A. Mostly about crime in the era of Prohibition. I suppose it falls somewhere in the realm of historical fiction, parody, dark comedy, and abject nonsense.
Q. I like your crazy squirrel people. They're so crazy!
A. Um, thanks. They're cats. And that's not a question.
Q. Why cats?
A. When dealing in sociopathic criminalism and gratuitous violence, how could it not be cats? Don't take it too literally, though. It's mostly just a device I like to use for characterization. The mobile ears, tails, and big eyes help me emphasize gesture and expression more than I could with human characters, they allow me to be as ridiculous as I like, and, well, they're just plain fun to draw.
Q. What the blazes were you thinking when you named the comic "Lackadaisy"?
A. I have a thing
for peculiar words, you discommodious jackanapes.
(My mother called me long distance and informed me this joke is insultingly
unfunny...so with much shame, I hereby retract the jackanapes comment.)
Q. Where does the story take place?
A. St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.A. I figure there are already plenty of stories that take place in New York and Chicago. Besides, it's rich in history and culture and, uh, criminal activity...and it happens to be where I live.
Q. When does the story take place?
A. It begins
in 1927.
Q. What's Prohibition?
A. What are they
teaching you kids in school these days? Prohibition (in the context of U.S.
history) refers to the period between 1920 and 1933 when the import, production,
and sale of alcohol was illegal. As you might imagine, the import, production,
and sale of alcohol didn't cease, but instead became a reason for organized
crime to make an evolutionary leap.
If you're confused about what's going on, the Glossary
might help a little.
Q. Is this supposed to be historically accurate?
A. Yes and no.
There are a lot of real places and references to authentic bits of history
in the comic. Simultaneously, there are also a lot of fictional places, and
though occasionally historical figures are mentioned, none of the characters
represent anyone who ever actually existed. While I strive to avoid glaring
anachronisms and excessive artistic license in regard to history, let's not
also forget we're dealing with talking cats here. This means you probably
don't need to go to the trouble of writing me exhaustive lectures about whatever
minor deviations from recorded history I might make in the name of storytelling.
If you have some insights though, or notice some error I've made, by all means,
cram it.
(Just kidding. I like to talk history. You can email
me and I probably won't even yell at you.)
Q. Why do some of your characters wear zoot suits? They weren't popular until the 1930's and 40's.
A. Quiet, you.
Q. What type of pencil do you use?
A. For some reason I'm asked about my pencil all the time. Some people seem to have it in their heads that I traded my soul to a mysterious, hermetic leprechaun dwelling in the hollow of an ancient, gnarled oak for a pencil infused with some sort of sepia-toned fairy magic. This isn't the case. It was a hobo, not a leprechaun, and all I traded was my sandwich. What I got in return was a plastic mechanical pencil containing standard #2 lead with an eraser that's been mostly chewed off (he was a pensive hobo). You can find the same pencils at your local office supply store, sans chew-marks. I use Photoshop to create the sepia tones.
Q. How did you come up with your characters?
A. I'm not sure, really. I used to draw cat characters all over my school notebooks when I was a weird kid. As a weird adult-ish type person, I had all but forgotten them until I started listening to jazz again. They sort of came crashing back in on me. Some of them are loosely based on real cats.
Q. Where did you learn to draw? What school did you go to?
A. I didn't go to art school. I did carry a sketchbook wherever I went all through childhood, though. I still do, in fact. It's sort of like a security blanket…that I draw on.
Q. Can you teach me how to draw your characters?
A. I've been asked this enough that I gave in and created a little how-to-draw thingy.
Q. Are you going to publish this? Can I buy books?
A. Maybe someday. I don't know yet.
Q. Do you draw requests?
A. Ach! No! If I made it my policy to accept requests, I'd have no time to do anything but draw requests. Keep in mind 'pls,' 'plz', 'pleeeeease' and 'pls pls pls' do not convincing arguments make. A thousand apologies, effendi.
Q. Do you take commissions?
A. On rare occasions. It depends on what you're asking for and how burdened my schedule is looking. I'm always open to inquiry, though.
Q. Do you allow fan art/guest art/gift art?
A. Yes. I use it to buttress the quivering framework of my fragile ego…er, I mean, sure! I like gift art. Send it on over and I'll put it up in the Gallery.
Q. Can I use your art on my web site? Can I use it to create an avatar/icon?
A. Create avatars and icons at will. I generally don't have a problem with the use of full sized artwork either. My stipulations are that my copyright information remains on the image, that you don't sell it or use it to sell anything, and that you don't misrepresent the artwork. In other words, don't claim that it's yours or describe it as something it isn't, such as an illustration for your totally hawt LoTR/Harry Potter/Inuyasha novel length yaoi fan fiction.
Q. Where do you get ideas? What resources do you use?
A. Too many places to list, really. Life is quirky and amusing and full of interesting things - ideas come from all directions. For resources, Google is often a good place to start. I have a small collection of books on fashion, crime, and general history from the 1920's and 30's as well. If you're looking for specific titles, you can find them in the Acknowledgements.
Q. What do you do for a living?
A. I work as a 3D and 2D artist for these guys on this computer game. Lackadaisy is unrelated.
Q. Are you a boy or a girl?
A. You start drawing guns and cars and everyone gets confused! I'm a girl. I draw ponies sometimes too.
Q. Are you a furry?
A. Uh. I'm not
entirely sure what that means. I draw furries (if you can't think of
a less schmaltzy name for them), but I'm actually a not-very-furry upright
primate. I suspect you are too, unless you're a cat walking on the keyboard.
Get off the keyboard!
Q.
What happened to Ainessa? Did you kill it? Is it dead?
A. No, I didn't kill it. I'm probably neglecting it right now, but I still poke it with a stick now and then to make sure it's not dead. The web site is there, so is the art, it's still dear to me, and I'll continue to update when I can.
You got a beef?? Or a question I didn't answer here? Email me.