Comics made so far in 2026. More coming soon! Click here to see a random day in my life for Hourly Comic Day 2026.

Check my instagram for the latest news and comics.

The day when I draw a comic for every hour I’m awake - along with a bunch of other comic makers and artists across the globe!

I managed to do all my drawings on the day (Sunday 8th February). This is my 6th year! This time I was out most of the day at Loch Lomond, having a nice wee time with a couple of pals - usually I’m working or predominantly with family. This time I decided to structure the drawing a little more with sticking to a square format and three panel sizes. I spent WAY less time agonising over any decision; I would just think about it, do it, leave it. I’d like to do that a bit more in my creative practice. 

So these comics are as they appear on paper. I edited out a few smudges, but I think this is the easiest, cleanest HCD I have ever done. There’s a lot going on in the world right now and this day was a break from that. Just in case you think I live in a bougie wonderland of saunas and takeaway coffees. That’s the thing about HCD, it’s a record of that one, single day. If I drew my day any other day, it’d be so different. 

In case you wondered about the date change this year, #HourlyComicDay used to be on the 1st of February but was moved to make space (rightfully so) for Black History Month in the US and other countries. Having a load of comic makers (many of them white) sharing their hourlies isn’t really a way to kick off the first day of Black History Month anywhere, so the date has been moved by a week. Hooray for change and for good decisions made for the right reasons!

Feb 2026

The bulk of these comics were made in response to a particular period in Summer 2025 when I discovered some health concerns that had been dormant for a long time.

You can see the entire ‘stress comic’ on instagram here, perhaps more clearly.

Pencil, ink and paper comics in three sections as the news progressed.

June-July 2025

My fifth annual hourly comic day!

I was pretty unwell on this day so it was the perfect time for getting to know the new iPad a bit better. It’s kit I thought I would never have, but it came along at the right time for me to draw from the blanket-covered sofa!

It was pretty quiet day all round as my kid was (mercifully) extracted from my sick-sofa so I could half rest / watch TV and half doodle. It’s a day where I was steeped in the kindness of others and I was so grateful - also to have the chance to still participate in one of my favourite days of the year.

Usually I see my style improving / settling over the day, but here I think my fatigue is really visible towards the end. I was just happy to make anything that day!

Feb 1st, 2025

Comics made in 2024 so far.

2024

My fourth year taking part in Hourly Comic Day on `the 4th February. Fancy a glimpse into my daily life? Probably not… But if you do, here it is in all its glory! It was actually an atypical day as I went out for lunch, cooked a whole chicken and didn’t do anything else but draw comics. Not a typical day-in-the-life for me! (Dreamy in many ways though)

The HCD brief is to draw a comic for every hour that you are awake, though getting them all done on the actual day isn’t always possible around other commitments! I drew up to 1pm on the day (7 comics) and from 2pm onwards (8 comics) were all drawn on the afternoon/ evening of 5th Feb.

For real comic / illustration nerds, I estimate (because I logged my time) that to do all the comics took 4 hours 15 to draw, 6 minutes to scan, 2 hours of screen work to get them web ready and then just under 40 minutes to upload and write the copy for them all on social media. So the whole thing took about 7 hours all told. Nice to know!

FEB 2024

A small collection of favourite comics from late 2023, more prevalent after a writing residency on Orkney with the Museum of Loss and Renewal. Around the same time I started working in a disused local building now used as shared artist studios.

AUTUMN 2023

On my first ever residency, I spent a formative week on Orkney with the Museum of Loss and Renewal among a group of writers. I’m not entirely sure what it was that compelled and propelled me there (aside from the generosity of others) but nearing the close of the week I started to create little observational comics. Funnily enough I did create proto-comics about the residency before I went which you can see some of in this blog post.

My own wee stories about little encounters with the other residents of Birsay Bay began to materialise. They take in other residency pals, our interactions and the local landscape and seal population. These scrappy little comics were the first steps into a new way of making work for me. I made the occasional comic before then, but now I want to make them all the time.

SEP 2023

The parallel pen edition. This is my third year of taking part in hourly comic day and I just love it. It’s like having a special day of obligation to drawing. It’s actually often one of the few days in the year that I draw all day from the moment I get to my desk to the end of the evening. Better than that, I draw WHATEVER I WANT.

I got a parallel pen last year; it’s a pen with a nib of two metal plates which allow ink to seep out in a controlled way, giving an almost knifelike edge to draw thick and thin lines, depending on the angle it’s held. I am a total novice with it, but I’m just drawing with it as much as I can between refilling it messily with ink!

It’s so fun to draw what’s happening and to spend time thinking about what I’m doing, but with no clear goal in mind other than to have a drawing to show for each hour of the day. Each year I feel I am a little better than the one before (better at capturing what I see, planning it out and just being efficient at doing it) but also that even over the course of a few hours, I actually improve my technique and storytelling ability. I don’t really make comics much, but I’ve been long inspired by the Kate Beatons and Lucy Knisley’s of this world and I want to learn how to tell stories.

1st Feb 2023

My second attempt at #hourlycomicday! I have been genuinely looking forward to this all year. It’s a day when anything can happen - on paper - and possibilities of connection and learning something new are there for the taking.

These are my efforts from February 2022; a day in the life of Rosemary Cunningham. Like last year, I was at home in my Glasgow flat just doing a ‘normal’ day of work, but mostly concentrating on the comics - they took a wee while as I did a quick pencil draft for each (probably unnecessary in the end). Then I drew them using Derwent Inktense pencils with a little water to give them a bit of depth. That took the longest time - adding the wash and waiting for it to dry in order to add text.

As you can see, the day is incomplete. This is what I managed on the day itself, but I hope to add the remaining 7-8 drawings at a later date. The fireworks really held me back!

Feb 2022

An annual event, #hourlycomicday happens every 1st of February and this year I decided to give it a go. It involves drawing a ‘comic’ - in my case an annotated illustration - of what you are doing for every hour that you’re awake. The idea is that these images are shared on social media throughout the day and other artists can tune in and look at each others work.

I managed 12 individual comics, all showcasing the lockdown life I am currently living in a Glasgow flat with my husband and toddler. I used a 2B pencil to draw the scenes and text and added watercolours to round them out. Each one took 20-25 minutes, but with the addition of scanning and sharing there wasn't much time for anything else!

Read more about the experience in my blog post.

February 2021