publishing comics and other creative works by Black and Brown women.

The name was inspired by josei manga, a type of Japanese comic made for older teen girls and adult women. Jamila admired how josei manga told many different kinds of stories.

Under her company, she wrote a sci-fi comic called Wobbledy 3000. It's about an alien who has trouble learning a popular dance move.

The Story of Wash Day Diaries

In 2018, Jamila published her first comic, Wash Day, through Black Josei Press. The comic was illustrated by Robyn Smith. It tells the story of a young woman named Kimana and her Sunday hair-washing routine. To get the money to print the book, Jamila used the website Kickstarter and raised more than three times her goal.

Later, Jamila and Robyn Smith worked together again to create Wash Day Diaries. This longer graphic novel, published in 2022, tells the stories of four Black women and their friendship, centered around the time they spend caring for their hair. The book was a huge success and won major awards.

Personal Life

Jamila Rowser currently lives in Miami, Florida.

Published Works

• Wash Day (2018)
• Wobbledy 3000 (2018)
• As Above, So Below (2020), a short comic in the Sun and Sand collection
• Ode to Keisha (2021)
• Wash Day Diaries (2022)

Awards and Recognition

Jamila Rowser has won several awards for her writing.

• 2018: Her comic Wash Day was named one of the Best Comics of the Year by The Comics Journal.
• 2021: She was named Best Writer by the Broken Frontier Awards for her comic Ode to Keisha.
• 2023: Her graphic novel Wash Day Diaries won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Graphic Novel/Comics.
• 2023: Wash Day Diaries also won the Ignatz Award for Outstanding Story.