Carreon v. Inman et al

Filing 24

DECLARATION of Matthew Inman in Opposition to 20 Ex Parte Application For Temporary Restraining Order and Order to Shaw Cause Re Preliminary Injunction filed byMatthew Inman. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit C, # 4 Exhibit D, # 5 Exhibit E, # 6 Exhibit F, # 7 Exhibit G, # 8 Exhibit H, # 9 Exhibit I, # 10 Exhibit J, # 11 Exhibit K, # 12 Exhibit L, # 13 Exhibit M)(Related document(s) 20 ) (Opsahl, Kurt) (Filed on 7/1/2012)

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E- mail Michae l | O n Face b o o k: C o mic R if f s | O n Twit t e r: C o mic R if f s |

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Po st e d at 2:0 0 PM ET, 0 3/11/20 11

The 'Rif f s Interview: 12 Secrets of the insanely
viral 'OATMEAL' creator Matthew Inman
By Michael Cavna

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MAT T HEW INMAN shares at least one striking trait with Mark
Z uckerberg, beyond the f act they are once-introverted, sandyhaired, whipsmart men in their 20s.

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Both the Facebook f ounder and the f ounder of "T HE OAT MEAL"
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Z uckerberg's story is globally well-documented, but it's only been
over the past year or so that Inman's tale of keen vision and restless
creativity has gradually begun to emerge. But then, the spotlight
tends to shine a little hotter on your backstory when your one-man
website pulls in more than 4-million unique visitors a month,
according to Inman's publisher, and your brand-new book, "5 Very
Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (and Other
Useful Guides" (Andrews McMeel), leaps to the upper rungs in

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"T he Oatmeal," of course, is the extremely "sticky" site that f eatures
Inman's quizzes, blog and, most notably, his viral "comics" -- which
range f rom multi-panel lists and sequential art to educational
inf ographic posters. "T he Oatmeal," in other words, is whatever is
cooking on the burners of Inman's blue-f lame brain.

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And what a collection it is, f rom lethal of f ice bobcats to ill-tempered
pterodactyls to the ill-f ated mating of the male angler f ish. In the
process, you might well learn little-known f acts about what you ingest
(the artist's "posters" about cof f ee, beer and cheese are popular)
and what you believe in (Inman memorably trumpets inventor Nikola
Tesla and explains why T homas Edison's competitive shenanigans
were stinkier than a Peterbilt f ull of body parts). And his illustrated
lists range f rom the phases of dating to types of "crappy
interviewees" to "How to Suck at Facebook."
T hat, in f act, is an enormous element of the "Oatmeal's" lure: T he
topics are f airly eclectic, but the comedic tone is as consistent as
something spun by a room of "Colbert" writers. Inman's comic rabbitholes may seem random, but so of ten his "guides" are wellresearched -- and the Seattle web designer has an uncanny knack f or
that just right word.
In that regard, the engaging
Inman, 28, [right] can impress as
less like Z uckerberg and more
like his generation's Scott
Adams -- a sharp-earred writer
who employs a distinct comic
voice; a simple and self -styled
graphic presentation; a sense
of how to tap online advances
f or creative and commercial
gain; and an incisive
understanding of what his
readers want.
But while the "Dilbert" creator is
an MBA, much of Inman's

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business sense comes f rom
countless hours at the
computer screen, learning to
design sites at age 13. A
northern Idaho native, Inman
lef t town upon high-school graduation at 17 and made a beeline f or
Seattle's tech industry. T he past decade saw him grow creatively
dissatisf ied as his talents and knowledge grew. He co-f ounded
SEOmoz in 2003 as a web designer/developer/search marketer,
leaving it in September 2007; he also says he built (in precisely 66.5
hours) a "f ull-f eatured dating website" that became the highly
traf f icked Mingle2.

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Inman's illustration "How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You"
convinced him in the summer of 2008 to launch a site that spotlighted
the sundry contents of his comic brain. Taking the name "T he
Oatmeal" f rom his video-gaming handle (he liked to play Quake
online), Inman launched the comedy site in 2009 and posted whatever
random subject matter interested him -- and the hits started coming.
With "T he Oatmeal" now a staple on Digg.com and two more books in
the works, Inman has carved out a commanding online perch as
comics creator and graphic illustrator, Comic Rif f s recently caught up
with Inman -- who is on book tour -- to discuss comic writing and
social-media strategies as we uncover 12 Secrets About the
Insanely Viral 'Oatmeal.' T hey are:
1. EMBRACE T HE INT ERNET AND ABANDON NEWSPAPER
SYNDICAT ION:
"My advice [to aspiring cartoonists] is to abandon the traditional
route," Inman tells Comic Rif f s. "Abandon newspaper syndication -there's no comparison to a mom-and-pop website. T he best advice is
... to get on the Internet, give [your comic] a tone and support that
'branded' f eel. ...
"My suggestion is to tackle things that are relatable and be immersive
in social media. ... StumbleUpon and Digg are very powerf ul."

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2. YOU WRIT E COMEDY, BUT YOU INVITE COMMUNIT Y:
"Building and hanging on to an audience is the biggest role of social
media," Inman tells us. "T hen every time I make a comic, I can
broadcast it out to them. T hat's been really helpf ul. I have this
audience waiting f or me. It's been awesome. ... You need to be f unny
and continually make them laugh. But when I started, I also had this
[casually inviting] tone: 'Hey, guys, I just made a new comic -- check it
out!' "
3. GARY LARSON'S ADVICE IS WORT H T HE PRICE OF A LUNCH
TAB:
"I had lunch with him two or three months ago -- Gary Larson is my
hero," Inman says of the "Far Side" creator. "It was awesome, and one
thing I really wanted to get out of him [had to do] with reader
comments. I f eel like my humor and my f eelings toward my own work
have changed because of commentary about my work. ... You're
af f ected by it when there's a surge and a quarter-million f ans on
Facebook [respond].
"But Larson, he basically worked in a cave. I loved hearing that. I
thought: It would be thrilling to be like you."
(Note: Another Pacific Northwest neighbor of Inman's is the team
behind "Penny Arcade"; Inman says the webcartoonists are right up
the street.
4. MAT T HEW INMAN CONSIDERS HIMSELF A CART OONIST.
EXCEPT WHEN HE DOESN'T
"I think some of my work is traditional cartooning -- a series of
panels, a f inal-panel punchline," Inman tells us. "But some is more like
comedic writing, blogging -- whatever you want to call it."
5. T HE OAT MEAL's FAVORIT E "OAT MEAL" EVER IS "T HE
BOBCAT S." BUT ASK AGAIN LAT ER;
"Lately, my absolute f avorite is 'T he Bobcats,' " Inman says. "It's
unique f rom the rest of my stuf f , with recurring characters.
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"I also like 'Why I'd Rather Be Punched in the Testicles T han Call
Customer Service.' And 'Mother[Expletive] Pterodactyls.' And
'Punchline Aliens.' Some of my f avorites are the least-traf f icked ones
-- not the home runs."
6. FOR A LONG T IME, INMAN DIDN'T "GET " HIS BOOK'S COVER
COMIC:
"T he punch-a-dolphin one -- that one was never particularly one of
my f avorites," Inman tells 'Rif f s. "But af ter two years, I thought: 'A-ha,
I get it.' "
7. "OAT MEAL" COMEDY, LIKE A Z OMBIE T YRANNOSAURUS, IS
NOT BULLET PROOF:
"I continually put up things that [the f olks at Digg.com] like to read,
but occasionally I do a crap comic, and they bury it of f the home
page," Inman tells Comic Rif f s. "It's a reminder that the Oatmeal isn't
invincible and that Digg is still f air."
T HE BOBCAT S: (click to see more)

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8. "OAT MEAL" VIRALIT Y IS NOT A HOUSE OF SEO CARDS:
"A lot of people say: 'How do you do it?' I just make things that
people like ... " Inman tells 'Rif f s. "SEO has no bearing on the Oatmeal
-- I did SEO in my old job [so I know] -- but social media has played a
gigantic part in what I do."
9. INMAN WISHES MIGHT ILY T HAT HE COULD SAY SAYONARA
T O ADVERT ISING:
"Merchandising, I f elt, was the best way to go about" monetizing the
site, Inman says. "I'd love to drop advertising altogether. Especially
when something is not a product that f its well with my site. ... I'd rather
sell books and sell posters than get clicks f rom a machine ad."
"T he highest-selling item in my store," he notes, "are the posters.
T he educational ones, like the grammar posters, are f unny but good
to have up on your wall. [In f act] the entire public-school system in
Sydney, Australia put hundreds of my posters in their classrooms."

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10. "T HE OAT MEAL" WILL NOT SHILL FOR COKE AND
DEODORANT. AT LEAST NOT IN AMERICA.
"I got an of f er f rom a deodorant company to write" something f or
their advertising, Inman says, noting that he turned down the product
commission f lat. "It's pretty much got to be a truly exceptional client. It
it were Comedy Central, I'm all over that. Maybe if it [involves] an actor
or actress I like. But Diet Coke, that's not gonna happen.
"T he money would be great, but the detriment to my comic would not
be. ... Although if they wanted to hire me in Japan -- like Gwyneth
Paltrow [selling] jewelry overseas -- I might do it."
11. T OKYO-FLOP? "T HE OAT MEAL" DOES NOT PLAY IN JAPAN:
"I speak Japanese," Inman tells us, "and my girlf riend is f rom Japan. ...
But Japan is one country that doesn't 'get' Oatmeal humor. I got only
[blank] expressions f rom my Japanese instructor."
12. "T HE OAT MEAL" IS LOOKING T O DIVERSIFY. (HOLLYWOOD,
YOU KNOW HIS DIGIT S.):
"One thing I would love to do is animated shorts," Inman tells Comic
Rif f s. "One- to two-minute specials. Fun, YouTube kind-of -things. It's
f or more of a creative outlet -- I like to diversif y the way I draw.
Videos are insanely time-consuming, but I would [like to do it] -- but
f or now, I've two more books next year -- a cat book and the
Oatmeal, Volume Two!"
MAT T HEW INMAN DISPENSES WISDOM: :

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T HE OAT MEAL DOES CARSON DALY: :

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B y Michae l C avna | March 11, 2011; 2:00 PM ET
C at e g o rie s: Int e rvie ws Wit h C art o o nist s, T he We b co mic, T his R if f st e r' s
R e ad ing List | Tag s: And re ws McMe e l, Mat t he w Inman, T he O at me al
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