James says the time needed to finish one of his comics varies: “Sometimes a premise or basic idea will come to me, but I don't have the right ending, or something isn't quite right, and I'll let it sit and come back in a few months if I get inspiration. If it's something complicated to draw, it might then take a few days or a week to create the actual comic, then some extra time to edit and fine-tune it. On the flip side, some simple ideas will only take an hour from idea to finished product. Strangely, the latter often does better!”
“I'm not sure how other comic authors/artists work, but for me, I never sit down and try to think up ideas,” James says about his creative process. “I'm generally just paying attention to my thoughts and what happens to be bothering me on any given day. From there I'll try and take that thought and add a punchline to it. So comics like these are my way of putting a funny spin on my own frustrations and worries.
One of the benefits of this approach is the comics resonate with people who have those same frustrations and worries. To keep track of my thoughts I have a notebook with me at all times; I have a stack of 6 or 7 of them on my desk, full of random thoughts and half-jokes that I've jotted down over the past 2 or so years.”
“Which comic I make next depends on what I'm excited about. Sometimes I'll have an idea I just have to complete right away; other times an idea will sit around for months before it feels right to use it,” says the artist. “Because I only work on what I feel excited about, my comics tend to wander over a couple of different styles. I have straight 'work satire', more emotional pieces, comics about life wisdom, and some that are just silly jokes. This keeps it varied for me and maintains my interest.
I think something I do differently from other comic artists is how I test and refine my comics. If a comic isn't working, I'll redraw it, change the wording, or swap in a new punchline completely. Of course, this is easier for me because I use a very minimalist style. It's a very finicky process of testing and improving, but sometimes it pays off.”
When asked about facing creative block, James replied: “I find that I come up with the greatest number of ideas when I'm stressed. When that happens, I make sure I'm recording those ideas so that later, when I have periods of uninspired calm, there's something to fall back on. Those backups stop me from worrying when the ideas aren't coming in a particular week, or even month. However, because I rely on ideas to come to me, rather than seeking them out, I live with the vague worry that I'll eventually run out of ideas.”
