Okay, let's put an end to all of this. I enjoy drawing, and I do it reasonably well, but I am NOWHERE near being able to do it at a professional level. That's why I am---and happy to be---a writer. As you all know by now, I sketch out my ideas before sending them to the artist but that's as far as it's ever going to go. I'm a "talented amateur". The real pros on here (Tarks, Nige and Malc) will, if they're being honest, tell you exactly the same thing. This is not false modesty on my part. I can certainly convey what I want to in a sketch but I am a million miles away from being capable of producing acceptable artwork for publishing. And that's the way I like it. I come up with ideas and then pass them on.
That's what I do.
You know what, Roger, and I'm being totally serious here, but I couldn't disagree more. Your drawing style is utterly charming and very perceptive - you know what you want to convey, and the vast majority of the time, you achieve it with the ideal weight to your drawings. All of these cartoons ably demonstrate this, I believe.
I'm not saying you could replace Andrew or t'other Roger - you couldn't, not for the partnerships they currently have with you. And sadly, the spec gag market is only a very pale shadow of its former self, so it would be very difficult for you to prove me right, but I'm certain, in its heyday, should you have wanted to sell your own cartoons in the spec market, you'd have had no problem at all, and would have held your own with the best of them.
And unless you specifically ban me from doing so, I'd like to keep on posting these - we haven't even got to Peepsie's favourite yet.
