Writing a Daily Comic Strip takes Dedication

To write a daily comic has to be tough. Not every joke is going to land. There is no time to workshop an idea before going to press. I read about Charles Shultz having no time for anything other than Snoopy. I read fiction books that I can’t recall the name of, about comic strip writers and it isn’t easy.

A comic writer also has to draw these characters. The characters have to come alive and have reactions in three panels. The writers also draw the scenes and settings. The house has to look the same everyday. The furniture can’t change. The neighbors have to look the same every time.

It’s easy to see how Cathy Guisewite burned out on Cathy. Bill Waterston could never keep Calvin and Hobbes up to everyone’s standards. The Far Side ended. Bloom County was a popular comic for years.

They ended the comics run before it faded or became boring. That’s a sign of how tough this art form is.