MEET MY FRIEND
An interview with Emily Fishman, genius cartoonist in NYC
Emily Fishman is my new friend. We have never met in person, which is crazy. Apparently we are the same height, but there’s no way to tell. Emily’s Substack, How It Feels, is an entertaining, inspiring, and lovely account of a single woman dating in New York, working through grief, and drawing through it. We have been drawing together on a pretty regular basis through our computers, and we decided to do illustrated interviews with each other. Here’s my chat with Emily :-)
Talk about how we met.
We met in a Zoom comics class—we both had been eyeing each other’s style. In the last class, I slid into the DMs and said I liked your snail cartoons and you were like “Omg I was gonna DM you and I was like..omg.”
What made you sign up for the class?
I had been taking time off of work, it was the middle of the summer. It was a “Finding Your Voice” class, and I was interested in the topic because I had been sort of doing comics but also doing sketchbook illustration, and I felt like I needed to get into what I was trying to do with all of it. And it was only 4 weeks and I wanted a deadline.
How did you get into drawing? Have you always been someone who draws?
I have, but I didn’t go to art school. When I started my job in the fashion industry, I felt kind of behind, like my drawing skills weren’t as good, so I started doing a lot of figure drawing classes because that’s my favorite thing to draw. Then every year starting in 2018 I would make a holiday card, like a cartoon. I had a lot of fun dabbling in that casually. In the past year and a half my drawing has improved so much because I started doing it every day as a way to process my own trauma and stay grounded in a difficult time.
Now I’ve just leaned in and I can’t really stop. Like, physically cannot stop.
Do you have any favorite cartoonists or artists?
Right now my favorite cartoonists are Tara Booth and Vanessa Davis. I also like old school cartoonists like Saul Steinberg. I love funky figure drawings and portraiture, like Alice Neel and Joan Brown. I love a slice of life drawing and a specific point of view.
What materials do you use the most?
Ok so my favorite pen is the Pigma FB Mini Brush Pen. I picked it up at a stationary store a couple years ago and it kind of unlocked something for me. You introduced me to the Blackwing 602 pencil, which I’ve been burning through. I was using only pen for a year but I went on an art retreat with Sarah Dyer in Italy and she unlocked a world of color for me. I use a lot of colored pencils. I use Holbein and Caran d’Ache Luminance Pencils because they’re nice and soft. Those are my favorites. When I’m doing multicolor, I like to mix Goldfaber Aqua Markers with Neocolor Aquarelle pastels. I also really love these Pentel Brush Pens with ink inside. I also love my mechanical pencil sharpener.
What are you working on now?
I do daily diary comics and I’m working on a longer visual essay about my curly hair journey and how that has intertwined with grief.
How does the practice of drawing impact your life?
Drawing has kept me grounded during a time of immense change and upheaval. It’s basically my form of meditation. If I’m feeling anxious or can’t think too far in the future, it helps me stay present. I sit with my sketchbook and draw people on the train or at the park or just doodle at home.
Also it’s brought so many amazing new friends into my life, like you! It’s a great community builder and connector.
Like the fact that we can just sit on Zoom—we’ve gone for like, 3 hours before with no music, just hanging out—you can’t really do that doing a lot of things. You’re being creative for yourself and it’s your own practice, but you can do it with others. I really like coworking.
What do you do for inspiration when you’re stuck?
I have a few things. This is a classic, but going for a walk. I’ve been walking without headphones and letting senses come to me and letting my mind wander. I also just open a page or just start doodling or writing about what I did that day and not being precious. Once I picked a notebook I loved and a pen I loved, I didn’t overthink the drawings. Kind of just let my hand flow. The interplay between words and drawing has been helpful in my process too. I’ll just start writing, and oftentimes a drawing idea comes out of it.
It might not be the biggest epiphany but it’s those little moments, and sometimes those little moments are enough.
Also my newest thing—which might be annoying to my friends—is drawing at the hang, not waiting til I come home. As long as you make flattering pictures of people, they like it.
Do you have any goals for where your drawing will take you?
I have a lot of goals. I try to keep it in the moment or I get overwhelmed, but as you told me once, “you have to be delusional” and I think about that a lot. I really want to make a book of diary comics mixed with bigger essays. And I want to keep building a community on Substack and making more friends. I’m still very much at the beginning of my comics and drawing journey, which is both daunting and exciting.
Who’s your crush of the week?
I’ve been a bit disappointed with my crushes of late, but I’ve got a couple setups next week so we’ll see what happens…
Read Emily’s interview with me and follow her here! Can someone get this girl a book deal, STAT??
I’d love to do more of these interviews with my artist friends. Love u guys <3
love this bi-coastal cultural exchange!!!
I found your Substack through Emily’s interview and it’s a delight to see the other side now!