Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Thoughts”
The definition of a STARVING ARTIST is someone who sacrifices material well-being to focus on their artwork. Originally, it was a description of a selfless act. Art was considered the act of creating something to bring meaning and pleasure. The commonly held definition is someone on their way up the ladder, or possibly someone failing to make it happen. There …
Not long ago and probably not surprisingly, I found myself at the TRADER JOE’S next to the Grove. I was staring at all of the different Pumpkin Spice products and wondering which one of them I should buy? I can’t drink Pumpkin Spice coffee. Very sad. I am allergic to something in it. I CAN eat pumpkin bread, though. And …
Headphones on, I’m in my office writing or drawing. It used to be Pandora, of course. You know, just listen to music while you draw. Don’t listen to new music if you’re writing; too distracting. As we closer to the election, we’re on YouTube, just in case it flips to an important bit of news. I know, I should be …
Flip Thru – Moon Princesses, Myths & Monsters Vol. 1-3 M. Patrick Duggan
BEFORE: Writing: I didn’t used to listen to music while writing. It was too distracting. Hearing the ideas of others seemed to invade my own thoughts, and it became a struggle. If I ignored them and went with the melody, it felt disrespectful: I would lose track and stop writing. If I listened: I would also lose focus and stop. …
No doubt there are a hundred others, but these stuck in my mind, but upon reading each of these books I wanted to write a book, too. I read a ton of Vonnegut, of course, but he only made me admire him. He didn’t’ make me want to be him, precisely. These people wrote something that made me LONG to …
One of the things I stumble with: trying to WRITE while managing my anxiety. Let me clarify: I do not have an anxiety disorder. I’m just a person living in the real world. That’s enough for anyone right there. Particularly in the current world (here on Planet Earth) everyone has something to be anxious about. It’s perfectly normal, actually. And …
Confidence. How do so many people have it? Where does it come from? Every day I wake up and wonder if this is when everyone figures out what a fraud I am. People hire me to illustrate all the time. People hire me to write things. I wake up every day thinking, “Okay, you had a good run.” There’s that …
When I was 14 years old, my father took me aside one day to ask an important question. “Dearest son,” he said (let’s pretend that the elder Mr. Duggan would do that, shall we?), “won’t you tell me? What is it that you wish to do with your life?” I needed only a moment to ponder. “Dearest father, I would …
Seeing the past: a young woman sent this image to me via email. She said I gave this sketch to her late father (apparently in 1994) while he was fighting off an illness. I do not recall drawing the image. But she told me her father was a great fan of the ‘Maude’ character from my comic book of the …
