Getting our Comic Strip Syndicated, Part 3

~This is part 3 in a series. Click here for part 1 and part 2.

So far what we knew about our main character, Claire, was that she was a single 20-something, unsure of what she wanted to do with her life, and really clueless about adulthood.

This might make for a few funny strips, but we still didn't feel Claire had the depth of that of a character like Charlie Brown or Calvin to carry the strip over the long term.

We looked everywhere for inspiration. Books, Plays, Movies. Then Henry recalled a really popular TV character from the 1970's.

Early Claire?

The Mary Tyler Moore show was about a young woman who moved to the big city to live on her own. After watching a few episodes (and really liking it!) we realized although Mary was the main character of this comedy, she actually wasn't the funny one. It was the extreme people around her - and her reactions to them - that made the story funny.

This could be our key to solving “Claire”. Rather than make her the extreme character, how about cast her as the “normal” one in a world of more outrageous ones?

Like:

Claire's Dad

Whose rigidity has no patience for Claire's indecisiveness

Claire's Mom

Who never was able to fulfill her own life's dreams and now lives through Claire's

Claire's best friend, Sammi

Who has enough self-confidence for herself and Claire combined

And Claire's dog, Bradley

Who loves Claire dearly but can't begin to understand her.

We were liking this new direction. We felt that this would portray Claire as a deeper, more sympathetic character who is just trying her best in life, despite the many obstacles in front of her.

Next time, I'll talk about where we picked for Claire to live!

 

You can read On a Claire Day online at GoComics.com