FAQ:
Frequently Asked Questions
Below
are some basic Q & A on Clan of the Cats and its author.
EMAIL: jamiecotc@gmail.com
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What
is COTC about?
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Clan
of the Cats is about Chelsea Urania Kate Chattan, a small town girl
with a big problem. A few years ago she moved to New York City to become
an artist. That didn't work out, so she moved back to the small town.
That's when the big problem began. Chelsea is a witch, but not just
any witch. She possesses magickal skills far beyond the common Wiccan
practitioner and if that weren't enough, she changes into a black panther
every once in a while. Unlike Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, who has a mission
to save the world every season, Chelsea's main objective is to simply
live her life as best as she can. Of course, sometimes that task becomes
as much of a challenge as saving the world too.
Obviously,
Chelsea is not the only girl in town or person for that matter. Her
on-again off-again boyfriend, Jubal stands by her side at least when
she's not trying to kill him. Both Ruth, Chelsea's Grandmother and Corrine's
mentor, Jacob, have taken it upon themselves to teach Chelsea the finer
points of magick. Of course, run-ins with Paul, Chelsea's Christian
brother-in-law, are always fun. Jubal's old roommate is a vampire and
Cynthia, Chelsea's half-sister, seems to actually take it all in stride.
And this is Chelsea's normal life. The more exciting party of
her life is filled with wizards, werewolves, vampires ... yeah, it sounds
like her normal life, but it's just more of it.
If the premise of a girl turning into a large cat seems very familiar
to you, then you probably saw the same movie I did. Cat
People, made in 1942
and remade in 1982, (with
Nastassja Kinski), played an important role in the creation of COTC.
While I liked the Nastassja Kinski, version the one that inspired me
was the old one. It is film noir at its best and I highly recommend
it. Of course that plot is just the female version of The
Wolf Man, another favorite of mine. :)
For a more in-depth version of what the strip is about I suggest you
read it from the beginning,
if possible. :)
For more info on the people in Chelsea's life visit the Cast
Page or the People
section of the COTC Mythos for a more extensive list of folks.
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Who
is the Author?
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Okay,
I will tell a little bit about myself. I was born, and that’s about
it so far. No, I’m only kidding. My name is Jamie Robertson, (legal
name James W. Robertson IV), and I live in Burlington, NC. It’s a
small town about 50 miles west of Raleigh. I am 38 years old and still
single, :( but I do have friends, (and there was much rejoicing).
I started drawing back in 1976, the year Jaws came out, and I have
been at it ever since. I draw a lot of things besides cartoons, my
favorite being, portraits of people. I actually started Clan of the
Cats 15 years ago as a college assignment. It appeared briefly in
a friend’s ‘Zine called Suburban Underbelly. I dropped it after that,
until I went back to college in 1994. I drew the comic strip ZOOM
in the Elon College paper, the Pendulum.
It had some of the same characters that are in COTC. After graduating
Elon, I was still into my comic, but I wanted to change it. So I added
a supernatural twist to the strip, and revamped the name Clan of the
Cats and the rest is history. The most unusual thing about me is that
I had a kidney transplant back in 1995. Actually this is my second
one and things are going fine.
a photograph of me. I still have the blond hair, but just not as much
of it. :)
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Where did the name of the strip come from?
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Clan
of the Cats comes from the Scottish clan, Clan Chattan. The main female
character is named Chelsea Chattan, and thus the link. If you want to
know more about the Clan Chattan, please visit the Clan
Chattan Association Page or the Clan
Chattan Web Ring. Just don't touch the cat.
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Are
the characters based upon real people?
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Yes
. . . and no. Some of the characters are physically based upon people
I know, or have known. The rest I just made up. As far as their character
is concerned, they are all composites of myself and my own influences.
At least that's what they all tell me.
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Is
this strip syndicated or published?
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Clan
of the Cats is hosted by Keenspot Entertainment Inc., however there
are no dead tree versions of COTC.
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Some
of these characters look familiar. Were they in another strip?
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Yes.
I did have a strip called ZOOM, which ran at the Elon College newspaper,
the Pendulum.
A few of these same characters appeared in that strip. It is forbidden
to speak of it within the college's hallowed halls.
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What
are your influences?
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I
could write a paper on this, but I won't. I'll just say that, as it
is with most artists, my influences come from everywhere from the Beatles
to Scooby Doo, from Shakespeare to the Vedas, from Michaelangelo to
Warhol, from ... you get the picture.
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What
is your favorite comic strip?
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As
far as comic strips go, my favorites are Calvin and Hobbes, For Better
or for Worse, Bizzaro, BC, Gasoline Alley, Foxtrot, and my fav fav,
classic Peanuts from the 50's and 60's. C&H runs a very close second,
by the way. There are several web-toons that have caught my eye lately.
In no particular order, Sluggy Freelance, Elf Life, Alice, Hobnobb Inn,
Bobbins on-line, and College Roomies from Hell all need to give me my
eyeball back.
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There
seems to be a lot of Occult stuff on this site. Are you into that?
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First
of all, let me say that I am not a Witch. I’m a Presbyterian. I was
raised that, anyway. I actually know some witches and they are just
like everybody else, except for the frog on their heads. As far as the
supernatural goes, I do acknowledge that, (to paraphrase Shakespeare),
there are more things in Heaven and Earth than are dreamt of in our
philosophies. However, my main occult influences for this strip come
from staying up too late and watching old monster movies.
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Does
Sebastian Talk?
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The
answer to this is another yes and no. While Sebastian is a magical cat,
only Chelsea and her grandmother can hear him. Only beings of high magick
can hear Sebo. Jubal, since being "reborn" through magick
can now Understand Sebastian. This, of course, proves most interesting
at times. To most other humans Sebastian's ramblings come off as
low growls. Sebastian, however, can cast a spell on a human to make
himself understood. The first such instance was during the COTC/CRFH
crossover. More recently Sebo did this to Cynthia
or at least that is the way it appears.
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Where
do these people live?
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The
strip is set in a mythical town called Haven. It is located about 30
miles south of Wilmington, NC. You know, where they filmed Matlock in
the later years. Haven is based on a real town, however, called Southport.
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Is
Ruth afflicted with the Chattan Curse?
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No.
Ruth is Chelsea's grandmother by marriage. Ruth's maiden name is Madison.
The curse only comes from the Chattan line and only effects women. Men,
however, can be carriers of the curse. It's not entirely by coincidence
that Ruth, a witch, married Chelsea's grandfather. Call it kismet. :)
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Is
Cynthia part of the Chattan Clan?
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Cynthia
is Diane's daughter, (Chelsea's mother), but Cynthia's father is Ben.
Like Ruth, Cynthia is family, but she does not share the same bloodline
as Chelsea and Corrine.
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There
seems to be some cartoons missing. What happened?
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Back
in late July of 1999 I had to shut down this site for a week due to
severe hosting problems. There are no strips for the week of July 26
through August 1. The story goes from July 25 to August 2. Lately I
have taken a couple of hiatuses due to illness, so there are some more
missing within the latter part of 2002.
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Your
strip sucks! Why don't you take it off and give someone else the band
width!
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If
you do not like my strip/site, then please at least tell me why. If
you do not give a constructive reason, then the only thing I have learned
is that you're an cockeyed jerkball. (note: If I ask for reviews, I
won't complain if you don't like it, even if you don't give me a good
reason)
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I
love your strip! How long will you continue it?
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I
hope to continue this as long as it is fun for me, or until someone
pays me not to do it any more.
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