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First Nit Wits: Roll Play
Dual
Purpose Nit Wits Mar-16-2005
By Chris Dunmire
I still remember the first comic strip I tried to draw when
I was ten years old. First, I drew
a fancy limousine-type car. Then on top of the car, I drew
a rock
band
playing the
usual
fare of instruments: a drum, electric guitar, bass, etc.
There were no words in the strip, but the punchline had
to do with
the sharp, claw-like stands supporting a few of the
instruments and microphones on top of the fancy car. In my
young
mind it was somehow funny to see a band performing on top of
an expensive car, unknowingly damaging its roof with their
sharp
instrument stands. That was the gag. And you had to be
quite observant to realize it.
Well, the strip wasn't funny to anyone else but me. After
watching the unhumored faces of several family
members trying to figure it out, and realizing how much
effort it took to make them "get it," I hung up my ambitions
of being a comic artist for the time being.
Eighteen years later I decided to try again. In a not-so-serious
way, I began playing around with a one-panel comic I named
Nit Wits,
with an emphasis on the Wit. I was drawn to one-panel comics
like the Far Side, where the gag
had to be played out and realized within one frame. I
liked that.
 Actually, my Nit Wits comic had a dual purpose. I
used it as a means for expressing my corny sense of
humor, and for
practicing drawing items for the strip.
I always struggled with drawing freehand, but when
I began
studying graphic design, I found that with
the aid of illustration software, I could render a few things
in basic forms, perfect for comic strip art. Don't ask me why
somewhere between my brain and my hand ideas convert themselves
over to caricature drawings instead of representational ones.
Until I get that ironed out, I'll be perfecting my digital
art skills.
Now that I've shared some background on why I began this corny comic, go enjoy a browse through the ongoing Nit Wits collection and see the first book I published because of it: You Can Draw Cartoony Things!
© 2007, 2010 Chris Dunmire www.chrisdunmire.com. All rights reserved. |
