Ever read Break of Day? It’s good stuff. Ever meet Nate Fakes? Here’s your chance.

BC: Who are you?
NF: Nathanael Fakes – aka Nate Fakes (I’ve been known as The Frustrated Cartoonist as well). I am the creator of the syndicated series, Break of Day. I also have cartoons in MAD, Parade magazine and numerous other publications. I’m also the owner of Nate Fakes Studios, that has divisions such as www.natefakescartoons.com, www.bizcomics.club, and www.vettoons.com that all specialize in creating custom cartoons for clients and companies.

BC: How is your last name pronounced? Are you tired of “are you drawing under a fake name” jokes yet?
NF: I’m one of the last of the Mohicans; I like to say, in regards to my last name. There aren’t many Fakes’ out there. But it’s pronounced like it sounds. “Nate fakes out the defense.”

NF: I get asked all the time, “Is that your REAL name?” I haven’t come up with a snappy answer yet, so I give the lame response of, “Yes.” Then the person usually walks away disappointed that there wasn’t any funny story behind it. All this being said, I like being a Fakes. I just hope it’s my real last name, and not Fake.

(from Break of Day)

BC: What personal details do you think are relevant to readers to know about you?
NF: I was born and raised in Ohio. I attended Wright State University where I majored in Fine Art. I could always draw, but thought art might be fun to major in and I might pick-up a few tips along the way. As a student, I became the graphic artist and staff cartoonist for the school newspaper, The Guardian.

NF: The Guardian job landed me an internship with MAD Magazine in New York City. I spent a crazy summer hanging out with “The Usual Gang of Idiots” and then became one myself when I started getting articles and cartoons published in the magazine. I believe the MAD experience has helped tremendously with my current work – which is syndication, corporate clients and other publications.

(from Break of Day)

BC: Do you consider yourself a cartoonist, an illustrator, an artist, or something else?
NF: I always thought it would sound more sophisticated to say I was an artist, but really, I’m definitely a cartoonist.

BC: How did you get your start as a cartoonist then?
NF: I started drawing when I was in diapers and never stopped. Crayons were used constantly as a child drawing on anything and everything. I was really influenced growing up with old Disney cartoons, Garfield, and people like Mozart. Mozart you say? Well, anyone that could “make it” and really be good at something was inspiring. I watched the movie Amadeus and that sort of creativity really blew me away.

(from Break of Day)

NF: I was your typical young cartoonist. I drew things I saw out of the newspaper, drew in class instead of paying attention and loved getting comic books from the library. And it just never stopped.

BC: How long have you been at this, and what do you think your biggest breaks were?
NF: I’ve been drawing my whole life, so I guess you can say I’ve always been at it. That being said, I’ve had NUMEROUS day jobs along the way as I grew as a cartoonist. And admittedly, I slacked off a bit in my mid-20’s when I was more focused on having fun than drawing (I say to this day I’m about ten years behind). So, it has taken me awhile to become professional. I was lucky and got some honest (and brutal) critiques along the way that really helped me grow. One mistake many people make is listening to friends and family tell you how good you are at something. You really need honest feedback from a professional to get better. I thought I was really great at cartooning until I learned that I had a ways to go and my drawing actually stunk on a professional level.

(Roy Doty correspondence.)

BC: Can you share some examples of those critiques, and the changes you made to address them?
NF: “Gross”- Roy Doty.
Roy Doty was my biggest, toughest critic of all time. He passed away awhile back. This post talks a lot about the critiques and how it helped me improve. Quoting: “However, he liked the material and was glad I developed a style. Yes, he let me know it wasn’t up to his standards. And it wasn’t. But he was hoping to see my work go somewhere. Roy really helped my career.”

(from Break of Day)

NF: My big break was drawing the yearbook cover for my elementary school when I was in 5th grade. I was paid a whopping five dollars – but boy, that made me more determined than ever to become a cartoonist. And then MAD Magazine was definitely my BIGGEST break. I grew up with MAD, so it’s a cool factor in my life to say that I interned with them and have that connection. Those guys are the greatest.

NF: Last year I was accepted into the NCS (National Cartoonists Society) and I feel on some level that was a major break as well. All my colleagues that I admire are members, so it feels like a real accomplishment to be there as well.

BC: What would you say you learned the most from interning at Mad?
NF: MAD was great (and – of course – still is). As an example, there was nothing like having a serous meeting discussing what word was funnier: bra or panty? At MAD, there again I learned a lot about improving. I showcased a lot of my art, and at that time, it was very mediocre. It was years later after my internship until I got a cartoon actually printed. But I began to notice how much further I needed to develop before I could ever become “professional”. Sam Viviano (MAD’s art director) was extremely honest and helpful. He even loaned me some books during my internship that showcased cartoonists’ artistic styles to pay attention to.

NF: All this being said, the writing process was what I focused on more than the art while interning. I spent most of the time with the editorial department, so it was really great to see how a magazine all came together and everything behind the scenes. There’s a ton that goes into each issue.

NF: The one thing I regret about my internship was I tried too hard. I really wanted to stay in NYC, work with MAD at the office and not head home after the internship. I didn’t have a return ticket home. It was NYC or nothing. I felt like I kind of wasn’t myself because I wasn’t relaxed. I was too focused on, “Okay, gotta make an impression.” I wish I would’ve chilled out more and just thought of the internship as it was – an internship.

NF: Naturally, when the internship was over – it was over! As you know, I continued a relationship with MAD (and still have one to this day), but I wasn’t hired to work in the office. So, I ended up a few days later waiting tables at a pizza restaurant in Jersey to make ends meet. Several months later, it dawned on me that I should head back home to Ohio, focus on my work, improving, etc. and get back to what I needed to do. There was no point staying on the east coast as a career move (even though the pizza was delicious).

(from Break of Day)

BC: What led up to your starting Nate Fakes Cartoons, and do you have any other pokers in the fire right now?
NF: Nate Fakes Cartoons is part of Nate Fakes Studios. It’s the home base for everything I do. I wanted a site where people can check out my work and – if I’m a good fit – hire me. It’s important to have a website with a showcase of work if you’re in this field and you’re looking for clients. They need a place to go.

BC: Which of your works are you most happy with, or proud of?
NF: My syndicated series Break of Day I’m proud of because I worked very hard to get that series in the newspaper and syndicated online. That being said, anytime a cartoon is picked-up for MAD is always a proud moment. There’s nothing like opening up a magazine and seeing your work on the pages there.

(from Break of Day)

BC: Do you have any collections on the market yet? Where can readers find them?
NF: I just self-published a small collection of cat cartoons called Laser Pointers, Hairballs, and Other Cat Stuff. Jim Davis, creator of Garfield, actually has a blurb on the front about it. It’s now currently available on Amazon.com and Nate Fakes Cartoons.

BC: How do you approach that blank sheet of paper when you decide to start your next strip or panel?
NF: I’ve always written ideas first before drawing them. Typically, I try to write every day in the morning. Sometimes, a whole week of ideas pour out of me. Other days – nothing. Reading a lot of other comics does help sometimes. But, I always try to be as original as possible so I try not to do that too much and just put down on paper whatever comes to mind. Sometimes they’re hits – sometimes misses. If I think it’s decent though, I’ll usually end up drawing it.

(from Break of Day)

BC: If your strip had a soundtrack, what would it be?
NF: That would be a mix between The Doors, Mozart and Pink Floyd: A bit weird, with some unexpected moments.

BC: Who are your favorite artists/writers? Have you met any of them?
NF: I’ve always been a fan of Garfield, so Jim Davis. I actually got a chance to visit his studio last January. It was amazing. Jim wasn’t available to meet, but we have corresponded via email (and he gave me that great mention of my book). The MAD Magazine artists are fantastic. Sam Viviano (art director for MAD) is one of the nicest guys out there. He helped me get into the NCS also (National Cartoonists Society). Roy Doty was a great help in offering constructive criticism. I was also influenced a lot by Walt Disney, Edward Gorey, Robert Crumb and Chas Addams. Since becoming a member of the NCS last December, I’m anxious and excited to start hanging out with more cartoonists.

BC: What do you like most about the works of Gorey, Crumb and Addams (the artists, not the law firm)?
NF: I really love the details they all add and their originality. I cherish cartoon art with lots of little details and elements to it, and their work really stands out. I used to really try to over-do-it and have since not added as much detail to my cartoons. But, if you really look at my comics, there are bits and pieces of all three of these guys.

(from Break of Day)

BC: Do you follow any other comic strips right now?
NF: I honestly don’t follow any specific comics anymore, really. I read a lot of them, but that’s it. I think there’s some good cartoons out there these days and others that I can’t believe are as popular as they are. It’s an interesting time in cartooning. I’m always amazed at what does well and what doesn’t.

BC: What do you think makes for a good comic?
NF: I believe the writing is about 75% of what makes a good comic and the drawing is just 25% these days. It used to be the opposite (somewhat). I like good art. Some comics seem just thrown together, and I’m not a huge fan of that (unless the writing is spectacular). I like off-the-wall, odd and bizarre material that you don’t see much of. That’s one thing about writing a gag comic like I do. I feel like a lot of my material has been done before, so I try to separate it all as much as possible. I love writing and drawing really new ideas and I’m working on them constantly. A graphic novel is in my future, along with some kid books. I’m hoping to take the ideas for those and create something extremely new.

(from Break of Day)

BC: Do you use Patreon or Kickstarter?
NF: I tried a Kickstarter once for a graphic novel concept. It failed miserably. That being said, I went about it completely wrong. I asked for way too much money and had no clue what I was doing with it. I think Kickstarter and Patreon are a good idea for some, and not others. I found it kind of a frustrating experience and I didn’t like the hustle involved in it all. I think I have a Patreon account that I opened years ago, but I never did anything with it and it’s just sitting there. Maybe I should check it? There might be supporters on there unbeknownst to me.

BC: Do you have any projects coming up?
NF: I am excited about some new projects with BizComics and Vet Toons. There is great opportunity in the custom cartoon market these days, so those are all coming together this month and in the near future. I’m really anxious to write more books and produce a graphic novel. Kids books as well. I have dozens of books written and ready to go – just need to actually do them! My big goal as well is finding a literary agent and publisher to help with all of this. That part, I’m finding out, is not easy at all.

BC: What is involved with drawing custom cartons? Is the process any different from doing something like Break of Day?
NF: The custom cartoon market is an area that is really growing. I love working with clients and delivering them unique comics to use in marketing, promotions, social media, etc. I’ve worked with numerous corporate clients, and they all love cartoons.

NF: I make the process easy for clients. I get an idea of what they want by having a phone conversation – and take their ideas and run with them. I’ll come up with 3-5 ideas (or more, if I have them) and then they help decide what idea is best. From there, I’ll send them out a rough. Once approved, I move on to the final. I help with letting a client know what I think works best, and they tell me what they think works best. I try to research their company as much as possible before diving in.

NF: At the end of the day, there’s a finalized cartoon that (as far as I know) they’re happy with. I have a lot of clients that return, so it’s nice to have the regular work. I’m currently branching out to specific industries. An example is Vet Toons that caters specifically to veterinarians. Custom work is different than my syndicated work because I have more of a direction to base ideas on. With my daily gag comics, they’re kind of a free-for-all and I just create whatever comes to mind.

(from Break of Day)

(All artwork here has been reproduced with the permission of the artist. Copyright of Nate Fakes (c) 2017.)
(This interview is the copyright (c) of Curtis H. Hoffmann 2017. It may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the permission of the author.)

Alex Norris’ Dorris McComics is one of the strips on Doug Savage’s reading list. I’m please to present Alex here today.

(from Dorris McComics)

BC: Who are you?
AN: I am Alex Norris. I am from the UK. I was born in Swansea in Wales, went to university in Bristol and now I am based in London. I studied English Literature at university, and I suppose that my literary side is definitely lurking in my comics but I think I hide it well. I think growing up in Swansea, a grim seaside city (in the words of Dylan Thomas, an “ugly, lovely town”) formed my love of celebrating crap things.

(from Dorris McComics)

BC: Do you consider yourself an artist, an illustrator, or something else?
AN: I have tried all the names for what I do: when you say “comic writer” people think you write funny articles, if you say “I make comics” people assume you mean superheroes, and if you say “artist” people assume you put a dirty cup in the corner of a gallery and title it “Society’s Womb” or something like that. I’ve started saying “cartoonist” because people tend to understand that right away.

(from Webcomic Name)

BC: How did you get started, and what were your biggest breaks?
AN: I drew my first comics when I was 10, I made a full issue of a comic like The Beano called “Bommynokka“, with all my own characters. One was “Dippy the Bus Kangaroo”, a kangaroo who did bus tours and the bus always crashed in various ways, and one was “The Friendly Bacteria” which was about two cool bacteria with backwards caps and sunglasses, based on an advert I saw for a probiotic yoghurt. I drew compulsively all the way through school, and then did comics for my university newspaper. When I graduated I didn’t want to do anything else so I started updating Dorris McComics regularly and building an audience while working at a science centre. After two years, I quit my job and went full time!

AN: My biggest breaks were probably getting a deal with Webtoon. I have done two series for them: “How to Love“, a love advice comic, and “Hello World” (ongoing) which is a photo-collage travel series. That meant I could do comics full time. Most other things have been more of a slow grind rather than a “break”!

(from Dorris McComics)

AN: Dorris McComics was just a place to dump all the ideas I had, playing with the format of comics and doing visual gags. It was a bit of a mish-mash. There was a joke that I put lots of effort into every comic and updated sporadically, so for April Fools one year I did 8 updates in one day, all very simple relatable humor ending with “oh no”. I was sitting on that idea for over a year before I decided I should make it a bigger project, so I started Webcomic Name.

BC: Which of your works are you happiest with or proudest of?
AN: I am very happy with Webcomic Name– I enjoy making a big solid series that has a strong concept all the way through! That has always been a struggle for me in the past. There are lots of individual Dorris McComics strips that I am also very proud of, because I worked on them one at a time, each one as a separate work, and some of my earlier ones are still very good I think.

(from Dorris McComics)

BC: What do you look for in a comic? Have you met any of the artists? Do you have any dirt on them?
AN: There isn’t one thing I look for in webcomics- I tend to love so many for their own reasons. With both Dorris McComics and Webcomic Name I was trying to improve the webcomic landscape a bit, but I still love the things out there. Just picking a few out of the hat, I love Julia Kaye‘s autobio strips, I love Olivia Walch’s wild threads of logic in Imogen Quest (most underrated webcomic imo), and currently enjoying Poorly Drawn Lines, you never know where the punchline will land! There are so many more I love, and I have met a lot of other artists at conventions. I do have dirt: they are all disgustingly lovely people.

(from Webcomic Name)

BC: Who are your favorite artists/writers?
AN: I don’t consider myself just a webcomic artist although that is what I do now- I want to make plays, television, movies, animation, sculpture, painting, poetry, novels, anything I can! But webcomics are one of the most accessible and small and inexpensive things you can make, so they suit me now. So I get inspiration from lots of places: At the moment I love the silly, cartoonish (yet literary) poetry of William Blake and Emily Dickinson and Ogden Nash, and also silly, cartoonish (yet dark) books by Kurt Vonnegut and Roald Dahl and Oscar Wilde. And this week I am into movies that have a very strong emotional core that let you get away with a wild storyline, like Mrs Doubtfire and Ghost.

(from Webcomic Name)

BC: Have you used Kickstarter or Patreon?
AN: I do have a patreon and it is getting going slowly! It is nice to actually get money for the thing I spend most of my time on, rather than relying on other side-projects for income. It’s at: www.patreon.com/dorrismccomics

BC: Do you have any upcoming appearances or conventions?
AN: I will be at Planet Comic Con in Kansas City (Apr. 28-30), and MCM London (May 26-28).

(from Webcomic Name)

(All artwork here has been reproduced with the permission of the artist. Copyright Alex Norris (c) 2017.)
(This interview is the copyright (c) of Curtis H. Hoffmann 2017. It may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the permission of the author.)

Several readers have recommended Something About Celeste, which is also on Amanda El-Dweek’s reading list. I’m happy to present here the man behind Celeste.

—

BC: Who are you?
ES: I am Eric Salinas, webcartoonist for Something about Celeste. I have been drawing Celeste in some sort of fashion since 1997, but I have only been publishing the strip online since 2015.

BC: What personal details do you think are relevant to readers to know about you?
ES: I was born and raised in Texas. During college I was published in my university publication, my hometown newspaper, and surprisingly also in the University of Hawai’i paper. That was the height of my professional reach. Over the next few years I was rejected by every syndication multiple of times. Eventually I became a school teacher. From 2010-2015 I taught English abroad. I have lived in the Czech Republic for two years and Turkey for three during that time. I am constantly torn between wanting to stay at home & work long hours on my comic strip and between my wanderlust (which never really goes away).

BC: Where are you now?
ES: I am currently in Texas, in a suburb near Austin. I am going back to Turkey soon. I was supposed to be back there last summer, but I had visa problems (The failed coup may have had a hand in making everything so topsy-turvy). In a way, it was kind of good that I stayed a little longer, as I had my best year to date drawing my comics.

BC: Have your travels had much effect on the humor or settings in SaC?
ES: Not really. I wanted to add more traveling stories into my comics, maybe make Celeste and Paige ex-pats in another country, but I have had no ideas as up to yet. However, I do think living in other places has helped me decide to translate my comics into other languages. I get my friends to help me with the translations. I started with Turkish, but then I also made Dutch and Czech translations as well. Right now, it is just a fun side project that I do with them.

BC: Do you consider yourself a cartoonist, an illustrator, an artist, or something else?
ES: I guess I would call myself a cartoonist and a digital designer. I am not much of an artist; I don’t draw any better than my peers. However, I am able to use my skills on Photoshop to hide the limitations of my art (I have even taught myself how to make ‘oil paintings’ on Photoshop). I think I have an eye for layout design. I studied Advertising Portfolio as an undergraduate. Therefore, I am very conscious of the visual elements and I try to make my comic as visually appealing as possible. I consider the overall layout just as important to the comic as the artwork and wordplay.

BC: How did you get your start as a cartoonist? How long have you been at this, and what do you think your biggest breaks were?
ES: I started drawing comics when I was eleven after I stole my brother’s Calvin & Hobbes book. It was a birthday gift he didn’t really care for, so he didn’t notice me pilfer it. After that, I made it a Christmas tradition that I would buy myself a Calvin & Hobbes book. I would even wrap it and sign it to myself. My first comic was about a bratty, spiky-haired kid named Kevin (even then I wasn’t very original). I would show friends and family my ‘Kevin’ comics and even had an exhibit at the local children’s museum my sophomore year. Besides that, I didn’t really do much with that comic.

BC: What led up to your starting Something About Celeste?
ES: I created a new comic strip my freshman year in college, Common Ground, to try to develop my skill as a cartoonist and broaden my appeal. Common Ground was from a feminine viewpoint and had a more popular appeal than my high school comic. It was in this comic strip that I developed Celeste. Early on, I created her as an overly-imaginative person harassed by monsters under the bed, skeletons in the closet, drawings of stickmen coming to life, and talking viruses. Throughout my career I have been very much influenced by Bill Watterson’s work.

ES: After graduation, I knew that of all my characters that I had created, it would be Celeste that I would try to syndicate. So from 2001-2005 I tried to syndicate Something about Celeste. I don’t know if I would call it “my biggest break” but I would certainly say a pivotal moment was when I sent a packet of my comics to Lynn Johnston of For Better or For Worse in the fall 2001. She absolutely hated it, and told me in detail why. After a period of nursing my wounds, I came to see what Lynn saw and was in complete agreement. I restarted my comic from the ground up. I am grateful to her because without her honesty, I would have been stuck on that mediocrity plateau for a very long time. No one likes critiques, but it was the thing that I needed to hear in order to improve.

BC: How would you describe SaC in a way intended to draw in new readers?
ES: SaC is a light-hearted strip about a young 20-something woman who has retained her childlike sense of wonder. Celeste loses herself in elaborate fantasies and daydreams. Sometimes these fantasy stories even surprise me, and her palindrome mirror reflection, Seles, has unexpectedly become one of Celeste’s biggest ‘frenemies’ in the strip. There is a balance between word play, slighty sexual innuendo jokes, colorful pictures, and just plain silliness in the strip.

ES: Lately, I have been using another main character, Paige, to draw more serious introspective strips. Recently, a friend of mine, who I show most of my work before publishing, has said there is a certain ‘yin and yang’ thing with Celeste and Paige. Celeste strips are the silly and light-hearted ones, while Paige strips are more introspective, serious, and sometimes morose. I use Celeste to get rid of all the weird ideas swirling in my head, and I use Paige to help me in my own mental state.

BC: Which of your works are you most happy with, or proud of?
ES: Besides Something about Celeste, I also dabble with the webcomics Pennylicious and Celeste International on Tapastic.com. However, I work almost exclusively on SaC, and it is easy to say that it is SaC which I am most proud of.

BC: What can you tell us about Pennylicious?
ES: A Turkish friend of mine has showed an interest in comics. She fell in love with Calvin and Hobbes after I introduced her to the strip (They don’t have C&H in Turkey). I even mailed all my old C&H books to her for her birthday. Pennylicious is her comic that I help collaborate on. So far it is about a group of 20-something year-old friends who are in love with the concept of ‘love’ but have no idea how to have a real relationship. Unfortunately, my friend has been real busy with grad school, so we haven’t done too much on it on Tapastic.

BC: Do you have any collections on the market yet?
ES: Not yet, even though I have been harassed by a few family members to publish a book. I guess I am waiting to build a larger audience on the various websites that I publish on. I hope to publish a book soon, that’s all I can say for now.

BC: How do you approach that blank sheet of paper when you decide to start your next strip or panel?
ES: I usually get my ideas from hot showers, long walks, or surfing Facebook to look at silly memes that people post up. I jot every weird idea into my notebook. When I am ready to make a strip, I start with the text first. Again, I make sure it is visually appealing with the text being justified and not spilling into the adjacent panels. Besides making sure the text is symmetrical, I make sure I leave enough space in each panel to show the most optimal amount of artwork. I am conscious of the economy of words, or ‘brevity’, and try to tell my story in the least amount of text as possible without losing the meaning or humor. After that, I am ready to add the artwork. I could spend hours scouring Pinterest, Google Images, or other webcomics to give me inspiration or guidance to help me illustrate my strip. I used to physically draw my panels on separate pieces of paper, scan them in, and then digitally connect the separate pieces of art into a single comic strip. However, as of the past two years, I just do everything in Photoshop; I draw directly with my computer mouse.

BC: If your strip had a soundtrack, what would it be?
ES: Since SaC is a comic strip about a young, naive woman straight out of college, I would think that No Doubt’s ‘Just a Girl’ would be a great song on Celeste’s soundtrack. However, lately I have been drawn to the performer Grimes. I think her song “Kill v Maim” perfectly captures the erratic energy of Celeste and her daydreams.

BC: Who are your favorite artists/writers?
ES: I am a fan of the artwork by Tom Bancroft and Gisele Lagace. I study their sketches and character poses when I draw my own characters.

BC: Do you follow any other comic strips right now?
ES: Besides Bill Watterson and Lynn Johnston, the few newspaper comics I read are Dana Simpson’s Phoebe and her Unicorn, Rick Detorie’s One Big Happy and Bill Amend’s Foxtrot to name a few. But I spend more of my time reading webcomics than the ones in the newspaper. I follow almost all of the Sherpa cartoonists like Amanda El-Dweek, Jordan Smith, Francis Bonnet, Jose Sepi, Jason Platt, Bob Murphy, Alan Archer, Andrew Pilcher, Ed Owens, and Val Wares. I am also a fan of DrawWritePlay, C. Cassandra and Lunarbaboon found on various places on the internet.

ES: I like C. Cassandra as the only slice-of-life comic which I don’t find trite and IS well-drawn. I also like Christopher Grady’s work Lunarbaboon in that it is a comic that isn’t always trying to tell a ‘joke’. Humor isn’t the only emotional response that a cartoonist should strive for and we shouldn’t limit ourselves by always trying to be funny.

BC: Any idea what’s going on with Comic Sherpa now? Has GoComics been keeping the artists in the loop in any way, shape or form?
ES: I’ve gotten one or two emails since January. Who would have thought it would be so hard to add a Sherpa page to the GoComics website. Unfortunately, I don’t know what is going on there, so I have been focusing on my reach with other websites.

BC: What do you look for when you read someone else’s strips?
ES: Initially, I look for something short and sweet; something I can read in 30 seconds or less. I don’t want to read a whole novel when I view my comics. If there is too much text, I skip it. I want a comic strip to be clean and simple without too much text or overly busy artwork. I am very impatient so I look at the layout to see if it is visually clean and symmetrical before I continue reading. After I’ve invested in a comic strip for years (like with C&H), I am willing to spend more time looking at every detail and nuance in it.

BC: What do you think makes for a good comic?
ES: I prefer character-driven comics more than simple visual gags. The thing that makes a great comic is Honesty. Sure they are silly characters in silly situations, but they have to be as real as possible for the reader to get emotionally invested in them. A comic must be more than a funny pun or silly picture; it must tell a truth in a way that we had never thought about but we can all agree with. A good stand-up comedian does the same thing; show us a mirror to our own follies and faults.

ES: What makes a very good comic strip? Be really funny. Simple as that. What makes a great comic strip? Be really, really sad so that the reader has no choice but to laugh. I have seen comics that I would put in that ‘great’ category. The cartoonist does not have to make the whole comic strip in this way but just have certain individual strips that are honest and profound (remember the dead bird in the Sunday strip of Calvin and Hobbes?) But, this should be done carefully. A cartoonist shouldn’t try to be melodramatic and try to pull the emotional heart strings. If the reader feels they are being emotionally manipulated, it would backfire.

BC: Do you use Patreon or Kickstarter?
ES: No, not yet.

BC: Do you want to plug your site?
ES: My website is www.somethingceleste.com. Besides having all my SaC comics in the archives section, I have also included every other comic I have made since 1997, so there is a lot of content to see there that a reader couldn’t find anywhere else. I am also a Sherpa cartoonist, but unfortunately the Sherpa page is down on GoComics.com. I am on Tapastic, BeComics, and Comx Box Syndicate.

BC: Do you have any other projects you are working on?
ES: My Celeste International comic on Tapastic is a multi-lingual comic strip featured there. I have some of my old SaC comics translated into Greek, Turkish, Arabic, French, Czech, German, and Dutch. I have my comics translated for no other reason than ‘why not?” Right now, it is more a conversation piece than an actual draw to attract new readers. Despite its lack of numerous subscribers, I am constantly looking for new translators who would help me with that side project.

BC: If Celeste were here, what would she say are her best and worst features? What else would she want to add to the interview?
ES: Haha…what a fun question! Let’s see, I would think her best and worst feature would be the same thing. Her bubbly personality brightens everyone’s day, but that same ‘bubbliness’ is the reason no one takes her seriously. She would say “I am not just a dumb blonde. I read books. I know Isaac Newton invented the fig newton.” Whether she was joking or not, even I don’t know, but she is fun to have around.

BC: Anything else you’d like to add?
ES: I just want to thank you for giving me an opportunity to talk about my comic. Even though I have been drawing for decades, I am only a recent entry to the world of webcomics. I’m pretty much a small fry in a business that is very crowded with many talented artists and writers. Hopefully, as many people as possible would become aware of Celeste and see the same thing that I see in her. This interview has been fun for me.

(All artwork here has been reproduced with the permission of the artist. Copyright Eric Salinas (c) 2017.)
(This interview is the copyright (c) of Curtis H. Hoffmann 2017. It may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the permission of the author.)