Johnny Parker II
I’m a comic writer and teacher. Originally from Detroit, Michigan, I now reside on Los Angeles, where I create engaging comics, manga, and zines with unique stories and characters. I also use comics in my classroom to strengthen students’ reading and writing skills, and through this work, I’ve been invited to teach educators how to integrate comics into their own classrooms to achieve similar results.
For more than 10 years, I’ve written entertaining and thought-provoking stories that challenge norms by featuring diverse characters and storylines relevant to modern struggles. My award-nominated comic The Black Man’s Guide to Getting Pulled Over is one example, along with my other titles: Broken, Die Cute, Black Fist & Brown Hand, Ewoks Are Better Than Hobbits, and Godzilla Rivals: Mothra vs. MOGUERA from IDW.
In the later years of my teaching career, I began incorporating comics into my English curriculum as a way to boost student engagement and broaden their understanding of what counts as literature. Now, I travel across the country leading professional development sessions for teachers on how to use comics to teach literary analysis and social justice. I have a deep passion for sequential storytelling, and I hope to inspire that same passion in others through both my writing and my teaching.
