Stephen L. Holland is a figure in

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

. A writer about comics, he is also the co-owner and curator of Page 45, a

comic book shop The direct market is the dominant distribution and retail network for American comic books. The concept of the direct market was created in the 1970s by Phil Seuling. The network currently consists of: * three major comic distributors: ** Lunar ...

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

. He is to be distinguished from Steve Holland, also a British historian, bibliographer and writer about comics, associated with the Bear Alley website. Stephen L. Holland and Mark Simpson opened Page 45 in Nottingham in 1994, soon joined by Dominique Kidd. Holland wrote the column ''Talking Shop'', about comics retailing, which was published in ''

Comics International ''Comics International'' was a British news and reviews magazine about comic books. Founded in 1990, it was published monthly by Quality Communications until 2006, and then by Cosmic Publications Ltd. until 2010. Over time, ''Comics International ...

''. In 2003, he coined the term "new mainstream" to denote comics that eschewed

superheroes A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

in favor of subject matter more in line with the popular genres of other media, such as thrillers, romances, and realistic drama. In the 2010s, Holland reviewed comics for ''

Comics Bulletin Comics Bulletin is a daily website covering the comic-book industry. History Silver Bullet Comicbooks In January 2000, New Zealand-based publisher/editor Jason Brice founded then named Silver Bullet Comicbooks. During this period, the site ...

''. Holland has at various times supported British

comic conventions A comic book convention or comic con is a fan convention emphasizing comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events hosted at conv ...

, festivals, and related events. For instance, Page 45 sponsored the

British Comic Awards The British Comic Awards (BCA) were a set of British awards for achievement in comic books. Winners were selected by a judging committee; the awards were given out on an annual basis from 2012 to 2016 for comics made by United Kingdom creators pub ...

in 2015, with Holland also serving as a judge. He also serves on the board of

The Lakes International Comic Art Festival The Lakes International Comic Art Festival, often referred to as LICAF, is an annual comics art festival. Established in 2013, the not-for-profit festival takes place for a weekend in October each year. From 2013 until 2021 LICAF took place in ...

. In 2020, Holland was named the UK Comics Laureate by The Lakes International Comic Art Festival, a position he held until October 2023.

References

External links

Page 45 website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holland, Stephen L. Businesspeople from Nottingham Comics critics Comics retailers (people) Living people Year of birth missing (living people)