New to Zen Pencils?

I know it can be daunting when you find an established website and you have no idea where to jump in and start reading. So I’ve put together this page which features the most popular comics and some of my personal favourite strips that will quickly get you acquainted with what Zen Pencils is all about. All the comics are self-contained so you can browse whichever comic you like in whatever order you like. You can visit the ABOUT page to find out more about the website and read an FAQ section.

Thanks for visiting! – Gav

Most popular comics of 2017

STEPHEN KING: The Desk

DAVID BOWIE: Go a Little Further

AKIRA KUROSAWA: The Note Taker

FRIDA KAHLO: Heroine of Pain

BRENÉ BROWN: The Eternal Struggle

Most popular comics of 2016

Us Against the World

JANE GOODALL: The Power of One

JACK KIRBY: Hero Worship

RUMI: The Guest House

VINCENT CAN GOGH: The Blank Canvas

Most popular comics of 2015

My Spirit is a Roaring Sea

JAMES RHODES: Is That Not Worth Exploring?

APJ ABDUL KALAM: Life’s Pursuit

ISAAC ASIMOV: A Lifetime of Learning

FRIDA KAHLO: Strange Like Me

Most popular comics of 2014

KEVIN SMITH: It costs nothing to encourage an artist

AMY POEHLER: Great people do things before they’re ready

BANKSY: Taking the piss (explicit)

SIR KEN ROBINSON: Full body education

MAYA ANGELOU: Phenomenal Woman

Most popular comics of 2013

BILL WATTERSON: A cartoonist’s advice

C.S. LEWIS: To love at all

TAYLOR MALI: What teachers make

CARL SAGAN: Pale bue dot

JOHN GREEN: Make gifts for people

MARC MARON: Social media generation

ALAN WATTS: What if money was no object?

CHRIS HADFIELD: An astronaut’s advice

MALALA YOUSAFZAI: I have the right

TIMOTHY LEARY: You’re not like them

Most popular comics of 2012

CARL SAGAN: Make the most of this life

IRA GLASS: Advice for beginners

PHIL PLAIT: Welcome to science

ROGER EBERT: On kindness

NEIL GAIMAN: Make good art

ROBERT FROST: The road not taken

FRANK HERBERT: Litany against fear

The Two Wolves

A few personal favourites

HOWARD THURMAN: Ask yourself

ITHAKA: C.P. Cavafy

BILL HICKS: It’s just a ride

JACK LONDON: I would rather be ashes than dust

RICHARD FEYNMAN: The beauty of a flower

SHAKESPEARE: All the world’s a stage

Recurring characters

SHAOLIN MONK

Always be prepared

RANDY PAUSCH: The brick walls

SENECA: Sympathy for the devil

DALAI LAMA: We are all human beings

MAX EHRMANN: Desiderata

My Spirit is a Roaring Sea

THE DRAGONSLAYER

CALVIN COOLIDGE: Never give up

OSWALD CHAMBERS: Mountains and valleys

SAMUEL BECKETT: Ever tried. Ever failed

WINSTON CHURCHILL: Never yield to force

ROBERT KENNEDY: A ripple of hope

JACOB RIIS: The stonecutter

EPICTETUS: A worthy crisis

THE LOVERS

C.S. LEWIS: To love at all

SHAKESPEARE: A love story in four parts

ALBERT CAMUS: In the middle of the winter

If you love someone, set them free

RISING PHOENIX

HOWARD THURMAN: Ask yourself

MARIE CURIE: Life is not easy

ULTIMATE WARRIOR: Legacy

MARGARET KNIGHT: It is only following out nature

THE BALLET BOY

SIR KEN ROBINSON: Full body education

CHUCK JONES: An animator’s advice

Us Against the World

THE STAND-UP COMIC

AMY POEHLER: Great people do things before they’re ready

ELEANOR ROOSEVELT: Courage is exhilarating

THE INVENTOR

JOHN GREEN: Make gifts for people

GEORGE MALLORY: Because it’s there

THE RUNNING MAN

STEPHEN FRY: Ultimate self-help book

EDGAR ALBERT GUEST: It couldn’t be done

POETIC JUSTICE SAGA

Invictus

If

O me! O life!

Playing the game