Holiday piece No. 34

2022 was kind of an oddball year for me, in that I focused much more on fine art and prints than on comics. It’s been satisfying in many ways to change gears for a while– especially since it resulted in a 10-week show at a local theatre’s gallery! “Beyond the Emerald City” was a feel-good collection of comics and other artwork from my multi-year visit to Oz in the pages of my online Watusi comic. If I do say so myself, it looked good up in the space, and I got positive responses at the opening. That said, I do miss creating comics to share on a regular basis … I guess I need to turn that around for the new year, don’t I?

Cheers to a happy 2023!

Holiday piece No. 2

Much like last year’s posted holiday piece (which I referenced in the new print piece I did for 2020), this year’s archival selection (an odd-shaped piece from 1986) is going to be incorporated into a new project. Not, however, in this year’s holiday piece … but in a project for next year, when I’m celebrating 40 (!) years as a published (and publishing) cartoonist! More on that to come in the new year…

Thank you for taking the time to check out my comics & artwork this year; it’s much appreciated! Wishing you all the best for this holiday season and for 2022!

Holiday piece No. 9

Holiday wishes from a simpler time (1994). Cheers to a better new year! (It’s gotta be better than this one, right?)

Holiday piece No. 32

Another year, another “Watusi in Oz”-themed holiday piece! As many of you know, at the end of every year I send out a holiday piece to friends and family who have had an impact on my life that year, but since my audience has grown to include readers (via my websites, FB, Twitter, & Instagram) I don’t know personally, I wanted to share the joy with my “virtual” friends as well. Thanks for taking the time to visit this blog or follow my weekly Watusi webcomic. It’s much appreciated!

This year’s piece gives a peek at some of the adventure that occurred in my Watusi comic in 2019. My Baum-length epic is entering its final phase, so check it out while you can (new episodes every Wednesday); I’d love to hear what you think about it, especially if you’re a fan of the original Oz books!

Besides that comic’s weekly presence in my schedule, I published seven other issues (including a collaboration with my friend Tom Cherry), helped kick off the Mid-South Cartoonist Association’s new ongoing comic series, made a dozen new prints, seven new paintings, and shared a gallery show with my friend Julie Nouwen. All in all, it was my most successful year as an artist yet!

Best wishes for a happy 2020!

Holiday piece No. 15

At the end of every year I send out a holiday piece to friends and family who have had an impact on my life during the year, but as my audience has grown to include readers (via website visits, Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter follows) I don’t know personally, I want to share the joy with my “virtual” friends as well. Thanks for taking the time to visit this blog or follow my weekly Watusi webcomic. It’s much appreciated!

Longtime readers may recognize this year’s holiday piece as a colored version of my curmudgeonly one from 2002 … but while coloring it for use as a notecard this year, I couldn’t help but notice that 2018 was featured as one of my projections. If anything, I was being too generous, as Christmas promotion has already leapfrogged Labor Day– heck, there are places that stock decorations year round! (grumble grumble) Anyway…

Best wishes for a happy 2019!

[January 2023 UPDATE: all three “Continuity and Vine” collections are now available in my Gumroad Store!]

“Five Golden Rings” (Holiday piece No. 11)

Here’s my holiday piece from 1996 to help celebrate the 5th day of Christmas! Hope you enjoy…

[January 2023 UPDATE: this post originally appeared on my now-closed Patreon page.]

Holiday piece No. 30

At the end of every year I send out a holiday piece to friends and family who have had an impact on my life that year, but since my audience has grown to include readers (via website visits, fb & twitter follows) I don’t know personally, I wanted to share the joy with my “virtual” friends as well. Thanks for taking the time to visit this blog or follow my weekly Watusi webcomic. It’s much appreciated!

Of course, the irony is not lost on me that I had to leave Kansas behind before I got around to writing my “Watusi in Oz” story. But that’s what it took, I guess. And even if I wasn’t able to incorporate as many collage elements as I’d planned, I’ve been happy with how the story has developed, and think it pays proper homage to the work of Baum & Denslow. There’s lots still to go on the story, so check it out— I’d love to hear what you think about it, especially if you’re a fan of the original books!

2017 also saw my first dip into crowdfunding via Patreon (look for a special patron-only webcomic coming there next year) and stepping away from comic work to do more “fine” art– including paintings, prints, and even a 3D piece for an exhibit as part of Memphis’ Crosstown Concourse grand opening.

Best wishes for a happy 2018!

Holiday piece No. 29

At the end of every year I send out a holiday piece to friends and family who have had an impact on my life that year, but since my audience* has grown to include readers (via website visits, fb & twitter follows) I don’t know personally, I wanted to share the joy with my “virtual” friends as well. Thanks for taking the time to visit this blog or follow my weekly Watusi webcomic. It’s much appreciated!

Longtime readers may recognize this year’s holiday piece as a reworking of the one from 2009 … but since 2016 finally saw the print edition of that year’s Watusi webcomic storyline (as the 7-issue “Watusi and the Emerald Serpent” miniseries) and an accompanying book tour, it seemed like an appropriate recycling effort to represent the year that was.

Best wishes for a happy 2017!

(* I’d love to learn more about my audience! If you haven’t had the chance yet, please take my reader survey. If you complete it before the end of the year, you’ll get a code to download a FREE .pdf copy of Festive Funnies. Thanks for your help! )

My stencil coloring method (Holiday piece No. 25)

Back in 2005, when I hosted the panel “Beyond Photocopies: cost-effective color enhancements for your comics” at the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo, I shared and demonstrated the technique I used to add color to my covers: a simple stencil method. Unfortunately, since I was busy demoing at the time, I wasn’t able to get photos of it, but a few years ago I documented the process when I used it for one of my holiday pieces…

For this one, I used a metallic gold on purple, which looked nice in reality, but didn’t always photograph so well. This technique doesn’t require many supplies: blank stencil material, a sharp X-Acto blade, the paint(s– while I only use one color here, it works well for multiple colors, too. Just cut a different stencil for each color, of course), a roller (I got mine at my local hardware store; it’s wider and holds up better than cheap craft store foam rollers), and a surface to mix paint on (I use a piece of double-strength glass).

Holiday piece No. 27

At the end of every year I send out a holiday piece to friends and family who have had an impact on my life that year (although it’s usually at the start of the new year by the time I complete them). This year I made just a plain ol’ greeting card, and thought I’d share it with my virtual audience, too. Thanks for taking the time to visit this blog or follow my weekly Watusi webcomic. It’s much appreciated!