Leighton writes a little bit about himself on his website: "Trying Times Comics was born out of, well, these trying times. Some time into the great quarantine, I needed a little more creative expression and a little more connection to the outside world so I chose comics. I hope that if you found your way here, I've helped brighten your day, even just a little."
In a previous interview with Bored Panda, Leighton said that he started doodling in his childhood and never stopped. He studied video game design and spends most of his time creating art and making comics to cheer people up. Art is part of his life and he wouldn't have it any other way. Creating comics cheers him up and helped the artist out during difficult times.
Leighton's main inspiration is his life experiences and what is going on around him. He creates comics about his personal interests, situations, and conversations he has with his wife and friends or even pets: "Trying Times Comics is about nerd life, relationships, and these trying times. That's kinda the tagline I'm going with at least. But more specifically it's about my personal interests, conversations/situations I have with my wife and friends (and cat), and whatever else is going on around me."
Leighton chose a very simplistic style for his comics because it's easier and faster to draw and he believes that the joke is more important than the artwork when it comes to creating funny comics. He believes that if you have limitations for yourself, you won't get tired as much and it will improve your work.
In a recent interview, we asked Leighton what the main goal of his illustrations is: "Hello! I'm the author of Trying Times Comics. I started drawing these comics mainly as a creative outlet during the pandemic. I enjoyed being able to make something that people could relate to or see themselves in. In a way, it was really another route to connect with people during isolation. I suppose the main goal is to connect with people. When I see comments like, 'I love this!' or '@person this is so me/you/us!' I know I've achieved that."
The author tells us how he got into art: "I've just always been a doodler. I don't think I'm particularly good at drawing so I've opted for a very simplistic style to compensate for that, haha."
Leighton shares the most difficult part of creating these illustrations: "I think I have a creative challenge and a logistical challenge. On one hand, it is difficult to create the ideas and figure out how to best bring them to life in 4 panels while keeping things fresh. On the other hand, it is difficult to actually just have the time to sit down and make things! I'm fairly busy with my job, family, and other hobbies, so trying to keep a schedule of 1-3 comics a week has proven to be pretty difficult recently. I try to do a minimum of one comic a week now, but peak pandemic isolation I was doing 3 a week."
The artist shares what topics he covers: "I have a mix of slice of life things I find funny, wholesome content, and pop-culture/nerd/internet culture topics. I think if you were to read all my comics, you could get a good idea of my life and interests, actually."
Leighton describes his style and humor: "Simplistic. I really wanted to pick a style that was easy enough that I could go from idea to drawing, to refinement, to posting in like 1-2 hours. If it was more complicated, the chance that I would stick with drawing them would go down. My little characters have been described as thimble people, bullet people, thumbs, eggs, and 'garbage ugly style.' I think recently there's always a comment that just says 'amongus' on every comic I post to Reddit.I think my humor ranges from observational to sarcastic/satirical to absurd. I love comedy, so it's a part of the comic creating process I really want to continue to work on."
Leighton shares what keeps inspiring him to keep moving forward: "There's probably two sides to it. One is when a comic does really well and goes viral. It's really satisfying to see them appear elsewhere on the internet or how many people will translate them into other languages. I've probably seen some of my comics in over a dozen languages and I think that's super cool. The other thing is I just like making stuff. Sometimes I'll make one that I really like, but it doesn't do well, and that doesn't change my feelings towards it. I like it because I like it and that's okay."
The artist gives advice to those who want to make art: "One, make stuff you know and like. Start with your own perspective, your own take, and you'll be surprised by how many people can and cannot relate to your perspective. People respond to authenticity. Two, make yourself keep making. Set up a schedule and keep yourself to it. You may run out of content or hit an artistic block, but I think all the best stuff is on the other side of that block. A schedule will help to push you past that. It becomes easier when it's a habit."
Leighton tells us more about himself, his life, and his journey: "I'm a native Texan, married to a lovely woman, have a cat and dog, and I work professionally as UX designer. I think I've always been interested in the arts and design and that manifests itself in different ways, like doodling and comics or in my work more professionally. I love staying active and was always in a sport growing up but nowadays it's mainly weightlifting and walking the dog. I love video games (and made them for a while) and I can't stop playing Civ. It's a problem. Send help. Looking at all that, I think I've used all those topics for comics."
The artist shares how being featured on Bored Panda has helped him out: "Yes! It was really cool seeing the article pop up and all the comments and love I saw from the Bored Panda community. I really enjoyed reading what everyone had to say. I also think it's fascinating the sheer number of sites that just straight up plagiarize your articles. Like, I know that's always an issue in any content creating space, but my condolences."
"As I said, I love the interaction with people, so if you leave a comment on one of my accounts I will 100% read it and likely respond. If you message me, I will respond. I'm most active on Instagram (@tryingtimescomics), but you can find my comics on a few other platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Webtoons, Reddit). If you've made it to here, thank you SO MUCH for taking the time to look at my little doodles. Maybe you didn't laugh out loud, but I hope you at least did that thing where you blow air out your nose a little harder than usual. And thank you again to Bored Panda for the interview! Happy reading!"