Leth was born in Ottawa and lives inHalifax, Nova Scotia,[3] and attendedNSCAD University, studying photography. They dropped out before achieving their degree.
Leth worked at the Strange Adventures comic shop in Halifax, where they developed an interest in comics,[4] and created promotional art for the shop.[5] In 2010, they created theirwebcomicKate or Die for their blog.[3]Kate or Die eventually became a bi-weekly column on Comics Alliance.[6] They cited fellow Nova Scotia writerKate Beaton as an influence, "...this person who was putting all this stuff out there, and no real formal art school training, but was doing really well with her work." Leth also contributed to the webcomicsLocke & Key: Guide to the Known Keys andThe Strange Talent of Luther Strode, and the anthology,Womanthologoy: Heroic.[5][7][8] They later contributed to theSmut Peddler anthology in 2012.[9][10]
Leth'sAdventure Time fan art on theirTumblr page attracted the attention ofBOOM! Studios, publishers of the comic based on the television show. They were hired to do covers, a short story, and agraphic novel,Adventure Time: Seeing Red,[5][11] which enteredThe New York Times Best Seller list in April 2014.[12] They also were a co-writer and co-artist for issue 3 ofAdventure Time with Fionna and Cake,[13][14]Adventure Time: Bitter Sweets,[15] andAdventure Time: The Four Castles.[16]
In 2013, Leth organized The Valkyries,[17] a group of women who work in comics retail.[18] In 2017, Leth described the group as "great for creating a community" and equivalent to aunion.[19] The group was disbanded in 2018, largely related to accusations that the group failed to adequately represent the concerns of women of color.[20]
In 2014, Leth wrote forJim Henson's Fraggle Rock: Journey to the Everspring,[21] andEdward Scissorhands[22] In 2015, Leth worked with Joe Quinones to pitchBatman ’89 as a comic series, butDC Comics rejected it.[23]
In 2015, Leth wrote another comic for Boom!,Power Up,[24][19] and wrote six issues ofVampirella forDynamite Entertainment.[25][19] Leth was co-host forLess Than Live with Kate or Die, a bi-weekly comics podcast which last aired in 2016.[3] Leth collaborated with the podcastWelcome to Night Vale and wrote stories for theLumberjanes comic for Boom!.[3] In 2018,Lumberjanes, the comic to which Leth contributed along with 5 other creators, was nominated for aGLAAD Media Award.[26] They also worked onTransformers: Galaxies, an anthology comic book series byIDW Publishing which is a spin-off to 2019'sTransformers comic book, which began on September 25, 2019 and concluded on December 30, 2020.[27]
ForMarvel they contributed toSecret Wars, Too, a comedic anthology, andPatsy Walker, A.K.A. Hellcat!,[28][29] for 17 issues. In 2016, Leth wrote for the graphic novel,School Spirit.[30] From October 2016 to February 2017, they contributed to issues 1-5 ofSpell on Wheels, co-writing with Megan Levens.[19]
Leth was also thecover artist for various webcomics. This includedAdventure Time: Marceline and the Scream Queens #5 in 2012,[31]The Midas Flesh #3 in 2013,[32]Littlest Pet Shop #2[16] andLumberjanes #1 in 2014,[33] andSwords of Sorrow.[34] Additionally, they were a variant cover artist ofSex Criminals #12.[35]
In 2020, Leth announced they had signed a deal withSimon and Schuster to produce a graphic novel entitledMall Goth, released in September 2023.[36][37]
In 2021, the seriesHigh Guardian Spice was released onCrunchyroll. Leth co-wrote four episodes for the seasons, and two other episodes individually.[38] Leth also appeared in the 2014 documentaryShe Makes Comics and in the 2016 episode "Paper Plate Pictionary" ofSuper Fun Awesome Party Game Time. From 2016 to 2017, they voiced Sira the Unbidden in the seriesVast.[41]
In September 2019, Leth announced their engagement to longtime partner Cohen Edenfield,[46] but revealed in July 2022 that the couple had "parted ways" and "remain best friends".[citation needed]
^Remington J. Osborne and Jamie Brewer (February 12, 2012)."Episode 189 with Kate Leth".WMD Radio (Podcast).Archived from the original on November 28, 2021. RetrievedNovember 28, 2021.
^O'Kane, Josh (13 November 2020)."The urban Atlantic advantage: Work-from-home era offers Halifax more people and more wealth, but at a price".The Globe and Mail.Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. RetrievedNovember 28, 2021.Kate Leth is a Haligonian artist who recently returned from Los Angeles...Finding an apartment in Halifax this fall was a very different experience for Kate Leth than when she last lived there five years earlier...The writer, illustrator and cartoonist Kate Leth returned to Halifax in September after five years in Los Angeles
