When we asked Swenson about the inspiration behind his work, he told us: “I freelanced as an artist for about 10 yrs and during that time I was able to license out my cartoon series online (before social media took over). Inspiration is '80s and '90s syndicated comics. When you read the funnies in a newspaper.”
We were wondering how the cartoonist comes up with ideas for his new strips. We found out that: “I have piles of notes for ideas. Many will never be drawn because of too little time. Once you teach yourself to brainstorm, you can’t stop the influx of ideas. Used to think up cartoon ideas way back in high school when class was boring.”
Swenson shared with us what specific elements he finds most effective in creating humor in his work: “The funniest thing is when you can get a perfectly stupid expression on a character to go with an equally stupid situation.”
Lastly, Jeff told us more about the most rewarding aspects of being a comic artist: “I’m retired from freelancing. Though I’m coerced, er, asked by loved ones and former clients to assist on projects. If and when I have time for myself, I like to write for the joy of it. And I like to publish collections of my cartoons for ebooks. But I honestly am enjoying being free of deadlines for the most part. So being relaxed and having some free time is what motivates me to engage in some creativity—so suck it, all you AIs! Oh, not sure I should have said that. They will be seeking vengeance on us all at some point.”
