How to draw Calvin & Hobbes

Calvin & Hobbes

The short answer is: You can’t.

You know why? I did. I tried when I was 13 years old. And boy did I try.

When I heard the news that Bill Watterson  would be retiring, I took it really hard. I felt my heart sank and it just wasn’t something that I could stomach. So I acted out – I bought the remaining anthologies of his book needed to complete my collection, and waited in eager anticipation of his last book. I cut out all the comic strips that was in the paper (because I wasn’t sure it would be collected in book form later on, so I had to hedge my bets – it was the era before the internet, after all).

And then I decided that the series should continue, with or without Mr. Watterson.

I would have to do it.

I began right away – I got my supplies ready. Ink, check. Brush, check. Drawing pad, check. It took me more than 6 months of drawing everyday to get Calvin’s hair almost right. But it never was. Hobbes hands would never look as slender, nor would his expression give off the charm that only he had – my version was always shorter and fatter, with none of the proud look of a tiger doll. The only time it looked almost similar to what Mr. Watterson drew was when I traced over his comics. Yes, I was a shameless copycat – but it was all in the name of learning, and I was just 13.

Those drawings never saw the light of day because they didn’t look right. I had dozens of notebooks with sketches of Calvin (I was obsessed with that hair!) and Hobbes (the only thing that came close to looking good was his tail) – most of them half-drawn and abandoned when I felt that it wasn’t turning out the way that I was expecting them to. I didn’t use an eraser because I thought those were for wimps (how hardcore was I?!) and I felt that there was something Mr Watterson wasn’t letting on about his process. I was frustrated. I felt like my hand wasn’t listening to what my brain was saying. Move here! Hit the curve right there! Darn it! I wished that I had a transmogrifier so that I can turn myself into someone who spewed out perfect C&H comics.

I gave up about a year in. I drew my version of Hobbes mainly on birthday cards for my parents – but that was about it. I didn’t get rich, and I certainly wasn’t able to convince my mom and dad that I was the next comic genius or one who could succeed Mr. Watterson in continuing the lineage of the Calvin & Hobbes series.

But what I did learn from the experience was that it’s super hard to copy someone else.

Even with all that effort (a year’s worth of time, ink, and lots of paper), I didn’t make a dent in the universe. I did try, but I was just making a really bad replica of someone else’s work (Mr. Watterson wasn’t just someone, IMHO, but I’m digressing) and I more importantly, I was always a step behind.

I was living in someone else’s shadow.

If you’re copying because you’re still learning, carry on. That’s what I advise students who don’t know how to get started, and I always end with a caveat: just don’t put it online! Now, if you’re done – how about you step away from the shadows so that you can shine bright on your own accord?

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Pssst. Hankering for Calvin & Hobbes? You can read the comics right here. And also Bill Watterson’s interview with Mental Floss in 2013.

The stuff I say on other people’s blogs

Contrary to what you see here, Jeff doesn’t always get a seat on my desk. Only when it’s time to do a quick photo shoot, and it’s also so you’ll concentrate on him rather than my clutter. Shhhh! If you want to see more of them though – head over to my Instagram!

I realize that sometimes I don’t talk enough about my own experiences on this here blog – but honestly, it’s hard to talk about stuff that happened to me when I’m the one starting the conversation (true fact: I love asking people questions and I love it even more when they do more of the talking). So when I was given the opportunity to talk a bit more about myself to real people, I thought “why not?” Aside from the fact that it makes me look a lot less crazy (at least that’s what I think when I talk about myself too much here on the internet), it also gives me a chance to be on the other side of the table for a change!

And so this week, I wanted to share 3 interviews that featured little ol’ me and Pikaland:

>> Talkshop with Pikaland at the New Forward

I sat down with Keat Leong and Aizyl – 2 very fun, young, passionate guys who are going all out in the Malaysian scene and talking to creators old and new about entrepreneurship.

[quote] I work for free sometimes. I do work for charities, designing logos and t-shirts, just to help out. I make money from somewhere else. But some artists are so hard up on the money. When people aren’t using your work, your work doesn’t get out there. It’s just sitting there. When you think about the cost of it, it’s giving your work for free and gaining publicity, versus letting your work just sit there and still not make money out of it. I know that people say publicity doesn’t put food on the table but neither does keeping your work at home. Click here to read more! [/quote]

 

>> Happy Happy Art Collective

The amazing Lauren Minco of Happy Happy Art Collective asked if I would like to talk more about Pikaland and the work I do at Work/Art/Play, and I was thrilled to do it!

[quote] Being an illustrator is no longer about just holding a brush and waiting for people to push ideas for you to execute. It’s time for you to execute your ideas! Click here to read more! [/quote]

 

>> Enormous Tiny Art: Guest Curator

Deb, the founder of one my favorite original art sites asked me if I’d like to be a guest curator and pick out 12 pieces from their amazing roster of artists and I jumped at the opportunity! She asked a few great questions too to go along with my selection and I thought you might enjoy it as much as I did picking out art and answering her fun Q’s!

[quote] I left my stable job not because I was convinced that I could earn a better living at showing up on Pikaland full time, but it was just something that made me excited to wake up to everyday. Click here to read more! [/quote]

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Ok, I think that’s enough of me for the week! If you haven’t entered our fun book giveaway, I suggest you hop over there right now and do it (it ends this Thursday!) And what if you’ve already have? Well I think it will do you a lot of good if you checked out our interview with Frane Lessac (which will help loads in flushing me out of your brain!)