Cole Closser's Cartoon Cavalcade

instagram.com/coleclosser

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Some pics from a 10-pager I drew, colored, and lettered for the Over the Garden Wall Special #1 from BOOM! Studios IN STORES NOW. It’s a really beautiful issue with some lovely stuff in it. Go gitchoo some, babies. (Cover art by Miguel Mercado. Story by Samantha Glow Knapp.)

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Looks like it’s safe to post this cover I did for an upcomin’ issue of Adventure Time Comics (#17, November). I am into this stuff. And don’t forget to follow my Instagram for new comics daily: instagram.com/coleclosser

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Not checkin’ Tumblr as much these days, so I missed when the fantastic 4PANEL project posted this little autobio piece o’ mine. ♡ If you haven’t already, go check out the amazing work they’ve curated over at 4PANEL.

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Still doin’ this daily project with a comic strip, some encouragin’ words, and a reason for carryin’ on. Every Sunday’s a single-panel, so here’s every one o’ those I hadn’t Tumbled, yet. xoxo Read all of the strips so far, with a new one every day (or night) at: www.instagram.com/coleclosser

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My crime-partner, Macy Stevens, wrote and illustrated a beautiful 88-page book of affirmations and drawings of strong ladies (and other things) to help others who might be suffering from anxiety and depression—and I did the design work for her. With 2 weeks down and 2 to go, Macy's Kickstarter has raised $1,215 of the $1,500 goal. She’ll be using the money to print the books and to travel to India to study yoga in order to start her own practice in the Midwestern United States with a focus on body positivity. ♡ Check it out on Kickstarter if you’d like to learn more: kickstarter.com/projects/1257783555/i-am-worthy

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Go follow my new daily strip on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coleclosser/ It’s good for you. ♡

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I started a new daily strip on my Instagram. You can find it at instagram.com/coleclosser. As far back as I can remember, I’ve struggled with depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. I think it’s crucial to talk about these things so that others who are struggling (especially younger people, who haven’t always had the benefit of seeing things get better before) know they’re not alone and that people do care about them. Every day (if I can keep up), I’ll be posting two images: a four-panel strip about a little group of wanderers, and a panel (for you and for me) with a daily reason for sticking around and a daily bit of encouragement. I hope you enjoy these upcoming dailies. If you’re bored, then I hope they entertain (or confuse). If you’re struggling, then I hope they help—even if it’s just a little. I love you.  ♡

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Hey, babies. It’s been a minute–and I s’pose this story’s been in print long enough to post here. My good pal Sasha Velour (cartoonist, designer, and drag queen) asked me to contribute some comix to VELOUR: The Drag Magazine a while back, so I scribbled out an undersea drag show in an old-timey French style (with affection and apologies to Alain Saint-Ogan). Dig it. If you’d like, you can buy Velour (formerly VYM) issue 2 right HERE. xoxo Update: Congratulations to beautiful, brilliant Sasha for makin’ it onto the upcoming season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, premiering this Friday! ♡

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Boo, babies! Happy Hallows’! Here’s an (extremely) old favorite. xoxo (Original art’s 24 x 19 inches, India ink on vellum Bristol.) Plus—If’n you ain’t dressed up as Little Tommy Lost for Hallows’ eve, then you ain’t doin’ it right, darlin’! Here’s a boy with a bright future ahead of ‘im! Jus’ yoo lookit that black rubber rat! Jumpin’ catfish! (Disclaimer: I has Tommy-ized 'is eyes fer th’ sake o’ anonymity an’ accuracy.) Now go gitchoo some candy! I love you!

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Come one, come all! Gitcher ears fulla fiction an’ funnybooks, babies! Th’ lovely Jennifer Murvin an’ I will be entertainin’ th’ masses with stow-rees an’ nervous dances at th’ podium tomorrow–this Friday, Friday, Friday, th’ 21st o’ October (at 7pm) in th’ PSU theater at Missouri State University! Let Jennifer lift yer brows with her literature so’s I can lower ‘em back where they belong! We’ll be kissin’ hands and shakin’ babies well into th’ night–and I will be signin’ books in th’ nearby bookstore for anybody what buys or brings ‘em! If you ain’t in town, stop by jennifermurvin.virb.com to check out some of her short stories. Lovely Jen’s been published in (or has publications comin’ from) th’ likes of Indiana Review, CutBank, Post Road, American Short Fiction (where she won th’ 2015 American Short(er) Ficton Contest judged by Stuart Dybek), Phoebe, Out of Sequence: The Sonnets Remixed, Revolver, The Sun, Mid-American Review, Midwestern Gothic, Bellingham Review, Cincinnati Review, Baltimore Review, and all kindsa other places. She’s th’ real deal. F’real. Oh yeah ... and here’s th’ poster and a process pic of th’ hand-letterin’ and decorative elements before I cut th’ pictures out and pasted ‘em in. I love you. xoxo

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Here’s another Black Rat process post, pals. A glimpse into my sketchbook, followed by the roughs, the “inks” (done in pencil), and the color for one spread in The Chase—followed by the original art and a finished page for print from Air Ships. The Chase was done in pencil on plain ol’ copy paper, while Air Ships was done with pencil, watercolor, coffee, India ink, and collage on vellum Bristol. I get a lotta emails askin’ how I color things. I always respond that it’s “different each time,” because it really is. It’s all a process of playin’ until it looks right. For me, the fun is in th’ findin’. You can buy Black Rat here (or request it at your local book shop). I love you, babies. xoxo

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Another process post! (EDIT: The only line art in the book drawn digitally was for the two pages of the intro, the two pages of the outro, and the author photo.)

For the intro to Black Rat, I wanted to pay homage to one o’ th’ primary visual inspirations for much of the book—Suihō Tagawa—by directly parodying a sequence from Norakuro in which the titular character appears in a series of adventure vignettes across 12 slender panels with my own titular character traversing seasons and landscapes in pursuit of immortality.

All o’ th’ drawings for Little Tommy Lost had been penciled with graphite and inked with Joseph Gillott or Nikko G nibs (and brush), but I wanted to play around a little more with Black Rat. Among other things, I used graphite, ink, collage, watercolor, gouache, colored pencil, and (for the first time ever) digital drawing tools. I’d had a copy of Manga Studio EX 5 for a year or so, but hadn’t had a chance to play with it—and this intro seemed like a good place to give it a shot, since I wanted the line work to feel loose, bouncy, and a little awkward. Manga Studio is a dream to work with. I prefer Photoshop for color work, but Manga Studio’s default brushes simulate pens on paper better than anything else I’ve tried digitally. I can’t recommend it enough.

While I’m still partial to physical media, I’ve been playin’ with Manga Studio more and more when it seems appropriate. I even finished my first completely digital story the other day. I might post it soon. xoxo BUY BLACK RAT ON THE CHEAP!

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SIDE NOTE: Black Rat is less than five bucks (down from fifteen) on Amazon right now. If you’ve been on the fence about it, or if you already read it and want one fer yer mama—NOW’S THE TIME! Tell yer friends! Call the cops! Hey, fellers. Here’s my first-ever process post:

I’m an advocate for hand-lettering. I think some comics suffer when the text doesn’t come from the same hand as the line art. That inconsistency can be jarring—and usually ruins my immersion in a story. I letter everything in my books, from the dialogue to the page numbers and front matter. I generally use my own handwriting or imitate old alphabets (like in that first picture), but when I was workin’ on Bow White for my last book, Black Rat, I wanted the lettering to look like the story had been translated from another language. I wanted it more mechanical. I wanted Leroy lettering—the lettering system seen in EC comics and various Golden Age comics where a proper letterer may not have been efficient, affordable, or available. There are a few computer fonts that make use of the Leroy letter forms, but I couldn’t use any of them, due to the number of passages where I repeat the same words over and over again (like “NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW…”). I needed every N, O, or W to be just a little different from the one that came before it.

Long story still long, I jumped on Ebay and grabbed me a lettering set from 1950, broke out my Rapidographs, and set to work. A 34-page story wouldn’t usually take too much time to letter, but (because I had no idea what I was doin’) it took me over 40 hours to letter Bow White with the set. I made plenty of mistakes and spilled plenty of ink, but I’m happy with it—and I never woulda been happy with a font. I got what I wanted—mechanical letters done in th’ same hand that did th’ line art.

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It’s not too late to celebrate th’ haw-lee-days or to rang in th’ new year with Black Rat. Go on. Give th’ gift that gives back. Stick it in a stockin’ or a knapsack. Lay it on a loved one or hide it in a hole in th’ wall. Put it under yer pillow so’s you sleep safe. Giddit.

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From Black Rat, by Cole Closser. It looks like this image has been makin’ th' rounds without any attribution. I found out when a friend of mine shared it without knowin’ I drew it. Please remember to credit the work you share online, folks.  xoxo

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will you go on a date with me? i promise not to write a comic about it

No comics?  Dealbreaker.

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Heya, pals. You kin read an interview with me at 417 Magazine if that’s th’ kinda thang yer into.  Lotsa paraphrasin’ makes me sound more eloquent than I is, but th’ gist is good’nuff t’git got. As an added bonus, they asked me to share my “top 5″ recommended comic thangs to read.  So I did.  Click right here to read it.