The Terrible Anvil Jess Ruliffson and Tom Hart at Sequential Artists Workshop

Comics itself is a medium and practice. But it also can be host to lots of different working mediums: traditional comics materials, new digital tools, watercolor, printmaking—whatever your heart desires! How do you choose yours?
(Watercolor illustration by Jess Ruliffson)
What medium feels gratifying, what feels satisfying, what is too labor intensive right now? Maybe you are still learning a new medium, and figuring out how to make short experiments to get fluent and/or fast. Try practicing it every day—returning to the "terrible anvil of daily deadlines" to establish your style!
Hyena Hell once said to avoid using materials that present more of a block to you. Working in the ‘wrong’ medium, i.e. one we are unfamiliar with, can be a kind of defensive armor against finishing the work: "Once I get good at this I will start/finish my comic."
Don’t wait, call today! WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN YOUR HANDS RIGHT NOW? Use that first.
Some tips or things to try when choosing a medium for your comics:
* Do what works for you, not what people say you should use
* Find the tools that feel good in your hand and help you express yourself
* Set parameters for yourself to not get overwhelmed by choice
* Play with 'weirder' mediums like photo comics and collage
* Use whatever materials are available to you (financially, spatially)
* Get the fancy stuff if you want!
* Change mediums between projects
There's lots more on the call, so give it a listen!
And join us for next week's episode as we get deep into COLOR!
You can watch the call live by joining the SAW FLOW + PUBLISH member group, where you'll also get access to a supportive community and expert guidance on getting your comics published! Sign up here: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/comics-flow-group
See you next time!
💬 DONATIONS SAW Comics is a 501C-3 non-profit and we thrive on your support and donations to keep arts education accessible! You can support us on: ➡️ Patreon:   / sawcomics  ➡️ PayPal: https://learn.sawcomics.org/pages/donate➡️ Or become a sustaining donor: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/s...
Thank you for being here!


Get full access to How to Make a Graphic Novel at sawcomics.substack.com/subscribe

This week on the Terrible Anvil we talked about CRITICISM!
Criticism and rejection are inevitable parts of the creative process—so how can we make them more bearable?
Jess Ruliffson and Tom Hart share their advice on when (and who) to ask for feedback and how to go about it, offer tools for managing your inner critic, and discuss how to distinguish between constructive feedback and unhelpful criticism.
This episode of the Terrible Anvil is chock-full of relatable anecdotes and practical tips, so give it a listen!
And join us next episode as Jess and Tom talk comics MEDIUM—Digital, Analog, and Everything In Between!
You can watch the call live by joining the SAW FLOW + PUBLISH member group, where you'll also get access to a supportive community and expert guidance on getting your comics published!
Sign up here: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/comics-flow-group
Happy making!
💬 DONATIONS SAW Comics is a 501C-3 non-profit and we thrive on your support and donations to keep arts education accessible! You can support us on: ➡️ Patreon:   / sawcomics  ➡️ PayPal: https://learn.sawcomics.org/pages/donate➡️ Or become a sustaining donor: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/s...
Thank you for being here!


Get full access to How to Make a Graphic Novel at sawcomics.substack.com/subscribe

This week we talked all about creative collaboration!
[Note: We had a couple technical difficulties this episode, and there’s a bit of silence from 52:14 to 52:38!]
Comics can often be a solitary endeavor, but you'll find lots of ways to collaborate with other people—be it editors, writers, artists, colorists, copy editors, designers, publishers or co-creators!
Collaboration in any art form can be a great way to breathe new life into the creative process. They can be scary or uncomfortable if you're used to having total control over your creative projects, or this shared control might feel liberating. Either way, there's lots to gain from working with others on a shared project, from morale boosts and accountability systems, to practical knowledge sharing and the creative alchemy of multiple minds coming together.
But how do collaborations happen? How do you make them successful? How can you maximize fun and minimize pain in the process?
There's lots of advice in this episode, but the core of it is to establish clear communication and boundaries and to have a shared goal with your collaborators.
Tune in for even more wisdom (and shenanigans) from Eisner-nominees Tom Hart and Jess Ruliffson in this episode of the Terrible Anvil!
And join us next week as we cover rejection, criticism, and deadlines in the comics process! You can watch the call live by joining the SAW FLOW + PUBLISH member group, where you'll also get access to a supportive community and expert guidance on getting your comics published!
Sign up here: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/comics-flow-group
Happy making!

💬 DONATIONS SAW Comics is a 501C-3 non-profit and we thrive on your support and donations to keep arts education accessible! You can support us on: ➡️ Patreon:   / sawcomics  ➡️ PayPal: https://learn.sawcomics.org/pages/donate➡️ Or become a sustaining donor: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/s...Thank you for being here!


Get full access to How to Make a Graphic Novel at sawcomics.substack.com/subscribe

The Terrible Anvil Episode Fourteen: Starting Over
Hi, Friends!
This week on The Terrible Anvil, Tom Hart and I dug deep on the topic of STARTING OVER. We noted there's a few different types of starting over:
1) Restarting an old, old, project2) Starting a new project after you finish one you've been working on (or even working in a series or across multiple comics pages)3) Completely rethinking a project you have sunk a lot of enthusiasm and hours into
Have you ever started over? Tom said he sorta started over in his approach to his graphic novel, and also while he was working on an outline for a follow-up memoir that one small dream sequence within it became a longer series, B is Dying. I noted that I when I was making comics  about veterans, originally I envisioned myself as a character and removed myself once my personal narrative got too long and tangential to hook to the main story (it ended up being the idea for a different book that I didn't make!) 
Sometimes, particularly on freelance/shorter work, I will keep going to the finish line and use the information of what was less than ideal as inspiration for future comics. It's not a starting over but a way to gain insights into a better working process.
Here's some gems from the chat, and thanks Meg Lentz our fabulous note taker!
Oneita brought up a good question:
What about starting over in the middle of what you are doing for a deadline but still be true to the pitch? Like how close do the thumbnails have to be to the pitch?  What if I’m veering too far away from my pitch? And I don’t like my pitch anymore?
I was thinking that the best course might be to #keepgoing and get it over with, and then take those desires forward to the next project. And keep your collaborators informed if you really veer off topic! But mostly, I just try to finish stuff quickly and Tom Hart said book publishing editors are more committed to getting a book rather than the exact thing you pitched!
Tom talked about building a personal archive of ideas to mine later - maybe that book proposal didn't  "work out" but there's a lot of good stuff to revisit!
In thinking about the big scary restart, I mused that rather than starting over on my projects, I usually just stop to clarify what I'm working on and being more intentional + specific - letting go of the things that don’t serve the main goal
Jim Hamilton shared: I plan on using the upcoming Graphic Novel Intensive to decide whether an idea I have has legs. I think maybe it won't, but it may take me in some other worthwhile direction.
Carole McKee Armen observed that: Getting feedback from valued critique partners can lead to a difficult decision whether or not to “start over” or stay the course
(Tom mentioned this awesome 'cinema shack' by the filmmaker Agnes Varda)
Tom Hart also talked about The Garden of Unfinished Projects - a playground where one could keep dreaming with other cartoonists about the nascent beanpoles of ideas quietly mulching in the comics backyard, getting bigger and riper.
Tom and myself both noticed the magic of thinking about PROCESS with others (versus PRODUCT, the final work). Tom said he's curious about the future of art and wonders if projects have to have clear beginnings middles and ends, or if they can be more about creating something and being in the company of others.
There’s always opportunities for starting over in a variety of ways. Doubt is an important part of the creative process (I joked that "doubt is the sexy part of faith" haha.)
We also thought about TOILING (it's value and maybe enjoyment?) and FROLICKING...
I asked Tom Hart: Starting vs starting over - what’s harder? are they the same thing? Tom says starting is harder - there’s more uncertainty and insecurity. A big takeaway from this Tom mentioned: Don't start from scratch, don't start with a blank page! What sort of artsy detritus can you unearth from your garden of ideas? Maybe start t

This week we talked STYLE!
How do you make your own artistic style? How long does it take? Do you need to stick to one at all?
We go over these questions and more as we unpack what role style plays in cartooning and our expectations around our work.

We also revisit topics like moving past our inner critics, forging daily creative routines, and staying curious about the possibilities of our work. As always, a nice mix of philosophy and practicality!
Join us next week as we talk about STARTING OVER—both redoing projects that came to a halt, and getting started on a new project after finishing one!
You can watch the call live by joining the SAW FLOW + PUBLISH member group, where you'll also get access to a supportive community and expert guidance on getting your comics published!
Sign up here: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/c...
See you next week! --------------------------------
💬ONLINE COURSES SAW is a SCHOOL!
Find our ONLINE CLASSES at https://learn.sawcomics.org/
💬 DONATIONS SAW Comics is a 501C-3 non-profit and we thrive on your support and donations to keep arts education accessible! You can support us on: ➡️ Patreon:   / sawcomics   ➡️ PayPal: https://learn.sawcomics.org/pages/donate ➡️ Or become a sustaining donor: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/s... Thank you for being here! --------------------------------


Get full access to How to Make a Graphic Novel at sawcomics.substack.com/subscribe

This week we got rather philosophical here at the Terrible Anvil podcast! We tackled lots of big ideas, but circled back again and again to finding joy in the hard parts of comics (and within the confines of capitalist markets). We also discussed drawing inspiration from the world around us. Zooming out can get us out of our heads and give our work room to breathe. But our power to tell stories comes from within us too! We go over ways to tap into our own creative energy, even when we've reached a state of burnout. Finding ways to reignite the joy of our creative process can lead us to more sustainable art practices—especially when we're working on dark, heavy topics. Where do you find joy in your work? What keeps you creating even when the going gets tough? Let us know in the comments! Join us for next week's episode, where we'll talk about developing your own STYLE!
Meg Lentz’s amazing thumbnail for this episode!
--------------------------------
💬SAW is a SCHOOL! Find our ONLINE CLASSES at https://learn.sawcomics.org/
--------------------------------
Recorded at SAW on Zoom, April 4, 2024



Get full access to How to Make a Graphic Novel at sawcomics.substack.com/subscribe