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“I am the. . . inspiration.”

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What gets you into the groove, the writing mood, the working space, , , the I am the walrus and I CAN Imagine vibe?

I have several affirmations posted on my walls to remind me of my purpose. . . to affirm my intention. . .  but there seem to be creative triggers I sometimes need to set my mind into a creative mood.  When writing comic strips, I used to pick up a paperback of one of my favorite comic strip collections, BC, Hagar, Hi & Lois, Shoe, Calvin & Hobbes. . .  my favorite for getting into the writing rhythm was Hagar. My former editor at King Features (from the Muppets days) Bill Yates, always said that Dik Browne and Hagar was the perfect blend of writing complimenting art and art complimenting writing. There’s a magical pace, paired with a delightful looseness that you get reading Hagar. That’s what I tried to do with the Muppets- keep that pace, find that rhythm of words, conversation, connection of the characters and connection to the reader.

Writing these blog posts is a totally different discipline. . . it’s more like writing music and finding a mood to let the words flow.

Writing the Green House is again, something completely different. It’s more of a Calvin & Hobbes scenario, where I have to move into a mood of recalling experience and all the thoughts, conversation and tone of that moment and then find the moments that the characters would share in that space. I’m making it all sound kind of “magical” and it’s really not- it’s just thinking about who the characters are and what they’d think about or say in that moment. . . and imagine their physical presence too. . . what they’d be doing or how they’d be standing. . .the expressions, the gestures. Just like a director, you take it all in, and hit the pause button to jot down the best moments. The tricky part is finding the things that get you to that place, the creative triggers. What are your creative triggers? A walk? A run? The right music? A nap? A cup of coffee? . . .

Ah, the magical cup of coffee. . . It’s more than just the stimulation . . . it’s the process of creating that coffee, being conscious of the process, mindfully preparing and enjoying the coffee, the warmth of the mug in your hand. . . that’s kind of the same as creating a comic or blog. Maybe that’s why coffee seems to be a staple in most creativity. Plus, it wakes us up a little and says. . . “Yeah. . . goo goo g’ joob!”

That would make a great name for a coffee company. . . “Goo Goo G’ Joob Organic Jamaican Roasters.”

“Jam-aican me some fresh coffee, Mon?”

Okay, now I need a cup. . . seriously- tell us about your creative triggers or what you think about mine. . . you can comment below or as always, join us on our Facebook page where the best discussions always take place. Goo goo g’ joob!

“Link-ed” In. . .

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This week we’ll be introducing you to our liberal blogging rat, Lincoln. . . his friends call him Link. He loves everything from the 1960’s and idolizes John Lennon (hence his usual army shirt outfit, round glasses and long hair). His blog is called, “Link’s Underground,” and you’ll see Pam & Todd reading his blog on occasion at The Green House.

Writing a comic strip with environmental themes, we naturally attract a more liberal audience. Often it’s of the extreme liberal variety. When we first started The Green House, we would get “strong” suggestions to get really liberal with our story lines, but our goal was to always keep a good balance. Link gave us the ability to get a little “out there” and have fun poking fun at the extreme right wing media, especially Rush Limbaugh, whom Link loathes. . . but also listens to. Maybe it’s the old “keep your friends close and your enemies closer” philosophy, but he listens, as do I from time to time.

As time has gone by, I find myself inclined to mellow out Link’s attitude a bit, and have him be more into technology and pushing the green agenda more than being political- although sometimes those topics intertwine. To be totally honest, it’s just that politics are a subject I’d rather not focus on in my writing. There’s so much greater good I can do finding humor in everyday life. . . it reaches a broader audience and tells the kind of stories I like to tell. It’s also too easy to fall into a reactionary position and spend too much time in negativity and the hot political topic of the media day.  I do LOVE how Walt Kelly handled politics “back in the day” with Pogo. . . but I don’t feel that’s where Peter an my strengths are as story tellers. In that regard, it’s important to have well defined characters with easy to recognize personalities. Link is a character with a lot of character- and personality. It’ll be fun sharing his quirkiness with you. He angers easily, but is also a true friend. We hope you enjoy spending some time with him this week.

As Kelly and Pogo said, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” I don’t want to be my own enemy in the world of promoting green concepts and lifestyle. I don’t want to preach my philosophy, but instead depict a world where our characters are positive role models, working to find peace and harmony. . . along with a few laughs along the way. For ideally, that’s what life should be about. . . and I believe Walt Kelly and John Lennon would approve.