Glenn Dakin facts for kids

Glenn Dakin, born in 1960, is a talented British cartoonist and writer of books for children. He created the popular Candle Man book series. Glenn also drew for many British comics magazines, like Escape and Deadline. In the 1980s, he was a key part of the British small press comics world. Two of his most famous creations are the comic strips Temptation and Abe. Abe is a bit like a story from his own life.

Glenn Dakin's Creative Journey

Early Days and Inspiration

When Glenn Dakin was in college in Manchester, he drew his comic strip Abe for the college magazine. There, he met Paul Gravett. Paul showed him how to make and share his own comics, called zines, through the mail. Glenn was not sure at first, but soon he became very interested. He started talking with other comic artists like Eddie Campbell and Phil Elliott. Glenn has said that the Moomin cartoons and books by Tove Jansson greatly influenced his Abe strip. He loved their mix of hope and gentle sadness.

Publishing His Comics

Glenn's work first appeared in a magazine called pssst! in 1982. When Paul Gravett started Escape Magazine, Glenn became a regular artist there. He also drew strips for an Australian comic book called Fox Comics. In the late 1980s, he published comics through Harrier Comics' New Wave series. These included Paris, The Man of Plaster (with Steve Way) and a collection called Gag!. He also worked with Woodrow Phoenix to create Sinister Romance.

His comic strip Temptation was inspired by the look of Krazy Kat by George Herriman and B.C. by Johnny Hart. Temptation appeared in Escape magazine and later in Deadline magazine. Penguin Books published it as a collection in 1991. Glenn also worked with Phil Elliott on many strips. These included Mr Day and Mr Night, Greenhouse Warriors, and The Man From Cancer.

Working with Marvel UK

For a time, Glenn Dakin worked for Marvel UK. There, he wrote comics like ClanDestine and The Real Ghostbusters.

Collected Works and Recent Projects

In 2001, his Abe comic strips were gathered into a book called Abe: Wrong For All The Right Reasons by Top Shelf Productions. Temptation was re-released in 2004 by Active Images. Both books feature introductions written by Eddie Campbell.

Glenn Dakin continues to write books for children. He also creates and writes children's television shows for the BBC. You can find his regular comic strip, Robot Crusoe, in The Sunday Times.

Glenn Dakin's Impact on Other Artists

Many American cartoonists have said that Glenn Dakin greatly influenced their ideas about comics. This is especially true for artists connected to the publisher Highwater Books. They admired his unique style and approach to storytelling.