My Life In A Nutshell, Part 1

Gradually uploading archives of my semi-autobiographical comic

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5

Over two decades ago, I started a webcomic comic called My Life In A Nutshell. I used MacPaint on an Apple Macintosh computer; I can’t remember what model, but I was one of the earliest users. As you can tell from these early strips, I did not have a standard template (hence the inconsistent image sizes). My illustration style also varied wildly throughout the strip, which I created for the pure fun and self-therapy rather than with any goal of publication.

I’ve decided to share my archives on Substack. I cringe when I see my art back then BUT it helps remind of the days when I had no professional art aspirations and found it much easier to draw fearlessly. What I’ve learned: Striving to connect with one’s audience trumps technical perfection. Still have to remind myself of this, every time I sit down to draw.

Note: The “semi-autobiographical” applies more to later strips than the early ones. I was never on the Jerry Springer show, for instance. 😁 Also please note that the Inkspot.com URL and email address embedded in each of these early comics NO LONGER BELONG TO ME. If you’re curious, see my Inkspot Epilogue and Woodpile Philosophy post.

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Jan. 6, 1999 - Feb. 20, 2001

For those curious, I’ve been gradually working on my own graphic novel. I’ve been approached by publishers about doing graphic novels before, but the sheer amount of time and work needed for the art has scared me off up to now. I can’t afford to work on just ONE project for two years, as some of my graphic novel creator friends do. As I work on my graphic novel script, however, I’ve also been talking to graphic novel illustrators as well as doing a lot of research to find ways to streamline the art process.