Jan Elliot
PMP Network Presents
Jan Elliot, the acclaimed cartoonist behind the 'Stone Soup' comic strip, joins PMP Network. She shares insights into her creative process and how her personal experiences as a single mother influenced the beloved characters and storylines of her work. Elliot also talks about her latest book, the third in the 'Stone Soup' collection.
Jan Elliot
About Jan Elliot
Jan Eliot is an American cartoonist best known for creating the Stone Soup comic strip, which was syndicated to more than 300 newspapers nationally and internationally. Drawing from her decade as a single mother of two daughters, Eliot crafted storylines centered on the character Val Stone and her family. She previously created the Patience and Sarah comic strip and the Sister City weekly strip, which was renamed Stone Soup in 1995. Eliot received the 2010 Eugene Arts and Letters award and published eleven Stone Soup compilations.
In this interview
- Discusses her third Stone Soup collection book
- Explains how being a single mom for ten years inspired the strip
- Talks about her two daughters mirroring characters Holly and Alex
- Mentions remarrying a few years before the interview
“I was a single mom for 10 years. I actually remarried a few years ago, but for 10 years I was a single mom of two daughters just like Holly and Alex.”— Jan Elliot, in this interview
Since this interview
In October 2015, Eliot stopped drawing Stone Soup as a daily comic, continuing only with Sunday strips. She announced her retirement in June 2020, and the final Stone Soup strip was published on July 26, 2020.
