Local artist and writer teams up with Asheville dog tag maker to launch web comic series

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This is super-cool. Here’s the note from loyal reader and local artist and writer Kathleen McCafferty:

Hi,

I have some exciting news that might be of interest to you and your Ashvegas readers. I’m working with Dog Tag Art, a really cool local custom dog tag company in West Asheville to produce a new web comic series called This American Dog. It stars my masked, mohawked terrier-mix Ira G, with a nod (and a huge wink) to This American Life. Ira G’s namesake is none other than Ira Glass, although my Ira is more “gangsta,” hence the “G.”
This American Dog will launch on Memorial Day on the Dog Tag Art website, and they’ll be promoting it to their 45,000+ Facebook fans (!!!!), along with a special “Ira G-approved” sale of custom ID tags. Super exciting!
I used to create an earlier iteration of the comic when I was an Editor at Lark Books, but now it’s even better and is in full color! Pia Wuerfel, the lead artist at Dog Tag Art, is digitally coloring my hand-drawn strips, and they look amazing.
More from the official press release:

“Pia is a graphic designer and head of artist relations at Dog Tag Art. She is a really talented artist. She’s working with my hand-drawn strips and digitally coloring them with painstaking care, making them look amazing! This American Dog wouldn’t have happened without Pia’s support and enthusiasm, and I’m so grateful for our collaboration.”

Ira G. is named after Ira Glass, the host of NPR’s This American Life. McCafferty, a big fan of the program for years, decided to loosely base the new comic strip format on the radio show. “This American Life is traditionally done in four acts,” explained McCafferty, “although there is some deviation. This American Dog will follow the same school of thought and is a simple, four-paneled comic with a lot of heart.”

The new web comic series will feature insights about everyday life from Ira G.’s unique point of view, with his signature wry sense of humor. This American Dog will launch on Dog Tag Art’s website on Memorial Day 2013 to much fanfare and a special “Ira G-approved” pet ID tag sale. Dog Tag Art believes that the new comic will not only give customers a cute and colorful story to follow, but will also establish Ira G. into the hearts of their large fan base.

Fun!

3 Comments

Kathleen McCafferty May 26, 2013 - 12:31 pm

Thanks for the love, Ashvegas! Just want to mention that the picture of me and Ira is by the lovely and talented Susannah Storch of Chloe Pet Photography: http://chloepetphotography.com/. Thanks!

Lerjoy May 24, 2013 - 3:36 pm

Awesome! Can’t wait to see it!

Robin Plemmons May 24, 2013 - 2:03 pm

Yay for Kathleen & Ira G!

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