Toon Toolkit

 
So. You wanna make your own funnies eh?
The thing is you can't or have no time to draw. Well here's a solution.
Toon Toolkit is by far the best cartoon app for getting your jokes, ideas or puns (maybe even political comment) into a strip fast. It has everything you'll need to grab those ideas and turn them into a reality.
I'm getting paid to say this right!? No. No way. I just don't endorse stuff that I don't believe in, don't use and wouldn't recommend to friends.
Toon Toolkit is in fact...wait for it...a kit. Pretty much everything you need to get started. Admittedly I use another app for titles and balloons because I like to get stuff the way I like it but as far as graphic content goes you've got it here. Why am I shouting so loud about this app? For one reason it's fantastic as is, no doubt about that. Secondly the dev is responsive and hard working. I mailed him about the low output resolution and a few weeks on here we are, resolution output doubled. Wow!
Before you say that I should be drawing my own cartoons read the post below. This app is for those "voice now" moments when drawing time is in short supply. If you want to make cartoons now this is the app. Don't be afraid of your finished product looking like other people's. If the message/joke is good no-one will care.
10/10 from me. Now you decide.
 

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/toontoolkit/id395774300?mt=8

New Habit?

 
I bought a rechargeable e-cigarette today.
I didn't really know what I thought it'd be like considering it's different from the real thing but I'm quite surprised. For a start it works as you would expect, draw air through and smoke (water vapour) comes out. It certainly feels like your smoking something. It doesn't taste much like a cigarette but that's not a bad thing. The nicotine hit works too. All in all it's a decent gadget and I'm glad I bought it.
So am I about to give up smoking?
The simple answer is no. Not yet at least. The reason for this is that I've been smoking too long to go cold turkey, I've tried and failed at that before now. I think a reasonably slow release from nicotine is required with me. The other thing is that I love my pipes and the myriad tobaccos that I buy. I enjoy the tastes and the ritual. It may be that one day I won't inhale any pipe smoke but just enjoy the taste. That'd be a good thing.
I have another bit of smoking tech on its way too and I'll show you that when it arrives. For now I'm hoping to cut out at least half of the harmful stuff in smoke from my daily routine.
It'll be an interesting experiment.
P.S. I'm enjoying my snuff collection too. It's all good.
 

Still Life Animation

 
It's been a while since I've written anything here, sorry about that but I've been engrossed in music.
That's not a bad thing but I have to give most of my free time to tracks I'm fond of. The reason behind the next track is to prove that I can produce something as good on my iPad as I would do with FL Studio. The explanation of that process is for another post though.
This post is about my cartoons. I've been meaning to set up a process that means that I can produce a cartoon strip with minimal effort. That sounds lazy but if one can't express the joke quickly then it becomes lost in the production of the strip. I have drawing tools to produce characters but I need those characters in one place. I need a stage so that I can shout pose!
The best way to do this it seems is to use animation software and take stills from scenes. There's plenty of good animation apps on the iPad.
I've been inspired by other apps too. Their simplicity has made me think in a much simpler way. I'm getting to a point where although I haven't produced anything I have a road map in my head. As soon as my next track is finished I'm going to put some effort into creating my cast, props and stages.
One thing I haven't decided upon is will I end up making proper animated shorts? It's a long walk from posed stills but it may happen one day, I'm certainly not going to dismiss the idea.
So that's it for now. Music then cartoon strips.
That'll keep me busy for a while.
 

H2O Above & Below

 

There's something very calming about water.
I hadn't planned to ride along the towpath before I went out but it was suggested to me by my girlfriend and I'm glad I went along with that suggestion.
My journey started out riding against the wind. I didn't mind this as I was in no rush and I knew it'd be at my back on the return journey. I cycled into the Leicestershire countryside and it wasn't long before I was surrounded by fields. The roar of city traffic faded and the wind blowing through trees and hedges became my soundtrack punctuated briefly by the odd passing car. After stopping a few times to photograph my surroundings I rested at a rural centre coffee stop and filled up with my usual sustenance of caffeine, nicotine and cake. The clouds parted briefly to bath me in sunshine and a cheeky Robin even sat on my handlebars as if to befriend me in return for sharing my banana bread slice. I welcomed our short encounter even though I wasn't looking for company.
On my return journey I rode over a railway bridge and then a canal bridge which offered steps down to water level. With that suggestion from my girlfriend still alive in my head I decided to take up the offer. The beautifully flat ride took me further away from the bustle of city life. It was water, nature and I. Only occasionally did I meet up with fellow humans at which point a cheery hello was all that was needed. Canals seem to be the last bastion of civility in a world where technology steals our eye contact and greetings to strangers. I rode happily for a few miles and then rejoined a main road which would take me all the way home with that welcoming wind at my back.
As I returned to the Tarmac and traffic the rain poured as if to remind me of the water I was leaving behind. It didn't take long to soak me through to the skin. When you're wet you're wet and nothing can be done about it. It didn't bother me anyway, I was on my way home with a head full of images and experience. I don't take enough time to enjoy such things. Even when I'm in my truck working my eight hours I enjoy the views of nature but never get to stop and breath in the air I'm passing through.
Today I rectified that and I'm glad I did.
 

Time To Myself

 
I'm not in work today.
I've been in a strange mood for about the last week. I have a lot on my mind and I'm a bit darkside. Nothing too bad though. The best thing for me to do in this situation is just step back for a day or so. To avoid the rat-race and find some time for me. So that's what I'm doing.
The one benefit of not being so happy is that my creativity levels soar. As the strip above shows I can really make something out of nothing. I've decided that I'd like to get on my bicycle with my stills camera and go and get some shots of whatever I can find interesting. As long as its not raining too hard that's what I'm going to do. I haven't looked out of the window yet so I have no idea what the weather is like.
By doing what my heart tells me my head clears and getting out of the city for a few hours to munch on crisps and chocolate and to think always manages to rebalance my priorities and get me on the right path.
So everyone, have a nice day. I'm off to do the same.