Cartoonist Sam Orchard is a talented man with talented hands with which he creates a hodgepodge of things, from a G-rated cartoon that explains the basics of being queer, to a postcard series entitled "chubby boys with strap-ons". Sam's self-portrait The Australian-born transman has lived in Sydney, Melbourne, Launceston, Invercargill and Dunedin in his 27 years, and now lives with his boyfriend Joe in Auckland. He's just finished his masters and fills much of his time working at OUTLine, volunteering at Rainbow Youth and updating his blog Rooster Tails, which you can check out here We asked him a few questions! Have you been drawing basically since you could use your hands? A couple of years ago I found a project that I did when I was 12 that said I wanted to be a cartoonist when I grew up, and I'd definitely been drawing for a while before then. It's mostly just been a hobby - I was always bored in class so I'd doodle notes instead of writing them. What do you love about comic strips so much? I think comics are a really interesting art form... I think they're one of the most queer forms of art around. For a start it's really hard to find a solid definition of what a comic actually is: it's something that combines words and pictures... but also there's something else about it too... I like that it's really hard to describe. I also really like that it's kinda underrated. People don't always recognise how powerful comics can be - they're not really taken seriously as "real" art, and they're not often taken seriously as "real" literature either - so they have the power to be quite subversive. I could seriously write you about a million words one why comics are cool. But I think I'll probably just leave it at that for now. Why did you start Rooster Tails? I'd been writing a comic strip for my university magazine Critic for a couple of years – and felt like I learned a lot about how to construct a 4-panel strip, but I wanted to stretch myself and create something a bit more personal. I often feel sad about the lack of queer and trans stuff in the media so I decided that I might be able to combat my dissatisfaction by creating my own media. What's the feedback been like from your followers? Really amazing! I feel like I've met heaps of awesome people through my webcomic, and been able to be able to participate in some awesome projects like DUDE Magazine and Salacious. Do you take real life and put it into comic stories? Yeh definitely – it's pretty autobiographical, sometimes I stretch the truth a little, but mostly I just write comics about things I've been thinking about or experiences that I've had in that week. How much does it help you to take what could be trying situations and find the humour in them? It DEFINITELY helps. I feel like writing Rooster Tails is hugely important to my mental health. If I'm left on my own I'm generally a pretty mopey, cynical guy – so the comic is my own way of getting outside of my silly mind and re-framing things to see the lightness and humour about my life (because I have a pretty sweet life, really). A lot of the mainstream, television and film media about trans-people is really scandal-driven and depressing; so my comic is a reaction to that. It's about the fun and awesomeness of being trans and queer. Do you mind telling me a little bit about being trans and what life has been like for you? As much as you feel like sharing… I feel like I'm a pretty lucky guy – it didn't click until I was about 23 that I was trans, because I had never heard of a transguy before and I didn't know that it was option. But when I met other transguys it started to all make sense. It's been a bit of a work in progress for the last five years, full of ups and downs, but generally I feel pretty good; it's really nice to be able to feel free enough to just be me. You've just finished your masters – where to next? I'm not sure yet! I'm waiting to get my mark back for my masters – which was a 150 page graphic novel (comic book) called “Family Portraits” exploring my life, and the lives of eight other kiwis in the LGBTI community. Then I'll be looking for a publisher, or trying to raise enough money to publish it myself. I've also been doing some freelance illustration, comic and resource design work. I'm always looking for more projects to get involved in. Tell me a bit about your boyfriend, if you want! Ha! I'll have to ask him what I'm allowed to say first… I feel kinda bad because he's always in the comic and heaps of people know lots about his life now because of me. Sorry Joe, you're lovely. Tell me about the Auckland Zine Fest – you will have a stand? The Auckland Zine Fest is a self-publishing market day and festival that happens each year. I was lucky enough to have my own stall last year, where I sold some mini comics, and I also did a short talk on queer comics and why they're so awesome. I'm definitely keen to be in it again this year – it's so much fun to see the amazing publications that people create out of love and obsession. You're doing Febfast - why did you decide to take part? Firstly, Rainbow Youth is an organisation that I feel really strongly about, and this year they're one of the charities of FebFast. So to have an opportunity to ensure that the crew at Rainbow Youth get to keep doing their awesome work was something I didn't wanna pass up. Plus, like my comic says, it is an opportunity to reflect on my own experiences of alcohol, and some of the harder lessons that I've learnt from it. Binge drinking has been something I've done in response to some of the harder experiences I've had of being queer and trans. It's nice to be able to take a month to have a think about my relationship to alcohol, how I've used it over the years, and ways to be healthy about it. Do you drink much usually? I dunno - I guess I'm pretty good at knowing my limit these days, and don't usually have more than a couple, but it's really nice to have a beer or two at the end of a long day. What will be the hardest part of the challenge? I've made it a secret goal of mine to raise more money than my partner Joe, who's also on the Rainbow Youth team, so probably one of the hardest parts will be when he reads this interview! Are you worried about how much glbti young people drink? I remember reading in the Youth 07 report that GLBTI youth are at a higher risk of alcohol and drug misuse than their straight classmates. I think FebFast is a great way to raise money for organisations, like Rainbow Youth, that help young people build resilience and a give them sense of community. I know that it would have made a big difference to me if there was a queer youth group in Invercargill when I was growing up. Jacqui Stanford - 18th February 2012