The BUSHY TALES Comic Strip
BUSHY TALES is an Australian comic strip with a truly international following....no surprise when you combine loveable and iconic characters with beautiful artwork and great warmth and humour!
Read on to find out about the story and the characters behind the BUSHY TALES comic strip.
Also, there are galleries showing both the daily and Sunday versions of the strip (the galleries often change, so do come back again).
And, finally, there is information about the syndication of the strip, and even how you can help out.
About....
The Background
BUSHY TALES is not an old comic strip...yet it had its beginnings many, many years ago. Well, Doug the Wombat did, at least. About 35 years ago cartoonist, Ian Jones did a few sketches of a wombat that he liked. However, as he was producing another cartoon strip at the time, he did not have any time, or ideas, to develop these early sketches....though he always thought it might develop into something one day.
That day came early in 2011 when Ian and his wife, Robyn, were returning home from a weekend with friends in rural New South Wales. Whilst driving, Ian was doing a lot of thinking about things and, during the course of the trip, the whole
concept of BUSHY TALES took shape. Of course, the cute wombat from those sketches of years past became the central character of this new comic strip and everything just "came together" from there. A very productive drive, to say the least!
The Setting
"The Bluff" is a hill overlooking a valley and a creek below. Doug first came to The Bluff seeking refuge after a fierce bushfire destroyed his old home. Coming here was the best thing he could have done, as the other inhabitants of The Bluff, an eclectic mix of Aussie bush animals, have welcomed him into their little community.
BUSHY TALES is set in the Australian bush, not the "Outback", so there are plenty of trees, rocks and the creek usually has water in it, much to the delight of Ruby the platypus.
The Characters
Doug the Wombat is the larger-than-life central character of the strip...but there is a great bunch of supporting characters around him, all typical of the Aussie bush.
Once you get to know them, you'll love them just like we do.
Check them out (with real-life counterparts) below.
The Name
The name, BUSHY TALES, is actually a bit of a play on words.... the Australian "bush" is famous for its tales and stories, traditionally told around campfires late at night.
And, as most of the characters of the strip also have bushy, or furry, tails, Ian thought it was a pretty fun thing to combine both concepts into a catchy name.
Hence....BUSHY TALES!
The Sunday BUSHY TALES Strip
Advance the strips in the gallery using the arrows.
Or, alternatively, click on the main strip and then advance via the arrows.
The selection of coloured Sunday strips in this gallery changes from time to time.
The Daily BUSHY TALES Strip
Advance the strips in the gallery using the arrows.
Or, alternatively, click on the main strip and then advance via the arrows.
The selection of coloured daily strips in this gallery changes from time to time.
Newspaper Syndication
The world of the newspaper comic strip has always been a challenging and very competitive one. These challenges have increased dramatically over recent years with newspapers reducing the size of the printed strips, or reducing the numbers of strips that are published, or getting rid of the comic strips altogether!
In spite of these obstacles, BUSHY TALES has "bucked the trend" in the last couple of years, being the first Australian comic strip taken on by major daily and Sunday newspapers, as well as many smaller ones.
Unfortunately, this success (and the potential for further publishing success) has been dealt a deadly blow in the last couple of years with....
- News Corp (owner of 70% of Australia's newspapers) recently abolishing ALL the comic strips from ALL their newspapers!
- Nine Media Newspapers dropping all the comic strips from their stable of daily and Sunday papers.
- The APN network of newspapers dropping most of the comic strips from their regional daily papers.
This has been a bitter blow for the gifted comic strip creators in this country...and, also, for all the readers for whom a dose of comic strip humour is a daily ritual.
However, even though it is a much smaller pool of newspapers taking comic strips in this country now, we are thankful for those who still do....and BUSHY TALES is continuing to sell into these community-minded papers.
Thankfully, BUSHY TALES is appearing in a growing number of smaller, community-focused newspapers around Australia, as well as being published in a number of smaller newspapers in the USA.
Please partner with us in the "wombatification" of the world!
• If your local, or favourite, newspaper does not run BUSHY TALES, why not drop the editor a friendly note (mail or email) requesting it? Editors are interested in what their readership wants, so it might help to get their attention.
You could suggest the editor contacts us at ian@bushytales.com for further information (or our syndicate, Auspac Media - see contact details below).
• Share the BUSHY TALES strip with others on Facebook and ask your friends and family to “Like” the BT Facebook page (www.facebook.com/BushyTalesComicStrip).
This will enhance the profile of the strip and spread the word about it. We would love to have a growing online readership…and it will further increase the opportunities of print publication, too.
And, if your newspaper already publishes BUSHY TALES (or if it starts to publish the strip)....write to the editor and thank them for running the strip. Let them know that you enjoy reading it in their newspaper.
Thank you for your continued readership and enjoyment of the BUSHY TALES comic strip.
Long may you enjoy it!
Syndicates representing BUSHY TALES:
All enquiries about BUSHY TALES syndication, costs, or any other related matter, should be directed to:
AUSTRALIA
Samantha Foden
Syndication Manager
AUSPAC MEDIA
E: sam@auspacmedia.com.au
P: 0755533200
PO Box 8271, Gold Coast MC 9726
Queensland Australia.
AUSTRALIA
Ian Jones
BUSHY TALES PRODUCTIONS
E: ian@bushytales.com
W: www.bushytales.com
P: +61-733922635
PO Box 8093, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia
UNITED STATES
Bill Kellogg
INK BOTTLE SYNDICATE
E: bill@inkbottlesyndicate.com
bill@tundracomics.com
P: +1-907-441-6882
Mail: 5082 Mills Drive,
Anchorage, AK 99508, USA
