About - First Second Books

ABOUT FIRST SECOND

First Second is a graphic novel publisher located in New York City. We publish graphic novels in every genre and for readers of all ages. Our graphic novels are available online, in libraries, in comic book shops, and wherever books are sold.

Led by Editorial & Creative Director Mark Siegel, Editorial Director Calista Brill, and Creative Director Kirk Benshoff, each of our graphic novels is the work of an army of creators, editors, designers, and editorial staff.

MEET THE TEAM

Mark SiegelEditorial & Creative Director

Mark Siegel is the founder and creative and editorial director of Macmillan’s graphic novel house. First Second offers an ambitious collection in every age category, in a wide range of themes and styles, with talent from all over the world. First Second has garnered an unmatched array of literary awards, starred reviews and bestsellers—including for the original works of National Book Award Finalist and Printz Winner Gene Luen Yang, and beloved bestselling authors such as Vera Brosgol, George O’Connor, Sara Varon, Jen Wang, Shannon Hale, LeUyen Pham, the McElroys, and so many more.

Calista BrillEditorial Director

Calista Brill is editorial director of First Second. She has been with the company since 2008 and has had the pleasure of editing creators such as Faith Erin Hicks, Ben Hatke, Zach Weinersmith, Rainbow Rowell, and many more. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband, kids, and many cherished house spiders.

Kirk BenshoffCreative Director

Kirk Benshoff is the associate creative director for First Second. He has over 15 years of experience creating graphic novels. He has been with the company since 2019 and has had the pleasure of working with creators such as Howard Cruze, John Patrick Green, Ben Hatke, Faith Erin Hicks, Carey Pietsch, Gene Luen Yang, and more. When he’s not working on comics, he’s trying to get his books back from his kids who keep stealing them.

Robyn ChapmanEditor

Robyn Chapman was born and raised in Alaska and has both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in comic books. For the past twenty years she has been very active in the small press comics scene as an artist, self-publisher, and collector (she owns over two thousand zines). She previously worked at the Center for Cartoon Studies as a teacher and program coordinator. She started her career in publishing at Graphic Universe, the graphic novel imprint of Lerner. Robyn is now an editor at First Second, having joined the team in 2016.

Kiara ValdezEditor

Kiara Valdez is an Afro-Dominican editor at First Second. She was born and raised in New York City (shout out to Washington Heights) and has been an avid comics reader all her life. She graduated from Williams College with a double major in English Literature and Japanese, and spends her free time reading, writing, and enjoying a long list of other hobbies she can’t keep up with.

Samia FakihAssociate Editor

Samia Fakih is a Lebanese-American assistant editor at First Second, with a BFA in studio art and MFA in comics. Both an artist and editor, Samia has spent most of her life reading, writing, and drawing comics. She loves stories that blend romance, humor, and drama, and believes in working on books that teach emotional intelligence and empathy.

Sunny LeeSenior Designer

Sunny Lee is a senior designer at First Second. She grew up reading Calvin and Hobbes, Maus, Ghost World, and Battle Angel Alita, and is thrilled to now be working with the next generation of comic creators. She studied illustration at Syracuse University and the School of Visual Arts, and likes to think about the meaning of life in her free time.

Molly JohansonDesigner

Molly Johanson is a designer at First Second. When not designing graphic novels, they like to go biking and hang out with their pet rats.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What does :01 mean?

Is it first? Or second?
First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh.
Pressing the reset button. A clean slate. A fresh start.
Everything begins with the First Second. . .

FOR THE SCIENCE MINDED:

the first second

Imagine shrinking a proton down to a billionth of it’s normal size… Now pack into that tiny, tiny space about an ounce of matter. Bang. You are ready to start a universe.

And so from nothing, our universe begins.

In a single blinding pulse, a moment of glory much too swift and expansive for any form of words, the singularity assumes heavenly dimensions, space beyond conception. In the first lively second (a second that many cosmologists will devote careers to shaving into ever-finer wafers) is produced gravity and the other forces that govern physics…

A fraction of a moment after the dawn of creation, the universe underwent a sudden dramatic expansion. It inflated— in effect ran away with itself, doubling in size every 10(-34) seconds. The whole episode may have lasted no more than 10 (-30) seconds— that’s one million million million million millionths of a second— but it changed the universe from something you could hold in your hand to something at least 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 times bigger. Inflation theory explains the ripples and eddies that make our universe possible. Without it, there would be no clumps of matter and thus no stars, just drifting gas and everlasting darkness.

From Bill Bryson’s A Short History of Nearly Everything

Who’s behind all this?

Who’s behind all this? An army of talent: creators, editors, designers, and editorial staff.

For more on the story behind :01, check out our blog.

When do the books come out?

Just about every Tuesday! Take a look at our collection page to see what we’ve got planned for this season.

How do I submit a project?

At this time, First Second is no longer accepting unsolicited submissions. Please check back for future updates.

What kind of projects are you looking for?

:01 will consider original graphic novel projects in almost any genre, for any age. Fiction of all kinds, and non-fiction from visual essays to journalism and memoirs. Although not all our titles may be suitable to young readers, :01 does not publish pornography or books with gratuitous violence. We’re interested in authors with a unique and sincere voice. The books we love best leave us in a generative place.