Where do cartoon ideas come from? If I told you, I would have to kill you.
This is a closely guarded secret passed down to new cartoonists. I think George Cruiksh
ank started it. Wait, I’ve said too much.
But I can tell you where ideas go. For me they usually go into either my phone or a notebook depending on where I am when I receive the precious new idea.
From there they may be morphed into another idea, they may sit for years in a notebook or get scrapped into the trash.
If it is a good idea or a polished idea, it will move to my “active idea” list. This high-tech sounding device is a piece of typing paper taped to my main drawing table. It is generally the last place an idea or caption goes before becoming a cartoon. Keep in mind, the “scrapping” can still happen at this point. I’ve tossed ideas that just would not work on paper. (a little pun)
This cartoon here is in the in-between stage. I can tell you exactly where this idea came from, American Airlines. Actually it came to me while flying on an American Airlines plane. They really didn’t have anything to do with the idea.
Instead of being jotted down as an idea or caption, it went directly into the sketchbook as a rough cartoon while in-flight. I have a drawing kit and sketchbook just for flying since I fly so much.
Quick tip: Rapidographs are a BAD idea inside of a pressurized aircraft. Trust me on this one. You would think I would have learned after 2 pairs of pants.
New Yorker cartoonist Leo Cullum was a commercial airline pilot. He once said in an interview that he drew during layovers but never in the cockpit. Obviously for good reason. When India ink spills, it goes EVERYWHERE!
Oh, and there’s probably some FAA thing about doing it, too.
With any luck, this rough cartoon will become a finished cartoon tonight. Or it will be scrapped, one of the two will happen.
