Compassionate Cartoons

Today I'm excited to showcase the book 

Compassionate Cartoons About Divorce.

It's a collection of very realistic cartoons like this one,

that really spoke to me and I could totally see using it

as a springboard for a conversation with a child.

{Posted with permission.}

Here now, some highlights from my Q & A
with co-author Kelly Kamowski.

1. Please tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey to date.

I grew up as an Air Force brat and moved a lot. I attended five elementary schools. At one point we lived on Guam. I have my degree in accounting and am a CPA. I worked as an accountant and wrote cartoons at the same time for 25 years. I quit my accounting job after winning $50,000 in a sweepstakes.

I have collaborated with many cartoonists over the years, writing funny cartoons that have been published in places like the Wall St. Journal, Reader’s Digest, and Woman’s World. I don’t draw, just do the writing, since I can only draw stick figures. I have two grown children; my daughter is a paralegal and my son is a LMSW. I got divorced when they were in middle school. We are doing well!

2. So how did your personal experiences shape your decision to work on this book?

I started writing the Compassionate Cartoons when I worked for a nonprofit that helps kids who are dealing with grief due to death and divorce. I went through my divorce while I worked there. I worked for another nonprofit that helps abused and neglected children and also worked as a volunteer on a domestic violence hotline. I was raised to be an empathic person. Our Compassionate Cartoons brand covers many causes and serious topics --- grief, divorce, bullying, fighting cancer, hunger in America, domestic violence, mental health issues, and others. We’ve created cartoons for Good Therapy.org.

3. Why cartoons to address something sad, a loss like separation and divorce?

I actually have two different cartoon brands. At one, my partner and I create color, funny, promotional cartoons that we license to different types of industries for social media, websites, and advertising. Some examples are cartoons about the moving industry, self-storage, insurance, professional organizing, real estate, home staging, and wedding planning. 

The Compassionate Cartoons about Divorce book cartoons have been well-received by collaborative divorce lawyers, therapists, social workers, and people going through divorce.  They are a great resource for getting kids to talk about their feelings. We think of the Compassionate Cartoons as cartoons for the greater good. The world needs more compassion. I like having two different types of cartoons to write. It makes my career more interesting.

4. How do you connect humor and laughter to resilience, grit and growth?

Humor helps people get through the difficult challenges of life. Some of the cartoons aren’t supposed to be funny though. Some are conversation starters and therapeutic, or illustrations depicting serious matters, not so much haha funny cartoons. A picture is worth a thousand words. If you look at our book, some of the cartoons are humorous and some are quite sad. They run the gamut of emotions.

5. What's next for you?

I will continue to run my two companies and cover more subjects. We license the individual cartoons from the book and the cartoons I mentioned about other serious topics and causes. {To license a cartoon, contact me at  kellykamow95@gmail.com } I have a greeting card/meme brand with a Swedish cartoonist I will start marketing soon. Also, I’d like to get a few days off for vacation so I can catch up on my sleep. I’m really far behind!!!!

BIO: Kelly Kamowski has been a published cartoon gag writer for over 25 years. Her collaborations have been published in major publications. She has a funny, industry-specific cartoon company called CMB-Cartoons with former Disney cartoonist, Jerry King. Her Compassionate Cartoons brand is with syndicated cartoonist, Stephanie Piro (Six Chix). Kamowski's day job for over 25 years was working as an accountant in several different industries which provided an abundance of cartoon humor.

Thank you, Kelly, for taking time out to talk with us today.

Good luck with the book as well as with finding that coveted free time.