When David Lee Finkle stopped creating new Mr. Fitz comic strips earlier this year
he mentioned that he might return after taking a few months sabbatical from the deadlines.
And so he has:
The West Volusia Beacon, Mr. Fitz’s old print stomping ground, reports:
They say if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. Well, you’ll never really retire, either.
A lot has changed in education since Finkle started Mr. Fitz in 2000, and he just couldn’t keep himself from making comics that commented on current events.
Now he’s publishing his comics once a week on his website.
“If it’s just online, I don’t have to worry about newspaper deadlines,” Finkle told The Beacon. “If I want to do more, or do less, or take time off, I can.”
Broaching tough subjects with humor was always a hallmark of Mr. Fitz. As public schools continue to become highly politicized, Finkle said, he finds value in the occasional joke.
“Part of the conclusion I’m coming to is people are just shouting at each other online,” Finkle said. “Unless it can make people stop and think, maybe it’s not effective. I’m trying to do things that are humorous enough to catch people off guard.”
The added flexibility of online publishing allows Finkle to better juggle his comics, his 30-year teaching career, and work on the novel he’s writing, Reform School.
The novel, a fictionalized period piece, follows a teacher over the course of four school years in the 1990s as they juggle a tidal wave of education reforms like the advent of standardized testing.
Mr. Fitz returned on May 22 and has new strips every Sunday
with dailies thrown into the mix of the older “flashbacks.”
Support for David is possible through his Patreon page.