Gemma Correll
If you're a millennial who likes dogs (or cats, but mainly dogs), you'll most likely have something with Gemma Correll's work on it. She's the OG social media cartoonist, who's made living with anxiety feel less lonely. On the surface, we know her as the pug-loving, overwhelmed artist, who wears stripy red t-shirts, but we've had the opportunity to find out a bit more, so let's dig in.
Written by Creative Stories
27/04/2026
Photos and Cover image taken from https://www.gemmacorrell.com/
We don't think Gemma needs any introduction, but if you have been living under a rock, she's an English illustrator and cartoonist who now lives in California. She has over a million combined social media followers, has worked with major clients like the BBC, Google, and Hulu, has written and illustrated books, and will soon have a new book, Anxietyland, coming out.
With such an impressive body of work, we wondered how she describes herself to people, "I say that I'm an illustrator... and a cartoonist... and a writer... and then their eyes start to glaze over, so I just show them a photo of my dogs."
When doing research for this article, one-half of Creative Stories (Vicky) remembers buying a 'Pugs Not Drugs' tote bag back in 2011. Gemma says this was probably the first illustration to really gain traction online, "I was barely out of art school when I drew it, and I didn't even have my own pug at the time. It was something that I doodled very quickly as a sort of wishing spell - I really wanted a pug, and I thought that if I drew them enough, maybe one would magically appear in my life. Then I drew Pugs Not Drugs, and it got printed on a t-shirt which got sold at Urban Outfitters, and I eventually made enough money from that to afford to move to a new flat which allowed pets... and then I got Mr Pickles, my first pug!"
Something synonymous with Gemma's work is the colour red, and that she always wears stripy red clothes, but how much of that is character design and how much is her? Does she wear red stripes all the time? "Not as often as I used to! It used to feel like a kind of armour to wear the same thing every day, but I have gained a little bit of self-confidence recently and have been feeling brave enough to branch out - I'm even wearing stripy black t-shirts now! (Kidding, I wear all kinds of t-shirts, even ones without stripes)."
Gemma's cartoons are often biographical or observational, about anxiety and mental health struggles. It wasn't that long ago when this was a taboo subject, especially when Gemma started posting online, "I was sharing a lot of personal work already - my tutor at art college had seen my sketchbooks and encouraged me to share that side of myself more (I was still convinced that a "real" illustrator needed to be serious and paint and make "real" art). I remember him telling me to read essays by people like David Sedaris, and I discovered the work of cartoonists like Simone Lia, and I loved the personal stories they told in a funny, relatable way, even when talking about serious subjects. I thought that I may as well be open and share that side of myself - it's a big part of who I am. Life isn't all pugs and kisses, unfortunately."
We believe this is where much of Gemma's success comes from, making a serious subject relatable and funny without undermining her own and others' experiences. Even in the most difficult of times, humour can be found, and it's in the humour where we find hope.
Gemma tells us that her ideas come from all over the place, she reads a lot, and likes to learn new things, as well as going places, "whether it's a fancy museum or just the newsagents down the street, is a great way to spark new ideas. Just putting myself and my brain in a different environment and being curious-slash-nosy about the things and people I see. On the other end of the scale are the ideas that come from my own life, at home, just sitting on the couch, doodling."
In a recent Instagram video, Gemma shows us her sketchbooks. Smaller ones for capturing ideas on the go and bigger ones for refining them. All in her signature red and black pen, they look beautiful and very neat, and we'd love to look through them. "I always draw something, every day, even if I only have 5 minutes. The best days are when I get to draw in my sketchbook all day, but those don't come along very often."
Gemma's been posting on social media for well over a decade. It's extremely impressive that she's stayed consistent and relevant in what seems to be an ever-changing landscape. We wanted to know if it's something she thinks about or if it influences her when making art, "I do my best not to let it because it's impossible to keep up with the ever-changing algorithm - it's so fickle. I might change basic things like format or size of images, but I refuse to change my content to appease some social media overlord. I do tend to share simpler and more readable images online, though, because they're more accessible. Not all of my readers speak fluent English. I hope that those kinds of images and comics will be a gateway to my longer form work."
Gemma's new book, Anxietyland, is described as, long-time-anxious-person Gemma Correll takes us on a riotous journey through her struggles with anxiety, to the desperate search for relief and finally to the realisation that it really is possible to feel OK again. Because sometimes, when you've tried every remedy, all you can do is laugh. Gemma tells us about the book, "I wanted to write about the end of the spectrum of anxiety that isn't often talked about. A lot of my work about anxiety until now has been focused on the generalised, milder end of the spectrum. But I have also struggled with severe anxiety, phobias and panic attacks. I wanted to show the reality of that." She hopes that from the book people take a better understanding of anxiety in all its forms, "whether it's their own or somebody else's. 1 in 4 people have some form of anxiety disorder, so it's likely that they know somebody who does. Also, a sense of hope. Anxiety isn't something that can be "cured", but you can absolutely learn to live with it."
With Anxietyland due out this week, she says, feeling "quite (surprise!) anxious because it is such a personal story. There are things in there that nobody else knows about (well, they do now!) - even the people closest to me. But I'm also excited because I worked on it for so long and put so much of myself into it." Mental health is a topic we talk about a lot in our own work. It's still not widely spoken about enough, and voices like Gemma's help people feel seen, less lonely, and more able to talk about their own struggles.
Anxietyland is already getting rave reviews, and we are looking forward to reading it when it comes out. We wondered if it had made Gemma excited about writing books in the future. "Yes! Writing it was a steep learning curve for me, as I was used to creating short-form comics - it involved a lot of planning around structure and pacing that I learned as I went along. So I think I have a much better idea of how to do that now, and I'd like to give it another go!"
We round things off by asking whether she would like her work made into a film, and, if so, who would play her. "That would be amazing. I've been told that I look like (I'm assuming a less attractive version of) Zooey Deschanel (always happens in airports, for some reason), but I'm not sure if she can do a Suffolk accent. As long as they're willing to cut a fringe and wear glasses, I think anyone could play me." There is something about Gemma's cartoons that feels very Jess Day from New Girl. However, Gemma could be onto something about the accent… Gemma says her dream projects would be, "a real-life theme park ride. Or a musical." Zooey Deschanel has the voice to bring a musical to life, so if any Hollywood or Broadway executives are reading, we have your next project.
We tend to end interviews asking if there's anything else to declare, "I'm embarking on a book tour in the UK in June and then again later in the year - dates tbc... check my social media for updates!"
Thanks to Gemma for taking the time to answer our questions.
Gemma Correll is represented by Anna Goodson Management
https://www.gemmacorrell.com | https://www.instagram.com/gemmacorrell