Revisions to Cartoons

If you are not completely happy with your cartoon, or it somehow doesn’t feel quite right, I will make up to two revisions of your cartoon.

What revision means

By revisions, I mean I will make two small changes to your picture.

Let’s look at some examples.

For this one, the client wanted a change to the colour of the flower.

“...really liked the cartoon, but could you make the colour of the flower more intense? 

Thanks! “

As you can see, the flower colour is now more vivid. 

Here’s another example, requesting to change a detail  in the picture. 

“Hi Rob, love the Hare. Think he would look really good with a taller hat.”

The revised cartoon. 

 What revision doesn’t mean

I will not completely redraw the picture.

But let’s not let it get to that point.

After we’ve discussed your initial idea, I’ll send you a rough sketch of the proposed cartoon. You’ll get to see it before I do more extensive work on it. This way you’ll know that the picture being drawn is the one you are looking for.

Any questions? 

Click the ‘contact’ button on the top right and let me know. 

Thanks! 

Meet Gerald the Goat

Gerald is by far the most popular character I’ve ever created, so here’s a little background about the ever-hungry, flower-loving goat. 

It all started with a character called Stan…

Stan was a silent character who featured in some gags, usually drawn with minimalist background. He’s maybe featured in a dozen or so cartoons when one day he was due to meet his girlfriend and give her a bunch of flowers that were hidden behind his back…only to find they had been eaten…

The very first appearance of Gerald. 

 …and so Gerald appeared. After drawing a few more ‘Stans’, Gerald seemed to take over, you could say that he butted Stan out of the title-character role.

I kept Stan on, partially because if it wasn't for him there would be no Gerald, and also because when I realized that it was going to be a regular strip I wanted a mix of animal and human characters.

To help try and keep Gerald in check his nemesis the bull joined, and attempting to keep everyone in order Rex the police dog made the first of many failed interventions.

After drawing various gags featuring Gerald either eating or butting things, I thought it would be good to add some diversity to avoid the strip becoming samey.. And so the mischievous and indefatigable Granny Mills appeared, soon to be followed by her granddaughter, Little Ivy.

The Gerald the Goat characters

Character biographies

 Gerald

Gerald likes to eat...anything really...particularly flowers...and especially prize-winners at the annual flower show from which he's received a lifetime bad.

Gerald is from a lineage of mountain goats, known for their love of high places and leaping ability. What isn't clear is about how he developed his voracious appetite which shows no signs of diminishing.

Aside from eating, Gerald likes to butt things and avoid taking baths.

Stan

Stan bought Gerald from a country fair when he was a kid and lost control of him minutes later.

Stan considers himself to be an animal lover, although this is sometimes put to the test when Gerald has eaten whatever has just been planted in the garden.

An enthusiastic, if usually unsuccessful cook, Stan is always working on his next "big idea".

Granny Mills

It is uncertain how old Granny Mills is as it appears as though she's been lying about her age for decades.

She has been involved in a long-running feud with her neighbours ever since their ginger tom cat ate her canary. She now likes to "borrow" pets from the zoo.

Granny Mills likes to practice a particularly boisterous form of bingo, enjoys taking care of her grand daughter, and has never drank a half in an exceeddingly long life.

 Little Ivy

Little Ivy is Granny Mills' grand daughter.

She loves animals, but all creatures regardless of their species or size tend to get called "nice doggy".

Her parents often leave her in the care of her Granny, which might not happen so much if they were aware of some of the old lady's antics.

Rex the police dog

The town's long-suffering law enforcement.

Rex has reconciled himself to the fact that with the likes of Gerald and Granny Mills around the best he can hope for is some state of near-anarchy.

He often wonders whether he should have been a sniffer dog or even herded sheep for a living instead.

The Bull

Gerald's nemesis.

Upon first encounter Gerald assumed that with it's horns the bull was some species of super-goat.

It was on that same day that Gerald learnt how fast he could run.

Gerald appears in the cartoon newsletter, along with a variety of other characters and cartoons. Sign up using the form below, for new cartoons, Monday to Friday.

Academic

Gerald decides to make a close study of plants, a subject very dear to his heart. 

Gerald and various other characters appear Monday to Friday in my cartoon newsletter. Sign up below to get some new cartoons. 

Illustrated Book Notes - Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller

This month’s book was “Building a Story Brand” by Donald Miller

I chose five of my key take-home points to illustrate.

Pictures of the individual key points are below. 

I can draw infographics or illustrated book notes for you too. Drop me a mail using the form below.

How do I order a cartoon?

Here is the simple process of ordering a cartoon from start to finish.

You might be thinking about ordering a cartoon or illustration for your site, but are wondering about the process that’s involved.

I’ll go through every part of the process step-by-step, so that you have a clear idea what to expect when you order a cartoon.

This is the full process from you finding out about my services, to you getting your completed Cartoon in your inbox.

Let’s get started.

1. You find my site or someone recommends it to you.

2. We chat via Skype, or email if you prefer, and this enables me to to get a clear idea of what you are looking for and how I can help you. If you are not quite sure what you’re looking for - no worries! - I’m good at coming up with ideas and will be happy to make some suggestions.

3. I’ll ask you to fill out a client cartoon brief, this easy to complete form will help me to draw exactly the write cartoon for you.

4. After thinking about all the details, I’ll send you four rough sketches to choose from.

Choose the sketch you like.

 5. I get to work

If the picture is complex, or if it’s a series of pictures, I’ll send you updates of progress.

6. You receive the completed cartoon.

7. At this point I can do two revisions if you require them.

What revision means

By revisions, I mean I will make two small changes to your picture.

What revision doesn’t mean

I will not completely redraw the picture.

But let’s not let it get to that point.

8. After I’ve completed any necessary revisions, then you get the final cartoon

That’s the whole process of ordering a cartoon.

To start talking about ordering your own cartoon, drop me a mail with the form below.

Freshen up your site

Liven up your site with some cartoons

Maybe you've been thinking you need to do something to brighten up your site. Perhaps you're happy with your writing but somehow the site feels a bit stale. If you’ve put so much time and effort into drafting your words, then it seems a shame for it all to be let down by some lame stock images or even no images at all.

A few cartoons could really help to bring some liveliness back (though perhaps not resorting to the chaos of a spring-cleaning spaniel...)

Whether you are looking for an eye-grabbing image to draw attention to your article or an on-going character to feature on your site, I’d happy to draw one for you. 

Not quite sure what you’re looking for? 

  No problem! - I’m happy to have a chat. Get in touch.

Caption the Cartoon

Can you think of a caption for this cartoon?

Here’s what I’ve come up with so far:

1. That’s a coincidence...I was just googling handbags...
2. I’d heard of alligators in subway tunnels but never in the trains..
3. Are you available to eat someone?
4. Don’t worry, they’re not real crocodile.
5. Wow! That was quick! I’d only just placed the order on Amazon.
6. I was waiting for the muse to appear, but I guess you’ll do.
7. I’m looking for a four-letter word...
8. I had a poodle once...
9. Do you do tricks?
10. Ha!  Nice costume!

Send me a mail with your suggestions. 

Hungry

Another one of the “Go-Go Hares” series the I’ve been drawing recently to go with the Norwich sculpture trail.

I send out a cartoon newsletter, Monday to Friday. Add your name and mail address below and I’ll send it to you. 

Cartoon Workshop - promo image

Seeing as cartoons are a lot of fun to think up and create, what better than to feature the Charleston King Charles Spaniel in the latest promo pic? 

I’m running a cartoon workshop at The Tea Room, Elm Hill Norwich, at 10:30am August 29th.

All welcome!

“Bored”

Today’s topic word was “bored”. I thought I’d play around with the idea of boring holes, as opposed to something unstimulating, and who better to bore holes and wreak havoc that a mole? 

I send out cartoon newsletter Monday to Friday, fill in the boxes below and get the latest cartoons.

“Dusty”

Today’s topic word on the cartoon forum was “dusty”.

I got the initial idea for this when watching an episode of “Sherlock”. John (Watson) visits the Diogenes club looking for Sherlock and this gave me the setting of a very stuffy club where nothing much changes. 

Ever thought about giving someone a cartoon as a unique gift? Probably not....but I can draw one for you. Drop me a mail. 

“Wet”.

Today’s theme word on the cartoon forum was “Wet”, so I thought I’d modify a previous picture of Suki and Gerald fishing to create this one.

i can draw for you too - drop me a mail. 

Windy

I’m a member of a cartoon forum, and every day there is a different theme word that we have to illustrate. Here is one of the words from last week, “windy”. 

The original idea was to have a lone yachtsman on a really calm day, playing his sousaphone in order to get the boat moving moving. When I started sketching it out I decided to switch to a Viking longboat and brass band, as that seemed a whole lot more fun.

I can draw cartoons for you too, whether it is a unique gift for a friend or a picture to illustrate a blog lpart or article. Drop me a mail.

Cartoon Workshop Flyer

This is the completed flyer design for the Cartoon Workshop at The Tea House Norwich, on 29 August. 

Cartoon Workshop Poster

Here is the complted poster design.

Cartoon Workshop Poster

This is a draft poster design for a Cartoon Workshop I’m running in a couple of weeks time at The Tea House, Elm Hill Norwich.

I thought it would be fun to run a free event for folks to come along and try their hand at cartooning regardless of their starting point.

Gerald at the Seaside again

As part of the cartoon forum I’m a member of, we have a daily topic word that we have to illustrate. 

For this particular one the word was “salty”, so I thought that I feature another cartoon of Gerald visiting the seaside.

The female character is “Suki” who first appeared in various Lionel Peabody cartoons, but now also seems to feature in various fishing cartoons as well.

Do you like the look of the pics you see on this site?

If so, drop me a mail and I can draw for you too.

Illustrated Book Notes - Good to Great by Jim Collins

This month’s book was “Good to Great” by Jim Collins.

I chose five of my key take-home points to illustrate.

Bookdoodles

Aa

In this monthly series, I take a book that I have read and produce five cartoons based on key insights I gained from the book.

Why five cartoons? 

I chose five because the optimal number of items that can be held in short-term memory.

Illustrated Book notes - The Heretics by Will Storr

Every month I produce a set of illustrated book notes based on a book I’ve read. Last month’s book was ‘The Heretics’ by Will Storr.