Today, I have a special treat for you: Tony Single of Trottersville has agreed to do a guest post on my blog. YEAH!
Tony is an illustrator and a cartoonist. He and his wife Cassy are the creators of Trottersville. When I found their blog, I immediately fell in love with his humorous cartoons and wonderful illustrations, but there’s more.
Tony is also a a very witty writer. These links highlight some of my favorite posts; they’re funny, inspirational, daring and educational. He will crack you up and make you think:~) Even Cassy gets into the writing sometimes.
I know you will enjoy this post and Tony’s challenge. I also hope that you will take the time to visit Trottersville. It will be a visit you will not regret. Okay, enough of my talk. Let’s get to the challenge!
Tony’s Picture Story Challenge
First of all, I would like to thank Sara for having me here. I enjoy her wonderful blog and am thrilled to be associated with it in this way!
About me? Well, I am an artist. I have been ever since I could hold a crayon. There’s nothing quite like drawing one’s feelings out on a blank sheet of paper. I love paper’s neutrality; it doesn’t judge you for having feelings. And it waits patiently for you to express them.
When Sara invited me to guest here, I thought the above illustration would make a good picture story challenge.
This is a sketch that I drew some time ago for a story I was formulating. Ultimately the story didn’t work out, but still I was left with a series of scribbles that evoke something in me to this very day. And this one is my favourite.
I coloured it in Photoshop and emailed it to Sara for my guest post. You can tell that I have some way to go before I become even vaguely proficient with colour! However, Sara liked it very much.
The Challenge
As this is a Picture Story Challenge, then I should pose to you, gentle reader, a few questions about this illustration. It isn’t easy coming up with questions because I know exactly what lies behind the lines, hues and shapes of this piece! However, I am curious about what you will see.
Still, you don’t want to see me stalling and, so here are the questions…
- What’s on this chap’s mind?
- What is this chap’s name? What is the meaning behind his name?
- Who is this “Lamia” that he is referring to? What is their association?
Using Sara’s comment box, you can choose one question to answer or answer them all.
I hope you will enjoy this challenge and I welcome you to come and visit me sometime at Trottersville!
~ Tony
Colleen
Fireblossom
Hilary
Talon
An Exceptional 10...
Arts web show
Belinda Munoz + T...
Davina
desk49
JC
{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
Behold Lamia, his alter ego. Has a verocious personality and the attitude of a vampire. He calls upon Lamia when his courage flags and he can’t do what he knows is necessary. In this case, he’s typing a “Dear Jane” letter to finally break it off with the girl he thought was “the one”, but unfortunately was just one of “the many”. If not for Lamia, he wouldn’t be brave enough. Lamia rarely steers him wrong. Well, there was that one time at the laundry mat when Lamia wasn’t pleased that someone took his wet clothes out of the washer and dumped them in a basket and decided to have a little revenge, but he’s almost forgotten about that now (but it’s okay – there are plenty of laundry mats that will still let him in).
Love your illustrations, Tony. No complaints about the color from my viewpoint! This was fun. Thank you.
Lovely to meet you. Thanks for a great guest post, Sara!
talon´s last blog ..Subdued…
Welcome!
I know you will enjoy Tony’s guest post. Just so you know, Tony is from Australia. This means his replies to any comments may come in later than my replies.
Have fun, be creative and most of all…enjoy Tony’s wonderful art and sense of humor:~)
@ talon — I love this comment. Your story about Lamia is so funny and fits the picture. I know Tony’s going to love this one, especially the part about the laundry:~)
Hi Sara and Tony.
I love the colours you’ve used in this illustration; I’m partial to purples. Okay… here’s my take on this.
This guy is doing “homework” suggested by a life coach. Tony, I know you’ll love that
Homework that is pushing his buttons, challenging him outside of his comfort zone. Lamia is his personification of his inner critic who is in fits about being discovered and losing control over him.
Davina´s last blog ..Getting Sensual with Creativity
@ Davina — It will interesting to see what Tony’s take on this one is. Personally, I like the idea of the inner critic losing control over the “chap”:~)
Tony, cool art!
He’s trying to remember the passcode (as there are at times too many to remember) that his twin Lamia gave him in a dream. What he has here is a teleporter device that will send him to an alternate universe, where Lamia lives the very opposite of his reality in this universe. His name is…Aimal.
I think that his young nephew is coming to stay for the weekend while his parents go away. Kindly Uncle Bruce has offered home and hearth to the waif, who is known for all sorts of boyish mischief which sometimes draws the attention of truant officers or the fire department. Bruce is nervous about the visit, but cannot refuse his sister Nell, who is his favorite. So, he is ready (?) to face the weekend with his nephew, but first he must turn to his trusted Number One, his cat Lamia, who seemingly knows all things. His feline companion has seen him through many scrapes and terrors before, and surely won’t fail him this time! Together, they will make it through to Monday and deliver Nephew back to sister Nell none the worse for wear.
Fireblossom32´s last blog ..For B.
@ talon – I LOVE the idea of Lamia being this character’s alter ego! I’m sure if I had thought of that in the first place then the story I was formulating would’ve been so much better!
Oh, and Sara’s right… I laughed hard at the laundry mat “incident”. I love how you’ve left said incident to the reader’s imagination! Whatever it was, I’m convinced it wasn’t a pretty sight!
Tony Single´s last blog ..A Sharing Connection
@ Davina – YOU sure know what buttons to press, don’cha?!
Actually, I think that’s very funny and fits the illustration to a tee. As his “inner critic” I should think Lamia would indeed have something to say about anyone or anything that might break their “symbiotic” relationship. I wonder if she completely disappears after a few sessions with the aforementioned life coach?
Tony Single´s last blog ..A Sharing Connection
@ Belinda – Hey, I like this… interdimensional travel with an electronic notebook thingy! I have a question though. What if he wants to come back to this reality? Will he need to enter the code that Lamia gave him backwards? Or would he need to get an all new code from Aimal instead?
Tony Single´s last blog ..A Sharing Connection
@ Fireblossom32 – Best. Story. Ever. I especially loved this line: “Kindly Uncle Bruce has offered home and hearth to the waif, who is known for all sorts of boyish mischief which sometimes draws the attention of truant officers or the fire department.” No wonder Bruce is nervous!
I can just imagine Bruce corresponding with his Number One, the cat Lamia, via Facebook. She’s probably away at a lolcat convention in Pasadena as a keynote speaker, and is micromanaging Bruce’s situation from afar.
Tony Single´s last blog ..A Sharing Connection
@ Shay — I agree with Tony! Sounds like Uncle Bruce is going to need all the help from Lamia he can get:~)
I like his name — Thingle.
It means he’s a Single Thing??? Oh I hope so, ’cause I love the creativity behind that.
I also love your drawing. I think the plot is well on its way with your various commenters here. I like the idea of the angry editor — as an artist, I have to fight her all the time and sometimes think she wears that evil look in trying to override me!
Thingle appears (body language) to be fearfully engaging in something new to him though, maybe forbidden, in which case the alter-ego is anxious to get started. That would make his comment pertinent.
Are you going to tell us the real story???
Barb Hartsook´s last blog ..Do Sports Teach Kids How to Live Life Beyond the Game?
Hi Sara! Hi Tony! Now you KNOW I usually love doing this photo things but I’m having a brain block and here is why. We’re it not for the bubble with the words (which in itself throws me off) this looks exactly like I FELT when I first learned to blog!
suzen´s last blog ..Looking At My Desk
Hi Tony and Sara – I loved staring at this sketch. I also loved what you wrote about being an artist, Tony: the paper’s neutrality, its patience, its acceptance of your feelings. That’s just delightful. Anyway, I got the feeling that Lamia is some part of this guy. He kind of looks like him. Beyond that, I’m stumped! Looking forward to visiting your blog.
Patty – Why Not Start Now?´s last blog ..Meaning Mondays: The Experiment Edition
Hi Suzen! You know, that really is a valid way to look at this picture. Perhaps this “Lamia” will help that chap to get used to the art of blogging? It’s certainly a thought.
Tony Single´s last blog ..Existential Threads
Hi Patty! Yup, I hope Sara won’t mind me sharing this… but in preparing this guest post I remember her expressing to me some hesitation about there being “two very powerful images in the illustration”. I’m beginning to see that her hesitation was not unfounded, because it seems that even the text in said illustration may be causing some of you a little confusion!
Here’s some more information that may help… the fanged little guy is the typing chap’s view of himself in his mind. That view represents an eventual, physical outcome that he’s not entirely looking forward to…
Tony Single´s last blog ..Existential Threads
@ SuZen– I love this comment and can identify with it…especially that sort of scared look on the guy’s face…that was ME! Wait a minute, it still is ME a lot of time:~)
@ Patty — I thought you were on your working vacation????? However, I am pleased you dropped by as I’m sure Tony is. I do hope you’ll stop by Tony’s site because his illustrations, cartoons and writing are both fun and amazing:~)
It is me and my Little Voice when I am working.
Only the hair color is different but the rest, spitting image.
I so did not want to read the other comments so my Little Voice would not tell me that I was cheating.
However I did read them and now of course I am told my imagination is lacking.
Thanks Tony and Sara, now I feel all confessed up and how on earth did Tony find out about me? Gheez now the Little Voice makes me paranoid as well.
@ Wilma — You are much too hard on yourself. Your imagination is NOT lacking:~) What you see is what you see and both Tony and I appreciate you sharing it.
Also, from my experience, your Little Voice must do something right because each time I visit your site, I not only learn something new about you, but also something new about me. You have a way of connecting with your readers at the heart level:~)
The chap’s name is Henry Henry, the last in a line of unimaginitive namers.
Lamia of course is his parrot, who wishes Henry would ask out the lovely lady, Alabistiria, whom they met at the wishing well. Henry doesn’t think she will accept his courting ways, but Lamia wants a mommy, and will put in words to Alabastiria for Henry.
It will all turn out so great. Henry and Alabastiria will be “Slightly Married” and crazily blissful every moment! And open a wholesale birdseed store!
xo
Trott on, y’all!
Jannie Funster´s last blog ..Harbinger Of Great Things To Come
Thank you Sara, …big smile…..
Wilma Ham´s last blog ..Wilma on Fear of Losing Love
@ Jannie — Great story. I like having Lamia as a parrot. Since Henry is so shy and Lamia is a parrot, perhaps he can do a Cyrano de Bergerac and convince Alabistiria that Henry is the ONE….just as long as he doesn’t fall in love with her himelf:~)
@ You’re welcome:~)
@ Wilma – Your paranoia is well founded! I have spies everywhere don’cha know! That creepy feeling you get whenever you’re making a cup of tea of a morning? That’s one of my spies hiding beneath a doily with with a pocket spy camera and a cute little spy notebook!
Okay, not really, but I think you need to give your Little Voice its marching orders. Actually, I need to do the same for myself too. I think I may be able to relate on the being too hard on yourself thing. It’s not much fun is it?
Tony Single´s last blog ..Of Jaywalkers and Hitlers
Love this story too, Jannie!
I agree with Sara. This is SO a Cyrano de Bergerac situation you’ve got going here. I can imagine Henry Henry parroting his parrot’s wooing words, perhaps even ventriloquist dummy style.
Excuse me while I laugh myself silly at that absurd mental image…
Tony Single´s last blog ..Of Jaywalkers and Hitlers