"To be a cartoonist, you must actually make cartoons. I bring this up because I've met a lot of people who say they want to be cartoonists, but they don't have any cartoons..."
- Kyle Baker
"Most comics publishers are kind of dumb and don't have a lot of money. They publish a lot of bad stuff. They turn down a lot of good stuff. Sometimes it's for stupid reasons. Other times it's for reasons that make good economic sense but still suck. There are two ways to deal with this situation. One is to draw the kind of comic that appeals to comics publishers. This is a great way to go, except for one thing: you can't fake it. A cartoonist who cynically crafts a comic to fit a market can never compete with a cartoonist who draws a comic about the same thing because he genuinely loves it. You know why Scott Pilgrim and Penny Arcade are blockbusters? Because those guys genuinely love jokes about Super Mario. You know why their dozens of imitators are less successful? Because they're imitators."
- Shaenon K. Garrity, editor VIZ Media
Coming back to broadcast depth to remind you that comics in particular and art in general is NOT dead, I've been checking out the recent STUMPTOWN COMICS FESTIVAL and came across audio of their SELF PUBLISHING LIKE A ROCKSTAR panel in its entirety. Very informative and definitely worth sharing to those of us who believe in the stories we create, shape, and prep for the world at large. Take a few minutes and give a listen...
3 comments:
Man - this post is seriously just what I needed today. Thank you. I can't wait to watch the video - I'll have it looping here at work all day so that when I get home I'll be so inspired to work that I won't have the option of quitting.
Love the illustration on your header btw!
Thanks Brian!
The header is a panel from issue 3 of the book.
I'm glad you appreciate the post. I agree that it's what I needed at the time I first heard it... I KNEW I wouldn't be alone!
Love to the fam!
waitaminnit...
?
you mean, they have chicks making comics now?
(inbox filling with hate mail)
kiddiiiiinnnng!
but yeah that Kyle Baker quote mirrors something I say to people in workshops a lot: you cannot get good at making comics just by thinking about it!
people seem to think that they can skip the stages of doing comics that are just okay. that they can 'study comics' and 'perfect their style' (re: 'procrastinate') before they draw any comics.
I say 'your style is what happens while you're drawing comics, not something you just pick off the rack.'
Anyways, great post and vid.
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