17 - Boom

First page of comic here. 

So today I have a migraine, so short and sweet. Just the comic. 

16 - Hello, Stranger

First page HERE

I almost forgot to post today. I was distracted. 

Another ink practice. 

Thanks

Nick

15 - The Ride Out

First page HERE

So normally I focus on the comic and then jot down my current comic related thoughts very quickly. This time I started typing these words slightly ahead of time. Progress! Science! The Future!

So I know I was just yapping about gray tones last week, but now I'm focusing on the inking and trying to see if I can create a well balanced page without grays. I know other people can do that, I'm just trying to do it myself. So in about 9-10 pages you'll likely see a page with no gray on it... probably.

Now that I'm drawing more often I feel like every moment is a miniscule incremental learning experience. Some observations:

• I've settled a bit on inking first with tech pens then brushing. This is becoming my norm. Although I neaten up after with tech pen again.
• Drawing feels in some ways like I am touching/feeling around imaginary objects with my mind. Practice is helping, but I don't have the time to practice much.
• I do better with an hour to warm up, but I usually only have 10 minutes at most.
• My head still isn't grappling with perspective. It is a major uphill battle. I think it will be THE battle.
• I like to draw FAST, but it looks better if I slow down at certain points. Slowing down and being careful are very hard for me to do.
• I like to practice doing gestural/tube people in different positions, different angles, etc. But I just draw the same familiar/safe angles/movements unless I come up with a mini-story which drives the tube person's actions. Even if it's something as simple as shopping in a supermarket. Story always helps me.
• The cardstock paper I'm using is limiting how fine I can draw. I used some better paper for a charity piece and I can work much finer on it.
• I saw a Wieringo Spidey pencil page and an Olivier Coipel inked Thor page live and direct. I realized I need to be much more careful and precise down to a smaller scale and with smaller lines than I currently use. They are just tight, yo. (I'm Gen X and I slang that way. That's what's up.)

Totally irrelevant to the comic. I started watching Penny Dreadful on Netflix. it's a SHOWTIME series and it's pretty good, fun in a dark way. Reminds me of the League of Extraordinary Gentleman comic a bit.

Below is an ink brush practice of Derek a.k.a. Silent Seeker, the team's resident ninja of sorts and field leader. I like how this one came out. It was fast and felt natural. 

Later, 

Nick

14 - In The Wings

First page HERE. 

Another page down. I'm maintaining my buffer for the moment, but I'm going have to do some things organizationally before I can do this more than once a week. 

I liked most of this page. And here's an extra sketch, because I said so. 

Werd

Nick.

13 - Run Away, Run Away

First page here. 

In case you were wondering, the title of this page is indeed a Monty Python reference. 

Got a lot of wrinkling despite the use of my BIG dictionary to flatten it on the scanner. 

As usual I like some bits more than others. 

My latest micro obsession is simulating something closer to manga style gray tones using ink wash and over my very un-manga style. 

I'd say my style is not remotely settled because I have far too much still to learn, but currently is mostly influenced by Arthur Adams, 80s Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, and lately the Sickles/Caniff/Toth lineage. At least that's what I can see in the bones. Gaijin Studios alumni who I love to death are not showing any presence in my style yet. Just observing. 

So anyway the ink heavy styles I'm used to have a very different approach to gray tones, use of light and dark, line, shapes compared to most manga. I'm trying to find my place in the grays. I'm looking at Toth's Zorro, Caniff's Terry and the Pirates and various manga, most recently Full Metal Alchemist (which I am re-reading) and the original GITS and Appleseed by Masamune Shirow. Quite disparate, but fun to try and figure out what to do, especially not using computers. 

Here's another ink sketch relevant to nothing except my beautiful beautiful brush. 

Anyhoo, have a good one. 

Nick. 

12 - Batter Up

First page HERE. 



Comic is moving along fairly well. I'm about 10 pages ahead of this page and the tone is changing, getting a little darker. 

Just listened to Mike Mignola talk to some art school kids on Youtube and it was great. It was very encouraging to hear him be like - "I have no idea what I'm doing, but people seem to keep paying me." Although, that's more a paraphrase than a quote. 

I too feel like I don't know what I'm doing but I'm unpaid of course. This IS the process of improving and learning what I'm doing. Ya know? So it's all good. 

Cool tips during sketching in these Sean Murphy Vids - one, two, three. 

In particular the 70/30 rule in art composition. Basically every page or panel should be dominated by black or white. Whatever is 30% will naturally be the focal point and use that to storytelling advantage to direct attention. I noticed a murkiness to some of my pages and felt they didn't work very well, but didn't know why. My instincts were correct and now I know why. Excellent!

Anyway... here are some more ink practices using some characters I made up with my wife - The Stolen Binz - rock star/monster hunter/Scoobies. Inspired by The Amazing Joy Buzzards. All the drawings are way off model and style but they're just practice. I love brush no matter the results. It's magical. 

Still using pencil, paper, tech pens, brush, ink/wash, scan, scale, post method. Low tech.

11 - Lodged

START HERE if you're late to the comic. Otherwise...

So I like this page better than some others. I have better control of the figures and it approached how it looked in my head. I especially like the lightning in the first panel and the arm through ghoul in the second. I usually dislike my work so this is good progress for my head space. 

Most ink wash work by the American pro comic artists tends to focus on the painterly aspects and/or an accurate depiction of light. I think I want to use it more like manga tones which sometimes accurately depict light but other times use it more expressively. 

I'll be going back and forth between the two approaches, rather unconsciously over the next few pages, and more consciously later. 

Here's another ink practice piece. Nothing special. 

New time. 

Nick