Learn or Teach Cartooning with the Fast and Easy Cartooning for Fun! Handbook

The Fast and Easy Cartooning for Fun! handbook presents drawing games and skill-building lessons, illustrated with examples by the author, professional cartoonists, and students. The handbook alternates art games with see–and-do skills acquisition activities. Students quickly develop the ability to draw funny faces, move bodies through space, and tell multi-panel stories. This creative approach encourages young artists to develop their own characters and write their own comic strips.

With this book:

• Beginning artists cam learn on their own.
• Teachers and parents can guide students even if they don't know cartooning themselves.
• Professional cartoonists can make more money teaching cartooning!

Based on twelve years of cartooning workshops, author/instructor Robert Gluckson, M.A., has integrated the most successful lessons and activities. A comics historian as well as arts educator, he is the writer/narrator of the documentary “Words and Pictures from Stone Age to the Present.” He has a Master's degree in Popular Culture.

Robert at Comic-Con International 2011 with Phil Yeh

See more of the San Diego Comic-Con Teach Cartooning Workshop: Parts 2, 3, 4 and 5.

Cartooning Develops Creativity and Art Ability

Cartooning is a skill set that anyone can learn.

Since schools abandoned art education, parents and teachers often hear comments like "I can't draw" and "I'm not creative."

Happily, the handbook activities inspire a creative flow that quickly replaces the self-defeating "I can't, I'm not" dialog. Guided exercises take students from the known into the previously-unknown, enabling them to demonstrate mastery along the way, and allowing creativity to flow.

Teaching Benefits

Cartooning offers many educational benefits, enabling us to:

• Communicate quickly through pictures
• Teach anything with pictures
• Improve student writing and presentation skills
• Prepare students for careers in storyboarding and illustration
• Draw anything found on the internet or in the library
• Teach cartooning

What's different about this cartooning book?

The approach utilizes fun, creative games, because skills acquisition is part of a process, not the be-all and end-all. This book has a broad appeal -- most cartooning books are written by artists for aspiring professionals.

Our approach, “Play fun art games and learn skills at the same time” is different than “Learn these skills to be able to eventually work within standard genres.” The proven format alternates cartooning games with see–and-do skills acquisition activities.

Non-cartoonist teachers and parents can use this book to teach cartooning using classroom-tested activities and step-by-step instructions. No cartooning skills are needed. The “have fun” approach makes it easy to lead new learners and their involvement results in fast skills acquisition.

Cartoonists can use this book to add another income stream. Just because a person can do something doesn't mean they can teach what they know. This book bridges the gap to add another skill set.