I have been freelance cartooning since the early 1990’s and would like to point out to budding young cartoonists: you can make a career of it if you have a red hot go and are prepared to explore new markets.

There may not be much work nowadays in mainstream media, gone are the good old days when a freelancer could submit a batch of cartoons and get work published in The Bulletin, Australian Post, Pix and a plethora of other journals. However, the internet opens up a whole new world of opportunities.

Back in the mid 1990’s I focussed on doing editorial cartoons for trade journals and found success in producing work for a range of journals in the trucking, hardware, wine, retail, medical and service station industries. I have also been involved in a lot of road safety work for VicRoads, municipalities and community road safety councils.

I have been fortunate to have known Jim Bridges since the early 80s and he invited me to join the committee of the Australian Cartoon Museum about two years ago. A group of us are now active in trying to establish a museum in Melbourne, giving access to cartoons and sketches by Australia’s rich heritage of artists.