Chewing Pencils

Next time you’re in the market for a mobile phone, make sure you get one that has a decent camera built into it.
I was always of the opinion that all I needed my phone to do was make and receive calls. The latest phone I’ve got has a camera in it that I thought I […]

The Cartoonist’s Bible
Franklin Bishop
New Burlington Press, 2006
192 pages
I’ve spent the last few days enjoying a bit of quiet time browsing through Franklin Bishop’s The Cartoonist’s Bible. It’s a nicely presented, spiral bound book that covers all the usual drawing tips (body construction, facial expressions, perspective, lettering etc) but also contains some good information on the […]

Tip #6:- Look for the niche markets.
When I am introduced as a cartoonist to new people, often they will ask what newspaper I work for. Despite the rapid expansion of markets for cartoons to appear in, it seems that the newspapers are still “the place” where people most expect to see your work. If you’re […]

In Australia, there is a well known and prestigious portrait competition known as the Archibald Prize. The competition is an oportunity for some of Australia’s finest artists to be told how bad their work is by a panel of people that wouldn’t know one end of a brush from the other.
Around seven hundred entries are […]

No. This is not a post to encourage you to make extra money by taking your clothes off.  But come to think of it, I’d probably get more laughs if people saw me naked…
Anyway. I digress.
Allan Holtz is a bit of a comic strip history buff who has a blog where he displays some fine […]

Tip 5:- Develop a Web presence.
The internet has had a dramatic impact on the way we conduct business, and cartooning is no different. In fact, it may be that the internet is the best thing to happen to the cartoon trade since the invention of erasures!
Here are just a few benefits the internet has contributed to the […]

I had no intention of doing a feature artist this early in the life of Chewing Pencils, but the good folk at Drawn have alerted the world to the work of George Vklosich III.
His artwork is quite good. His web site is fine. But what really sets him apart from any cartoonist or illustrator I […]

I have a naked woman skipping across my desk.
It might be a naked man, but I’m really not that sure.
But whatever it is, it obeys my every command, and when necessary, will even bend over backwards to help me with my drawing.
Before you think I’ve turned into some twisted pervert, I’m talking about one of […]

Tip 4:- Develop a Folio.
It is a simple fact that nobody will hire you unless they can see the sort of work you do. Developing a folio gives you the opportunity to show off a bit and tell the world, or at least a potential client, what you are capable of. It communicates how well you […]

Daryl Cagle’s Professional Cartoonists Index has, perhaps, the most extensive list of cartoonists on the internet (get listed if you haven’t already!). When ‘big’ issues come to light, he displays some of the best editorial cartoon comments on the subject.
But what I wanted to highlight in this post was Daryl’s latest blog entry (June 29, 2006) on yet […]