Last Tuesday, in the Cameron House pub’s back room, 20 cartoonists bowed their heads and ignored their beers, instead scribbling intently on the papers before them. It was the first 2012 installment of the Toronto Comic Jam, a monthly gathering of hobbyists, young cartoonists and respected vets that’s been happening on the last Tuesday of every month, at different pubs, since 1996. (It’s open to anyone who wishes to drop in.) As far as rituals go, it’s unpredictable. Jam organizer Dalton Sharp, 43, explained, “Someone draws a panel, the next person adds a panel; they’re group comics.”
Over the jam’s 16-year history, it’s been a place for young cartoonists like Hope Larson (Chiggers) and Ethan Rilly (Pope Hats) to develop, and Toronto scene veterans like Jay Stephens (Welcome to Oddville) and Chester Brown (Louis Riel) to hang out.
Since making comics is typically a meticulous, isolating process, the chance to riff with cartoon-world peers is welcome, said Sharp, though he admitted that the comics usually don’t turn out that well. One person will draw a great panel, and someone will follow it up with a poor one. Or a cartoonist might “dickroll” another by drawing a penis—a practice that’s frowned upon. (In fact, there was a strict “no dicks” policy this time, though that didn’t stop a self-referential spiral that ended with a planet-sized penis looming over the earth.)
Regardless, the comics are all saved for posterity. Sharp begins each night by folding photocopies of the last jam and distributing them to participants eager to revisit last month’s results. “It’s nice to get out there,” said Sharp, “and know there are others as crazy as you are.”
