QUICK QUESTIONS WITH Rufus Dayglo

WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT IS YOUR CONNECTION TO COMICS?
My name’s Rufus Dayglo, I relaunched TANK GIRL with Alan Martin, and we’ve done 6 collections together, all available on Amazon,Ebay..and Pirate bay.
I’m a comic book artist, I draw them full time, when I’m not procrastinating on Ebay buying Japanese Toy robots…
WHAT COMIC ARE YOU WORKING ON RIGHT NOW?
I’ve just finished our 6^th collection of TANK GIRL, and am now staring on my own series Solid Gold Death Mask, and doing design work for 3A, Ashley Wood’s company.
WHAT’S THE BEST PART OF MAKING COMICS?
You get to tell amazing stories. You can do/draw/write whatever you can envisage. You don’t have to work 9-5…   and it’s what you wanted to do when you were 10 years old!
You get to sit and draw, and make stuff up… it’s brilliant.
WHAT’S THE WORST PART OF MAKING COMICS?
The hours can be antisocial… you become translucent with all the hours in a dark studio, scratching away at your art.. which might confuse the local villagers, who may stake you, confusing you for one of the undead…
HOW DID YOU FIRST DISCOVER COMICS?
My Dad bough me Star Wars, and Battle comics when I was little… I was hooked instantly. It’s all I ever wanted to do.
My dad explained if I kept practising, I’d even get paid.. it seemed to good to be true…
WHO IS THE BIGGEST INFLUENCE ON YOUR WORK?
There’s a few….  Ronald Searle, a master of cartoons,   Mick McMahon, a master of style,    Gerry Talaoc, a master of story telling,  Mort Drucker, a master of caricature, Jack Davis, a master of fluidity,  Joe Kubert, is there anything he can’t draw?
WHAT TOOLS OF THE TRADE DO YOU USE?
A B pencil, by Faber and Castell, a Mars Rubber, canson art board, black coffee, and lots of KitKats.
WHAT IS THE SINGLE WORK OF WHICH YOU ARE MOST PROUD?
Probably relaunching Tank Girl with Alan Martin…and drawing Judge Dredd.. as it was childhood ambition.
WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE YOU HAVE RECEIVED?
Don’t give up… if someone can convince you to quit.. you’re either not prepared to try hard enough, or you’re not good enough.
Also.. Garry Leach pointed out I put to many bloody right angles in my compositions, so he taught me to layer things better, offsetting objects at wonky angles..it brings things to life.
WHAT IS THE WORST ADVICE YOU HAVE EVER RECEIVED?
I don’t think I’ve ever received bad advice, just not listened to good advice. Im nothing if not stupid…

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE CURRENT IRISH COMIC SCENE?
There’s so much talent emerging..it’s extremely exciting.. people like Declan Shalvey are an inspiration to younger artists.
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE HAPPEN IN IRISH COMICS IN THE NEAR FUTURE?
I hope to see more young artists and writers breaking through on to the International Comics scene, telling their stories, and inspiring others into art.
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE HAPPEN IN COMICS IN GENERAL IN THE NEAR FUTURE?
More creator owned operations,(especially now we can do it all digitally) tearing down the old monopolies (like Diamond distribution and the Archaic companies around right now).
WHAT WAS THE LAST COMIC THAT MADE AN IMPACT ON YOU?
I don’t read many comics,I’m too busy drawing… but I loved ‘I kill Giants’ from Image, and I love Guy Davis’s BPRD work…if only I could draw like that!!!
FROM YOUR EXPERIENCE WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE YOU COULD GIVE SOMEONE WHO WANTS TO START MAKING THEIR OWN COMICS? (And don’t say DON’T 🙂 )
Get on with it! We all have stories to tell.   Do them QUICKLY.. the more you do, the better you’ll get.
Don’t be out off, if you love them, someone else will too.
ANY FINAL THOUGHTS?
I’ve been very lucky, having a lot of support over the last few years on all the Tank Girl projects we’ve done, and I hope people will check out my new project, when it’s out soon…
Rufus Dayglo is a London-based comics artist working for 2000 AD and Titan Books in the United Kingdom, and IDW Publishing and Image Comics in the United States. His blog is http://rufusdayglo.blogspot.com