FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

 

How long have you been drawing?

I have been drawing since I was old enough to hold a pencil.

 

What did you start off drawing?

I started drawing comics from the Sunday Funnies of the newspaper.

 

What kind of paper do you use?

I currently use normal, everyday, ordinary 8 1/2 X 11’copy’ paper. You can find it at just about any store nowadays, only I usually go to office supply stores and purchase them by the ream (5,000 sheets) at a time – I go through them THAT fast. I normally go through a ream of paper about every six months.

 

What kind of pens and pencils do you use?

For pencils, I use just a normal #2 pencil, they are cheap and can be found just about anywhere. I keep them sharp all the time so I go through them faster than normal.

For pens, I use just a standard Sharpie marker for the outlining of the characters. Using Sharpies has always been my first choice; when the ink dries it’s water proof AND smudge proof. I then use a felt tip pen to work over the rest of the lines. Those two items really sharpen up the cartoon.

I also use a cotton glove that I cut the fingertips off from so that I don’t smudge any of the pencil or pen lines.

 

Do you use any other tools?

The only other piece of equipment that I use is a computer, which currently is an iMac. I used a PC for years and years and I just found that the iMac is designed for creative people, but either will work well.

I also have a scanner plugged into my iMac; any scanner that can scan black and white will work as long as it’s compatible and can scan at 300 dpi or higher. My scanner has a “Multiple Document Feeder” on the top so that I can put a pile of inked drawings into the scanner at one time and the computer takes care of the rest.

Once the drawings are scanned in, I use a program called, Adobe Photoshop, to ‘clean up’ (remove any errors) and then color and/or layout the drawings into a pre-made template.

 

Who are your inspirations?

1.     Charles “Sparky” Schulz – Creator of the comic strip “Peanuts.” Schulz’s individualistic style and insightfulness changed the thoughts and minds of generations of people on many levels, including values and self-worth.

Also, he never gave up on his dreams.

2.     Jim Henson – Creator of “The Muppets.” His creativity changed the face of entertainment, children’s television, and family entertainment for the world.

Also, he never gave up on his dreams.

3.     Theodore Geisel (aka: Dr. Seuss) – Creator of “The Cat In the Hat” and “The Grinch” to name a few titles. With his distinctive cartooning style and his creative use of the English language he changed the face and style of children’s literature and cartoons, setting a standard that is still trying to be achieved to this day.

Also, he never gave up on his dreams.

4.     Walt Disney – Creator of Goofy, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and a host of other characters as well as numerous theme parks, and movie productions. He changed the face of entertainment, family values, and production styles for the world.

Also, he never gave up on his dreams.

 

Where do you get your ideas?

I get ideas from everywhere in my life: work, family, sitting at the dinner table, everywhere.

It’s not so much a matter of ‘where’ you get the ideas from, but are you listening when they happen.

 

What is your advice to someone starting out?

1.     Practice. Practice. Practice

2.     Never give up on your dreams.