I just finished my first interview on the radio since launching the website. It was actually a lot of fun. I had to remember not to make my answers too long--I know I can run on talking about stuff that I'm interested in. But the host, Bruce Arnold, said I did great, and with luck, I'll pick up more members and/or visitors. So far, I think Rich from New Mexico is the farthest-away subscriber, but on the Internet that means nothing anyway. Still, once I can say I have members in 50 states, that'll be something.
Now, Phase One of my Master Plan was getting the site online. Phase Two will be to get the strip into newspapers. In terms of income, papers aren't worth a lot, but in terms of getting people to check out the website, they work well as advertising. Note the button on the Home page where you can contact your local paper and tell them you want to see QlownTown in it--please use it! There are other phases as well, but these first two are enough for the first year or so. I have ideas for all sorts of cool products based on the strip, but those will have to wait.
I was cleaning out some files on the computer yesterday, wondering if I should delete the outlines for website pages. I'll save the sketches, because I had a teacher in art school who told us to save everything we ever do, just in case, but I, like a fool, threw out many pads of drawings that I now wish I could add to the archives. Not that they were brilliant stuff, but some people (like me) like to see the arc of an artist's journey, so to speak. Now part of me says Clear out some stuff because it takes up a lot of memory, but another voice says You'll be happy someday when you print your ten-year retrospective book. I plan to do the strip for at least fifteen years; that works out to about 5,475 cartoons. I've planned ahead, so now I only have about 5,200 cartoons to go and I can retire. I can see why a lot of cartoonists say the pressure to produce can get intense, but I'm hoping I can stay ahead of it. I mean, it just seems wrong to be stressed if you're drawing cartoons! I've always drawn them to relieve stress.
Speaking of which, I'm feeling that I'd better get back to work.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Spring
It's sunny and 44 degrees outside, and there is now more ground than snow showing. I have started thinking about buying peat moss and driveway coating, raking and reseeding the lawn, and starting seedlings. I need an electric blanket to heat the seed flats. Whenever I've tried starting seeds without one, they get leggy or moldy and die. You'd think someone would have an old electric blanket I could buy or have, but no one has responded to my Facebook request. I guess Facebook can't provide all we need. It has reassured me that I actually have friends and am married, but some things you just have to hunt down elsewhere.
Like land. We are also thinking about moving, finding a piece of land and building a new house. In the past, I've always built or restored our houses myself, but now I'm too busy and we're old enough that my wife would like our house completed before we die, which I'm afraid means I have to trust others to do the bulk of the work. I may reserve a few projects like interior pocket shutters on the windows for myself, but the house realistically needs to be in move-in condition before we do move in. This is normal for most people, but for us it's new territory. My wife has been good enough to accept my taking on more than I can finish myself in the past; it's time for me to return the favor.
If I find that electric blanket, I'll try not to sew any rips or tears. That would be one more project.
Like land. We are also thinking about moving, finding a piece of land and building a new house. In the past, I've always built or restored our houses myself, but now I'm too busy and we're old enough that my wife would like our house completed before we die, which I'm afraid means I have to trust others to do the bulk of the work. I may reserve a few projects like interior pocket shutters on the windows for myself, but the house realistically needs to be in move-in condition before we do move in. This is normal for most people, but for us it's new territory. My wife has been good enough to accept my taking on more than I can finish myself in the past; it's time for me to return the favor.
If I find that electric blanket, I'll try not to sew any rips or tears. That would be one more project.
Friday, March 13, 2009
TV shows
My wife and I enjoy Chuck, the TV show about a computer nerd who gets sucked into the world of spies and intrigue when a secret government "superfile" gets implanted in his brain. It's kind of retro; a little bit Get Smart, a little Mission:Impossible. But the characters are all well-played--even those that started out two-dimensional have developed into interesting people. Now I hear that Chuck is in trouble. Not the character--the series. Viewership is off.
This happens to us on a pretty regular basis. We loved Space-Above and Beyond, a show back in the eighties (I think) that was sort of like a 40's war movie set in the future. And Cop Rock--a "drama" where cops and robbers would burst into song. It featured several new songs every week, and was actually a lot of fun. And Firefly, which was cancelled and evolved into the movie Serenity, which also stumbled. Eli Stone was a recent casualty, and while I read that the producers knew it was going to be dropped in time to resolve the story lines in the characters' lives, no final wrap up episode ever appeared.
There have been others over the years, and they always seem to be the slightly quirky ones. While The Bachelor and According to Jim last for years, our beloved little favorites seem to frequently fizzle out before their time. When we hear that one of our new favorites is in danger, we're torn between making sure we see every week to enjoy it while we can, or trying to break free before the end. We always wind up sticking with it, though, watching the final episode with a feeling of frustration. Of course, we know this was a good show and the public at large was mistaken. No show we ever like is really mediocre.
I'm not complaining to teach a lesson or make a point. It's Friday and I just feel like complaining. Well, maybe there is a point. Watch Chuck. Chuck is charming, Sarah the spy is sexy, Casey the other spy is wonderfully irascible, and the various secondary characters are a wonderful ensemble. I've thought of copying down the names of all the sponsors' brands, then writing to tell them I bought their products because I saw them on Chuck, but that would just be more frustrating if the show is canceled, because then I will have wasted extra time for naught. Tell you what: if you don't watch Chuck, please write to the sponsors for me. That way, it may save the show and you'll have done a good deed. Thank you.
This happens to us on a pretty regular basis. We loved Space-Above and Beyond, a show back in the eighties (I think) that was sort of like a 40's war movie set in the future. And Cop Rock--a "drama" where cops and robbers would burst into song. It featured several new songs every week, and was actually a lot of fun. And Firefly, which was cancelled and evolved into the movie Serenity, which also stumbled. Eli Stone was a recent casualty, and while I read that the producers knew it was going to be dropped in time to resolve the story lines in the characters' lives, no final wrap up episode ever appeared.
There have been others over the years, and they always seem to be the slightly quirky ones. While The Bachelor and According to Jim last for years, our beloved little favorites seem to frequently fizzle out before their time. When we hear that one of our new favorites is in danger, we're torn between making sure we see every week to enjoy it while we can, or trying to break free before the end. We always wind up sticking with it, though, watching the final episode with a feeling of frustration. Of course, we know this was a good show and the public at large was mistaken. No show we ever like is really mediocre.
I'm not complaining to teach a lesson or make a point. It's Friday and I just feel like complaining. Well, maybe there is a point. Watch Chuck. Chuck is charming, Sarah the spy is sexy, Casey the other spy is wonderfully irascible, and the various secondary characters are a wonderful ensemble. I've thought of copying down the names of all the sponsors' brands, then writing to tell them I bought their products because I saw them on Chuck, but that would just be more frustrating if the show is canceled, because then I will have wasted extra time for naught. Tell you what: if you don't watch Chuck, please write to the sponsors for me. That way, it may save the show and you'll have done a good deed. Thank you.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
QlownTown online
QlownTown has arrived! The site is up and running, and the response has been overwhelming. I thought I'd feel somewhat ambivalent when it finally went live, since it took so long to get there. But the moment I was told that everything was ready and I could announce, I was thrilled! The whole day was spent excitedly sending out e-mails and Facebook announcements. One of my favorite e-mails of all those I received in response to the announcement was "Qongratulations". I've tried to avoid overusing Q as a replacement for C or K, so I was amused to see it appear where I wouldn't have thought to put it. I wrote back, "very qlever".
Now I want to write a QlownTown song, and maybe do a video for uTube. I already have the first two lines: "Everybody sing and dance/kick your partner in the pants." I mean this to be in the butt, not front, so don't start injuring other people in the name of QlownTown.
I'd like to animate it, but that'd be a lot of work--something which I try to avoid if possible. But dressing people up as clowns and taping them would be a lot, too. I may just draw stills to illustrate the tune. I predict a one-year turnaround...glaciers and I move slowly.
Someone commented that she likes the colorful look of the cartoons. I had actually noticed that they were brighter than most, and thought about trying to tone them down. You see, as I go along coloring them, I do whatever color seems appropriate for the item I'm filling in, rather than choosing an overall theme first. And drawing clowns, it seems only natural to do a red nose, orange hair, loud clothes. If it's a clown house, shouldn't the floors be purple, or the walls be pink? So it often winds up bright. But I decided it's nice to have that distinctive feature.
When it came to coloring the "Clown mobsters" cartoon, however, I realized it was still in black and white (I scan the ink drawings in grayscale, then switch to color mode), and decided that particular strip looked best in b&w--the whole noir look. Of course, the pies in the violin case might not obviously appear to be pies to some people, but I'll take that chance. And as time goes by, if I'm behind schedule, I may just leave a cartoon black and white...but coloring them is a lot of fun.
I guess in some ways I've never progressed beyond the little kid with crayons and a coloring book. If I am someday able to hire someone to color them for me, won't that be a cool job to get paid to do? There's probably a cartoon in that.
Speaking of cartoon ideas, if you have any suggestions, please post or email me. I'd love to do strips that apply to particular occupations, services, sports, etc. I can't pay, but you'll get to see your idea online if it's used. You could even buy it on a T shirt or whatever, and tell people it's a professionally-drawn custom cartoon that was done for you from your idea.
Now I want to write a QlownTown song, and maybe do a video for uTube. I already have the first two lines: "Everybody sing and dance/kick your partner in the pants." I mean this to be in the butt, not front, so don't start injuring other people in the name of QlownTown.
I'd like to animate it, but that'd be a lot of work--something which I try to avoid if possible. But dressing people up as clowns and taping them would be a lot, too. I may just draw stills to illustrate the tune. I predict a one-year turnaround...glaciers and I move slowly.
Someone commented that she likes the colorful look of the cartoons. I had actually noticed that they were brighter than most, and thought about trying to tone them down. You see, as I go along coloring them, I do whatever color seems appropriate for the item I'm filling in, rather than choosing an overall theme first. And drawing clowns, it seems only natural to do a red nose, orange hair, loud clothes. If it's a clown house, shouldn't the floors be purple, or the walls be pink? So it often winds up bright. But I decided it's nice to have that distinctive feature.
When it came to coloring the "Clown mobsters" cartoon, however, I realized it was still in black and white (I scan the ink drawings in grayscale, then switch to color mode), and decided that particular strip looked best in b&w--the whole noir look. Of course, the pies in the violin case might not obviously appear to be pies to some people, but I'll take that chance. And as time goes by, if I'm behind schedule, I may just leave a cartoon black and white...but coloring them is a lot of fun.
I guess in some ways I've never progressed beyond the little kid with crayons and a coloring book. If I am someday able to hire someone to color them for me, won't that be a cool job to get paid to do? There's probably a cartoon in that.
Speaking of cartoon ideas, if you have any suggestions, please post or email me. I'd love to do strips that apply to particular occupations, services, sports, etc. I can't pay, but you'll get to see your idea online if it's used. You could even buy it on a T shirt or whatever, and tell people it's a professionally-drawn custom cartoon that was done for you from your idea.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Launch!
Okay, you've read this before. (If not, you can check previous posts and read it now.) But this time I think I mean it: the QlownTown site (www.qlowntown.com) will officially launch online on Friday, March 6th, THIS YEAR! That means that you will see a new cartoon every day from then until the end of time, or until I run out of ideas and shoot myself.
Coming up with new ideas doesn't worry me, because I have about a year's worth now, having been generating ideas the whole year this has been in development (and even before that). Of course, there may be days when you'll read one and say, "He had a year to plan and this is the best he could come up with?*" But, in the words of Maine humorist Tim Sample, "If you don't laugh, it's not because it isn't funny...it's because you don't get it." Of course, that may be true of Maine humor, which can sometimes be, as many regional styles are, distinct and peculiar (I personally love it, and have a slight whistle in my S's to this day because I spent so much time trying to get that whistle when doing a Downeast accent), but may not be true of your average everyday comic strip humor.
So if you think a cartoon's not funny, let me know. If it's because you don't know a critical part of the joke (for example, if a character speaks in French with no translation or you never heard of Puddintane), look it up on the Internet first. I'm still amazed at how I can type in a long sentence, like "How do I change the rear wiper on a Toyota Prius?" and will get links to sites with pictures, instructions and other information I didn't even know I wanted. There's also a site I love www.ComicsIDontUnderstand.com, where people post comics they, well, don't understand. Then a number of people will write in with explanations, critiques, etc. Any exposure is good exposure, within reason, so if you don't get one of mine, send it to them.
And speaking of exposure--oh, what a smooooth segue!---once you've visited the site, PLEASE tell everyone you know about it. Send emails, call them on the phone, accost them on the street, put posters on their front doors, send flaming arrows with the web address on the shaft into their yards--just get the word out. It's been a year-long process, and the payoff will be if I can get thousands, ultimately tens of thousands of people reading the strip...well, that, and get them to buy merchandise related to the strip. But for now, please spread the word...that's Phase One of my plan for Qlown Domination.
I recently marked down the original art from what it was going to be, because I had priced it at the value I anticipate a year or two from now, but of course it may not be worth that much yet. So I see the original art as a good investment. Remember, there's only one piece of original art for each strip, so when the first one's gone, they all are!
See you on Friday!
*Grammatically speaking, this sentence should actually end with "...up with which he could come?", but that sounds somehow inappropriate.
Coming up with new ideas doesn't worry me, because I have about a year's worth now, having been generating ideas the whole year this has been in development (and even before that). Of course, there may be days when you'll read one and say, "He had a year to plan and this is the best he could come up with?*" But, in the words of Maine humorist Tim Sample, "If you don't laugh, it's not because it isn't funny...it's because you don't get it." Of course, that may be true of Maine humor, which can sometimes be, as many regional styles are, distinct and peculiar (I personally love it, and have a slight whistle in my S's to this day because I spent so much time trying to get that whistle when doing a Downeast accent), but may not be true of your average everyday comic strip humor.
So if you think a cartoon's not funny, let me know. If it's because you don't know a critical part of the joke (for example, if a character speaks in French with no translation or you never heard of Puddintane), look it up on the Internet first. I'm still amazed at how I can type in a long sentence, like "How do I change the rear wiper on a Toyota Prius?" and will get links to sites with pictures, instructions and other information I didn't even know I wanted. There's also a site I love www.ComicsIDontUnderstand.com, where people post comics they, well, don't understand. Then a number of people will write in with explanations, critiques, etc. Any exposure is good exposure, within reason, so if you don't get one of mine, send it to them.
And speaking of exposure--oh, what a smooooth segue!---once you've visited the site, PLEASE tell everyone you know about it. Send emails, call them on the phone, accost them on the street, put posters on their front doors, send flaming arrows with the web address on the shaft into their yards--just get the word out. It's been a year-long process, and the payoff will be if I can get thousands, ultimately tens of thousands of people reading the strip...well, that, and get them to buy merchandise related to the strip. But for now, please spread the word...that's Phase One of my plan for Qlown Domination.
I recently marked down the original art from what it was going to be, because I had priced it at the value I anticipate a year or two from now, but of course it may not be worth that much yet. So I see the original art as a good investment. Remember, there's only one piece of original art for each strip, so when the first one's gone, they all are!
See you on Friday!
*Grammatically speaking, this sentence should actually end with "...up with which he could come?", but that sounds somehow inappropriate.
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