Compare/Contrast

I'm a big fan of web comics, well, and comics in general. Its just that the ones I generally pay attention to are the ones online, this would include "American Elf" by James Kochalka. James Kochalka is the hero of his own diary styled comic. He writes about the mundane and exciting things that go on his life. Things like raising kids, a fight or lovemaking session with his wife, or even just paying the bills. So...this is were I bring up that I too make online autobiographical comics, in this we are similar. This is the most obvious similarity between us, but as a growing artist and introspective person, I've related (as many have) to his daily going-ons. Through this his little window of his life, I've related to his childhood experiences, conflicting emotions, and passion to express artistically.
When I say that we both express artistically, I'm really struggling to keep from sounding pretentious. In fact, it took me a while to study art fully because I felt it wasn't a justified life choice, like I was being selfish in choosing. I also feel narcissistic for producing a web comic documenting my life, I mean, its not like I'm the most interesting person in the world! However, like James Kochalka, I feel a sentimental attachment to fleeting emotions and simple daily activities. I once made a comic about my love for my coffee maker, how it made my day at least a little bit better. Its dumb, I know, and cliche, but thats how simple "American Elf" gets too. He's had whole strips dedicated to things like the shapes puddles make, or how much he likes butter. There's no metaphor or symbolism to it, just pure observation and being in the moment. Even his style of illustration is simple line drawings with bold bright colors. We differ a lot on artistic style, I would say the main way we differ is that my drawings tend to be a bit more scratchy and detailed. Not all of "American Elf" is based on the mundane life, sometimes he surprises me by how much he reveals. There are comics about ranging from changing his kid's diaper, making love to wife, or even something as deeply personal as his childhood abuse. Though I do depict a lot of personal things on my comic, I'm constantly thinking "What is too personal?" I'm sure Kochalka struggles with TMI issues like that too, though at least he's made a name for himself in the art world. Unlike him, I do not profit from my art (yet?), and I only link my comics on certain social networking sites. I currently cannot link my comics from my facebook profile, because my boyfriend's co-workers might see it, and be displeased. So far I haven't posted anything as personal as my boyfriend and I having sex on a comic strip, but he says he enjoys seeing some of himself getting documented and illustrated.