Teenage Cartoonist Becomes Amazon Best Selling Author by Publishing a Collection of Hilarious Whiteboard "Door Comics"
Jake a 9th grader and prodigy cartoon artist has published his first book (Jake's Door) which achieved the "#1 New Release" and " Best Seller" status on Amazon
Jake Hamilton, a 9th grader and prodigy cartoon artist, has published his first book (Jake's Door), which achieved the "#1 New Release" and " Best Seller" status on Amazon. Jake's comics have attracted tens of thousands of fans2 around the world and received rave reviews from readers of all ages-even drawing comparisons to Jake's hero, Far Side artist Gary Larson.
Making Lemonade from COVID Lemons:
In early 2020, as the pandemic began, Jake began drawing daily comics on the whiteboard hanging on his bedroom door. Recognizing the quality of these comics, his father, Dave Hamilton began taking pictures of each drawing-eventually posting them to an Instagram account. "Initially, we had no aspirations of publishing them-we simply wanted a place to archive them, and to show friends and family."
What happened next, no-one could have anticipated:
At a friend's suggestion (and with Jake's approval), Dave posted one of these "door comics" to the site Reddit. Within 24 hours, this comic went viral-receiving over 40,000 "up-votes" and gaining 10,000 followers to his Instagram account. Fans from all over the world began eagerly awaiting Jake to post new hilarious comics. As one fan stated, "These are better than half of the comics published in the funny pages!"
Online Reaction:
Jake began transferring these comics into Photoshop, and on December 11, 2020, his book launched on Amazon to an overwhelming positive response. In fact, the only online criticism Jake's comics have received is disbelief that a kid was actually responsible. As his father says with a smile, "Some people simply refused to believe Jake was real, they thought it was me drawing them and using the story of my son as a ploy to gain attention. It really is all from Jake so these comments are received as a huge compliment!”
Jake States, my desires is to make people laugh, think and dream and to inspire other young people to follow their dream.
When not drawing, Jake can be found doing schoolwork, riding bikes, practicing Tae Kwon Do, or playing with his little dog Cooper. Jake plans to use any proceeds from the book sales to buy a new drawing tablet, donate to help his sister's Type 1 Diabetes, and save up for college.
Jake has the ability to capture real life situations and use comic to deliver a captivating message. In the same other that other cartoonist such as Gary Larson’s The Far Side, and his influences are from Calvin and Hobbes, Dilbert, and XKCD to capture the heart and minds of millions around the world.
Here is some of the insight into the reality behind the comic:
Wrong Side of the Bed, A good friend of the family named Mike, who is living abroad, follows Jake’s comics online and constantly encourages him. One day Mike challenged Jake with a writing prompt: “Can Jake draw a comic based on the phrase ‘waking up on the wrong side of the bed’?” Jake accepted the challenge and the next morning this was drawn on his whiteboard. I posted it to Reddit after he went to school; by the time he got home, the post had over 40,000 up-votes. Thanks for the nudge, Mike!
Lightbulb, This was ground zero the very first comic that started Jake’s online popularity. For a while, his mom and I were simply posting his comics to our personal Facebook accounts and getting 20 likes was a pretty big deal. This one got over 60,000 up-votes on Reddit. Jake became a celebrity in eighth grade. Even teachers told him they were fans. Flattering, but for a guy like Jake, uncomfortable. It didn’t help when I told him “you’ve got more fans than would fit in an NFL stadium!” This really blew his circuits. He and I had a heart to heart about whether we should continue this endeavor if it affected his heart in a negative way, we would shut the whole thing down. After some thought, he decided that if his art could make people smile, and brighten their day a bit, then it was worth it. Proud of this kid.
Hormones, The start of Jake’s comic career coincided with his introduction to puberty. As the great philosopher Ice Cube once said, “Our art is a reflection of our reality.”
Jake’s Door contains 115 amazing whiteboard comics3 that will make you laugh, think and even evaluate situations in life that one has encountered and gone through, Jake’s popularity is gaining leaps and bounds day by day and even capturing the interest of his peers.
Actual Testimonials for Jake's Door:
“I like everything about Jake’s cartoons the easy and simple visual style, the wit, the dry sense of humor. These are wonderful cartoons, with several at New Yorker level quality. BTW, I am the author of 100 books, and Jake is a better author at age 14 than I am at 63.”
Bob Bly Copywriting legend and author
“Jake’s ability to set up, and then slam dunk a laugh, in the span of just a couple panels is brilliant. The immediate comparison is to Gary Larson. But some of these are next level conceptual thinking. Page 9 would make M.C. Escher proud. And page 73 belongs in a pitch to NETFLIX. This is a set of ironic, sarcastic, and often dark tales that belong in the company of the “Sunday funnies” greats.”
Ian Hannin Artist and Designer, DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Disney, Netflix, Hulu
“This book is bonkers good. Someone should make it into a movie.”
Jason Brubaker LA based Indie Filmmaker
“Jake is seriously funny. I’m not even kidding, I think these are better than the Far Side.”
Colin Jake’s best friend in 9th grade
Jake’s Book can be ordered at amazon.com and for more information about Jake and his comics can be found at his website, wwwJakesDoor.com
Terry Warren
Global Communications Now
+1 949-743-4065
email us here
WATCH NOW: Watch Jake Draw His Comics at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VKr7av28HU
1 http://www.jakesdoor.com
2 http://www.jakesdoor.com
3 http://www.jakesdoor.com