wiLbur's blog

bah! couldn't quite get this ready in time...

it must be still hallowe'en *somewhere* in the world, right?

my very talented cartoonist chum alexander matthews has reached the final 10 of the *comic strip superstar* competition -- check out his strip evil twin


here are all the ten strips that made the final.

meanwhile, here's a gag from the latest issue of *the spectator*...

hey, i'm on the cover of the new issue of *the foghorn* -- a charming and very funny bi-monthly magazine published by the professional cartoonists organisation. see here for the complete online archive of the magazine.

you can also subscribe to a print copy of the magazine here (which is also a handy link to *the bloghorn*, the fog's online cousin, for all the latest cartooning news)

after a long break, i've started working on *bodkin and the bear* again, my strip from the DFC.
whilst various DFC strips are reportedly being made into books, plays, tv shows, hollywood movies (i may have made up that last one), *b&b* seems to be the unwanted runt of the pack.
i suppose it didn't really have a very long run before the comic folded, perhaps not enough to really get a good foothold.

however, having re-read what i've done so far, my enthusiasm for the project has been reinvigorated, and i'm determined not to leave it unfinished, dangling for eternity. so i have resumed work, on the script, to begin with -- i've decided to write the whole of the rest of the story before i do any more drawing, rather than continuing to make it up as i go along (which the DFC schedule rather demanded)

when finished, it will see print -- if random house (who at this point in time still share the copyright with me) do not wish to add it to their forthcoming *DFC library*, then after a given time the full copyright will revert to me and i will self-publish and/or seek another publisher for it.


our heroes can't be left dangling forever! (a detail from one of the last pages i drew before the demise of the DFC)

here we go with another graverobber pic.
'fraid this is completely out of sequence with the graverobber *story*, however -- on account of it happened quite by accident...

remember this, the very first of my graverobber drawings?
well, it's still my personal favourite, so when i volunteered to draw in one of those *travelling moleskine* thingies for *the big draw*, on the theme of *naughty*, i thought i'd revisit it. then, after i'd begun, i decided a straight copy would be a lot less fun than rejigging elements of the composition a bit, sticking his newfound canine companion in, etc. so anyway, here it is:

well, it's been a while since i updated my grisly little series concerning the graverobber, but i haven't forgotten about it...

introducing his dog.

this went down so well (here) i decided to improve a couple of the sea creatures and add a splash of colour...

i know, you're going to tell me i've ruined it...

another book-inspired drawing -- george and lennie from the classic steinbeck novel...

here's one of two of my drawings from the current *private eye*

surprisingly, perhaps, as a cartoonist, i don't really *doodle* very often, or haven't for some years. i've started again recently, so thought i'd post one or two here now and then...

...and another splash around with watercolour...

i've been reading books with no pictures in a bit lately. i reread *catcher in the rye*, a book i loved as a lit student. so i drew a picture...

mending the net

this one was in *the spectator* a while back...

just because i haven't posted anything here for a while, because i don't put my gag stuff up here very often, and because they left it off the website, here's a cartoon from the current issue of *the spectator*...

here's a li'l sketch i did in the inside cover of my new drawing book. it's a 250 page peony press *artist's sketchbook*, a little bigger than a4, and it just has the best paper i have ever found for drawing in indian ink with dip pens and brushes... it's sort of a shiny paper which the ink just rolls across and sits on without the tiniest hint of bleed. luvverly.