A few updates
I’ve had several requests to do a Joe Sakic tribute cartoon which I’d love to do. He more than deserves that. I didn’t know Joe very well but we attended the same church years ago. I can still remember a Christmas eve service where we found ourselves seated directly behind Joe and his family. Somehow his toddler managed to find a way to crawl underneath Joe’s chair to our row right behind him. We laughed as we handed his son back to him. It was a great moment of levity in the midst of this solemn scared service. Anyway, please give me the weekend to get something new up in honor of Joe. I’m a littel weary from a long week. So check in Monday or even Sunday night for my tribute.

New Comic
Today I have started to draw an exclusive cartoon for the new local online news website RockyMountainIndependent.com. It will be featured every Friday and will be different from what I do here. It can be best described as a Colorado cultural comic about everything indigenous to the state. Be see for yourself at http://www.rockymountainindependent.com

Creator’s Incubator
Look for a new edition of the Incubator every Wednesday featuring tips techniques and insight into the creative process.

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A whole bunch of new updates about creativity including insight on Johnny Depp’s creative process, a YouTube video of a bunch of cartoonists discussing how they get their ides and some more development work on my own webcomic are all now online. Just click this image to go to the Creator’s Incubator site. Be sure to come back here when you’re done. There are new comics below.

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Welcome to the first ever Creator’s Incubator. Since it’s the inaugural edition, I thought it would be appropriate to give you a few behind the scenes stuff about my creative process.

Sparks:
Individual cartoons have their own set of sparks, so I thought I’d give you some of the everyday variety.
I like to surround myself with cartoon collectibles and cartoon art in the studio. It makes me feel at home.Here’s just a few samples from my home studio.

Five things that help me Create:
1. Reading. Newspapers, magazines, websites, billboards, t-shirts, movie posters, anything visual It’s the most important part of creating sports cartoons. After I read I let it soak in for a while.
2. Silence is golden for thinking up ideas. I can listen to music or CNN after I pencil the cartoon and I’m ready to ink, but not before.
3. Word play. I write down topics and free associate a visual metaphor for what it is I want to say in the cartoon. In my case it’s usually an opinion I have about a topic I’m drawing on.
4. Ink don’t think. The worst thing to do is force an idea. Ideas form when you’re most relaxed, even if you are under deadline. If I get really stuck I’ll put the subject I’m drawing about in the most outrageous situation I can imagine. Case in point. This Phelps cartoon.

5. Bang my head up against the wall and hope that something besides hair comes out.

Creativational Quote of the day: An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.
Edwin Land

Created on this date: 1963 – Beatles record “She Loves You” & “I’ll Get You”

The Rhino Recommends: This fantastic book about the founding of Pixar and the innovation and creativity it took to pull it all together.

There you have it. I hope you’ll join us here at DrewLitton.com for the next edition of the Creator’s Incubator

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