There's absolutely NOTHING we can't do
The power of will
A very happy tabula rasa to you, dear reader! Today is the first day of the rest of your life, and I, for one, love a beginning. Nothing, absolutely nothing and especially not the past (nasty place, that) stand between us and our future selves! That great, frictionless expanse lies waiting to be crossed, if only we can... if only we can... how do we... is it just... what is it, one foot and then the same foot again? No, no. One foot, two foot, red foot, blue foot. That's not right. One foot, other foot, third foot? One foot... one... one... now, that's a funny word, isn't it, "one"? You say anything long enough, and it sounds like nothing. "One." Heheh. Wuh-uuuuuuuuuuh-uhn...
This week's theme is WILL POWER, so print this out and hang it in your office, because THIS NEWLETTER WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE. If only you let it.
-Sofia
Sara Lautman
What's in the book? Maybe it offers sincere advice for leaving a toxic relationship. Maybe it's 300 pages of STOP HITTING YOURSELF in all caps. Maybe the author runs a cult-of-personality MLM that dispatches minions to do exposure therapy work on clients while they (the clients) try to read. Whatever the case, no one has ever finished it.
Ali Solomon
I'm extremely competitive when it comes to games and sports, which is odd since I'm complete garbage at every single game and sport. Especially cornhole, which as a new suburban transplant, I've made it my mission to master. I just can't help myself—I NEED to release a stream of profanity-laden smack-talk, even while my opponents are fishing my bean bags out of the pool or the firepit. I'm destined to talk the talk, but can't walk the walk (since I managed to lose a shoe while getting trounced at bocce).
Asher Perlman
Behold! A cartoon about willpower and my lack thereof!
Sophie Lucido Johnson
In this season of diet and exercise, I find myself wondering all the time how many turtles and tortoises are fully jacked under there.
Hilary Campbell
I love tarot and palm readings and mediums and while I haven’t played my hand at voodoo dolls… I leave the door open, I don’t know what my future needs will entail!!! And while I do believe in it all, some people out there think it’s all just the willingness to believe in it. What say YOU dear reader? Is my dog conspiring to make me more active or am I just choosing to believe in her witch powers!?
Amy Kurzweil
Come on all you sweatin' Rockettes in media and tech, just kick those gams a little higher and this economy will see its name in LIGHTS! I know you can do it, a five, six, seven, eight -- JAZZ HANDS! This cartoon is three years old you say? Well FAN KICKS never go slack, buster! I'm the fightingest dancer on this stage, watch me be a star, just watch me!
Jeremy Nguyen
Sometimes you have to do a thankless job for free in order to pursue the love of your craft. No matter how pointless or meaningless it might be! There is some sort of delusion you have to feel to stay motivated that you may reach your goals one day. And you do it, because the tunnel vision of accomplishing that goal is so powerful. You can overcome all obstacles even if progress is so small that it's inconspicuous. You got this! Keep going! You will achieve something some day before you die, even if it's while you are dying!
Colin Tom
When it comes to will power, I’m generally oscillating somewhere between waking up at 4 am to write in my gratitude journal and reminding myself to not eat those tempting little morsels of shit that keep on finding their way into my life (first rule of dieting, don’t keep junk food in the house).
Jason Chatfield
I don't know if it's the blistering cold, or the 3 slivers of sunlight I get to see for ninety-six seconds each day from my drawing board, but I'm pretty sure Seasonal Affective Disorder has entered my bone marrow and is slowly turning me into a flesh suit full of dumplings and ramen. This has not been verified by a medical professional.
Brooke Bourgeois
I am never bold enough to order a pizza to my own apartment for fear that it would be too confusing for a delivery driver. However, this one’s for those people who find a way to have things delivered no matter where they are. Like school?? Remember when people would have pizza delivered to school?? Crazy.
Akeem Roberts
The last time I lifted weights, I broke my glasses. So it’s probably best if I accept my body the way it is. I repeat, it is not a lack of willpower.
Newstack
Ali Solomon's hilarious and relatable I Love(ish) New York City is available wherever books are sold!
Colin’s cartoon is available as a print here.
See more of Sara’s work on her Instagram, here!
Be kind to yourself and give Sophie’s newsletter a read!
Want to learn to toon? Take Sofia's Beginner's Comics course (six weeks by Zoom, starting 1/16)
Amy Kurzweil’s graphic memoir, Artificial: A Love Story, was named a best book of 2023 by The New Yorker, NPR and Kirkus!
Want to draw people? Kendra's online class "Figure Drawing for People Watchers" runs this February.
Cartoons by Hilary comes out every Friday!
Check out Navied Mahdavian’s critically-acclaimed graphic memoir, This Country: Searching for Home in (Very) Rural America.
Ellis Rosen’s DINK! is the perfect gift for the pickleball enthusiast in your life!
Check out Jason Katzenstein’s Patreon!
Amy Kurzweil teaches cartoon classes on Patreon! Sign up now to get the recording of every past class!
Jason has a new substack about making art called Process Junkie! And Subscribe to Jason Chatfield’s regular weekly Substack at NewYorkCartoons.com
Sofia's got an advice column! Read it here.