Tillie Walden

Tillie Walden (born 1996) is an American cartoonist whose graphic novels often blend introspective memoir with science-fiction and fantasy. She is best known for *Spinning*, a coming-of-age memoir about her youth as a competitive figure skater, which won the 2018 Eisner Award for Best Reality-Based Work, making her one of the youngest Eisner winners ever. Born in 1996, she grew up in New Jersey and Texas before studying at the Center for Cartoon Studies. Her signature style combines delicate, expressive linework with soft, atmospheric color palettes, often using quiet, spacious layouts to emphasize emotion. Key works include the space-set epic *On a Sunbeam*, the surreal *Are You Listening?*, and the webcomic *Pirouetten*. She has also collaborated on the middle-grade series *Junior High – Chaos im Doppelpack*. In 2023, she was named Vermont’s cartoonist laureate for a four-year term, becoming the state’s youngest ever to hold the position. Her catalog includes work as a writer, artist, colorist, inker, and letterer across eleven issues from 2017 to 2024, with titles like *West* and *West Texas* rounding out her bibliography. Walden’s quiet, emotionally resonant storytelling has established her as a distinctive voice in contemporary comics.