So, you wanna make comics, eh? Part 3: WHY

Note: Wow, it's been over a year since I started this batch of essays. Time flies when you're going insane.

Out of this three part series of essays, this one is probably the most important.

Q: Why?

Because it deals with your motivations as an artist, as a writer, cartoonist, storyteller. Make no mistake, that is the ultimate goal of what we do. We tell stories.

Q: Why?

Because telling stories is what bonds people together. Every family, tribe, community, nation and religion has its story, and often stories within them. We tell stories to entertain, to comfort, to inspire, to warn, to anger, to arouse, to teach. Comics, the roots of which stretch back millennia, is still relatively unexplored as a medium for storytelling.

Q: Why?

Because a lot of people in America still think of comics as campy Batman ZAP BANG POW, juvenile, violent, hyper-sexual, stupid, homosexuality-inducing garbage.

Q: Why?

Because stupid stereotypes that play on the fears of the ignorant take a very long time to dispel. It doesn't help when a particular program is re-run for thirty years.

Q: Why?

Because humanity seems to define their reality through misery; we tend to remember the bad times easier than the good times.

Q: Why?

I'm afraid I don't know.

Q: Why?

Because I'm not a neuroscientist.

Q: Why?

Because I was too busy daydreaming about being a cartoonist when I should have been paying attention in biology class.

Q: Why?

Because telling stories is way more interesting to me than being a scientist.

Q: Why?

Because with comics, you can find ways to communicate ideas and connect with your audience like no other media.

Q: Why?

Because it's like Show & Tell in one easily distributed package.

Q: Why?

You're kidding, right?

Q: Why?

This has got to be some kind of joke.

Q: Why?

All right, who let this doofus in here?

Q: Why?

You're beginning to piss me off.

Q: Why?

Because you won't stop asking that question!

Q: Why?

I don't know; why do you keep asking "why"?

Q: Why?

Because we're not having a real conversation!

Q: Why?

A conversation isn't just questions and answers! It's a discussion and relation of ideas and/or events.

Q: Why?

Because that's the way humans relate to each other and feel less lonely in the world.

Q: Why?

Because that's just how we are!

Q: Why?

We can't be something we're not.

Q: Why?

Because some things are and some things are not!

Q: Why?

Things that are not can't be.

Q: Why?

Because then nothing wouldn't be! You can't have fucking nothing isn't/everything is!

Q: Why?

Because if nothing wasn't, there'd be fucking all kinds of shit we don't like: giant ants with top hats dancing around! There's no room for all that shit!

Q: Why?

Oh fuck you, eat your french fries you little shit goddamn it!

Where was I?

Why do you want to tell the story?

Why use the medium of comics?

Why are you using that style?

Why are you using that media/tool?

Why are you using that line/sentence/panel (how does it serve the story)?

Why does that line/sentence/panel work/not work?

This is the most introspective aspect of creation. I'm sure you'll come up with a few questions on your own as you progress. You don't necessarily have to answer those questions, but it helps to think about them.

Salon Quickie Tip #1: Photoshop New Window

I'm planning to make Quickie Tips a regular series. Whether it's Photoshop, Illustrator, or traditional art techniques feel free to contribute any neat or helpful tricks you've learned over the years.

Here's something I use frequently in Photoshop, New Window.
Tired of zooming in and out while you're painting in Photoshop? Just open another duplicate window resized to show the entire image.

Go to: Window-Arrange-New Window for yourfilename.psd























Tuck this new second window in the corner. You now have two simultaneous views of your work. While you paint in the main window the second window will show the changes too!

Let's talk Comics Culture & Criticism (Linkgasm)

It seems some folk in our little group aren't too aware of what's going on in the comics industry (glares at Lynne). So here are a few links to various review sites, blogs, and podcasts to help pop the bubble we sometimes get stuck in.

Comics Worth Reading

Comics Should Be Good

The Beat

Journalista

The Comics Reporter

Indie Spinner Rack

Comics Critics!

Comic Foundry

Feminist SF

Occasional Superheroine

The Savage Critic

Estoreal

Comics Oughtta Be Fun!

Comics 212

Dick Hyacinth Hates Your Blog

Every Day is like Wednesday

Eye on Comics

Girl Wonder

Living Between Wednesdays

Precocious Curmudgeon

Same Hat! Same Hat!

Barnacle Press

Your Webcomic is Bad and You should Feel Bad

Your Webcomic Can Still Be Saved (defunct)

And of course:

Tales to Mildly Astonish

Free Peanuts

Universal Syndicate's Comics.com has recently revamped their website. Along with a new look and navigation system, they now offer 50 years worth of free Peanuts cartoons!

Great news for people who don't want to schlep $29 (or $19 if you're buying it from Amazon.com) for those fancy Fantagraphic books.

The new Comics.com site also offers years of archives of other great comics such as Get Fuzzy, Liberty Meadows, Alley Oop and my personal favorite Pearls Before Swine. Another new feature is the ability to customize your own personal RSS feed or homepage to get only the comics you want see.

Snoopy.com, the official Peanuts site is also in the process of being revamped. Another thing to look forward to!

Advice from Dave Roman

Dave Roman, is a cartoonist/illustrator/editor who works at Nickelodeon Magazine. For those who used to take Klaus Janson's class at SVA, do you remember him coming by and giving us advice? Below is a link on his website which summarizes what he spoke that day.

It's always good to get a refresher on these kind of things.

Advice for building a career as a freelance artist and/or paid cartoonist by Dave Roman.

Travis Charest Step by Step

I am a BiiiiG Travis Charest fan, and I can't believe I haven't shared this article with you guys yet. It's a short tutorial on how he does one of his beautiful sequential panels. I have to warn you though, he uses good ol' ink and airbrushes, no computers!

To see more of his art check out the extensive Official Unofficial Travis Charest Gallery.

I also recommend you check out his Space Girl series.

All good stuff, all good stuff.

ILoveSketch: Sketching System for 3D Curve Models

ILoveSketch from Seok-Hyung Bae on Vimeo.

From their website:

A 3D curve sketching system that captures some of the affordances of pen and paper for professional designers, allowing them to iterate directly on concept 3D curve models. The system coherently integrates existing techniques of sketch-based interaction with a number of novel and enhanced features. Novel contributions of the system include automatic view rotation to improve curve sketchability, an axis widget for sketch surface selection, and implicitly inferred changes between sketching techniques. We also improve on a number of existing ideas such as a virtual sketchbook, simplified 2D and 3D view navigation, multi-stroke NURBS curve creation, and a cohesive gesture vocabulary.