Many of us have dreams of ditching our stable, secure careers in order to pursue artistic dreams, but few of us pluck up the courage to do it.

Three years ago, Melbourne-based graphic designer Gavin Aung Than was looking for a way out of his comfortable but boring office job.

"I worked a regular nine-to-five and I'd been doing that for many years and it was really unsatisfying," he told 7.30.

"I had always kind of had this idea to be a professional cartoonist and I've always been scribbling. I was always that kid at the back of the classroom doodling away."

Mr Than realised he wanted to use his talents to help people, and came up with the idea of using quotes from famous thinkers, artists and leaders as the basis for a comic on the internet.

"It could be someone like Albert Einstein, Mark Twain or someone more current like Malala Yousafzai," he said.

The idea for Zen Pencils was born, but Gavin had a problem.

He could not hold down his day job and work on Zen Pencils, so inspired by the quotes he loved he took a leap of faith of his own.

"Looking back on it now, I don't know what I was thinking to be honest, because I don't know if I would do it again. But yeah, I just decided to quit," he said.

He did not only quit. He and his wife Jessica Ong sold their house to pursue his dream of drawing a comic full-time.

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Zen Pencils: Gavin Aung Than becomes comic star after trading in job, house to pursue dreams