Otto Gielstra studied at the Academy of Fine Arts, and specialized in graphic art and art history. He settled as a graphic designer in the Frisian town Makkum, and opened up his own printing firm and advertising agency in 1976. Between 1984 and 1986 he published a weekly comic about 'Inspecteur Ynze' in the local newspaper Makkumer Courant. Active as a freelance writer and publisher, he has a large interest in the Frisian history, as can be seen in the comic series 'Hotze Klots', which he makes with the artist Aart Cornelissen.
