Inside the Head of a Comic Book writer

Cliff Galbraith has one of the coolest jobs in the world. While most of us stare at a computer screen all day, carefully crafting emails, or formatting spreadsheets, he does the same thing he was doing in his high school chemistry class: he draws comics. Only now he’s getting paychecks instead of detention slips.

The unfortunate side effect of growing up is that we often decide that, in order to make money, we need to leave our childhood hobbies and passions behind for more “rational” pursuits. You know, pursuits that will pay the bills. Which begs the question, how the heck did Cliff get to do this – a job that falls just below ice cream taste tester in the list of most desirable occupations – for a living? Ultimately, the answer is simple. When you know what you love, and put every ounce of yourself into it, good things happen. Even Cliff says that the only thing that held him back was the fear that it couldn’t be done.

While it’s easy to watch the video and marvel at how he spends his days, it’s also easy to forget how much he struggled to balance the money-maker Sauruses against his dream of bringing Rat Bastard to life for comic book fans. Ultimately, our goals are not so different. We create words, imagery, and ideas to engage an audience. Our work may be subject to briefs, client feedback and brand guidelines but really, it’s us on that page. We present ourselves to the world through our ideas. Even our dress codes are relatively similar to Cliff’s (though I’d challenge you to find the word “bathrobe” anywhere in the Ogilvy employee handbook). And when we need some new inspiration, sometimes a walk outside is all it takes.

All in all, it’s pretty awesome to earn a living doing what we do and what Cliff is able to do. Maybe even better than ice cream taste tester, especially for anyone who’s lactose intolerant. Because why would you do anything that makes you sick?

Visit: cliffgalbraith.com » | ratbastardcomics.com »

Watch: Cliff Galbraith's Create or Else video in HD on youtube. Leave him a comment!