Like all of us, I need to get through the resistance some times. I over-think everything. I don't know my own voice. I'm adhering to someone else's standards. And I'm afraid of what everyone will think if I fail, and I know I will fail.

One way out of this is to produce work, lots of work, and to damn the torpedoes as far as the critical voice goes. (We can use our critical voice later, when we need a dialogue about who we are, what our style is, what we want to say...)

Even though 2020 has been a whirlpool; landslide; and train wreck all at once, we’re still trying our best to make online learning as interactive as possible.

Once a month, we try to get a guest speaker in to talk comics, publishing, and whatever other professional insight they have about the comic world.

The last few months, students in our exclusive Mighty Network groups had access to Pro-Calls via Zoom with some awesome guest speakers. This year, we were fortunate enough to get these guest speakers!

Check out what we’ve all been up to the last few weeks in the SAW courses and Mighty Network groups!

Thoughts from Justine Andersen:

“So in an attempt to tone down the anxiety level regards the more advanced level of this class, let's look at a few more "cartoony" examples of "caves of wonder," and let's start with one of the very BEST! Maurice Noble's backgrounds for Ali Baba Bunny…

As a tribute to National Native American Heritage Month, and National Native American Heritage Day (which is observed the day after Thanksgiving), we want to shed light on some awesome comics and comic resources portraying Native American cartoonists’ experiences, heritage, and stories. Check it out!

The majority of the public's education and awareness about the transgender community has been informed by the media (films, books, art, etc). A lot of this media, however, overwhelmingly misrepresents and mischaracterizes who trans people really are and the attitude the public should have toward trans individuals.

For Transgender Awareness Week, I want to highlight some Transgender cartoonists who share their experiences, educate about pronouns, or are just openly Transgender cartoonists.

History alone is always evolving, since new things are constantly surfacing about our past, and Comics History in the Western world is no different.

SAW’s Western Comics History course is always evolving as we find new sources to cover about diversity and technique in comics while also reflecting on how far comics have travelled to be where they are in today’s Western world.

Perseverance. It’s hard! Not only with one’s art, but often with other things in life that pile up and may take one away from doing art, or much of anything at all. But is giving up even harder to do? We’d like to share what some of our students have said about this common concern many face.

Comics are all about drawing words and writing art (think about it), but not every comic needs lettering or bubbles. In fact, there are many amazing silent comics out there that tell a story without ever using a thought bubble! However, including lettering and balloons in comics are very common. These inclusions can sometimes even enhance your comics.

Seeking improvement is a part of being human. Most of us want to “upgrade,” “one-up,” and consistently advance in our life, especially in our creative journey. It’s natural and just comes with the territory of being human.

But how does one improve?

How do we get better, when progress feels so slow?

Sidney Davidson, a Teacher at SAW, offers some insight after being asked “How to Improve.”