The Montgomery Advertiser wrote about LaShawn Colvin, an African-American writer who’s opening her own specialty store, and even produced a comic drawing inspiration from manga books like Sailor Moon:

Lashawn Colvin hit pause on her family’s VCR. The 11-year-old military brat recorded episodes of “Sailor Moon” when they aired in her new town of Montgomery and watched them every chance she got. There was something about how the girls transformed into superheroes that fascinated her.

That transformation was on screen in front of her, frozen. She studied it. A few minutes later she was bent over a piece of paper drawing what she saw.

Colvin had started her own transformation, through a childhood of filling shoeboxes with handwritten “Power Rangers” stories and watching shows like “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Xena: Warrior Princess.” Now, the Jefferson Davis High School graduate is a comic book editor and artist, as well as the creator of her own comic.

This fall, she’ll become one of the first Black women to own a comic book store in the South when her geek shop, café and gaming lounge opens in her adopted hometown. But she wasn’t thinking about any of that when she decided to take the plunge. She just wanted a place to shine a spotlight on other artists and creatives like her.

“I know the struggles of trying to get seen,” Colvin said. “It’s very important for my store to represent the community, where we try to help each other get ourselves out there.”

Her own comic, “Beautiful Soldiers,” takes inspiration from the shows and comics she’s loved over the years. It follows a multi-racial team of four teenage girls who each draw power from their own element of nature, as they try to follow the teachings of their mentor and save the Earth while juggling boys and high school.

It took her six years to develop the comic and spread the word. She gained attention, made connections, and formed partnerships with national artists, all while working as an editor for independent comics publisher Short Fuse Media and holding down another full-time job as a retail store manager.

And she’s clearly a success story in her own way, similar in some ways to Janice Bryant Howroyd or the late entrepreneur Herman Cain, who built up food businesses in his time. Judging from the art samples provided, which are impressive…

…it’s clear she’s not a politically correct advocate either, more proof that there are women who have no problem with this kind of alluring artwork. That’s why Colvin’s worthy of attention, and a lady to be admired.

Check out her website for Beautiful Soldiers here.

Originally published here.