ComicsJAN 23, 2024

I Create Single-Panel Comics About Absurd Situations, And Here Are My 20 Best Works

Hi folks, my name is Steven Garza. I’m a professional standup comedian and joke teller. I’m always looking for new ways to communicate my jokes. Cartooning sort of evolved slowly for me. It was an idea I tinkered with over the years but never gave it any attention. Finally, after years of procrastination, I decided to give it a try. The only problem was I didn’t know how to draw. 7 years ago, I walked into Blick’s to purchase a drawing pad and pencils. When I sat at home and began to put pencil to paper, the realization sunk in that this cartoon thing wasn’t going to be an easy road. Eventually, after a few years of practicing out of “How To” books and countless pages of crumpled-up paper, I began posting them online. Surprisingly to me, I had some positive feedback.

Fret Buzzed is a comic strip with two personalities. On one hand, the four-panel strip follows a storyline of two middle-aged failed musicians desperately trying to hold on to their dream while balancing adult life. Fret Buzzed single-panel gags are a different story. I use these for any off-the-wall ideas I have that work better as non sequiturs. Although, sometimes the two overlap. You can see the characters from my four-panel strip make appearances in my single-panels. I like to look at it as Easter eggs for those familiar with my work. Readers who are familiar with the characters get to see them in absurd situations outside the story line.

More info: Instagram

#1 New Hunting Tactics

62points

Coming up with ideas for my cartoon happens in a few ways. If I’m lucky, something will randomly pop into my head. Although rare, it’s like a gift where the joke has already been packaged with a punchline and presented to me with a neat little bow on top. It’s as if a gag has been given to me fully formed without any effort on my part. For the majority of my cartoons I create my ideas by sketching and combining random subjects, situations, and characters. When I’ve come up with a subject and situation that I find interesting or unique, I pretend to have a conversation with the characters in my head. This doesn’t always lead to a joke but it often gives me a gauge whether the gag has anything funny to it. If not, it will often point me in a different direction with new possibilities.

#2 I’m Batman

53points

#3 Evolution

51points

Character design and development takes more time than any other step in my process but is also one of the most rewarding. I'm still growing as an illustrator, so designing each character and applying proper proportions can be time-consuming. It’s a lot of trial and error, along with experimenting in different poses. I’m always growing and each cartoon gets a little easier.

#4 Ol’ Wally

43points

#5 Rain

42points

I’m always finding new themes and genres that interest me. One month I may really find cavemen interesting, the next, alligators. Once I tap the well of jokes and drain it for everything funny I can think of, I move on to the next theme. Now that I’ve compiled quite a few gags I often revisit a theme and combine it with a new one. I use this as a way to generate more ideas.

#6 Punching Bag Bite

41points

#7 Truth Hurts

41points

My biggest artistic influence is Matt Groening, creator of the comic strip Life in Hell and of course, the greatest cartoon series of all time, The Simpsons. Since I was a kid, I’ve wanted to be a part of The Simpsons show in some way. Not knowing how to do that, I figured I’d make my own cartoon. I read that Mr. Groening got his start by placing his cartoons in the LA weekly. I figured I’d try the same. Even though newspapers aren’t what they once were for cartoons I began submitting Fret Buzzed. I still find myself ecstatic every time I see my cartoon printed in a newspaper.

#8 Migration

40points

#9 Wrong Part Of Town

37points

My creative process is relatively simple. I tend to work digitally because it helps speed up the process for me. I use the app Procreate with my iPad Pro for all sketching, inking, coloring, and lettering. Once I have come up with an idea I roughly sketch out the scene and blocking for the characters. I take time in deciding which angle works best for the gag. Once I have everything sketched and visualized, I ink the outlines. Next I color the image and lastly add the lettering and speech bubble.