Her five children were her real introduction to comics. “I did not know about the countercultural and subversive world of comics until my own kids started reading graphic novels,” she said. Myracle grew up in Atlanta, and attended a Christian prep school where “comics just weren’t present,” though she did read Richie Rich and Archie comics. “I’m completely a 100% newbie and, knowing how passionate comics fans can be, it’s a little scary,” she said. Myracle has written many books for young readers (at least 17 novels), but Under the Moon is her first attempt at writing comics. Ultimately, she finds a new kind of family/team on the streets of Gotham City that also leads to a dynamic adventure. But Selena and her mother are trapped in a dysfunctional, violently abusive family situation that forces Selena to run away and become homeless. Under The Moon: A Catwoman Tale is an origin story about the teenager Selena Kyle, who grows up to become Catwoman, a complex female super hero who is both foil and love interest to Batman (in the story a teenage Bruce Wayne is a classmate and teen crush at Gotham High). Her books ttyl and ttfn, her dialogue and relationship to her audience was really authentic. “And we wanted authors with a POV like Lauren. “We saw an opportunity because of its success at identifying an audience that wanted more of our heroes,” Wells said.

The line, now a part of DC Zoom, identified a wave of middle grade girl fans excited about the superhero genre. Wells cited the importance of the 2015 launch of the DC Superhero Girls line. “We’re looking for stories that are authentic,” she continued, “stories about school problems, relatable narratives that use our characters as a lens through which to view these issues.” The key to the strategy, she said, has been the recruitment of a lineup of proven and acclaimed authors like Lauren Myracle, “using their expertise with this fan base to tell those stories.” “Graphic novels are one of the bright spots in publishing right now,” Wells said, noting that the launch of the DC Books for Young Readers provided DC with the opportunity to produce “out-of-continuity comics stories that push the storytelling boundaries of our iconic heroes for new fans.” Michele Wells, v-p, executive editor of DC Books for Young Readers, comes to DC from the book trade-she was formerly executive editor at Disney Worldwide Publishing, worked in editorial at Penguin Random House and has 20 years of experience in the book trade-and she talked with PW about the vision behind the new imprints. In April, DC Ink will release Mera: Tidebreaker by Danielle Paige and artist Stephen Byrne, a YA origin story focused on the relationship between Aquaman and Princess Mera and in May the imprint will release Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale by acclaimed YA author Lauren Myracle with artist Isaac Goodhart.

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