Hi. I’m Clay. I draw. I don’t know if I do it well enough to brag about it, but I do enjoy it nonetheless.
A little bit about me. I’m originally from Canada, but I’ve lived in Japan since 1999. Probably my most well-known work on the internet is Sexy Losers, which fizzled during a terrible bout of depression in 2005. Currently I’m trying to rediscover my love for comics, and one comic I have been working on lately is depression comix, which is very cathartic for me.
If anyone wants to contact me for possible commission work, please use this form or e-mail me directly (the Email address is on that page too. Of if you want a print of something on this site, let me know as well.
Thank you for reading, and before you complain about the spelling in the title, remember, I’s from Canada, eh.
Laura P. Schulman, MD, MA says
Eh, good to have a bit of info aboot yer, finally. I’m filled with admiration at your ability to capture so much of what it feels like to be depressed–and to do it without getting so depressed you can’t do it! I’m a musician, and there are certain songs that touch me so deeply I can’t sing them because I start blubbering halfway through–if I get that far. Even songs from long, long ago, childhood, and still can’t get them out. That’s how I feel about your work–as if you’re singing those songs I can’t get through without falling apart. Thank you.
clay says
Thank you for the kind words, I really do appreciate them and thank you for following me here from wordpress.com . There are times that I get so depressed that dealing with it and the comic at the same time is too difficult to handle so the comic gets put on hold. I also have a routine where I work on ideas when the depression ebbs so I have something to work on when the depression is at its worst and ideas won’t come. Music, on the other hand, won’t allow you that freedom, it’s strictly on the spot performance. I wish you luck with your condition, and thank you for coming here, it’s always nice to see a familiar face — or in this case, a familiar icon.
Laura P. Schulman, MD, MA says
But doesn’t working on depression-related material–stuff that comes from the gut–kick you back into depression, if you’ve lightened up enough to work on it??? I’ve always wondered about that. How does that work with you?
clay says
A lot of the problem that comes with depression is the lack of validation that comes with the feelings. Even when I first started the strip with #1 I wasn’t sure if anyone would feel similarly, if I was really just alone in my head. But the response I get from these comics validates those feelings and makes me realize that this is actually a Thing, something real and something that other people identify with. And I think that’s what keeps me going, is knowing that I’m not alone, and that what I feel is just part of some illness that a lot of people share. You could almost say that the audience is like my own therapist, and their feedback is letting me know that my feelings are real and it’s okay. Thankfully there are few times that comics don’t get a response but in general, putting my feelings out there and waiting for the reaction is nerve-wracking but in the end makes me feel like a part of a bigger thing, a community of people who feel just like me. Finding that community was a godsend and inspires me to push myself further.
Laura P. Schulman, MD, MA says
Beautifully said! That’s what keeps me cranking on my own blog, the fact that for some reason unknown to myself, people write me and tell me that my blog is important to them. I’m grateful for that, and selfishly, even more grateful to them because I feel that they are the family, albeit virtual, that i never had.
maldraw says
do you have a patreon?
clay says
Yes, it’s at http://www.patreon.com/claycomix .