FAQs that I ask myself frequently.

GENERAL STUFF

How long has GWS been around?
GWS debuted as a twice-weekly strip on the weekend of October 1, 2004 at SPX in Bethesda.

Why "Girls With Slingshots?"
Ah, the million dollar question! Here's the short answer:

I randomly started drawing Jamie and Hazel with slingshots (because I can't draw a gun to save my life) in sketchbooks at conventions, and it just caught on. "Can you draw me one of those slingshot girls?" "When's the comic book gonna come out?" So I blindly promised someone a Girls With Slingshots comic next... "ohh, October. In a year." Then I gritted my teeth and thought, "WHAT HAVE I DONE?!"

A year later, after nervously tossing all of my Superheroine ideas out the window, I created the first three strips a few days before the debut date. No guns, no slingshots, not even cheesy outfits (yet!). Thanks to some healthy advice from friends, I kept the meaning of "Slingshots" in GWS vague, a title not to be taken literally, and started a strip that had the same ring as my past slice-o'-life comics.

But if you simply can't read this strip without seeing some reference to slingshots, flip to strip #84 and follow the shotglass. :)

When do you update?
As of July 2007, GWS is being updated every single weekday, and occasionally Sunday strips on weekends! You can send your thanks (or complaints) to the wonderful people who donate and buy merch to keep the strip going five times a week.

Are Jamie and Hazel based off real characters?
Don't we all wish, and don't we all wish we had their digits! The gal pair isn't directly based off any particular person, although there is some truth to the "can't take the cartoonist out of the cartoon" theory. Hazel harbors a lot of my cynicism, self-consciousness, clumsiness and love of alcohol. Jamie, on the other hand, resembles the side of me that isn't afraid to take risks, have fun, and make a fool of herself.

Jameson, the barista, is roughly based off my friend Jamie.

PROCESS STUFF

How long does it take you to do a strip?
Approximately two hours now, although when I started doing webcomics most of them took me almost 8 hours!

How do you do that voodoo?
I used to wait until the last minute the night before an update day to start each strip. Since I started doing the strip five times a week, I typically spend a day outlining & scripting a week's worth of strips, and then spend the next few glorious days at my drawing board.

I always read through the last few strips before scripting, lay down some brainstorm words in my script notebook, come up with an idea, script & sketch it, rule out my paper, and pencil the first few panels.

Often I'll look for an excuse to Google Image Search something for reference ("coffee maker"), and then spend the next hour restlessly clicking through & giggling at the results ("naked teen girl spread-eagle in room with coffee maker"). If I get really stuck I'll go watch an episode of Family Guy before I get back to the drawing board.

Later, when I realize the next update is due NOW, I finish penciling, ink, scan, and add greyscales in Photoshop. Then I re-read it, realize it doesn't make any sense, and re-write it again. Resize to 72dpi for web, code the website, add a blog entry and voila! A hot, fresh GWS is on the site ready for you.

I pass out on the floor before I make it to my bed, which is in the other room, and wake up the next afternoon with a cramp in my neck. The things I do for you people.

What do you use to update your website?
My bare freakin' hands. I use Notepad to code the site. Photoshop to take care of all the images.

What about supplies?
Most of the strips (#1 to #145) are done on 9"x12" bristol with a Micron 01 pen. At strip #146 I started working on 11"x15" watercolor paper with Pitt Artist pens (brush tip) and Pentel fountain pens. Now I do all of the art with the Pentel fountain pens on 7"x17" bristol.

At this rate, by the year 2010 I should be drawing each strip on a wall measuring 5'x 20'.

All of the greyscales are placed in Photoshop using a Wacom tablet.

Here's a TUTORIAL I did in April of '07, in case you missed it!

Oh, and I erase with a kneaded rubber eraser (keeps that nasty eraser mess off my floor), and I ONLY pencil with mechanical pencils. Why? Too lazy to sharpen a wood pencil.

MERCH & BUSINESS STUFF

I wanna tee shirt. Do you have tee shirts?
Tee shirts are returning soon!! If they're not at the store, then they're not out yet. But they will be!!

I wanna book. Do you have books?
GWS Volume One collects the first 200 strips, plus 50 pages of extras, including the backstory to GWS and its predecessor, Hazelnuts. Hit the store for more information!

Can I advertise on your site?
Hells yeah! Did you see those luscious Project Wonderful ads on the front of the page? Click below the ads for more information on how you can advertise on my site!

Do you sell your originals?
Sure do! Your favorite GWS or Bat Boy original strip can be yours, all yours... that is, if it's still available! Click here to see a list of all available strips.

Please remember to e-mail me to ask if the number you want is available before you send me money!

DONATION STUFF

How can I donate to keep GWS going 5 times a week?
Oh baby. I love you. Here is the link.

Is there an easier or cheaper way for me to contribute to GWS?
There are three, in fact!

1. Bidding on Project Wonderful ads, once I get them on the site.

2. When you buy anything from the STORE, your purchase goes toward more merchandise options, as well as food and water for yours truly.

3. Spreading the word! Cheapest way to donate is to get your friends hooked on GWS. And then make THEM donate. Practice the ancient art of guilt tripping. Or just share a link from your website/MySpace page/blog by adding a GWS banner.

What do I get if I donate to GWS?
The donations page explains everything. There's a bunch of GWS wallpaper art that you can get by donating any amount, even just a dollar. You just click the wallpaper art, donate, and you'll be quickly redirected to a web page with all of the wallpaper sizes available.

I SERIOUSLY botched up donation incentives in 2007, because I didn't realize how much work it would be to get all of the donators' names and information from PayPal. So now, when you donate, you will AUTOMATICALLY get wallpaper art, and I will automatically give a sigh of relief.

THE ARTEEST

Are you REALLY a girl?
*checking* Yes.

Are you just the artist? Or do you write, too?
I'm responsible for everything you see here, baby! From art to writing to hand-coding, I'm the bitch in charge here.

How long have you been doing comics?
Since I was eight, beginning with a three-panel rip-off of Garfield called Fat Cat.

Do you do any other strips?
I used to write and draw The New Adventures Of Bat Boy for the Weekly World News (yep, the tabloid) before the mag went tits-up. You can read my old strips, Hazelnuts (the precurser to GWS), Larry and Caroline, and the fan favorite Ramblers by clicking on the gws extras button in the above and below navigation.

Do you do any other art?
I carry my sketchbook with me everywhere, and I do everything from realistic graphite drawings to charicatures to paintings and ink washes. Every Wednesday night I get together with my drawing group and draw nekked people. You can see most of my figure studies at my Etsy store when I have new work to show. I love photography but don't do it very much anymore. I love watercolor and am trying to teach myself how to paint in acrylics again. And I sew.

This isn't your day job, is it?
Yeah, neat eh? Besides the strip, I do caricatures to make extra spending money & to help pay for conventions.

I quit my day job in March of 2005 and have happily trudged through days of not receiving payments from clients, going weeks without work, and cramming three jobs in one day. It's not the job for everyone, but so far it's the job for me. :)

RECENTLY ADDED

Why don't you drop the f-bomb as much as you used to?
Ever since my mom informed me that she reads the strip religiously, I've stopped the gratuitous use of everyone's favorite four-letter word. I love my mom, but my mom does not love the f-word.

(Additionally, Grandma Corsetto recently discovered the Internet. Hi, Grandma!)

This is not to say that the f-word won't be used on occasion, but I'll run through several alternative expletives before I settle on using it. So if Mr. F makes an appearance, rest assured it's there because there was simply no other word that said it as well as our beloved f-word.