Prospect magazine has launched a new Cartoonist of the Month feature, as part of its First Drafts blog. And PCOer Clive Goddard is the first to offer an insight into the world of cartooning.

Bloghorn and DFC contributor Clive Goddard writes:

In June last year there was a meeting at Oxford University Press about the launch of a new children’s comic. Being a local, I turned up hoping to find out what sort of thing they were envisaging and, of course, to hob-nob with its creators.

I met publisher David Fickling and realised he was very serious and passionate about what he was attempting but I learned nothing about being a contributor. Even at that stage they had more illustrators and writers than they needed.

The talk was aimed at potential buyers and editors rather than artists. Having taken out a subscription to get an idea of the content I was surprised at its diversity. Dark, bleak, beautifully drawn graphic novel style strips featuring man-eating monsters and dead babies, rubbed pages with naïve, childlike things seemingly aimed at six-year-olds.

Fickling had said at his talk that he didn’t want the DFC to be seen as either a “girl’s or a boys comic” but appealing to all. To me this lack of identity or focus seemed to be its problem. It was trying to please all of the people all of the time. The subscription-based business model was also difficult with the lack of advertising revenue and the need to be mail order to keep the cover cost down.

I wrote, drew and submitted 3 pages (one episode) of an idea, but never found the time or the motivation to submit more, which is now probably just as well. Of course, specialising in one-panel art, I was also not used to how long it takes to make that sort of thing!

I have my fingers crossed, however, that it might continue in some form or other. Not least because I want to find out what happens to Wilbur Dawbarn‘s dancing bear.

Laura Howell, another contributor to the comic, said:

It was a fantastic project to be involved with, and should be applauded as the daring idea it was. This world would be a poorer place without people brave enough to take a chance on creating something new and unique.

Comics artist and expert Lew Stringer has a good, perceptive piece of analysis about the DFC  here.

PCOer Clive Goddard on a unique cartooning event

It’s not every day you hear of a comedy double-act show featuring a poet and a cartoonist. I recently got a ticket for such an event at the Cornerstone Theatre, Didcot.

The cartoonist in question was Tony Husband, whose work I’ve admired for years, and the poet was TV and radio’s Ian McMillan, (“the Shirley Bassey of performance poetry”) best known for appearances on the likes of Have I Got News For You.

The pair have been touring their show around large chunks of the country for several years now. It was billed as “A Cartoon History of Here” which intrigued me as I imagined these two Lancashire blokes would know very little about Didcot, an Oxfordshire dormitory town with a railway station, a power station and not much else. As it turned out, they did know very little about Didcot – that’s where the audience came in.

Right from the off Ian McMillan was very funny. He did an excellent job of making everyone feel very relaxed, which was just as well considering the audience participation which was to follow. We had to wait a while for Tony’s contribution. For the first half hour or so he sat anonymously behind a desk at the back, like the Pet Shop Boys’ keyboard player.

The idea, it emerged, was for Ian to elicit ideas (preferably silly ones) about the town from the audience, which were turned into an improvised communal poem, acted out by lucky volunteers and illustrated by Tony’s cartoons.

Tony drew on sheets of acetate directly onto an overhead projector so we got to see how fast he drew – and thought (both of which were pretty damn fast). The style was relaxed, confident and instantly recognisable, which is what you’d expect of someone who has been Cartoonist of the Year several times.

At the end of the evening Tony gave away his drawings to an appreciative group of clamouring young fans, which meant I didn’t get one.

All in all, a great idea and great fun. As was the remainder of the evening in the pub where we fearlessly grilled the pair on their intimate lives and learned nothing. Well, nothing printable.

Thanks, Clive. Bloghorn says click G for Goddard.

The PCO: British cartoon talent

Clive Goddard has been the PCO Artist of the month for July 2008. If you’d like to see the four featured pieces of Clive’s work we have published on Bloghorn during July, click the term, Clive Goddard, in the labels underneath this writing, or, click G for Goddard here.
It’s British cartoon talent

Clive Goddard is the PCO Artist of the month for July 2008. Bloghorn says click G for Goddard.
British cartoon talent

Clive Goddard is the PCO Artist of the month for July 2008. Bloghorn says click G for Goddard.
British cartoon talent

Clive Goddard is the PCO Artist of the Month for July 2008.

Clive’s work regularly appears in Britain’s satirical and current affairs magazines, Private Eye, The Spectator, Prospect and The Oldie. He has also drawn for The Times and the New Statesman.

He is, perhaps, best known for this work drawing and illustrating the Dead Famous series of books, for the children’s publisher Scholastic.

Bloghorn says click G for Goddard.

The PCO: British cartoon talent

To many people, one drawing can look much like another, but to a professional practitioner of the art, little could be further from the truth.

The simple dictionary definition of drawing* is the art of representing by line, but behind this statement the variety can seem infinite.

Expression and communication in drawn line and the way it is used to make a joke or a point is the unique thing in developing an original, visual sense of humour. And that goes towards making the cartoonist.

The picture here shows a small variety of the lines which are used to make jokes. You can find all of them – and their creators – in our PCO cartoon portfolios.

The curve of different PCO cartoonists from procartoonists.org
Click to enlarge the picture.

* Concise Oxford Dictionary.
British cartoon talent