Some of the Things I'm Doing This Week

In order to supply gags to the ten or so cartoonists I send material to, I read constantly: The New Yorker, Newsday, The New York Times, Barron's, Wall Street Journal, Reader's Digest, Harvard Business Review (and I'm sure I'm missing something). I don't actually read every word of every publication. I have to pick and choose the sections and the articles. I also read stories on The New Yorker's website, mostly the political articles, to keep me up-to-date with what's happening.

Right now I'm also reading "Peter Arno: The Mad, Mad World of The New Yorker's Greatest Cartoonist" by Michael Maslin. I've been waiting for this book to be published to find out more about the cartoonist's life and where he got his ideas. So far the book is full of interesting material and very well written. I recommend it to anyone who's interested in New Yorker cartoons.

I own a copy of "The Complete Cartoons of The New Yorker," which was published in 2004 and includes two CD's containing all the cartoons which ran in the magazine from 1925 to 2004. When I run out of ideas and need some motivation, I go through random years of cartoons for inspiration. It always helps.

Besides all this, with political news all around us, I get updated by listening to news radio and watching national and local broadcast news three to four times a day. I also get news briefs on my computer. And, my notebook follows me from room to room. I've got to write it down. I don't want to miss anything.

After this political season is over, things might seem quite boring.

Busy Writing Political Gags

This post will be short because I'm keeping very busy writing political gags. I live in New York which just finished off a very active primary vote. The newspapers, radio stations, TV stations and the Internet are full of stories - lots of material for gags. As I've said before, I read constantly and write down phrases and words that pertain to this presidential election. And, of course, the road to the White House has many twists and turns. You have to make comments about what's going on and, of course, you have to keep updating your material.

Good Luck!

Using Trending Words and Phrases

We're in the middle of a very active political season and this gives the gag writer and cartoonist lots of material.

I read several daily and weekly newspapers plus a few magazines. I'm constantly looking for words, expressions and phrases that appear again and again during this political season. While reading news and feature stories, or scanning the internet for trending political buzzwords, I write down anything that I feel could be used in my gag writing. You want to find words and phrases that are familiar...and used over and over again. Just placing the familiar phrase in an unfamiliar situation can be the basis for a cartoon. You can take the phrase and use the opposite of it. You can also take the phrase and substitute a new word for something that was there before. Ultimately, you're trying to create a surprise.

I find that reading articles on The New Yorker's website, www.newyorker.com, brings me up to date with what's trending in politics. I also read various sections of the Sunday New York Times plus my local daily newspaper, Newsday. I'm also receiving a lot of political flyers in the mail and I read these as well. I also look through published cartoons and see if they generate any ideas that can be used. Certain situations are used over and over again: prisoners, heaven, hell, gurus on mountaintops, job interviews, the Grim Reaper, animals talking to each other, bosses talking to office workers. You can change the situation, or the caption...there are no limits to where you can go. But I think it all starts with the words (ideas).   

A Few Tips on Working Well with Others

First of all, I missed posting new entries on my blog for the past few weeks because, honestly, I've been very busy working, which is a good thing. I've taken on some new writing assignments lately and this has become a top priority. I plan to return to posting new entries on a weekly basis starting today.

You probably already know what I do. I provide gags for syndicated and non-syndicated gag cartoons. I see this as providing a service to my customers. I spend lots of time getting new customers and then keeping those customers happy. I guess working in print advertising sales for many years has given me this mindset.

Here are a few things I've learned over the years about getting and keeping customers:

1. ALWAYS TRY TO ACT LIKE A PROFESSIONAL. Be professional in how you approach new customers and how you deal with them when you have their business. If you're interested in developing new business for yourself, your website and your profiles on LinkedIn or Facebook should also highlight what you do, always in a professional manner.

2. WHEN YOU PROMISE TO DO SOMETHING FOR SOMEONE, DO IT. And if you can't, tell them why the work will be delayed or why you can't handle the assignment at all. Be honest. Don't make a lot of excuses.

3. WHEN SOMEONE PAYS YOU FOR WORK YOU PROVIDED, THANK THEM. Let them know you appreciate their business.

4. ALWAYS TRY TO BE POSITIVE WHEN DEALING WITH CUSTOMERS. Don't speak negatively of anyone, especially on the internet.

5. FOCUS ON WHAT YOU WANT THE OUTCOME TO BE. Always be thinking of what the goal is (more sales together, usually).

6. DO MORE THAN WHAT IS REQUIRED. If some asks you to send them 10 to 20 gags, send them 25 good ones. Let that person know that you're reliable and are willing to give more.

7. WHEN ONE OF YOUR CUSTOMERS HAS A BIG SALE, CONGRATULATE THEM.  When the cartoonists I work with have a big sale to a national publication, even if I'm not the one who provided the gag, I try to send an email of congratulations. When you make a big sale people will congratulate you as well.

These are just a few things I've learned over the years. If you have any questions or comments, shoot me an email at: gagsbyhelene@gmail.com.

Getting Organized

In order to be productive in this business, I have to be organized. I make "to-do" lists every afternoon with the work I have to do the next day. And then as I accomplish these tasks, I cross the item off the list. Doing this gives me a great sense of accomplishment...the goal being to cross off every item  by the end of the day. Some people might say this is crazy, but it works for me. I write for a lot of people and I've set up a system to send them gags on a regular basis. I'm not saying I don't veer off from this routine when I need to. Doctor's appointments, illness, loss of Internet access, having to tend to a sick family member, a really bad toothache, a car that won't start...all these things can get in the way of keeping a regular schedule. But, like I said, writing and sending out gags on a regular basis works for me. (I also write lots of things on a calendar before they make their way onto my "to-do" list).

I also give myself incentives to work. I could easily spend hours on the Internet checking out long lost friends from high school and college (where are they now?), reading endless posts from friends on Facebook or going out to lunch. Because this work is very important to me, I have to focus on it, sit in the chair, read newspapers and magazines, write, write and do more writing.

One of the other things I have to do each week is exercise. I used to go to a gym and work out on the treadmill. At some point I dropped my gym membership and now exercise at home, which for me consists of dancing 45 minutes to a disco tape. No more driving to the gym in snowstorms or the dark of night. (I reward myself after exercising by checking my email).

One other trick is to stop working (for example, for lunch or dinner, or at the end of the day) in the middle of something. It's a lot easier to pick up where you left off on a project than to start a new project. (Try it...it really works!) Again, everyone works differently. I'm a morning person and am at my desk and ready to work at 8am every morning (unless something comes up, like a bad toothache) and I'm usually ready to quit for the day at about 5pm. I'm just more alert in the morning so that's when I work on the things I really have to concentrate on. Again, it works for me.

Any comments, send me an email at: gagsbyhelene@gmail.com.

Helping Others Helps You

You rarely see "help wanted" ads for cartoonists and gag writers. In order to find work in the area of cartooning you have to make contact with other people in the same field and be willing to help them. I've found that when you help others, by giving them information, leads or referrals, the same type of help comes back to you. I've referred a cartoonist looking for a gag writer to another gag writer because I didn't have the experience in the type of writing they were looking for. This gag writer then gave me a lead of a cartoonist who uses writers and this has led to many sales. I guess you could say what you give to others comes back to you.

It's really important to keep in touch with as many people as you can in the cartooning and gag writing field. Be the first to ask them what's new - what they're working on. Take an interest in their work and who they work with. Congratulating them when you hear about a sale, or a book deal, or a cartoon that's just been syndicated. People love to talk about themselves and what they do. All of a sudden you're in a conversation about who buys what, who uses writers, who uses cartoonists - it's a wealth of information. Then you have to act on it. If someone tells you so and so uses writers you have to make the first move. You have to do the research and figure out if you can provide the type of writing that this person is looking for. And then you have to find a way to contact them, whether by email, social media, letters (who writes letters anymore?) or picking up the phone. Then you have to sell yourself by letting people know what you do, what you can offer, all in a professional manner.

Good luck...and keep in touch!

The Importance of Hanging Out with Other "Creative Types"

I work alone and I'm sure most of the people who read this blog do too. When I'm super busy and I'm accomplishing things the time goes by very quickly. I don't even realize I haven't spoken to anyone except the members of my immediate family all week. However, when the words aren't coming and neither are the checks it can get boring, frustrating and lonely.

I believe it's important to find people who do the same type of work I do and "talk shop." I attend meetings and events of the National Cartoonists Society where I'm able to talk to people who understand what I do. This seems to motivate me and helps me to keep doing this every day. If I can't physically be with others who understand what I do I try to keep in touch with other gag writers and cartoonists online or even  by phone. Again, getting assistance, encouragement and feedback from others motivates me. So does getting an email telling me something I wrote sold. So does seeing my work in print. And, of course, getting a check in the mail and making that deposit is a great motivator as well.

What I'm trying to say is when you work alone you don't have people at the next desk to bounce ideas off of. You don't have people down the hall to ask a question to. Sometimes I ask myself that if I stopped doing what I'm doing right now would anyone care. Getting together with others in the same boat lets you know you're not the only one who is:

a.) experiencing rejection (lots and lots of rejection)
b.) checking the mailbox 35 times a day to see if the mail arrived with a check you've been waiting for
c.) waiting months (or years) to find out if something you wrote (or drew) actually sold.  

Any comments? Email me at: gagsbyhelene@gmail.com.