Good God, I'm a Cartoonist
I'm torn.
I really didn't like that song. I did try to like it and Natalie Embruglia was fun to look at, but that tune drilled a hole my head.
Sorry.
ANYWAY... I'm torn on what to say it is I do for a living. Evidently, I'm a cartoonist. And I'm not very proud of it. I think I'd rather be a REAL Rockstar, or someone who gets paid to name celebrity voices in TV ads (I'm a hoot at parties). But I'm not those things. I'm just a cartoonist.
I say I'm JUST a cartoonist because I mostly don't like that it immediately places me in the current "cartoonist community." Allow me to 'splain... When I was pushing to get into papers through a syndicate, I got to meet some other newspaper cartoonists. Out of the 15 or so I've met, I like one. And the reason I like him is he feels the same way I do about being a cartoonist. So, now that I have a "webcomic", I've tried to join the "webcomics community" through emails and feigning interest in other's work, only to be shunned quicker than... Than some clever character reference to some online game I don't play. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of having a little community of like-minded souls I can bounce ideas off of... Just not the like-minded souls I've met so far. I do really like the WORK of being cartoonist. I love to draw and I love to write. And I LOVE to get paid. I'm just not interested in the title of "cartoonist"and the baggage that society seems to place with it.
I'm passionate, sure... I guess. I don't know. Look, I like to make people laugh and I like to get paid for it. I'm not interested in taking it too seriously because I don't take anything too seriously. I suppose this alienates me from nearly everyone in comics... And possibly everyone in every other creative genre. Which is fine. I never bought into the whole "I Do it because I love it, despite getting paid." Being paid cash money is the best feeling next to sex, beer and bacon. Or, Sex WITH beer and bacon... Can you imagine? Anyway, the money makes me love what I do. A shallow statement perhaps, but at least I'm honest. I suppose there are days when I wish I was included in the "community" more, but then I look at the way most of these guys/girls conduct themselves and I think, "Do I really want to be associated with that?" The idea of discussing the seriousness of being funny seems counter-productive to me. It also makes me sick to my stomach. I'd much rather get drunk and not talk.
I want the fame and fortune, but I want the regular ol' fame and fortune. Not this weird niche Internet cartoonist faux fame, where you have to attend conferences, buddy up with people you wouldn't normally speak to, and engage in mind-numbing conversations about the industry and the future of the industry. I like geeky things. I like Batman. I love Superman comics and movies. I like to see things in space and I like to watch things blow up. But I like those things to a point. I have a life outside of that. I don't want to talk about how ground breaking something is for four hours. And I don't judge every aspect of society through a tiny sarcastic fish eye lense, peppering my chides with references from star wars and online comics no one's ever heard of. There's a new sitcom that does this... And it's so sad.
I guess I need to practice my guitar more and write a hit TV show staring Jennifer Connelly eating bacon at a bar.
Could you imagine getting paid to do THAT? Now that's the ol' iron clad fame and fortune I'm talking about. Uh-huh. I'm sure there are no weirdos or cliquey communities in TV entertainment. That's where all the cool kids are. Right?
Cheers!
Corey "Fake Rockstar/Real Cartoonist" Pandolph
I really didn't like that song. I did try to like it and Natalie Embruglia was fun to look at, but that tune drilled a hole my head.
Sorry.
ANYWAY... I'm torn on what to say it is I do for a living. Evidently, I'm a cartoonist. And I'm not very proud of it. I think I'd rather be a REAL Rockstar, or someone who gets paid to name celebrity voices in TV ads (I'm a hoot at parties). But I'm not those things. I'm just a cartoonist.
I say I'm JUST a cartoonist because I mostly don't like that it immediately places me in the current "cartoonist community." Allow me to 'splain... When I was pushing to get into papers through a syndicate, I got to meet some other newspaper cartoonists. Out of the 15 or so I've met, I like one. And the reason I like him is he feels the same way I do about being a cartoonist. So, now that I have a "webcomic", I've tried to join the "webcomics community" through emails and feigning interest in other's work, only to be shunned quicker than... Than some clever character reference to some online game I don't play. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of having a little community of like-minded souls I can bounce ideas off of... Just not the like-minded souls I've met so far. I do really like the WORK of being cartoonist. I love to draw and I love to write. And I LOVE to get paid. I'm just not interested in the title of "cartoonist"and the baggage that society seems to place with it.
I'm passionate, sure... I guess. I don't know. Look, I like to make people laugh and I like to get paid for it. I'm not interested in taking it too seriously because I don't take anything too seriously. I suppose this alienates me from nearly everyone in comics... And possibly everyone in every other creative genre. Which is fine. I never bought into the whole "I Do it because I love it, despite getting paid." Being paid cash money is the best feeling next to sex, beer and bacon. Or, Sex WITH beer and bacon... Can you imagine? Anyway, the money makes me love what I do. A shallow statement perhaps, but at least I'm honest. I suppose there are days when I wish I was included in the "community" more, but then I look at the way most of these guys/girls conduct themselves and I think, "Do I really want to be associated with that?" The idea of discussing the seriousness of being funny seems counter-productive to me. It also makes me sick to my stomach. I'd much rather get drunk and not talk.
I want the fame and fortune, but I want the regular ol' fame and fortune. Not this weird niche Internet cartoonist faux fame, where you have to attend conferences, buddy up with people you wouldn't normally speak to, and engage in mind-numbing conversations about the industry and the future of the industry. I like geeky things. I like Batman. I love Superman comics and movies. I like to see things in space and I like to watch things blow up. But I like those things to a point. I have a life outside of that. I don't want to talk about how ground breaking something is for four hours. And I don't judge every aspect of society through a tiny sarcastic fish eye lense, peppering my chides with references from star wars and online comics no one's ever heard of. There's a new sitcom that does this... And it's so sad.
I guess I need to practice my guitar more and write a hit TV show staring Jennifer Connelly eating bacon at a bar.
Could you imagine getting paid to do THAT? Now that's the ol' iron clad fame and fortune I'm talking about. Uh-huh. I'm sure there are no weirdos or cliquey communities in TV entertainment. That's where all the cool kids are. Right?
Cheers!
Corey "Fake Rockstar/Real Cartoonist" Pandolph