Herding Cats: A Sarah’s Scribbles Collection

This third collection of Sarah Andersen’s webcomics (after Adulthood Is a Myth and Big Mushy Happy Lump) adds a bonus: a section with some smart advice for aspiring artists.

Herding Cats: A Sarah’s Scribbles Collection can be enjoyed whether or not you’ve read the previous books. The topics are similar — including feelings of inferiority, how much she loves her cat, engaging in the wrong choice even though she knows better (particularly when it comes to spending time), dealing with anxiety, being an introvert, concerns over the state of the world, and enjoying Halloween — but her content is always fresh and approachable, and she finds new things to say about the topics. The art is deceptively simple, easy to read but still expressive, which adds to how much most readers can relate to her feelings. She’s excellent at evoking an action or setting with just a few lines or items.

Her honesty makes it less scary for readers to think about their own similar fears, or the ways they short-circuit themselves by getting distracted by the internet, or how everyone gets caught up in a cycle of focusing on the wrong things at times.

The final section, “Making Stuff in the Modern Era: A Guide for the Young Creative”, combines text with a few cartoons as Andersen talks about how she came to be a professional artist. I found her comments on how different it is now to use the internet particularly insightful… and sad, as she points out that today’s young creators are afraid of what might happen to them there. She also has advice, from experience, on creativity cycles, coping with criticism, and staying encouraged.

Herding Cats is due out the week of March 28. It can be preordered now from your local comic shop with Diamond code JAN18 2165. (The publisher provided an advance digital review copy.)