What is the inspiration for The Smiley Faces from Outer Space?

To put my inspiration for my comics in one sentence: Cute criticism with minimalism using a science fiction origin.

I could break that down and go into detail about the individual words of that sentence, but instead, I'll go into the origin in order to show the parts.

Life as an adult included jobs where I worked from 50 to 80 hours a week, and jobs where I had to put up with a mixture of abuse and absurdity. The stress and frustration built up to the point where they needed some expression; and I found it best to express myself with humor (Dilbert style humor). I started with little handyman 2D smiley faces; though perhaps I should say Emotion Icons instead because they weren't always smiling. Eventually, I would combine my 2D Smiley Faces with 3D art. I had already been using Bryce and Poser for more serious images, but realized I could bring my 2D smiley faces to more "life." I also decided to stick with a minimalist style where I used just enough detail to get the point (and the emotions) across. Sometimes the simplest way to show something is the most effective (and the most powerful).

At the same time, from my memories of life as a child, I remembered an enjoyment of cuteness and a time of innocence (though many tell me that I still have a lot of that innocence). I also remember a time of questioning the world around me. Children question the world in ways adults don't. As children growing toward adulthood, we were all socialized to make the assumption that "This is the way the world is, so it must make sense" and to just accept the world as it is without thinking.

By questioning the world, my taste in humor was strongly toward that of satyr, which looks at things that we take for granted with new (childlike) eyes. Yet children have been done many times, from Charlie Brown and Peanuts to South Park.

I didn't so much plan it, as it just came to me one day to add my love of science fiction into the mix (something I was introduced to as a child with the old 50's Sci Fi movies). In retrospect, it must have occurred to me on a subconscious level that instead of using child characters to look at our world with fresh eyes unclouded by assumptions of adults, I would use alien visitors. Of course, I gave my alien visitors an almost childlike innocence, because that is what they really represent.

In summary: cute (childlike) criticism (adult response) with minimalism (methodology) using a science fiction origin (genre).

Ed.