Hangout: Punch Drunk

Matthew Inman went from Web developer to comic hero. Why? He has his reasons.

Photography by Andrew Waits for City Arts.

"Eight Ways to Prepare Your Pets for War.” “Ten Things that Bears Love.” “Seven Reasons to Keep Your Tyrannosaur Off of Crack Cocaine.”

In Matthew Inman’s world, this is what qualifies as essential information. And for the people who follow his comic Web site TheOatmeal.com, his unique knowledge is gospel. These followers know the artist, from his own depictions of himself, as an obese and deformed character. In the real world, though, Inman is an athletic twenty-seven-year-old with a direct business manner as well as a great thirst for coffee. Given the choice, Inman prefers to meet at the Fremont Coffee House, a regular spot for him.

“I work in the morning, I rest and try to work out during the afternoon after I crash,” he says. “Then I drink a bunch of coffee and stay up working.”

The payoff for those late nights is 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth, a coffee-table book due out later this year that is filled with Inman’s comics. In the fashion of recent books from online artists, it brings together a collection of the numerous Web comics that have made him an Internet humorist hero, as well as a handful of original work not seen on his site.

The foam skull, a signature touch at the Coffee House, found fame on the Internet after Inman posted a photo of it on Reddit.

“I’m very good at articulating gripes,” Inman asserts.

Through exaggerated drawings, many including homicidal bears, villainous cats and obnoxious young adults, Inman has gained an audience of folks who are frustrated with the minor annoyances of daily life. The catchy titles don’t hurt either.

“When I create a comic, I want it to be like, ‘Try not to read this!’” Inman explains, pointing to the cover of his book, which features a man punching a dolphin.

In his previous profession as a Web developer, Inman was tasked with drawing traffic to Web sites. Instead of advertising through traditional means, Inman designed clever quizzes and penned nerdy articles like “How dating my ex was like playing Doom II on nightmare mode.” It was here that he refined his humor and graphic talent.

Now, as a full-time comic artist, Inman feels the rush of freedom, but print publishing is a new world. With a much more rigid schedule, print publishing also lacks the benefits of link sharing and social networking that helped popularize the Oatmeal.

“Even if no one likes my book and it ends up in the bargain bin,” he says, “I’ll still be standing nearby pointing it out to customers – ‘Hey, you! Here’s my book!’” •