Never Go Mainstream

Aug 31, 2011

NEVER GO MAINSTREAM

Back when I was a kid and aspiring to be a professional cartoonist one day, I had this dreadful fear hanging over my head:

That the only way to become successful as a cartoonist, was to go mainstream. Cute and cuddly, warm and fuzzy. In the world of the big money cartooning, there was little room for “Edge”.

Check out the traditional US Sunday comics section of any newspaper, and you’ll see what I mean. Utter, cutey-pie dreck.

I just couldn’t see myself doing it. My stuff was just too “out there”, and when I tried to reign it in, it just made it worse.

Of course, that was before the Internet came along and changed everything…

Anybody who courts the mainstream deserves everything they get. There’s far more action in niches.

3 Comments

Oldest

Newest Most Voted

Inline Feedbacks

View all comments

Josh

13 years ago

Did we forget about the “Cash” part of “Sex and Cash?”

tea tiller

13 years ago

But you can’t discount comics like ‘Calvin and Hobbes’ was mainstream, but also very poignant and honest. It was cutesy, but also very deep, with a meaning. And the artist/author eschewed marketing his cartoon characters on crappy merchandise, even though he would have made a killing (like, say, Garfield or Peanuts. Will Garfield just get hit by a car already or something, please?), only making the comic the focus, and only making money from the reprints and books. Then going further back to Windsor McCay’s comics or Gasoline Alley or Krazy Kat, those guys were mainstream and genius. But agreed, most of the today’s newspaper comics, especially Dilbert, are terrible. I like Lynda Barry’s work too.

Sheila Foley

13 years ago

Rhymes With Orange is my favorite. Every single day a it’s a joy to read/view. Not cutesy, not a warm fuzzy. Just the most creative, fun, and thought-provoking space in the Boston Globe.

Other stories you might like

Are you ready to work with us?