Writer Adam Bessie and illustrator (and MFA Comics alum) Pete Glanting collaborated on the remarkable graphic memoir Going Remote: A Teacher’s Journey, which was chosen as one of Publisher’s Weekly Top Ten Graphic Novel Picks for 2023. Bessie and Glanting will be reading from their graphic novel, followed by a conversation with CCA Comics faculty Ajuan Mance, and a book signing afterwards.

“I love this riveting graphic memoir about teaching, living with brain cancer, and navigating the pandemic lockdowns. Bessie, a community college English professor, goes from teaching dystopian literature to being submerged in a present-day sci-fi landscape, and skillfully weaves together the stories of his life as a patient with cancer, a teacher and parent during the pandemic. Glanting’s illustrations shine in the science fiction elements and in his careful depictions of quotidian life. Bessie and Glanting’s collaboration is a beautiful example of the possibilities of graphic memoir: a luminous examination of teaching, science and survival.” — Grace Farris, M.D. Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at Dell Medical Center and author of Mom Milestones: The True Story of the First 7 Years

Adam Bessie is a community college English professor in the San Francisco Bay Area and writes comics which have been published in many national outlets, including The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Boston Globe, and Truthout. Adam won The New York Association of Black Journalists 2018 Award for his graphic essay “Betsy Devos’ ‘School Choice’ Movement Isn’t Social Justice. It’s a Return to Segregation” (with Erik Thurman). Most recently, Adam is the author of the graphic memoir Going Remote: A Teacher’s Journey. Adam also appears in the BBC Scotland documentary Long Live My Happy Head, which was featured at the 2022 Frameline Film Festival in San Francisco.

Peter Glanting is an illustrator and UX designer. He is fascinated by engravings, wood block prints, and works that emphasize hatching and linear halftone. He created the Illustrated Guides comics series for the SF Bay Area for The Bold Italic, and illustrated the comics Pro Sex Tips from Novice Surfers, The Legend of Sutro Sam, and Black Sun Retirement, among others. Recently, he illustrated Going Remote: A Teacher’s Journey. Pete holds a B.A. in English from the University of California at Davis, and an M.F.A. in Comics from the California College of the Arts. He lives and works in Portland, Oregon.