Today we’re thrilled to be joined by the award-winning cartoonist and New York Times bestselling author Stephan Pastis.
Stephan, who lives in California, is the creator of the syndicated comic strip Pearls Before Swine, which appears in over 800 newspapers.
He is also the author of the Timmy Failure series of children’s books (extremely popular in my house!), and the co-writer of the Disney+ movie Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made (also a massive hit chez moi!).
In this Q&A, Stephan talks to us about being inspired by Peanuts, overcoming rejection, and the importance of the support he received from other legendary cartoonists…
Did you always dream of being a cartoonist? Do you think your childhood contributed to your success, for example growing up reading Peanuts or being encouraged to draw?
Oh for sure. I wanted to be a cartoonist from the age of 8, which was when I first saw Peanuts books on a relative’s shelf. I loved them from the start and it made me want to draw a comic strip.
You spent years working as a litigation attorney while trying to make it as a cartoonist. Did you experience much rejection during that time, and was there anything in particular that helped you to stay motivated? Also, is it true you used to doodle while in court?
Yeah, I submitted at least three or four strips to the comic strip syndicates before Pearls, and they all got rejected. So there were probably quite a few years of rejections.
I doodled all the time, but I don’t think I did it in court. Well, maybe if no one was looking.
Getting syndicated as a cartoonist is notoriously difficult. Can you tell us how you succeeded where so many do not?
Well, a lot of luck. And getting an endorsement from Dilbert creator Scott Adams way back in 2000. That was a huge factor. But long term, it probably comes down to the writing.
If you can write humorously and do it consistently, you can sustain a comic strip long term.
Over the years, you received support and encouragement from great cartoonists such as Scott Adams (Dilbert), Charles Schulz (Peanuts) and Bill Watterson (Calvin and Hobbes). How important was this support to your career?
Oh, huge. I met Schulz back in 1996 and it really kickstarted my desire to be syndicated. Then Scott helped me as I mentioned above. And when Watterson asked to draw my strip for a week in 2016, it was an incredible surprise. We all stand on the shoulders of others.
I’ve read that when you wrote the first book in the hugely successful Timmy Failure series of children’s books, ten publishers bid on it and you decided to interview the editors from each prospective publisher (every aspiring author’s dream situation!). Was this to see if they were on the same wavelength as you, humour-wise?
Hahaha I did. And that was exactly why.
If someone doesn’t laugh at the same things, you do, it’s going to be a lot harder slog.
I was also looking to weed out editors who were too fearful. Fear and creativity don’t go together well.
Where do you draw and write, and what does your daily routine look like? Do you have any particular habits/rituals that help to keep the inspiration flowing?
I draw at a condo that I use as my studio. My ritual now is to drink coffee and then go for three-mile walks where I listen to music and think. And when I come up with an idea, I use the Voice Memo app on my phone to record it as I walk. So all of my recorded ideas are accompanied by the CLOMP CLOMP of my feet on a walking trail. So I get to both exercise and write at the same time.
What would you say has been the highlight of your career?
Well, I feel like I’ve had many fortunate moments. Meeting Schulz, Watterson drawing the strip, going to Baghdad on a USO trip during the Iraq War, winning the Reuben [the Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year is the cartoonist profession’s highest honour].
One of the cooler ones was getting invited by the Harvard Lampoon staff into their hallowed building (which I don’t think is open to the public) on the Harvard Campus. Then they brought me in to compete in a food-eating contest against the Harvard Crimson. Very fun.
What advice would you give to aspiring cartoonists trying to get syndicated?
Write to make yourself laugh. Then show it to someone and see if they laugh (and not your mom — she’ll always say it’s good).
Finally, for all the Timmy Failure fans out there… will there be a sequel to the movie?
Disney hired me to write it, which I did. Then Covid hit, all production stopped, and the kids who played the roles in the first movie all grew up. So probably not unless we re-cast it.
