FAQ

Who are you?

I am an Australian comic artist that lives in Canada and works as a Librarian. I have been drawing comics for over 20 years and have a passion for small press zines and alternative comics. My work over the years has been mostly autobiographical, however, in the past 5-6 years I have been experimenting with fictional comics. I'm married with three kids and a dog named Reese. My background is also in fine Arts with a degree in drawing and digital art.  Art school was a challenging place for a comic artist, but it also gave me an appreciation and love of collages, digital art, and printmaking.

I recently launched a publishing project called Spare Parts Press, which focuses on helping independent creators distribute their work as ebooks in libraries and online book stores. 

What is your background?

I did not grow up reading comics like Asterix, Tintin, and Raymond Briggs. I think most of my childhood was spent watching movies. I think this saturation in pop culture and celluloid led me later into picking up comics. First, it was superhero stuff, as that was what I was really exposed to through newsagents. I later went on to more alternative titles like ‘Madman’ by Mike Allred and ‘The Maxx' by Sam Kieth. I later got into Crumb which opened up a whole world of new comics and influences to me.

How long have you been making comics?

I started making comics after getting into Crumb (approx 1997) and seeing the possibilities of the medium in terms of width and depth of stories. My thinking is almost that of a filmmaker (see above) but I don’t like the group effort it takes to make films, which is why I choose comics as a medium. Comics can be made on a tiny budget and can include anything in your imagination. Plus they can be worked on in private until you are ready for the world to see them, I like that the most.

How do you publish your work?

I mostly self-publish in book form as it allows me control over my work. I am not opposed to being ‘published’ by other means but rather just enjoy getting my material out there any way I can.

Why do you use Blogger and not a professional website?

I have been using Blogger for years, and I really like blogger's features, it makes it so easy to update and change the look and feel of the site, plus best of all it is free! I am not really concerned at this point that I do not have my own 'professional'. As I do this for free, I need to keep my overhead costs down too.

Where do I buy your stuff?

You can see the digital offering I have available at my Ko-Fi page and also over at sparepartspress.com. I also do print on-demand T-shirts through redbubble.com I have a range of shirts in the store already and can quickly make up a custom design based on previous artwork upon request.

How do you currently make your comics?

I am always trying out new things, new tools, new methods, ink, paper etc.

Currently, all of my work has transitioned to digital. I use an iPad Pro with the app Procreate. My favorite brush pack is from the True Grit Texture Supply. I predominantly use a slightly modified version of the 'crispy inker' brush. 

Previous to this, my process was:

1. I draw in my A5 or A4 size spiral-bound sketchbook. This is because it is portable and thus easier to draw anywhere. I do not mind drawing tables it is just that it can be hard to sit down at them and get work done. The book allows me to be anywhere.
2. I recently started using a Col-Erase 'light blue' pencil. At first, I tried it out from curiosity but now I prefer not having to erase my lines and smudge up the page and my hand from graphite. I try to pencil in rough indications only as guidelines for my pen.
3. I currently draw all my comics with my Steadtler .05 tech pen. I got so used to sketching with it was only natural to keep using it for ‘finished’ comics. Sometimes I feel bad that I should use a ‘real’ comic tool like a nib or brush and get a more variable line. But that is just another thing to slow down my comics-making ability.
4. I always make my comics end up as pure line art, crisp B&W copies with no greyscale. My preferred method is to save scans as 1200 dpi bitmapped TIF’s.
5. I have collated and folded so many books (which can be fun) that I enjoy leaving my focus on actually drawing them, I now prefer to find printers that can make the books for you. 

Have more questions, get in touch here.