You're My Soul and Inspiration
Where we find cartoon ideas these days
Good morning, Toonstack faithful. Johnny DiNapoli here, and this week’s newsletter is all about inspiration. I asked my fellow cartoonists: where do you look for inspiration? What inspires your work? Who inspires you?
And can you believe none of those jerks said it was me?
Inspiration is an elusive thing, here for us one moment, gone the next. And when you’re an artist with deadlines to meet, bills to pay, and millions of adoring fans clamoring for your next work, sometimes you have to go out and find that inspiration. In a year where our work has been more isolated, I was curious to hear how everyone keeps on going and creating stuff.
So Toonstack, what’s inspiring you these days?
Zoe Si
In general, my creative process is “draw a picture about the thing that happened to you, but make it a little weird.” I draw about things that I see/experience, or things I think of while seeing and experiencing things. The upsides are that there is hypothetically an unlimited cache of things from which to draw inspiration, I get to draw comics about my life, and I have an excuse to do fun new things in the pursuit of “inspiration.” The downside is that there is no formula - I therefore exist under a veil of uncertainty that my newest idea will be my last, that I will eventually either stop having interesting experiences/thoughts, or that I will cease being able to think of funny things to make them into.
Ellis Rosen
I’m a sucker. A fool. I thought getting inspired would solve allllll my problems. I thought that bolt of inspiration would last long enough to finish a whole damn book. Well now look at me. I got the word doc for the first third of a novel just sitting on my desktop, hasn't been touched in months. Sure, inspiration carried me, but then just as quick, it deserted me, leaving me as aimless as ever. I got no stamina! None! Can’t finish a book without stamina! Sigh. Now the world will never get to read “My Musings on Lint.”
Kendra Allenby
My primary inspiration for cartoons is shit that annoys me. For example, booking a *#&! airline ticket. Happily, this also means my work doubles as self therapy.
E. Joy Mehr
This comic is true to life: I get inspired by pacing around my apartment and by drinking copious amounts of caffeine.
Navied Mahdavian
Edison once said "Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration." In my experience, it’s one percent inspiration and ninety-nine versions of the same cartoon (although according to IG user ThisIsNotNaviedsMom, all of my cartoons are genius [see, that is the ninety-ninth time I’ve made that joke]).
Mads Horwath
Two years ago, I thought I was going to be a comedy performer until I realized I don’t like people looking at me. If I ever manage to have a comedy special, I’m calling it “Mads Horwath: DON’T LOOK AT ME (AND DON’T GO NEAR THE SEWERS)
But the number one lesson I learned about performance comedy is to just have a life outside of it. That applies to cartooning as well. Just have a fucking life. It will shape the mind that forms the work because otherwise, you can end up in a mental echolalia.
This pandemic, I was in my 7x12ft windowless bedroom/office that was overwhelmed with papers and cats. Which is to say, I had no life outside of cartooning and it showed.
I am still wrapping my head around how I could not come up with my best cartoons and how I am still trying to get back into the groove of things.
But I will figure it out because I am powerful and beautiful.
Johnny DiNapoli
When in doubt, I go for a walk. Sometimes I’ll see/hear something that sparks an idea, and sometimes I won’t. For me it’s mostly about moving around. I find walking shakes a lot of old thoughts and images out of my head and pops in some new ones, which can turn into something down the road. I don’t feel like I can always “get” inspired, so instead I just try to find a mindset where I could get inspired, stay there as long as I can, and trust if something doesn’t come now, it will soon.
Feeling inspired? Drop your comments on inspiration below!
For Your Pleasure: Cartoon Extras
Have you checked out cartoonstock.com? Thanks to New Yorker cartoon editor emeritus, Bob Mankoff, this is the place to license and buy prints and merch of the best cartoons in the world, from The New Yorker, Wired, Airmail and... coming very soon... ToonStack!
Pre-order Murder Book, Hilary Campbell’s upcoming graphic memoir out November 9th!
Pre-order Send Help! a desert island cartoon collection by Ellis Rosen and Jon Adams
Amy Kurzweil teaches cartoon classes on Patreon! Next class: September 26th (TODAY!!)
Mads Horwath has an awesome merch shop here on Bonfire.
E. Joy Mehr makes diary and other comics on Instagram at @ejoymehr.
Check out Zoe Si’s books and store here!
Follow Kendra Allenby as she walks the Continental Divide Trail for 5 months! (She just finished!!!!)
Be sure to check out Shelby Lorman’s newsletter, Please Clap!
The same goes for Sofia Warren’s advice newsletter, You’re Doing Great!
See more cartoons from Ellis Rosen’s weekly Junk Drawer!