We Are the Introverts
Creating Quiet Comics
To celebrate 15 years of drawing Incidental Comics I’m sharing some of my favorite work from the archives. Stay tuned for more highlights from my picture books and graphic novels throughout the summer.
My first book illustration job began with this comic:
I drew “We Are the Introverts” in 2012, the same year the landmark book QUIET by
was published. I’ve always identified as an introvert, but I never viewed it as a positive characteristic until reading Susan’s work.As a quiet teenager, I often felt awkward and out of place in social situations. Only later did I realize that everyone else, introvert or not, often feels the same way.
In college a professor wrote in the margins of one of my essays, “You have a lot of good ideas. You should speak up more in class.”
Despite her encouragement, I didn’t.
It wasn’t until my mid-twenties that I emerged from my hermit crab shell and started to share my ideas in the classroom setting. (I spent 10 years in post-high school education pursuing my dental degree and orthodontic certification.)
Now I attend a monthly book club, a writer’s group, and a philosophy/current events discussion group. I imagine my friends in these groups sometimes wish I would share my ideas less. Even a lifelong introvert can be outspoken in the right environment.
But back to the world of books. As I understand it, the editorial and art team at Dial Books was looking for an illustrator for QUIET POWER, Susan Cain’s middle grade adaptation of QUIET. Someone working on the book (possibly Susan or co-author
) shared my comic with the team. Soon I received an email from the art director asking if I’d be interested in contributing a cover and interior illustrations.I was ecstatic. I was literally jumping up and down. I still remember mowing the lawn after that email thinking, This is it, I’ve made it.
Now I know there’s no such thing as “making it” in the publishing world. There’s always a new story to write, a new illustration to create, a new idea to pursue.
Since QUIET POWER I’ve created poetry comics and children’s books that explore the themes of solitude and reflection. My editor at Chronicle Books, Ariel Richardson, has described my work as “picture books for introverts.”
I’m grateful that the team at Dial Books took a chance on an unproven illustrator a decade ago. Of all the books I’ve worked on, it may be the one that has reached the most readers—so far.
Taking on my first illustration project made me feel like a seal: awkward at first, then gracefully moving in my element. It set the stage for many comics, illustrations, and stories to come.
You can find Susan Cain’s groundbreaking books for introverts, including QUIET POWER, here.
QUIET POWER co-author Gregory Mone has written many fantastic books for young readers. Find them here.
Watermark Books & Café in Wichita has signed copies of all my books. My picture books and graphic novels are available worldwide wherever books are sold.
thank you for this article. Yes, I did read and enjoy Susan Cain's "Quiet: ...", appreciative of her acknowledgement to us who close our bedrooms doors against the rage of the world. I feel another Dad story coming on because of your post today. Dad was so shy, his teacher kept him after class to find out why he never raised his hand. After he answered all her questions about subjects discussed, she realized how shy he was and let it be. Dad's bishop, however, thought he could change Dad's shy ways, but it backfired. Dad walked out of the church and never went back. You know, people's perceptions of shy people is quiet destructive. Articles like yours and books like Cain's hopefully will change the world's views about people with "social anxiety dysfunction."
"Must speak up more in class" was a regular feature of my school reports. I never did either. I always liked to listen, observe and only if I reeeeaaaaalllly felt the need, would I say something. Lovely post.