Cartoonists drawn to New Hampshire

The Hippo, Manchester's news and culture weekly, has tracked down and profiled some of the Granite State's cartoonists. They are an eclectic bunch that includes magazine panel cartoonist Mike Lynch and comic strip cartoonists Stephanie Piro (Six Chix), Scott Wegener (Atomic Robo), Mike Marland (R.F.D.) and Allison Barrows (Preteena).

Marland is the only New Hampshire native in the group and based his strip, R.F.D., on his experiences growing up in Lyman in the northern part of the state. He went to art college in Manchester but dropped out. “I’m pretty much Joe the Cartoonist,” he says.

Mike Lynch, who did the drawing for the Hippo feature, draws panels for The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Reader's Digest and other magazines. “There’s probably less than a thousand people in this country who are making their living by cartooning,” Lynch estimates. “Everyone gets along and everyone tends to be interested in what the other person is doing." He keeps track of the profession on a lively blog, Mike Lynch Cartoons. (Thanks to Daily Cartoonist for the link.)