CARTOON CROSSOVER FUN!

BUSHY TALES and TEN CATS
This past week has seen these two comic strips share their characters!
This sometimes happens between comic strips (they are often called "crossover" strips because the characters "cross over" from one strip to the other) and can be a lot of fun.

I have enjoyed the TEN CATS comic strip ever since I first came across it a few years ago on the US syndicate website, www.gocomics.com. I think it is a great cartoon and extremely well drawn with a cast of delightful characters (ten of them are cats, obviously).
TEN CATS won the 2012 NCS Reuben Award for best online comic strip (the Reuben Awards are like the Academy Awards for cartoonists) which gives some idea of the high quality and popularity of the strip.
Anyway, it so happened that the TEN CATS cartoonist, Graham Harrop, also became quite a fan of BUSHY TALES and, over the last couple of years, we have enjoyed corresponding and encouraging each other (though I am sure most of the benefit and pleasure of this has been mine).

Over the past few years I have featured some other comic strip characters in BT but in recent times I had the desire to incorporate TEN CATS into my strip...and last week gave me a great opportunity to do so.

As mentioned in the last couple of posts, Doug, Jack and Sugar have left The Bluff on a great adventure...a journey back to Doug's old home (previously destroyed by a wild bushfire). En route, the trio find themselves in a large city full of inherent dangers for every wombat, rabbit and sugar-glider passing through (it's a good thing Wombatman is travelling with them!).
Whilst writing the strips for last week, I had an idea of how I could "borrow" some of Graham's ten cats and infuse them into this BUSHY TALES story line.
I contacted Graham to see if he was okay with the idea, which he thankfully was.
You can see the crossover action in the last one of these three strips.....

 I am pleased to say that Graham loved the strip and it proved to be a big hit on the GoComics site when published last week. 
But that was not the end of it.....Graham then wrote to me asking if he could return the favour. Of course, I was thrilled with the prospect so quickly said "Yes!"
Thus, yesterday (Sunday) TEN CATS had a special reference to BUSHY TALES.....

So....a bit of fun for a couple of cartoonists and, hopefully, some of those who read the respective strips.
By the way, you can subscribe to receive BUSHY TALES and TEN CATS ( and lots more great comic strips) FREE every day to your email.
Simply go to www.gocomics.com and find your desired comic strip/cartoon and then follow the appropriate prompts.

BUSHY TALES Activities-for young readers
On this page you will occasionally discover some fun activities to enjoy!
And, sometimes, we might even feature some of your drawings, too!So here are the first couple....more will be added in the weeks ahead! Have fun!

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Next week I will answer another question, or two, 
from our readers.
This will be a recurring feature of this blog, so it is 
never too late to send in your questions.
Simply email your questions, or comments, to:
bushweekblog@bushytales.com 

I'd love to hear from you!

Until next week.
Joyfully yours,

Ian 

WEBSITE: www.bushytales.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/BushyTalesComicStrip

Q & A.....
SO, WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR IDEAS FROM?

I reckon this would have to be the most asked question of any cartoonist. I wouldn't mind having a dollar for every time I've been asked that question, and I'm sure other cartoonists would say the same.
Interestingly, it is not just non-cartoonists who ask this question. Even cartoonists are curious about the "inspiration process" of other cartoonists.

A couple of weeks ago I was very privileged to share dinner and several hours with Stephan Pastis, the cartoonist behind the PEARLS BEFORE SWINE comic strip (hugely popular in the US and around the world) and a couple of other cartoonists from Brisbane.
It was a wonderful time....good meal, great conversation, excellent company, lots of laughs.
But one of the high-points for me was hearing Stephan talk about how he gets his ideas for the comic strip. 
It so happens that it is quite different to the process (if it can be called that) that I go through.
But that's the thing with inspiration....it is not a neatly packaged commodity that you can buy on a supermarket shelf. It is quite a personal and individual thing, really.


So.....How do I get my ideas for my cartoons?

Let me answer by telling you a little story......
My cartooning career was officially launched back on September 23rd, 1980, the date I was first published in a newspaper. It was not with BUSHY TALES, nor even PEARLY GATES....it was a very early comic strip I did which was originally called BUNYIP (later changing name to KEG).

Anyway, prior to the date of publication I was interviewed by the paper (the Gold Coast Bulletin) for an accompanying story on the day of publication.
This was my first ever press interview and I thought it went really well. Of course, one of the questions I was asked was "How do you get your ideas for the comic strip?"
Now, as I was very inexperienced at this sort of thing, I answered honestly. I later learnt that was a mistake. But, in my first interview I was just happy to answer any questions the friendly reporter asked and, so, I answered honestly. It went something like this....

HE: How do you get your ideas for the comic strip?
ME: Usually when I'm relaxed. Often I will get ideas whilst I'm in the shower. You know, when I'm relaxed.

Of course, I was very excited about the launch of my cartoon in the paper and, when a copy of the paper was delivered to me I hastily opened it up to see how the interview came across and what the comic looked like in print.

On the front page of the paper it had a little promo for the article inside...."Turn to Page 5 to meet our new cartoonist" (or something like that).
So I turned to page 5.
And almost died.

"Ian strips for strip ideas!"... Was the banner headline that greeted me (and every other reader of that day's edition) on page five!
Looking at it later on I could see that it was a great headline...but at the time I was mortified that my simple, innocent comment about the source of my inspiration could be so twisted!

I was on a steep learning curve in those early years and one thing I learnt very quickly was not to be so honest with friendly reporters!

How do I come up with the ideas now?
Truly, I wish it were a simple formula that could be reproduced on command. But it isn't.
Some cartoonists draw their way (through doodling, character sketches etc) to their idea. I find that doesn't work for me.
Over the years I have discovered that I need to keep my eyes and ears open....maybe it is just a word, or a phrase, that I will hear that will trigger an idea, or a gag.
Maybe it is something I will see.
For me it is really all about trying to be a sponge that absorbs anything that might, at some stage, spark a creative urge. I write these things down in a notebook...sometimes the little notation may sit there for months, like a seed waiting for the rain to nourish it to fruition. Other times, the idea comes together pretty quickly.

And, sometimes, the ideas come from the characters themselves. When you have clearly defined characters and themes in the strip,it is not unusual for ideas to come from there...though you do have to be careful not to be repetitious. 

But you know.... this is a crazy business!...Not only is it difficult to come up with an idea for every day of the year...but the ideas you might think are great may not come across as all that great to others.
This is because humour, like most forms of artistic endeavour, is a very subjective thing.

So, it is not only about coming up with an idea, but trying to come up with an idea that works well, hopefully, for others, too.
It's enough to make you go crazy! 
But maybe you need to be a bit crazy to be a cartoonist, anyway!


DOUG'S INCREDIBLE JOURNEY Continued....
Following on from last week's blog, here are a few more in the series of strips tracing Doug's journey back to his old home. I am really enjoying the opportunity that a change of scenery provides for the strip artistically.

YOUNG READERS ACTIVITY PAGEI am still working on some activities for this page so it will be ready for next Monday's blog.
Stay tuned!

Until next week.
Joyfully yours,

Ian 

WEBSITE: www.bushytales.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/BushyTalesComicStrip

"ARE WE THERE YET?"

Doug's Road Trip Into His Past

When Doug the Wombat first came to the Bluff, it was as a survivor of a wild bush-fire that destroyed his home and, as far as he knew, his family.

Of course, he soon found another home at the Bluff and was accepted into the "family" of wacky characters that live there. But, over time, Doug has increasingly been wondering what his old home is like now. So, recently, he has been thinking about going back to find out.

And so begins what will be a developing story line for quite a few weeks. It will be the longest running theme I have attempted with BUSHY TALES so far and, to be honest, I am quite excited about the potential for some interesting adventures that Doug and his travelling companions will encounter along the way.

Today I share with you the strips that have been leading into this incredible journey. I will continue with the series updates over the weeks ahead. 

I hope you enjoy the journey!

Next Week.....In next week's blog I'll be answering some of your questions (you can still send your questions to bushweekblog@bushytales.com ).
Also, I'll be presenting a new page of activities for younger readers!
Don't miss it!..."BUSH WEEK" is published every Monday.
Until next week!

Joyfully yours,

Ian 

COMIC STRIP FAVOURITES

What have been some of my favourite strips over the years, and what strips have influenced me in my own cartooning career?

These are common questions for any cartoonist, I think. I certainly have been asked them many times.

Personally, I think I have a very eclectic lot of favourites. There is definitely a great diversity among those I would call my favourites over the years. And, I think, there is also a great variety in the reasons that they are my favourites. For some it might be the humour, for others, the artwork, and for others still it could be the characters or subject matter. 

I think it is fairly natural to be influenced by anything you like, so each one of my favourite strips will have, even if only subconsciously, been influential to some degree.

I am sure that not everyone would share my exact same thoughts about my comic strip favourites. But, then, cartoon appreciation is like any other form of artistic and creative endeavour....it is very subjective.

So, here is a list of my Top Twenty comic strips that I have, over many years enjoyed (with a brief explanation of why). 
They are arranged alphabetically here, not in any order of favoritism.I hope you will find some of your own favourites here, too. (Please use the comments section to add some of your own comic strip favourites.)

Following the list of strips are a number of BUSHY TALES strips that incorporated other comic strip names into the story (over 100 in one week!).

B.C. - (Johnny Hart) I have loved this strip for as long as I recall. Originally drawn (pardon the pun) to the simplicity of the artwork and the type of humour, I soon began to appreciate the fusion of modern culture into a prehistoric setting and, in later years, to the deeper and more spiritual themes and insights. As with just about every strip that is continued on beyond the death of its creator, the BC strip today is only a shadow of the strip in the hands and heart of Johnny Hart.

BROOM HILDA - (Russell Myers) - This strip got me in with its bold line and use of solid blacks...not to mention the creative characterization and humour.

CALVIN & HOBBES - (Bill Watterson) - What hasn't already been said about this strip? It was, truly, a "one-of-a-kind" comic strip. Literally, it turned the cartoon world upside down and I doubt if there is a cartoonist anywhere who has not been influenced by it.
I always found the artwork in C&H particularly impressive.

CROCK - (Rechin & Wilder) - I loved the crazy humour of this strip. One of the few strips that used to make me chuckle out loud.

FOXTROT - (Bill Amend) - This was a very refreshing take on the modern family. The characters were very well-defined and they interacted with great humour, both in word and visually. It was a favourite of my family as they grew up, too.

HAGAR - (Dick Browne)- Now drawn by his son, the strip, in my opinion, was far better in its early years as Dick Browne let his artistic genius follow his creative imagination. 

HERMAN - (Jim Unger) - A single panel (except on Sundays) this strip is hilarious! Unger could say so much in a single frame with his limitless cast of characters (Herman is not a single character...but more a state of mind, I think.) I continue to enjoy re-reading the many collections of Herman that grace my bookshelves.

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM - (Mike Peters) - This strip comes as close as any to giving an animation feel to the artwork. The characters, well-drawn as they are, are taken into an even more impressive realm when given the action treatment that Peters likes to use.

MUTTS - (Patrick McDonnell) - I haven't read as much of this strip as some of the others, but what I have read over the years I really enjoy. McDonnell has a lovely style and the strip has a wonderful whimsy about it. His Sunday strips employ great variation in the layout.

PEANUTS - (Charles Schulz) - Who has not, at some time, been drawn into the world of this legendary strip? I think it taught us all some things about communicating through cartoon characters.

PICKLES - (Brian Crane) - A more recent favourite...I don't think I have read a single Pickles strip that I thought was weak. There is great consistency in this story of an old couple. 

POGO - (Walt Kelly) - Back when the comic strips were given plenty of space cartoonists were able to produce works of great visual appeal. None more so than Walt Kelly with Pogo. His, characters were brilliant and the quality of his drawing and presentation was amazing.

SHOE - (Jeff Macnelly) - I really loved the dry, sarcastic humour of this strip, as well as the style of Macnelly's drawing. His artwork was quite reflective of his work as an award-winning  political cartoonist. 

SNAKE TALES - (Alan "Sols" Salisbury) - One of the great Australian strips. Widely published in Australia and, for a time, syndicated throughout the USA.

SPEED WALKER - (Chris Hammond) - Not a well-known strip, at least here in Australia...but I loved it! It was a very dry humoured strip about a hapless private eye. I never saw it in a newspaper and I only have the one small book collection. But I'd love to get more!

SWAMP - (Gary Clark) - A wonderfully popular and much-awarded Australian strip. Gary has produced a beautifully crafted and consistently entertaining comic strip based around the animals, reptiles and insects found in your typical Aussie swamp. 

TEN CATS - (Graham Harrop) - This strip has become one of my recent favourites. Graham, an Englishman living in Canada, has produced a beautifully drawn heartwarming and funny strip about 10 stray cats that live in a warehouse and are cared for by Annie, a young girl. I love the way Graham has developed distinct personalities for each of the ten cats. The strip was awarded the NCS Reuben Award for best webcomic in 2013. Thoroughly deserved. Graham recently sent me one of the original TEN CATS strips....a treasured item!

THE BORN LOSER - (Art Sansom) - Simple, uncluttered artwork, the appeal of this strip for me was in the humour more than the artwork. Brutus Thornapple (the born loser) finds an endless number of ways to end up losing at home, at work...anywhere and everywhere. A lot of fun.

TUMBLEWEEDS - (Tom K Ryan) - One of my all time favourites! I love the dry humour as well as the very stylized artwork on this strip. Ryan created a wonderful cast of characters to inhabit this Cowboy and Indian strip. A trailblazer in so many ways (Jim Davis, the Garfield creator was Tom Ryan's assistant for a number of years), I think I owe my love of comics to strips like this. I have a personally signed and inscribed (by Tom Ryan) copy of one of the Tumbleweeds books.....I'm not letting that one go!

ZITS - (Jerry Scott & Jim Borgman) - A wonderfully drawn and scripted strip about a high school teenager and his interactions (or not) with his family, friends and the world. A modern-day classic.

So, there you have it...my top twenty favourites.

But what about yours? I'd love to know which strips you enjoy. Use the Comments section of the blog to share your favourite comics.

And, don't forget.......

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS (Q&A)

In the coming weeks I would like to do a blog full of answers to  questions from readers.
So...if you have any questions about BUSHY TALES, or cartooning in general, please send them to: bushweekblog@bushytales.com

I'd love to hear from you.

Until next week....

Joyfully yours,
Ian 

WEBSITE: www.bushytales.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/BushyTalesComicStrip

The Art of "BUSHY TALES"

PRESENTATION

From the very first BUSHY TALES strip, it has always been my desire and commitment to present the strip in a very visually and aesthetically pleasing way. 

For sure, I want the strip to stand out from others because of its high-quality art, but I also want to make the BUSHY TALES strip a joy to look at simply because I love drawing the Australian bush, the setting for the strip and the characters. 

The above image is the title frame from one of the latest BT Sunday strips and it is a good example of how I try to present the strip (I do spend a bit more time on the title frames than other frames where there is action and/or dialogue).

Unfortunately, due to the continually reducing size of comic strips printed in the newspapers, it is a challenge to make a strip "good art" that will not be lost in the reduction, and not just to succumb to using simple line drawings (not that there is anything necessarily wrong with such strips...I just want to do more with BT).
Of course, it never used to be this way......

Back in the days when newspaper comic strips were valued, not just by readers but by editors as well, things were different. The comics were printed at a size that cartoonists can only dream about these days. There was plenty of room for detail and pictorial story-telling. Sadly, as the competition for column space increased, editors took the view that the comics could easily get smaller (and smaller and smaller and.....).

So, as a way of compensating for the increasing reduction in the printed size of their work, cartoonists (with some exceptions) started to use less detail, background and unnecessary "clutter" in their strips. This was/is a great shame.

One cartoonist in recent times who refused to be contained and confined to the restrictions of space was Bill Watterson with his legendary "Calvin and Hobbes" strip. Watterson made his strip a compelling and overwhelmingly effective argument in support of the view that comic strips COULD BE good art. And his art was way better than just good!

Personally, I think many other cartoonists have followed Watterson's lead and influence (I know I have). These days there are many comic strips that are beautifully crafted and drawn, not just relying on the "talking head" approach of former years.

Next week, I will list some of my favourite comic strips (past and present) and many of these strike that delicate balance between the art and the humour with great success.

It is something that I continue to strive for with BUSHY TALES. 

They say that in a comic strip good writing can save bad art, but good art can never save bad writing. So the constant challenge for me (and every cartoonist) is to make sure the balance is in synch and the writing (gag/story) is the priority with the art playing a strong supporting role. It is not always easy, but it is good to have such a criteria to be aiming for....and evaluating with.

PEARLY GATES vs BUSHY TALES

My previous comic strip, PEARLY GATES, and my current strip, BUSHY TALES, are vastly different.
PEARLY GATES was a comic strip based on the age-old gag of St Peter being at the Pearly Gates of heaven. I took the setting and crafted a comic strip that ran continuously every day for almost 20 years. 
However, the strip was somewhat limiting from an artistic point of view.
I used to say (and still do) that PEARLY GATES was not an earthly look at heaven but, rather, a heavenly look at earth. One of the reasons for this distinction was that I had no way of knowing what heaven looks like and, even if I did, it would be way beyond my capacity to draw it, anyway! So I didn't try. My characters spent all their time sitting around on the proverbial clouds.
Sometimes, I would switch to a scene down on earth for a bit of variety (and to give me something other than clouds to draw!). But, as much as I loved doing the PG strip, I did find it a rather limiting experience as far as artistic expression goes.

So, with BUSHY TALES, I was definitely looking for something that would allow me to be more creative and expressive. 

THE PROCESS

These days, many cartoonists use computerized and digital programs to draw their cartoons. I'm not one of them. I guess I am a bit 'old school', but I love the feel of pen on paper.So all the BUSHY TALES strips have been drawn by hand. My hand.

I am always trying to improve my style and, often, I will look back at a strip and think that I could have done it better. I guess that is the ongoing process of development...not just of the cartoon, but also of the cartoonist.

Once I have finished drawing the strip on paper, I then scan the original into the computer and work on the colouring using Photoshop. (It is also in the Photoshop program that I produce a version of the strip in Greyscale.) 

I have always been a big believer in cartooning being a black and white medium (in fact, the Australian Cartoonists Association was originally called the Australian Black and White Artists Club), but I must confess that I do really enjoy colouring the strip....it can take almost as long as the original drawing! 

It is through the colouring that the strip becomes even more of a visual feast and, I hope, a point of attraction and appreciation for readers.
The same strip is shown here in the three different versions....
Black and White (as it is scanned into the computer), Greyscale and Colour.

 As you can see, there is quite a process in the production of each BUSHY TALES comic strip. I think it is worth the effort....I hope you do, too.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS (Q&A)

In the coming weeks I would like to do a blog full of answers to  questions from readers.
So...if you have any questions about BUSHY TALES, or cartooning in general, please send them to: bushweekblog@bushytales.com

I'd love to hear from you.

Until next week....

Joyfully yours,
Ian 

WEBSITE: www.bushytales.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/BushyTalesComicStrip