We contacted Dave again to ask him a couple of questions. We wanted to know if Blazek recalled a pivotal moment or experience that significantly impacted his growth as a comic artist. We found out: “I’m not sure how many people know this, but I only learned to draw at age 43 and while Loose Parts was already running in newspapers. During the first few months, I had an artist partner and I only wrote Loose Parts. But he had to drop out for personal reasons and I very quickly had to learn how to draw. I think that put me on the path to a simpler style, and one that best fit the style of my gags. Now, some 10,000 cartoons later, I think I know how to draw.”
When asked how his style has evolved over time, Dave explained: “I used to tell my daughters, ‘You can’t help but get better at something if you do it every day.’ That certainly applied to me. Over time, my drawing just became more confident. Just as important, as my drawing got better, I was able to convey a joke with the drawing and not just with the words and the cleverness of the gag. Now it’s weirdly a question of trying not to do too much… even though I now can. I’ve pulled back on the art so that it still has a weird, rougher, odder look that works best with my jokes. And I’ve even pulled back on complex backgrounds so the cartoons work both online and on the printed page.”
We were wondering what is the most challenging part of creating a comic for the author of Loose Parts. Dave shared with us: “I originally did one Loose Parts cartoon a day while working a full-time job in another career field. I did that for about 15 years, so the big challenge was how to fit everything into an already crowded life. But in 2018, I left that other career to dedicate my time solely to cartooning so I have a lot more air in my day. Now, the challenge is to get better. That means I have to edit myself even harder than ever and self-spike ideas that might be good but aren’t good enough. That means lots more time in a chair staring at the ceiling and writing way more gags than I ever have before.”
Lastly, we asked Blazek what he considers the most rewarding aspects of being a comic artist, and what keeps him motivated to create. We learned that: “I always say that being a cartoonist is the closest thing to being able to tickle yourself. And as the world is getting more complex – and often angrier – I’m more and more enticed by the idea that I’m giving people a daily safe island they can visit; an island with no preaching or politics… lt's just a good, clever joke that can make their days easier. I’m going to keep doing this until someone comes and pries the pen out of my fingers.”
