Bored Panda has reached out to Nate again to learn more about him and his creative process.
The artist shared that his journey as a cartoonist really started in college. He was the staff cartoonist for the college newspaper. Additionally, during school, Nate had the opportunity to intern at MAD Magazine in New York City. After his internship, he began creating comics for MAD, newspapers, greeting cards, and for clients.
"Really, college and MAD were my indications that I could take cartooning to the next level beyond just silly drawings that I did for fun. Currently, I have a syndicated comic, Break of Day, which consists of a ton of the gag comics you find on my Instagram account. Plus, I'm now writing and illustrating graphic novels. Graphic novels and books are a direction I'm very excited about and devoting a lot of my future to them."
The artist also does client work. He creates custom cartoons, ads and illustrations from his Nate Fakes Studios.
We got curious about why Nate chose to create comics in the format of single-panel. He replied that he loves variety, which one-panel gag comics give him. "There are no consistent characters, topics, or ideas. It's all whatever comes to my mind. The spontaneity of gag comics is always great. That being said, I have created strips (and continue to do so from time to time). They're different - but also can be enjoyable. Strips just aren't my main focus."
Also, the artist has been writing and drawing graphic novels that are not spontaneous and consist of drawing regular characters, and scenes, and staying on topic. However, according to Nate, they're rewarding in their own way due to the thousands of hours put into them.
We asked Nate what makes him passionate about creating comics. He shared that for him, comics are unique. "It's the one medium where you get to combine art and writing - and I'm fond of both. I hope people get the message I'm trying to get across; whether it be funny, inspiring, or just an awful pun. If someone enjoys my work, it makes me happy. People interpret things differently, so I want readers to look into my work and walk away satisfied (instead of scratching their heads and wondering what the hell I was trying to say)."
After we asked about upcoming projects, Nate shared that he will be releasing his new graphic memoir called "A Fade of Light", which will be on bookshelves everywhere on October 11th. However, you can preorder it now! The artist revealed that he's extremely proud of this book and has spent years on it. "It's a story about my ex-stepfather who suffers from a rare form of dementia and the journey of trying to fix the unfixable. It goes through our relationship when he was normal, and how things changed - by taking a look back and forth from the past to the present. It's a deep book, but has moments of fun, laughter, and relatable moments for anyone with a stepparent. It even goes into my cartooning career, and how Ron (my ex-stepdad) helped. Most importantly, it sheds light on dementia and the toll it takes."
The artist plans on going on a book tour this fall, so stay tuned on my Instagram and hopefully, he can chat in person soon!
