Muskrat Ramblings
Three-Minute Warm-Up Sketches Redux…
posted by John
First off, it looks like Dork Tower will be posted on Tuesdays and Thursdays, through January 1. Apologies for this. I’ll TRY and get three strips a week up, but the holidays are quite crazy.
Secondly, I’ve had quite a few people ask about buying some of the two-minute sketches I’ve been doing. I’m not sure about this. I generally feel a bit weird about selling original art, yes. But to be honest, I’m not sure what I’d charge for them. $40 seems like a lot, for a sketch. But I know that of I was charging $20, while I’d obviously sell more, it wouldn’t be a huge incentive to me. I’m weird that way, I’ll admit it. So anyway, I’m still thinking on this. You know – being my usual neurotic self about my work…
Anyway, someone on Twitter raised some interesting points:
TWEETER: $20 is very reasonable, especially if that includes US shipping. The question is, do you really want to be in that business?
JOHN: (a) It probably wouldn’t, and (b) I don’t want this to be a business. I have dfar too many things on my plate as it is.
TWEETER: A quick story:I ordered a sketch from a web comic, never got it. Asked her about it, she wouldn’t make it right. Still pissed
JOHN: Understandably so. Which is what I worry about, with a $20 price.
TWEETER: Point is, it was a business she was not prepared to run.So if you’re going to sell the sketches, commit to running a business
JOHN: Agreed. Which is why, selling an occasional sketch for $40 strikes me as something that’d fit into my schedule a lot better than selling many sketches for $20. But if someone REALLYREALLYREALLYREALLY wants one, perhaps this is the at to go, in the future. We’ll see.
Does that make any sense? Honestly not trying to be a jerk – I, personally, would not pay $40 for any idiot’s sketch – just trying to think what might fit in, scheduling-wise and John’s-Sense-Of-Responsibility-wise. If I were you, I would not pay $40 for a sketch.
(Possibly this post should have been titled “Why john needed a Business Manager”).
ANYWAY, here are the last few sketches that I’ve done. I forgot to get some up, last week.
Jackie Kashian, Ranger of the Dork Forest –
A pal of mine, Jackie’s an awesome stand-up comic, and I love her podcast, The Dork Forest. I think she’s in Austin this week. Catch her if you can!
The Kitchen Goblin
No idea where this guy came from. The whole idea behind the two-minute sketches is to go into them with a clear mind. Which, for me, is easy…
Two-Minute Caricature: Kurt Vonnegut
Darker, sort of “inspired” by a Guardian article that implies that most people see Vonnegut as a jolly, avuncular sort of figure which, if you’ve even read a single book of his, you’d realize is not the case.
Two-Minute Caricature: Neil Gaiman
A young Neil Gaiman, apparently. And one in the wind. No, it’s not “Author Week” on “Two-Minute Warmup Sketches.” I don’t expect any of these two-minute sketches to be anything close to great. Just some fast fun (for me, anyway) that may or may not spark later ideas. But they get the day rolling. But I kind of like something mischievous in the eyes, on this one. Possibly one day, I’ll turn it into a proper piece.
I need to draw more blondes, by the way. The studio reeks of magic marker, at the moment.
If you click on the images, you SHOULD see larger versions of the drawings.