About PandP
Online cartooning, isn’t a new thing. Well its newer than TV. But Digital TV was out about the same time. So is there a direct connection between online cartooning and digital TV? No. Its purely coincidental. (note, stupid tvs now have internet..... making my joke old.... damn)
There are many different types of cartoons (online and in print) and I just want to explain a bit about P and P. If you want to know more about online cartooning (and oh yes you do!) check www.talkaboutcomics.com there is a great article in there that is talking about the differences between online and print cartoons among other things. (note, TAC seems to be down...... a sad day....) P and P is my hobby. I love making it. I hope you love reading it, and I would love to hear what you have to say about it. I love discussing cartooning and yes it is my ambition to work as a cartoonist when I’m older. P and P originally started out as a couple of doodles, and eventually has ended up as a strip style cartoon. I did about 30 strips without boarders, which I have decided not to put up on the site. A bit of a mistake on my behalf as it shows most the characters being introduced. Opps! I have been making the strip for about a year and a half now (and I have been doodling for about two and a half years) (note, I have now been in print about a year!! yay for me!!!) Okay that’s enough background info, lets open the floor up to some Q&A! Why P and P? Well, as you may have guessed it does stand for something. I thought long and hard about a name, and came up with a great one……….. then I put it as a acronym so that if I ever make any merchandise I can have a competition about what it stands for. Also I had to consider what my audience was, and I havent really designed the strip that way, its more gags than much else. So keeping the acronym form allows me to have the largest capture audience, except people who hate acronyms or the letter P. Why does it revolve around music and bands? (coffin e’s) Well that’s to be blamed on where I’m currently living. Nearly everyone I know is in a band, and the amount of material I get off them is just too big to ignore. Why two brothers (ian and justin) Well the first EVER a3 strip was based on a funny moment between me and my brother. Also relations tend to take the piss out of each other which is easy to write about. Why a bird and a worm? Two natural enemies, next question Why introduce tom? Well, firstly I managed to improve my cartooning style, and tom is directly derived from that (for those about to attack me for copying matt groening’s overbite styled charicters like the simpsons, I didn’t. I saw a Tom Johnston cartoon, and tried drawing like that). After a couple of weeks I realised I had made a regular cast member, and I just had to introduce him. Secondly why a drummer? Well, I had to flesh out the coffin e’s (Ians band) and I decided that having a drummer would allow me to keep all the cruel bass player jokes, while introducing a more music orientated theme. I decided to call tom, tom because the only drummer I knew was tom from perci, and he didn’t mind being made into a cartoon character, at least I hope he didn't! Okay, we know why tom is tom, but why Ian Justin Jim and Byrd? You ask a lot of me don’t you?! Lets start with the easiest name. Justin Tyme is an old pun. Usually used in by saying he made a book called almost late. Ian, or as I have heard it pronounced in is a reflection of the pun. While Justin is always JUST there ian is already there having a coffee. Its kinda subliminal (and I can’t think of other names, so gimme a break okay?) Jim is an earthworm, nuth said. Then we come to Byrd. In the first appearance he was a wild bird, and I really wanted to keep him that way, but calling him bird would have been fairly lazy of me. So I took the brothers last name Tyme, and decided to change the I to a y with bird as well. Simple no? Why keep the standard strip form, when you could change it? I know that many online cartoonists are splashing out, doing the undone etc etc. But I someday want to be published in some mainline newspapers. So I must keep the standard format. This also means that I’m keeping the strip clean, no sex jokes and no swearing (although I think that damn is ok!!). Many many really good cartoonists can’t get syndicated due to their context (look at www.goats.com ) I still am naive enough to hope to be syndicated someday and the only hope I can have is by keeping the strip PC. (note, check out my 50th strip! when its up you will see something rather spiffy!!) Why bother getting syndicated at all? Why? Do you even know what syndication is?!? (for those in the dark, a syndicate publishes your work for you. Too many newspapers and also gets your books printed and sent to main stream stores. Dilbert and Garfield are syndicated strips and so was calvin and hobbes, comparatively something like Bob the angry flower, is unsyndicated (note, Bob now is syndicated…… what a show off!). Meaning that the cartoonist has to make the books and merchandising himself and make major deals on his own. If your still in the dark on syndication email me and I’ll help clear up anything I can) Anyone who gets syndicated has a BIG chance to get rich and famous! And also it means I can make a living off the strip instead of having to do it as a hobby. Whats the deal about having your own webmaster? Simple. I can’t program in HTML and Ben can. (note since I’ve been on keenspace, I have had to do it myself….that’s why the site is so basic) Just how old are you?? Old enough to know better, young enough to like anime. Are you done? With the Q&A yes, but P and P has just started. Check back soon for more anwsers and Q&A!!! infact email me!!!! I will anwser almost anything..... except what the diffrence is between the musical version of war of the worlds and the broadcast (no, this isn't an invite for the one smart-ass to send me a question about it :p) NEW SECTION! Q: Whats your stance on cartooning? A:Ummm...... well, lets be more specific shall we? Q:ok, what do you think of the online cartooning world? A:Its great!. Its unmonitored! its completely overlooked...... What I mean, is here is this brand-new medium. Unlimited space to play with new ideas We can now annimate the comic (check my 50th) and add sound and do nearly anything. Why online at the moment is literally thousands of comics. if someone said millions i'd belive them. The trouble is, that anyone who is interested in reading comics online is likely to start one themselves. This can dilute the talent pool (heh, am I a hypocrite or what!) I see far too many manga-school based comics. I quite like manga, but there is far too many of the same at the moment. Q:Do you think there is a comic for everyone? A:YES!! Anyone who likes soaps should read minorreality, anyone who likes card-humour look at '?'. If you like emotional rollercosters through life and death check out Jack. I could go on But I know that I will never know all the comics out there, but I bet there is a comic for anyone who likes to see whales clipping toenails. Q:Where do you think PandP stands in this? A:Unfortuently for me, pandp isn't likely to become big. Its like garfield except without the publishing rights. I feel kinda ignored. I know that pandp isn't very adult and that I keep the style really simple, but I think that I use nearly every technique for a standard gag strip (visually). Q:Is this becoming a rant? A:No.... I know many great cartoonist who deserve much more credit than me, then again I know alot who jump on the band wagon and just play to be popular Q:Whats the point of pandp? A:What all good online cartoonists should be doing. I just want to bring fans onto the web, and show them the world of OLC (on-line-comics). I do this by being published freely in local letters (MACLA/SONICTOWN). I support them, they help me bring people online. Q:So, you belive that the one flaw with OLC is the lack of fresh fans? A:Exactly. I think for every fan, there is about 3 cartoonists. Alot of people spend time making great comics, to entertain people. Then no-one reads them.... this isn't very good is it? OLC's are a great source of entertainment. You can talk to the creators and read through archives all for free. All the 'toonist gets out of it, is feedback, fan-mail and to talk in the online community. I think that OLC has the opposite problem of syndicatebased comics (SBC). SBC are usually there to sell books and merchandising. Alot of the comics are only kept because they can merchandising. Q:Didn't you say you wanted to become syndicated? A:Ummm... Well, if pandp was syndicated, and I couldn't stop the syndicates control over it, i'd sell out and start from scratch again Q:Wait, you WOULD sell out? A:Yes. I would use the money to better the online world. I don't really care what happens to the SBC. Q:So, no plans to make money out of pandp then? A:no. I do pandp for two reasons, firstly for the love of medium and its people. Secondly, because I like making comics If I could just make enough money to pay back for the cost of the supplys i'd be happy. But, I don't mind. I do pandp for me. I don't care how much it costs me.