We reached out to Vaughan to learn more about his work. We were curious about the strangest or most unexpected source of inspiration he’s ever used for his strips. Here’s what we found out: “I try to find humor in everything. There’s always something funny about even the darkest, saddest moments. Probably one of the most unexpected sources of inspiration was a eulogy at a funeral. The person speaking kept mentioning the fact they had attended an elite university, which had nothing to do with anything, certainly not the person whose funeral it was. And I just thought, this would make a great cartoon.”
When asked about specific comic ideas that he personally loved but ultimately scrapped because they felt too weird or risky, Tomlinson responded: “I’m a big fan of slapstick, physical comedy. Especially ’80s films starring Leslie Nielsen. Think Airplane! and the Naked Gun films. I always end up drawing really silly cartoons along the same vein. They make me laugh but I end up scrapping them because I’m pretty certain that no one would ever publish them.”
The cartoonist shared with us that sometimes he receives feedback that he completely wouldn’t expect. He explained: “I am sometimes genuinely surprised when people get offended by a cartoon. It’s usually because they interpret it in a way I had never even thought of.”
Finally, Vaughan told us that there isn’t a single strip he’s created that holds special meaning to him. However, he added: “ I really love drawing bugs and animals. All the insect ones are my favorites.”
