City of Cards: Blog

Febru-What Now?

2012-02-09T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.26: Here!

Love this weeks page. No doubt, it's another one of my favorites and a great example of why I like the comics medium as my method story telling.

I always say, if you're going to make comics, know why you're choosing that over another art form and use it to its fullest. Or, at least, enjoy what the medium can offer because it can make it way more fun.

Did anyone check out the Adventure Time comic this week? Aaron Renier who did the art for my diploma from CCS did a back up story for issue one and it's pretty awesome. If you get a chance to read it it's well worth your time.

Valentine's Day is next week so I'll probably be posting a sketch up early next week. I may not have a lot of drawing time for anything other than comic but I still try to fit other pictures in when I can.

Something Familiar/Chapter Comics

2012-02-02T00:28:00.005-05:00

City of Cards C2.25: Here!

You might notice that one of those panels looks kinda familiar. It's the image that the current header I'm using came from. A little insight into my process, that kinda clues you in to how far ahead I work. I actually drew that panel almost a year ago and inked and toned it probably back around in April.

Things are slowly starting to catch up, though, so most pages now are only inked about a month to two months ahead of time though pencils are usually done at least six months ahead, more or less since I don't work in a real specific order.

If you want to know how far ahead I write this story, then we're getting into years territory. One of my friends wrote a great analysis of story structure when composing long-form comics that are going to be viewed on the internet about taking into account speed of publishing, narrative arcs, and viewer attention when developing your stories in an issue format. You can read that here.

Now, my comic pretty much ignores all those helpful suggestions. What I'm going to talk about is what to do if you've decided to make a long-running chapter based narrative comic and to put that on the web, or more correctly, why you should plan ahead as much as possible and know what you're getting into. Have goals and be realistic about them.

1) What is your end publishing goal? Are you going to be putting this in book form? Is this going to be something that will remain solely on the web? If you are going to be making this into a book, you may find yourself having to account for spreads and format, page turns, and story flow in a way that might not always make for ideal online reading. Sometimes you'll find two pages read better together and you'll have to decide how to deal with that, especially if you only put up a page a week like I do. If print is your goal, don't lose sight of that, but know that sometimes it will make reading your comic online a much slower process.

2) Know where your story is going. This doesn't mean you have to have written every plot point and line of dialogue in stone, it just means that like having a publishing goal, knowing where your story is going will help keep you focused and will give your story a sense of purpose. When someone decides to settle in for the long-haul with your comic, let them feel like you have a direction. Otherwise, they might give up long before your story gets anywhere.

3) Be patient. Be patient with yourself, your readers, your lack of readers, and your comic. If you're patient with yourself you're more likely to produce better work. There is only so much you can do in a day. With your readers, give them time to see what you're up to and let them decide how they choose to react/interact with your work. If you feel like no one is reading your work, don't get discouraged. Know your work well enough to trust that it is going in a solid direction and continue to do more, better work. Your comic can only be made as fast as you can produce it, but if you plan on doing a project for several or more years, give the comic the time and dedication it deserves. Don't rush it in hopes that by speeding through the beginning you'll be doing your work a service.

4.1) Plan ahead. I kinda joke that it took me ten years to start this project and it'll take me ten years to finish it and it's not that far off from the truth. I put off actually drawing the comic until I felt like my drafstmanship skills had reached a basic level of competency. Most of my prep time involved writing, not even necessarily scripts, just dialogue and outlines and anything I could to get a sense of my story. Once I had written the first few chapters solidly and revised them I got other people to read and edit my scripts. By the time I started my comic I had been able to really develop my world and my characters and that gives me confidence to keep working.

4.2) Plan ahead EVEN MORE. Do you have a job? Do you have friends? Do you have unforeseen circumstances that might make working on your comic difficult if not impossible? One of the main reasons I have the process that I do is because it allows me flexibility in my work hours. So long as I have my laptop and my tablet I can ink just about anywhere: airports, jury duty, coffee shops, hotel rooms... you name it! Penciling, however, usually requires I be at my lightbox with ideally one-two hours of uninterrupted work time. My penciling process is also much more involved and slow so I know to give myself extra time. I also know that there are going to be days when I just won't get to work on my comic, or maybe only fifteen minutes. Stuff like that has to be taken into account.

So there's my quick overview of what I've pretty much taken into consideration with this project. I'm not saying that everything I've said here has to apply to what you're doing, just that this is what has helped me. Someone that has been doing this longer than I have and is far more successful can probably give more advice but I figure any experience can be useful.

Not Sorry

2012-01-26T00:28:00.001-05:00

City of Cards C2.24: HERE!

And now, things get really weird.

Working on the pencils for Chapter Three, I've been trying to get myself to do more brush pen art.

These roughs are great for helping me figure out how I want to capture a panel. It also helps me loosen up which is something I'm still trying to work on.

I've also uploaded this sketch to a new sketch group I'm a part of with a bunch of other really great artists. Check out The Sketchy Crowd at it's current location.

I also received a book I'd ordered this week in the mail and while I've already read it online, I'm very happy to have a copy in person complete with a great sketch as well. Please check out Rich Barret's Nathan Sorry for some amazing work.

18/01/2012 - Why Not?

2012-01-19T00:28:00.002-05:00

City of Cards C2.22-23: Here!

That's right, two pages this week because even though I'm crazy busy these two pages read way better together than separate.

One of the great things about my job is how much I learn as I work. I'll be the first to admit, Illustrator and I haven't always gotten along but I an see how necessary it is for my work. What I'm doing to help teach myself is to slowly go through and build/rebuild logos for all the companies and recurring locations in my comic.

It's nothing fancy, but it'll be fun to have a catalogue of logos and icons that I can pull from.

Other than that, I found today's internet blackout day to be kinda cool. I know it was for a good message, one I support thoroughly, but I also just liked going to different sites to see what they did to show support. One thing I love about the internet is how it encourages creativity and that was very clear in how it chose to voice its outrage and frustration over SOPA.

Getting Good

2012-01-12T00:28:00.001-05:00

City of Cards C2.21: Here!

From pretty much this page for the next month or so, this is probably my favorite part of Chapter Two. No doubt, I'm really proud of the work I've done on these pages. Maybe next week I'll get around to doing a process post or something about all this.

Till then, yes things are busy at my job so no sketch this week, but it's worth it. I love what I do. Hopefully in the future I'll be able to show off some of my design work.

I did do something for the heck of it, though. I made a YouTube playlist of the songs I listen to while writing/drawing Ace-centric pages in my comic. You can listen to it HERE.

Hope you're all doing awesome.

2012! What's it Gonna Be?

2012-01-04T23:34:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.20: Here!

I've got a new stick comic voting incentive up this week. It's about the military, and something Plato has pretty strong opinions on. You can vote to see it here!

I also managed to actually do a little sketching. I don't know when I'll have the time to color this, but I definitely plan to. Secret from the Young Justice comic and Solstice from the new Teen Titans comic:

So yeah, in a lot of ways part of me feels like Solstice is Secret 2.0, but that's not necessarily a bad thing and I look forward to seeing her develop as her own character. I welcome any and all cheerful smoke monster lab experiments.

Moving forward into 2012, I have a lot planned for City of Cards. Mostly, I just want to thank all of you that have been reading it so far and I hope you enjoy the story to come.

Oh What Up New Year?

2011-12-29T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.19: Here!

Oof, okay, got hit with a nasty cold over Christmas so I didn't have too much time to get much drawing done. to make up for the fact that I haven't posted a whole lot of sketches on here lately, here are some pencils for an upcoming panel of Chapter 3:

Still pretty busy at work, getting used to the job and all that, but it's good. I feel like I'm learning a lot and I hope that I'll be able to put that to good use.

All my thoughts and love go out to all my CCS bros. You guys are always on mind as we step into the new year. 2011's motto was don't look down, 2012's motto? I'm thinking something along the lines of "Don't Hide in the Shadows".

What does this mean? It means keeping doing your work, let people know about it, meet new people, and keep trying. Don't let the grey and fatigue eat away at yourself. 2012 is a year of change, embrace it.

Last Post Before the Holidays!

2011-12-22T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.18: Here!

Another short blog post as this is my last week of training at my new job before the holidays and I haven't had a lot of time/mental energy to get much more done.

To sum things up, though, I love my job. Absolutely. Being able to work in comics is a dream come true and I hope that this experience will allow me to help others make and promote quality, interesting work and to be able to reach wider audiences.

Okay, sap time over. I plan to rock out a bunch of City of Cards stuff during my few days off this holiday so that I can keep up a good schedule. Ideally, I'll knock out the rest of the inks for Chapter Two and be able to focus in on getting the pencils for Chapter Three done. I sent the script for the fourth chapter out to get looked over so all of that is a go.

Happy Holidays people!

Boom!

2011-12-15T00:28:00.002-05:00

City of Cards C2.17: Here!

First, a new voting incentive here where Ace and Plato answer the all important question about the future of talking dogs: here!

And just a reminder, I'm posting up more progress work and other stuff up on the City of Cards G+ Page.

So this week was my first official week at my new job. It was totally unexpected, but I'm really happy with my new position and I hope I'll be able to fit myself in quickly and easily. Or, at least without causing too much damage.

It may mean less time for sketching, but I don't plan to slow down on my comic work so don't worry about that being effected.

LA Got Me Busy

2011-12-08T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.16: Here!

There are a few pages/panels in my comic that make me really happy and the second panel on this page is by far one of my favorites. Plato's expression just kills me.

Not going to say a whole lot this week. I've been extremely busy all of a sudden with an internship doing some work for the guys at Boom! and while that has been amazingly awesome, it's also knocked me out. It'll definitely take me some time to get into a good rhythm with these hours.

It's also been awhile since I've posted any brush pen art since, well, it's been awhile since I've had a chance to do any. All three are based on the same image and this shows how each time I get closer to the eventual image I'm going for. The final rough is what I'll use when I go in and do my perspective fixes for the final image. It's my favorite way to work out roughs for backgrounds and this is for another project I'll be getting into more heavily in the upcoming weeks.

So Long Brovember

2011-12-01T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.14-15: Here!

That look on Plato's face? That's the look of a man who once knew what motivated him in life and longs to get that feeling back. Been there bro, been there. And thus concludes the cage fighting pages.

And with Brovember over, I also made a new future Q/A stick comic up at TWC so vote to see that.

So I'm back in LA, which will be my new permanent location, at least for the immediate future. More details on that hopefully later, but suffice it to say at least I'm enjoying the weather.

Finally, not something I usually do so I'm going to make this short. So apparently the Akira movie is a go*. All I can say is that in my mind Akira was born out of a post WWII Japan and it's that context that makes the books so powerful. By removing the context and changing the characters so drastically you might as well call the movie something else and you're less likely to piss everyone off.

I wish I could say I don't understand Hollywood's fear of original content, but I do. Brands create a sense of financial security. It's unfortunate that when the decision to utilize a brand is made and companies decide to minimize financial risk as much as possible, then everything that made that once coveted brand the icon it once was can be reduced and distorted. The work has already been done.

There are other issues with this movie that I know other people are touching on and I do recommend listening to what they have to say as well. It's not a new complaint, and one that will probably be made by many others much more eloquently about many other adaptations to come. Akira is personally a visual and thematic inspiration to me so what I've said does come out of a place of bias.

*Also, just to note, for me it's less about the eventual casting choices and more about the mindset behind the development of this film. I would also like to have more concrete information from different sources in the future.

Holiday Road Post

2011-11-24T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards 12-13: Here!

Wrestling continues. All is going according to plan.

Happy Thanksgiving USA peeps! Hope you all have a good couple of days of rest at least.

Where am I and what am I doing? I'm in Eugene Oregon on the way back down to LA. Yeah, I'm back on the road. Right now I'm catching the South Park documentary and reading this weeks issue of Teen Titans. I never thought I'd actually be looking forward to this title, but I feel like it's got the potential to be a lot of fun. It's reminding me a lot of the old Young Justice comic days and we could definitely use a lot more of that.

I mean, come on, it's got Danny the Street. That's enough to make me curious.

Other than that, I'm gonna make a list here of a bunch of comics I've previously mentioned before but don't mind spot-lighting again (and a few new suggestions), so if you've got some down time this long weekend you can check them out:

Buffet of Lies - Um, not sure how to describe this. Good abstract sense of humour really.

The Adam - Superhero comedic failures? Yeah, this is what I like.

Ashayta - Science fiction comic with a great style.

Spare Keys for Strange Doors - Self-contained fantastical short stories with a recurring set of protagonists.

Wolf Wears Wool - Fun, colorful, werewolves.

Demon of the Underground - Watch Pogo get in trouble. Also there's a ferret.

Dax - Silly sci-fi adventures complete with a Thanksgiving special this year.

Eternity Complex - Long running fantasy adventure.

Bridges - Slice of life high school story about self discovery and growing as a person.

Earthbound - Mysterious sci-fi fantasy adventure. On a bit of a break, but since it'll be coming back now is a good time to check it out.

There are probably a couple of new ones on there, and I know I have a lot more I plan to mention in the future. If anyone wants to recommend any comics to me feel free to shoot me a message. I'm open to just about anything.

Catch Me if You Can

2011-11-16T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.10-11: Here!

Yup, another two pages today in which Ace does not share Plato's enthusiasm, but it actually feels kinda like something is happening. If anyone has any strong feelings one way or another about the way I do these vertical spreads let me know. Personally, I kinda like them, but we'll see. I know there's at least one horizontal spread coming up and if it works okay I may use it for another horizontal spread.

No new voting incentive this week because all of a sudden I had to hop a plan to LA early this morning and will be hopping back to Seattle this Friday and with all this running around it just isn't going to happen.

I'll also be on the road again next week moving BACK to LA indefinitely. So if you're in LA I'm all up for hanging out. Being on the road and moving like I've been for the past four or so months has made me miss seeing people a lot.

I'm also promoting the Child's Play Charity through InkOutbreak, which is a charity I've donated to in the past personally, so go here to donate

New Smooth Look

2011-11-10T00:28:00.000-05:00

City of Cards C2.9: Here!

I've got another new colored image over at TWC and I admit, I had a lot of fun doing this one. Plato attempts to give Ace a wrestling lesson of sorts, but I think he's mocking him. Happy Brovember by the way!

I've got a few new things to share this week. First, thanks to the amazing work by Lindsey Boyle, I have a new main page up. I wanted to get my site prepare so that if people went to visit it and ran into mature material there'd be something before that.

I also have a new City of Cards Google + page where I am uploading process material, concept art, and I'm considering eventually setting up a VIP section where people can get access to CoC material not available anywhere else.

Second, a great piece of fanart by Jessie Boudrie of Dax fame:

Seriously, totally the pick me up I needed. Jessie is a solid dude with a great comic. If you're looking for a slightly sillier, more family oriented (though witty enough that appeals to a fairly wide audience) science fiction comic go check out his work.

One of the real blessings that's come to me through comics has been the amazing people I have met. Not just fellow cartoonists, though I have met and been inspired by many of them, but just people in general. The independent comics community is full of so many bright, positive, and genuinely helpful people. It is truly a place where what you give you get in return ten fold.

So if you've got a comic you enjoy reading, go ahead and shoot off an e-mail or leave a comment to let the artist know that you enjoy their work. The difference it can make in that person's day is staggering.

November Has Come: Seattle Comic Stores

2011-11-03T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards C2.8: Here!

I have access to a scanner, at least for the next couple of weeks, so I managed to color something for November. Ace's birthday was the first of the month so I changed the voting incentive to a picture of how I imagine Ace would have likely celebrated. To see it, Vote Here.

I'm still in the middle of job-hunting so a lot of my free time is being eaten up by that, but I also have a lot of drawing work being planned.

One of the first things I did after arriving in Seattle, literally the day after I arrived, was to check out the local comic store scene. I hit every Comic Stop and chatted with some of the nice staff at each of the locations as well as The Dreaming. What's nice about each of the stores is that while distance wise they're not terribly far apart they have their own personality.

The first location I hit was Redmond, attached to a nice outdoor mall and a good location if you want to pick up your weekly mainstream comics while sipping coffee at the Starbucks across the way. Stephanie there was really upbeat and nice to chat with as well.

Next I hit Lynwood, which is the original Comic Stop location and the largest of their stores. It has a fairly good selection of mainstream trade paperbacks as well as the best selection of single issues of all the locations, especially if you're looking for stuff by Image or other non-Big-Two publishers like 215 Ink. I picked up the fourth Popgun anthology while I was there and they're ordering in a copy of Finder volume 1 for me even though it's out of print. All in all I'll definitely be back.

The third location I hit was the Everett location which was inside the mall there. Much like the Redmond location, a good place to go in and buy your weekly comic. Pretty low-key, but for a mall comic store I was very impressed.

Day two my first stop was The Dreaming in the U-District. It's a nice little independent shop, especially if you're into horror. If you're a fan of Lovecraft or b-movie horror you'll definitely want to check this place out. Again, very nice and welcoming staff. This seems to be a trend amongst stores here and I think it's great.

My final stop was the U-District Comic Stop. I'm glad I saved this one for last because this is also where a friend and fellow CCS alumni has his books up for sale. So if you're there, look for Grump Toast by the amazing Ben Horak. If you're a fan of indy comics in general you should also check it out. Once I figure out a printing set up I may consign my work there as well. I picked up Michael Kupperman's Mark Twain book while I was there and as a big Twain fan I will definitely have more to say about that later.

So in two days I hit up five great comic shops, each different enough to cater to any possible comic enthusiasts needs. Seattle is truly fortunate to have such a strong and positive comics community from what I've seen thus far and I look forward to getting to know it better.

The Importance of Cast: Voice and Personality

2011-10-27T00:29:00.000-04:00

City of Cards C2.7: Here!

Updated the cast page with Rick and Xander's information. I've got two, maybe three more characters to add before I think I'm done with the main cast. Let's see how I feel ten chapters in, though. I also have yet to set up my scanner so hopefully I'll get to that this weekend since I'll be needing that.

Previously at TWC we learned about chocolate, this week you can find out if we get chips in our brains: vote here

I also accidentally took down the code for my links page while trying to update it so that'll hopefully be back up soon. Sometimes stuff like that just happens.

Thoughts On Writing: Developing Your Cast

Today's post I want to do something a little different and I want to discuss something that is very important to storytelling. Reading Bob's post about lame female characters and it got me thinking about lame characters in general. A good story, especially if it's going to be long-form, is well served by a thoughtfully considered supporting cast.

Each character in your story should add something to the narrative by their own experiences and personalities. Taking the time to give voice to background characters creates a sense of place and context to the story and to the protagonist. By taking the time to consider the lives of characters that may not take center stage you also benefit yourself as a writer and create a deeper personal understanding of your own work.

This is an aspect of world-building that is just as important as knowing how toilets flush or what the bus schedule is. Check out the 30 character challenge. Thirty characters in thirty days. If you have a cast of thirty solid characters to pull from you'll always have someone to give a scene personality. No one needs thirty main characters, but everyone needs a waiter or a grunt or couple arguing on a street corner. This is the life that stories, especially comics, thrive on.

The other reason why a story benefits from this kind of fore-thought is that a protagonist's plight is only served by the context he/she is placed in. Why do they do what they do? Who are their families and friends? What do those people do when they're not interacting with the protagonist? Are they just waiting around like a video game NPC for someone to activate them or are they living, breathing people who have just as interesting and complex stories to tell that will have to wait for another time?

None of this information ever needs to be explicitly stated in story, but it's always evident when a writer has taken the time to understand their characters. The older mentor character was once a cocky asshole himself. The girl on the street corner is worried about paying her rent on time this month. The friendly neighbor used to play sports in high school and wishes he did that again but he doesn't have time because his work keeps him busy.

Let your stories breathe. Surprise your audience by revealing subtle personality quirks and engage the reader by having a universe full of amazing and diverse people.

So Long SoCal, See You Seattle

2011-10-20T00:28:00.001-04:00

City of Cards C2.6: Here!

Also, I signed up for TWC and started making incentives. Ace, Plato, and other CoC guests answer your questions about what it's like in their future in stick form: Vote Here!

Feel free to give me more questions. The more, the better, and any topic is open.

So this is my final update from SoCal. Friday I head off to my final destination, Seattle. Life is an adventure, sure, but man I could use a little comfortable consistency.

On a somewhat related note, if you've been viewing my comic on inkoutbreak.com, something I totally recommend because there are a ton of awesome comics to check out there, you may have run into a 404 error on my comic. I have no idea why, possibly a cache issue, but refreshing seems to fix this issue. Beyond that, there's not much I know of to do so I made this:

Simple, to the point, if the page appears to be gone hopefully this message will pop up instead and hopefully prevent people from thinking my comic does not in fact exist.

I also really love Ace's outfit in this. Plato's is okay, but I may have to use Ace's in upcoming pencils.

Other than that, I've been doing my best to prepare for the upcoming craziness of moving again by getting as much of City of Cards inked and uploaded before I go as possible. I'm set at this point pretty much through December so hopefully during that time I'll be able to continue penciling chapter three. I really enjoy seeing where this story is going, hope you all stick around to find out as well. I have at least one other project in the works but information about that will have to come later.

October! Still no ghosts...

2011-10-13T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards Chapter 2.5 HERE!

First, if any of the people that read my comic read this post, I want to say thank you. The idea that someone has taken the time to read my work means a great deal to me as I continue to make and share my work. If you look me up on G+ I'm often hanging out there and working on my comic via hangout and I'd love to chat with people.

Since this is the last we see of Xander for awhile, I'd like to say that this is probably one of my favorite panels that I have ever drawn ever:

I'm in LA right now sorting out a few details before I make my way up to Seattle. Pretty soon I will be attempting to get settled in the Pacific Northwest for at least the immediate future in the hopes of finding a job and time to keep my comic going. I'm pretty well prepared for there to be no reason for the comic to not update on time during my transition.

Quick, here are three comics you should check out:

Demon of the Underground -- -- -- Ashayta -- -- -- Spare Keys for Strange Doors

All three are very different takes on sci-fi, fantasy stories but they're all equally worth giving a look.

Oh and hey, I have access to a scanner momentarily so I decided to get some sketching/penciling done. I still plan to get some proper October art done but I had an urge to do some quick concept designs for Plato's outfit in Chapter 3:

My thoughts are that even in the future, Reno probably gets pretty darn cold in winter and Chapter 3 takes place in early December. Oh yeah, random fact, City of Cards comic continuity begins on November 1st of the year it takes place in.

Okay then, back to inking the heck out of these pages!

Reno, Vegas, Roadtrip 3

2011-10-06T00:28:00.003-04:00

City of Cards Chapter 2.4 HERE!

So this past week was spent largely in Reno and Vegas. I did spend one night outside of Salt Lake City that actually was quite pleasant largely in thanks to the awesome dudes at the Apple Store in the Gates Mall area that replaced my popped/dead laptop battery.

Before I go into the details of Reno and Vegas, I want to indulge myself a little bit and explain something that probably only matters to me:

1) The crown on the cover is based off of the Flamingo casino:

2) The flowers are actually dodecahedron, the fifth Platonic solid that represents the Universe, Heaven, the Aether.

3) Computer circuitry that I also hoped would somewhat resemble routes on a train/subway map.

4) Ace's profile in silhouette.

5) A modified silhouette of Reno Nevada's skyline.

6) Each of the four playing card symbols representing four main characters based on a Yin Yang idea of balancing halves.

So in conclusion, yes, I do over-think things and this is probably something you never needed to know. Now, some photos from Reno and Vegas.

Road Trip 2: So Now You Know

2011-09-29T00:28:00.002-04:00

City of Cards Chapter 2.3 HERE!

Oh Plato, even angry teenagers think you're ridiculous.

So this past week has been a bit more of a travel whirlwind. After finishing my time in Bloomington Indiana I headed up to Chicago to spend a full day with the amazing Beth Hetland. She sold me on the city, no question. Also, Chicago fans should check out Wighthouse, a great and smart comic about a man living in the haunted Chicago Harbor Lighthouse with a real attention and passion for the Windy City as well (the man and the comic).

And the best part? The pigeon warmer:

But honestly, I'd had some reservations about Chicago which were almost completely allayed. It's beautiful, surprisingly clean, has reasonable public transportation, and has a real visible dedication to the arts. Bravo Chicago.

But where am I now? After a couple more trips down the road I am currently in Park City Utah. I'd originally wanted to spend yesterday in Rawlins, WY because I'd lived there as a kid but it was all booked up. Instead I was in Laramie for the night which work out alright.

I did snap a couple of shots of the old penitentiary in Rawlins:

The best part of Wyoming, though, in my humble opinion, is the Little America rest stop. I have a stupid love for this place, but I think it can be summed up with one word: penguin. (hard to see, but there are penguins on top of all the buildings. It's AWESOME.)

What's next? I'm on my way out towards Reno and Vegas and on the LA for a bit before I end up in Seattle. Why the hell would I go to Reno you ask? Then clearly you didn't read the write up for my comic. It's the future, baby.

Road Trip part 1

2011-09-22T00:28:00.001-04:00

Lest we forget, City of Cards C2P2 is HERE!

Thankfully I made sure to get a lot done before heading out because it is not easy at all to get anything done while on the road. I also don't really have access to a scanner so even if I had ample sketching time and all that scanning would be difficult. That said, I enjoy this opening part with Xander a lot and really, all of Chapter Two.

But hey, guess what the lovely Remi of the comic Earthbound drew up for me?

Dude, how awesome is that?! She makes Plato look stupid adorable. I approve.

Speaking of awesome, my first night on the road also consisted of something amazing. Specifically, I got to experience Chikara wrestling live for the first time. It was fantastic and if you ever get a chance to go to a show, GO! Here's a quick snap I grabbed of the Colony while I was in awe by the excitement:

I'm currently visiting awesome peeps in Indiana and will be making a pit-stop in Chicago soon. Bloomington is a pretty cool town but the best part is being able to see friends.

I Believe in Fate

2011-09-08T00:28:00.002-04:00

City of Cards page 2.1: Here!

The first page of Chapter Two is up and it's my last post here in Vermont. Fitting in a way, I suppose.

I'm generally proud of the work I've put into the comic so far, both Chapters One and Two and what I've started of Chapter Three. I hope people continue to enjoy it as the story really begins. Having the chance to even get as far as I've gotten in these past two years has meant the world to me.

I've never considered myself a confident artist, but I love what I do. As I leave the amazingly encouraging and supportive community here in Vermont, I hope to hold onto the lessons you've taught me and to be able to make you all proud one day.

I'd written a long post expressing my gratitude for the amazing people I've met here. I wanted to be able to tell you all how important you are not just to me but to everyone who will ever be lucky enough to have known you. When I reread what I'd written, everything still holds true, but I don't know if I need to say much more than I've already said here.

I believe that if we hold onto the good will we have for each other that good times will come. I have no doubt I am leaving this school a better person for having you all in my life. Never doubt that I am grateful for all of you and it's because of you that I can keep going.

And with that, I leave you all with a promise and a message.

Thank you for everything.

-C

And So Begins the Future

2011-09-08T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards Chapter 1 Page 30: Here!

Ace may be drunk, but he's not that drunk. Plato on the other hand is probably pretty damn wasted if he doesn't notice how rank Ace probably smells. Kinda love most of the way this page turned out.

And with that the first chapter is now officially online! Oh man, now things can actually get started. This upcoming weekend is SPX so come check me out at Boom! with the amazing Lawrence Derks. It's also my last weekend in Vermont so that means A LOT of stuff happening in the next while, but it also means that it's going to be kinda difficult to get any sketches scanned. Oh well, moving can't be helped.

This week, though, I finished the pencils for Rick and Xander's profile pictures so those will get finished soon:

ALSO, if you haven't checked out I've added a links page to my comic. Please check out the amazing comics that are on there as there are a few that I haven't posted about here yet and they're really worth checking out.

So This Happened

2011-08-31T21:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 29: Here!

No new sketches or anything this week because, uhh, things have been a little nuts. Aside from moving out of another apartment there was a little post Irene flooding issue that has been occupying the minds and bodies of the residents of WRJ and a large portion of Vermont.

This article on the Schulz Library Blog explains the current circumstances the best. We still need help here. To sum it up, Caitlin McGurk and all those that have been working their asses off are heroes.

Here's an article on the Comics Reporter by James Sturm from the night of the evacuation about the state of the library. And here is an updated article on the Comics Beat about the rescue effort where, uhh, you may see a photo of me grabbing books out of the back of a car in the middle of the night. While all the books are safe, the Main Street Museum is still in dire need of help. If you want to donate to help the Schulz Library, you can do so here at the Center for Cartoon Studies' website.

So yeah, I know I should be happy with having gotten any art/comic done in the past while, but it's tough. I'll hopefully have more time/energy next week to say more, you know, before SPX and my road trip. IT'S GO TIME!

And if you want something to get your mind off of all of this, read My Cardboard Life, a comic made out of cardboard and other stuff. It's really quite cool.

Twist

2011-08-25T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 28: Here!

Finally a little more mystery with only two more pages to go.

Speaking of twists, just finished coloring this piece:

I know, what? Actually coloring something in a timely manner? Ace's black and white color palette preference makes it kinda easy, though.

Other than that, gearing up for SPX. I won't officially be tabling, but I'm planning on helping out the guys at Boom! so head on over check it out. I might get some time to wander around and help out at the CCS table as well if they're low on staff.

I'm definitely excited! I haven't been to SPX before and I can't wait to see all my bros.

Also, wanting to say something about InkOutbreak. It's a great comic aggregator that's started about a month ago and has been growing pretty steadily. I've got my site linked there if you search for it, but there's also a lot of other amazing comics up there too.

So far my favorite feature has been the archive function. Since with Ink you end up going through a lot of comics, this function allows you to bookmark your spot in a comic's archive and come back to it later. It works really smoothly. So yeah, check it out. You're likely to find something that interests you.

Crispy Rice Don't Fail Me Now

2011-08-18T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 27: Here!

I'm kinda looking forward to putting aside some time for sleep in the next little while, but I'm kinda thinking that's not going to happen. The ceiling in the closet in the apartment I've been staying had a little bit of a rainy cave-in. Oops! I've told pretty much everyone I know about that already, but it's still got me shaking my head. At least everyone here has been awesome. If I had to have crap piling down on me, at least it's happening amongst friends.

But that doesn't mean I'm not gonna keep getting things done! Didn't get a chance to ink it, but here's a work in progress drawing of Ace that I drew while trying to re-figure out some panels in Chapter Two:

I've also been trying to figure out a new outfit for him for the third chapter. So long as it's black and white and can be worn multiple times without washing I think we're good.

There's still a lot of stuff going on in my life that's making progress difficult but I'm doing my best to not fall too far behind. I'd hoped to have a lot more of Chapter Two inked at this point, but I'm still in a place where I won't have trouble updating. Chapter Three pencils have me more concerned, but so long as I can find a space to sort some stuff out before I head off I think I'll be okay.

This week saw four more amazing people head off to greater destinies. Beth, Betsey, and Penina: You three are champions. Emily, I'll be seeing you around. You all are welcome to visit me in the Emerald City.

Four!

2011-08-11T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 26: Here!

Four pages to go till Chapter Two.

Random fun fact, my name, CJ Joughin is the same name as my one of my ancestors who was the chief baker on the Titanic and survived out of sheer drunken manliness. I hope to live up to his legacy.

Continuing off of last week, I offer some more sketches. First, an amazing piece of cross-over fanart done by Betsey of my dudes hanging out with hers at Nate's club:

Seriously, everything I want for my art is contained in hers. Movement, expressiveness, humor... brilliant man, brilliant.

Followed is a sketch by me of, well, Ace with his hand stuck in a peanut butter jar seeking help from Betsey's character Bryan:

Slim Jims and peanut butter. There will probably be more sketches like this in the future. Actually, I'm sure there will be more.

Some of my dear friends have moved off to New York this week and I hope they're settling in well. Paul, Lena, I wish you guys the best!!

From One Place to the Next

2011-08-04T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 25: Here!

Ungh! That's what moving sounds/feels like. Next week I'll probably be in a better state to say more about plans/comic/lucha but for now I'm TIRED.

Big props to my family for being supportive during this whole move even when they've got their own stresses to deal with. Same to my friends. You've gotta look out for each other, especially when everyone needs a little/lot of support.

Speaking of which, here's a quick sketch a did a little while back of my friend Betsey's character Nate from an amazing comic she has to make or there will be repercussions. There seriously needs to be more comics about fail nightclub owners:

During all this craziness I kept my sanity by finding a couple of really great webcomics.

Le Mime - 4koma done with a gorgeous watercolour style and really charming expressive characters. It's definitely a feel good comic in the best sense.

Waking on Broken Glass - "A Supernatural Office Dramedy Romance About Murder". Sometimes a comic is hard to describe, but I'll say why I like this one: Great dialogue and believable characters in a modern/realist sci-fi/fantasy setting. A lot of this comic has so far been the interactions between the characters Kennedy and Nick and it's done well. It keeps itself light to help you get to know and care about the characters, and so that the underlying fear and twist that's being foreshadowed is something you really want to know more about.

We Can't Let it End

2011-07-28T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 24: Here!

*coughforeshadowingcough* But really, this entire chapter is foreshadowing so it's not that big a deal.

I also updated the Cast page with Lily's profile. I decided I'm going to add characters chronologically at this point. I also wasn't sure who was going to get put into the full cast roster, but Lily is awesome and she belongs there:

This is my last update here in the apartment I've lived in for the past two years. It's been a place where I've felt more comfortable than anywhere else in a long time. There's definitely an emotional threshold that happens when you start to hit the two year mark. You either stay, or you pull it all together and take a chance somewhere else while you've still got the time and energy to explore and before your roots have buried themselves too firmly.

I've gotta keep moving at this point for the benefit of myself and hopefully so that I can do something that'll help out my fellow cartoonists. I believe in you guys, absolutely. You're what keeps me going and I love seeing the inspiring work you all continue to do. I will do everything in my power to help the world know how amazing you all are.

I've got another month and a half or so left in Vermont itself before my road trip begins. In August I'll be getting details for that up.

And, as seen on the Daily Show, this video of a skunk with its head in a peanut butter jar sums up the first part of my comic better than I ever could.

Just Keep on Moving

2011-07-21T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 23: Here!

We continue the adventures of Beer and Ramen.

Right now, I'm pretty much just trying to not let moving stress get to me, which is undoubtedly not easy. Boxes everywhere, stuff to get rid of, endless "to do" lists... ugh. I'm getting psyched about Seattle, though, and I'm excited to see how all my friends find their ways all over this crazy country/world. It's tough, but I wish you all the best and I know you're gonna do amazing things.

So yeah, despite that I've been trying to keep working on art. Here's a sample panel from page 7 of the upcoming Chapter Two:

Because of the way I work I often end up drawing panels that end up getting cropped in the final inking process. Even though it's something I've come to accept, it's still nice to see the full panels sometimes.

With Chapter Two inking moving along, I've slowly trying to get the pencils for Chapter Three started and realized I needed to do a little character designing. Here's a few quick sketches of Joe and Trump:

I'm making sure that I've got comic uploaded for the next couple of months so that no matter what goes on at least that'll upload. Hooray!

This weeks reading recommendations?

Book: The Complete Essex County by Jeff Lemire - Yeah, it came out a couple of years ago, but that's no reason not to suggest you pick this book up. Lemire is a genius at capturing small town life and mixing it with a bit of the supernatural. I'm going to miss him on Superboy, something I also suggest you pick up since August is the last two issues till the reboot.

Site: The City and Its Tower - Started not too long ago, it's a comic about a city separated into two distinct levels the divide the lower and upper classes. So far we've gotten a look at the life of those that live and work in the lower areas but it already has enough mystery and pull to keep me interested. The art is also quite lovely and the panel play is smart and keeps the directed through the pages.

You'll Never Make it in High Society

2011-07-14T00:28:00.002-04:00

City of Cards page 22: Here!

Not gonna lie, this is probably one of my favorite pages that I've done so far. Pretty much most of the second half of this chapter was determined page by page by how drunk I figured the guys had gotten. Classy they ain't.

But hey, that's not all that's going on over at City of Cards. I've added a Cast and FAQ page introducing Ace, Plato, and the Big Five corporations.

As well, I've been reworking some of the panels on a bunch of pages so pages 8-14 are re-uploaded and I added a new intro page. Better, not perfect, but hopefully that'll be the end of all this going back for awhile and any more tweaks will be done before pages go up. No need to re-read them for story changes, but overall I hope these changes will give readers a better feel for the world I'm trying to build.

The world needs more cheesy dorks. Hopefully by the end of next week the next set of redone stuff will be up so I can fully focus on chapters 2 and 3.

Speaking of things that aren't classy and therefore high on my list of interests, here's a couple more lucha sketches:

And there's one more rudo to add to the mix:

And now, more things that are awesome!

First, an awesome comic called Cucumber Quest. I love the art and the story is really fun. As a little sister, I look forward to following this on a regular basis.

And something I recommend giving 25 minutes of your day to: Varmints

Turn out the lights, full screen, and let it wash over you with a sincere loveliness.

Because This is What I'm Watching

2011-07-07T00:28:00.000-04:00

City of Cards pages 20-21: Here!

The story is slowly starting to develop personality as we hit the two-thirds mark of the first chapter. Hooray! I'm also just about finished doing the reworks for the pages I wanted to get done at least for Chapter One and most of the way for Chapter Two. I'm definitely doing what I can to not get bogged down.

That isn't to say the world is without distractions, but I'm so glad it is. It's been a damn long time since I've legitimately recommended an anime but Tiger & Bunny is so ridiculously entertaining and actually decent that I don't feel bad telling people to give it a shot. Honestly, I don't know how they got so much right with this series because everything about it could absolutely be awful.

The writing is fun, the characters are really solid and don't fall into the trap of stereotypes, and despite being blatantly corporate sponsored it works. In fact, that aspect of the series is fascinating to me. That, and it's nice to see a series with an ability to have characters with a solid age and personality range and have each character feel like a well rounded and wonderfully flawed human being. It's no secret I'm a fan of JLI, and this is the kind of thing that hits that much needed spot of imperfect people doing their best despite themselves.

So yeah, give it a shot. Also, quick sketches of Sky High because this is something I could honestly see happening:

Yeah, I pretty much never do fanart but sometimes it happens. I kinda love that his head looks like a toaster.

Also, because the Buffy fan in me will never totally die, this is one of the greatest blogs ever made.

Zoo!

2011-06-30T00:37:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 19: Here!

Nothing sketched up this week but I've got a few photos from my trip to the LA Zoo a couple of weeks back:

It was an awesome day. I got to hang with my awesome buddy Ruth, the weather was gorgeous, and the animals were actually awake. That, and the sheer number of frolicking baby animals was also bonus.

By far, though, this was the best thing there:

Killer deer. How bad ass is that?

Anyway, what's next for me? Well, in one month I'll be out of my apartment and counting down the days till I'm off to Seattle, but that's also had me thinking. There's a not so secret project of mine that I've been floating around with a few people and one thing I want to do for it is to interview cartoonists as I make my way across the country. I just got myself a small video camera so that's at least step one taken care of.

I haven't plotted out my route yet, but as I do I'm going to be seeing if anyone along the way will be interested in giving me a chat and letting showcase their work. I think it'll be a great opportunity for everyone involved.

Muzak

2011-06-23T01:03:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 18: Here!

A couple more lucha sketches to start things off:

The goal is to have the lucha comic I'm working on ready for SPX, or at least before I have to head out to the great Pacific Northwest.

No surprise to many people who know me, I've been a bit of a lurker on the website b3ta.com and the guys there have put together a rather nice tribute to recently departed b3tan Darklord. So if you fancy a bit of house music, check out this Youtube playlist. It's definitely worth a listen.

Next, a video I can't stop watching/listening to: Goldfish - We Come Together

And even though Father's Day has passed, this is a great video with a couple of great dads: Holy Ghost! - Wait & See

Can I Get an Amen?

2011-06-16T00:31:00.000-04:00

City of Cards page 17: Here!

In the immortal words of the great RuPaul: "If you can't love yourself, how in the Hell are you gonna love somebody else?"

I was hoping to get more done this past week but it's been kinda crazy. My tablet is starting to act up and threaten to die on me so I dropped some cash and have a replacement coming to make sure I can keep things moving on.

The plan now is to get ready for the big move back across the states to the Seattle area. I've got a few more plans in the works so we'll see where things go in the next few months! A few things are for sure: more City of Cards, more lucha, and more baking!

Next, I want to shout out to an upcoming movie that I think a lot of people I know will enjoy called Monster Brawl. It's got classic movie monsters fighting in a no-holds-barred wrestling style arena. It's got Dave Foley, Kevin Nash, Jimmy Hart, Art Hindle... I mean, come on! This is B-Movie gold right here.

Also, I want one of these.

Travellin' Travellin'

2011-06-08T23:55:00.000-04:00

City of Cards Page 16: Here!

Busy with a kinda last minute trip to LA this week so I don't have anything scanned but life is feeling pretty good right now. It's all about having a mission plan!

Going to the zoo tomorrow~!

For Every Technico there is a Rudo

2011-06-02T00:28:00.002-04:00

City of Cards pages 14-15: Here!

So I keep saying that there is going to be more lucha on my blog, and trust me, there will be a lot more if things keep going the way they're going. First, a quick sketch of my first rudo:

I've got big plans for this guy.

More will probably be revealed over the next several months, but the main focus is still City of Cards.

Other than that, I'm still starting to slowly accept the slow parting of friends to different corners of the world and enjoying all the fond farewells in the forms of pie, mini golf, cartoons, and general shenanigans. You guys are awesome.

Also, here's a few more webcomics I've been reading. Vague warnings about mature content, foul language, adult situations, puns, what have you but they're good:

Boxer Hockey: Boxer Hockey, it's a sport, with frogs, and sometimes there's a bear and also shenanigans. Honestly, it's pretty popular already but if you haven't read it it's worth a go. It definitely builds momentum as you keep reading. It also updates really infrequently so patience is worthwhile. Also, I kinda hope that fancy southern cat shows up again.

The Less than Epic Adventures of TJ and Amal: This would be a guilty pleasure if it wasn't so damn good. Seriously, it's worth it for the gorgeous scenery if nothing else. Plot? So far, two guys go on a road trip and sometimes they stare longingly into each others' eyes in between witty banter at truck stops. It's fun, it's cute, and I have a big soft spot for it.

Happle Tea: Cute comic that is often about mythology and sometimes it isn't. The art is cute, sometimes the blog entries are informative, and I like it. Not much to say about this one beyond that.

Flea Toon: It's a comic about two dots that make puns. Just... just read it. This one goes out to Alec Longstreth.

Documentaries

2011-05-26T00:52:00.001-04:00

CoC Page 13: Here!

This past weekend was MeCaf, which involved me hanging out on a lovely Sunday afternoon with the CCS crew right next to the waters of Portland Maine. I'd forgotten how much I'd missed the ocean and I hope that if I make it home to LA for a little while I'll get to spend some time at the beach.

So, anyway, one thing that got me through thesis was watching hours upon hours of documentaries either through Netflix or through other film archive sites. There was a period of time for a good month or so that I averaged about three a day. That's just documentaries, that doesn't include all the other films, shows, wrestling matches, whatever I've watched during that time.

I figured I might as well make a few recommendations:

Beyond the Mat - I've watched a few wrestling documentaries in the past month and this one blows them all away. It's not just a great wrestling documentary, it's a fantastic documentary by itself and hell, an overall satisfying watching in general. This film tore at my soul and I admit that there were parts of it that were so tragic I nearly had to stop. So yeah, it's not necessarily a feel-good movie but it's brilliantly honest and done with an earnest respect for those involved.

Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey - Not just a history of the instrument, but a real look into the life of the man who began the history of electronic music. It also really explores how the theremin came to primarily serve as that creepy sound in the background of all those movies.

Harlan Ellison: Dreams with Sharp Teeth - Definitely a must watch for sci-fi literature fans, but also a very insightful movie about what it means to be a writer. I also admit to having a bias because of the way Harlan Ellison talks about L.A. since it tends to get such a bad rap and I've never heard anyone better express how I feel about it better than him. When you think he's coming off as bitter, there's usually something more to it than first glance. If you're interested in how one of the great writers of past generations approaches the process you should give this movie a watch.

There are tons more and I'll probably make more recommendations later on but these are a good place to start. What tends to attract me are strange cultural documentaries so those will probably be the bulk of what I suggest here.

And Now the Hard Part

2011-05-19T00:29:00.001-04:00

City of Cards Page 12: Here!

I've graduated! Officially! Check out Josh Kramer's awesome Summer Showcase for more details on all the events. There were bagpipes, dance numbers, amazing speeches and emotional rollercoasters abound. Aaron Renier made our amazing diploma. Totally worth a look.

But what all this really means is it's time for me to get organized and get back into the real world. Well, at least get back into it enough so that I can keep myself in food and shelter enough to make comics.

Chapter three is almost completely thumbnailed. There's no stopping this train! Random sketch of the week is Ace and Plato at the zoo looking at a fat platypus. A fatypus if you will.

Yeah.

Page 11 and Thesis Review

2011-05-12T02:32:00.000-04:00

Page 11 up HERE.

Thesis review was today so today's update will be a short one. All the critiques they gave me were valuable and definitely confirmed what I'd known already for the most part. With that said, I'm always in this place of "do I go back and fix things now or do I wait till later to fix them?" when it comes to my pages.

I've learned a lot in this past while and even from chapter one to chapter two I know I've been able to loosen up and begin to finally get my work to look somewhere near where I want it to be. I think, now, having the benefit of what I've learned combined with a little more time freedom I really want to do more concept art and world building. The more environments I can really sink my teeth into and design the more fleshed out my city will be for my reader.

So, aside from thumbnailing Chapter Three and starting to ink Chapter Two, my main goal is going to be going through and making sure that any environment that I didn't get the time to or I didn't give myself the time to fit my characters into is given an equal level of attention.

So yeah, I'll probably be uploading pages that I'm not 100% currently happy with at the moment while I spend time reworking them. That's just how it's going to be because I want to keep the story moving. I know that there's still a lot for me to learn and that as I work my art will develop and that's just what happens. It also means that say a couple of months down the line I might re-update older pages with new art. I don't want this to take up too much time as I expect in a few years to need to update the whol project, but I want my best work to be online and this is how I work best.

On a final note, I love you guys more than you know. The Center for Cartoon Studies is a beautiful institution and the work they do here is so valuable to the promotion of comics as art and I know with total certainty that forgetting anything I have ever done or will do that the works of my classmates and the alumni of this school will have a major impact on the art form. It's truly history being made here.

Most likely sketches and other stuff up next week 'cause it's graduation time!

CCS Thesis: Over!

2011-05-05T01:18:00.002-04:00

Page 10 uploaded: Here!

Also, a classmate of mine, Josh Kramer, is putting together this awesome blog collection to showcase our thesis work. Check it out!

As of posting this blog my thesis has officially been turned in and I have attended my final class here at the Center for Cartoon Studies. I'm at a bit of a loss and I don't think it's really hit home just yet. In fact, I don't know if it ever really well. My time here has been beyond amazing and while I know there are many great comics still to make and that the friendships I've made here don't have to end just because we're parting ways it's still hard.

I mean this with all sincerity that this has been the best two years of my life. I thank so many people for this.

First, here is the blue version of the CoC cover which will be the cover for volume 2:

Next up is the final two luchadore images since I skipped last week. It's the Ace of Clubs and Ace of Diamonds:

I've got a lot of work to keep on doing and I'm glad for that. I don't know exactly where I'm going to end up right now, but I like to hope the future is bright. And to sum it up, here's a soothing video of a fat cat on a water treadmill. Make sure sound is on.

LESS THAN A WEEK

2011-04-28T01:35:00.000-04:00

Woo, double page update today, just scroll down on the comic page to view both of them: CoC pages 8 and 9.

But seriously, less than a week till this shit is done. There are no words to explain how insane I am going here. To all my fellow CCS seniors, GET ON THOSE COMICS YOU CATS!

That's all. I'll post more next week or something.

Countdown What?

2011-04-21T00:28:00.007-04:00

CoC Page 7 is up HERE

No seriously, there's actually a countdown clock for us seniors that counts down to the second when our thesis is due. Yeah, there's pressure, but as the days wind down I've come to accept falling short on goals only so much as I've realized what I'm willing to, and not willing to compromise.

My time at CCS is almost over and I'm grateful for the distraction of the final workload because leaving this place will probably one of the hardest things I've ever done. I've met a lot of amazing people here and hope to keep in touch with many of them for years to come.

Next, just a quick thought on art books and cross-media. About a month ago I purchased Kristin Hersh's art book for her album Crooked which is beautiful to say the least. The book itself is a collection of essays, photos, and lyrics all related to the album as well as opens access to more material on her website. It's a labor of love and I enjoy seeing different arts coming together to help create a larger, more complete vision.

And finally, luchadore number two:

This past weekend I was at Paint and Pixel in Northhampton, Mass and for a first year little convention it was great! I got to meet a lot of really cool people and to thank Howard Cruse for coming to CCS. If I'm anywhere near the area next year I'd totally go again. Well, unless it's the same weekend as King of Trios again because damnit, I'm determined to go next year.

And one final note, if you're a fan of Weird Al and grew up listening to him like me, check out his Lady Gaga parody "Perform This Way".

Mocca Recap, City of Cards Page 6

2011-04-14T00:21:00.004-04:00

Page 6 posted to the site HERE.

So this past weekend was Mocca and now it's back to the grind. There were A LOT of awesome comics there and I got to see my thesis advisor so bonus! I'm not going to go through all the artists I picked up stuff from, but I do want to post a few links.

Bort: It'd be hard for me to begin to explain why this guy's stuff cracks me up but I love it. YEAH TOAST!

Julain Rowe: I was blown away by this guy's work, seriously. He does sci-fi with such personality and character and his art is top-notch. Also, damn that's some solid dialogue.

Rebecca Mock: She's got a great style and a real ability to capture emotional atmosphere.

Possibly more links in the future to come. For now, I'm gonna post my finished lucha pics here once a week.

Oh, and I went to Kaiju Big Battel while I was in New York. I'm just saying, next to Chikara, one of the greatest shows a person could go to. Of course, I'm biased.

So yeah, I'm exhausted, but we've had an amazing two days with Lynda Barry and even though I've been operating on limited sleep and energy it's been a good time. All I've got to deal with now is a thesis, finding a job, cleaning out an apartment, finding a place to live... ugh.

Mocca, and the City of Cards Debut

2011-04-07T18:05:00.000-04:00

Just about a month since I last updated, but this is a big one. This weekend at Mocca I will be tabling with my buddies Canto and Andy Christensen and debuting a 16 page preview book of the first part of City of Cards.

We'll be at M2 right right next to a whole bunch of other people from CCS, students and alum, so if you're going to be there be sure to check us all out. There's a lot of amazing stuff coming, be sure of that. I'm working to get my luchadore prints done as well because I gotta spread that lucha love.

Oh, but there's one more thing. You may have noticed, if you were even able to get to this site, that there's been a lot of flux going on around here.

Today I start posting the first part of City of Cards online for people to read. Updates will be every Thursday, once a week. I'll be posting several pages over the next few days, though, for the launch and regular updates will start a week from today. Click on the link here or in the header to get to the main comic page.

And in OTHER, other news: welcome to the world little Penelope! Expect a lot of comics as birthday and Christmas gifts in the future years to come!!

Who Doesn't Love a Good Cross-Over?

2011-03-09T13:31:00.002-05:00

Sorry for the lack of updates, but a series of colds and a heavy workload have made blogging an afterthought. First, it's CCS awareness week so if you aren't familiar with it, check out The Center for Cartoon Studies, the school that has allowed me to explore and hone my skills as a comic artist in ways I can barely begin to elaborate on.

However! I am prepping for Mocca and hopefully in the next month I'll have more information about that. I hope to have a preview book for City of Cards available for the convention as well as some other stuff ready. One thing that's caught my interest lately with a vengeance? Independent wrestling. Chikara to be specific.

You may have seen the Osirian Portal's viral video popping around but don't be deceived into thinking these guys are anything less than amazingly skilled athletes and entertainers. There's also a bit of a cross-over between the Chikara world and the comic world, which is evident through their characters, storylines, DVD covers, and promotion materials. So yeah, independent artists doing the work they love? I'm all for that.

Check out Ophidian doing some more of his amazing moves. And while you're at the tube, go ahead and look up some other Chikara videos and their official podcast. You won't be disappointed by any of the wrestlers.

So I'm working on a few lucha inspired images and drew up these sketches during the last visiting artists:

Yeah, once I graduate I plan to do a lot more wrestling/lucha related images. It's like the fun of super hero comics but even moreso. We'll see how much time I have to do much more since I've still got a lot to do to get ready for thesis, graduation, and convention time.

Comics You Should Know: Hollow Planet

2011-02-03T02:36:00.000-05:00

Nothing scanned this time around but I wanted to do a shout out to an amazing comic that anyone that knows me will not be surprised to hear me recommend.

Husk: The Hollow Planet is the graphic novel work of comedian Scott Thompson, member of the comedy troupe Kids in the Hall. I am, again no surprise to anyone that knows me, a huge fan of the work of the members of Kids in the Hall and this comic takes one of the more memorable characters created out of that series and continues on in a pastiche of typical sword and sorcery fantasy ala Conan the Barbarian, sorta.

And that's only part of why I enjoyed this book. Aside from being a pretty fun, well-put together read, to me it is taking the art of character crafting and showcasing just how amazing and fun and therapeutic a process it can be. One of the reasons I really enjoyed the sketches in Kids in the Hall and am able to really enjoy this book is because you can actually see how much of a world these writers have built. It's another reason I enjoyed watching Death Comes to Town because I liked seeing old characters continue on, build upon old lives, and to see writers really exploring what they've got.

Quoted from an interview with cartoonist Mark Oakley, he states: "I think I’ve only got about six or seven characters total; I just give them new places and bodies to live in. They march across the story world, through paper comics, in web comics, and in prose. I give them new foibles and challenges and social situations."

This to me is something inherently wonderful, really. Some might feel like it's a limiting process, where the author is constantly re-exploring the same ideas, feelings, and themes ad nauseam. I don't see it that way, if only because I am also someone that is so chronically character based in my own work, but I think it allows for fullness of character. With Scott and Danny and Hollow Planet, you get a lot of resonance from Danny even if he is the ultimate straight guy, he is also one really likable guy as well.

So yeah, if you're a fan of Kids In the Hall and you hate cancer and love life then you might want to give this book a read. Good stories and good characters take as much time as they need.

CCS: The Final Lap

2011-01-19T20:17:00.000-05:00

So, you may have noticed that there's been an address change here. My blog is now located at http://blog.cityofcards.com in preparation for the full launch of the City of Cards site. It's gonna happen!

Speaking of things that have me going nuts over the amount of work involved in, Chapter One is just about set for me to do those fine tunings to and Chapter Two is starting out with a bang:

This is the full version of the first panel of Chapter Two. Once I throw inks on this piece, I really hope I can give people the total sense of how I see my world shaping.

As well, I got a chance to design some more background characters. Here's a quick design I did for a waitress:

I'm pumped, seriously, for this final go. I think so long as I keep focusing on the goals at hand I should be able to keep up the pace I've been going at. I say it a lot, but I mean it from the bottom of my heart, that I am so grateful for the opportunities that I have been given.

I have enjoyed the challenge and I will continue to enjoy the challenge. Being able to push myself as hard as I can and being able to see my progress has been good, but I've also been running like a horse with blinders for this past year and a half or so and I don't know when I'll really be able to slow down and take in everything that has happened. It won't be for another five or so months, though, I can assure you of that.

Also, snow:

Last Post of 2010: Let's Rock 2011

2010-12-31T14:01:00.000-05:00

I figured for my last image of 2010, I'd leave with a sharp looking picture of Ace:

Oh how I dig playing card designs, and this image is a good way for me to sum up where 2010 ended and where 2011 will go. Here's to another year of cupcakes, comics and cocktails!

Speaking of New Years, something I'd started back in 2009 was to give myself a "motto" for the year that would push me towards achieving my goals.

2009's motto was "don't hold back", which for me meant that I needed to push myself with challenges. Do what needed to be done to get where I needed to be. Go the extra mile.

2010's motto was "fuck it". Crude as it is, it's helped me a lot. Much like 2009, part of this was me telling myself that when I was faced with a challenge, to say "fuck it" and do it, even if it hurt. If it meant long hours of drawing and redrawing, that's what it would take. If my idea seemed beyond my capabilities, then "fuck it" and do it anyway, whatever the results. This also has helped me with my writing. The stories I want to tell are the stories I want to tell, so "fuck it", I am who I am, my art is my art, whatever comes of it comes of it. It's time to stop hiding, or, well, holding back.

2011 is going to continue on this theme. 2011's motto is "don't look down". I'm sure like the previous mottoes this one will probably mean a lot more to me as the year progresses, but right now it's about not having time for regrets or to be embarrassed all the time. It's done, it's gone, it's out there. The only direction is forward, or more hopefully, up. My time at CCS is coming to an end and there's no looking back.

So here's to a year of looking up. May our past simply be the footfalls that have guided us towards the unknown precipice and not the dizzying, vertigo inducing distance that threatens to immobilize us.

Just Feeling Grateful: Comics and Censorship

2010-12-16T14:04:00.001-05:00

So recently a censorship bill was passed in Tokyo and it was one of those moments that hits me when I realize how lucky I am to be able to make my art and express my beliefs openly and freely and how valuable that right really is. Over the next months I'll be following what happens with the law and its effects on the comic market in Japan.

While I generally try to distance my work from manga, I love and appreciate the works of artists all over the world and censorship is something that is relevant to anyone trying to express themselves through any medium in any language.

I've often battled with myself over content in my comics, but the fact that I even have that choice is a true blessing.

That said, I'm taking a break from the process posts and I'll get back to that next week. In the mean time, here's a quick cute drawing I did of Ace and Plato fighting ghosts complete with swear words and cheesy, somewhat confusing text:

Nothing beats freedom of speech, even if all it does is allow someone to have a lot of good, pointless fun. Hell, freedom of speech is awesome BECAUSE it allows me to make pointless posts like this.

And I realize that not everything is perfect here, but my quality of life is so high because I can have open discussions and make art. This is a gift that I value very highly and am happy to be able to reap the benefits of not just in my own art, but in that I can be exposed the thoughts and feelings, good bad whatever, of those around me, especially those of my fellow cartoonists. Thanks CCS for constantly reminding me of what I've got.

The Process 2: Pencils

2010-12-11T00:58:00.001-05:00

Sorry it's been taking me so long to get to updates, I've been busy thumbnailing all of Chapter Two, which I can NOT wait to start penciling. No, I'm not done with Chapter One, but I'm pretty close to being done with the pencils and I need to get moving. Starting Chapter Two will help.

Also, cupcakes?

I ordered the playing card pieces off of a baking site, but it was totally worth it.

Anyway, onto my penciling process. The real insanity, and yet streamlining, of my process has been how I now do pretty much ALL my rough pencils on separate pieces of paper and then light box them onto 11x17 artboard:

Or something like that. I'll also use Manga Studio's perspective rulers to make grids or check for perspective errors during this process. This can mean that I end up with like, three pieces of paper layered on top of each other to get something done but hey, it's worth it, right?

And this is generally what a finished page of pencils will look like, complete with a few notations on my part to note where an image will need to be moved, shrunk, enlarged, whatever when I get to the inking phase:

It's not magic, really. You don't always get everything right the first time and it's all about tweaking constantly till the final image is what you want. Penciling is by far the most labored part of my process. I hate to use that term, but I mean that in the sense that it's the part of the process that I spend the most time and thought in and it's where I try to capture my story before polishing it with inks and tones.

Other than that, the new Superboy comic is pretty good only two issues in. The covers are GORGEOUS and I'm not usually someone that cares too much about the cover so long as the inside is good, but the story is fun even if I'm not totally sold on the interior art. Too much detail with the coloring when I can see so much potential in the pencils and inks.

Which reminds me, I'm still reading the Flash and await Francis Manapul's return to the title. That man's art is inspiring.

The Process 1: Development

2010-12-04T22:12:00.000-05:00

So this past week I had to do a progress report for my classmates and the faculty here at CCS and part of that report had me breaking down and explaining my process. The next round of posts here on this blog will be me elaborating on what I said.

But first, a sketch of Trump:

So yeah, first things first, I write a script. The script that I’m working with is something I’ve been revising for about two years now, but even then it’s open to editing till final production. Once I talk to my advisor I make any necessary revisions and begin thumbnailing. Here's a bit of what I get back from my advisor:

My advisor's feedback is great and we spend a lot of time fine-tuning the script trying to get it so that all the points I'm trying to get across are really clear. In fact, we're still working on some parts of Chapter One even though I'm starting to work on Chapter Two as well.

I do my thumbnails in two parts. First, I do a set of small thumbnails that is pretty much just panels. I do this so I have a sense of how the pages look altogether and so that the layouts themselves aren’t too repetitive.

After that, I do my final thumbs at something like, 1/2-1/3 scale on halves of 8.5x11 paper in spreads where I knock in the details and start to see how it’ll really look.

This is about the most readable my thumbs get. They're not always this clear, but I tend to make them fairly readable. I will photocopy enlarge certain thumbs and lightbox those for pencils sometimes.

Anyway, that's just the first steps to working out a page. I like having all my writing just about done before I start working out pages. I like getting things as polished as possible, which since we'll be covering pencils next time, I'll be able to elaborate on even more.

Woo, sorry for covering old ground for some of you, but I know I enjoy reading about other people's processes. I might upload photos of the food I've been cooking lately, like uhh, magical playing card inspired cupcakes? Aww yeah~

You Know What's Awesome? Sleep is Awesome.

2010-11-23T23:40:00.001-05:00

So yeah, I slept today. A lot. And oh man, it was so good.

And here's the final one of these little character images at least until I decide to draw Alex or something:

It's Trump, and she's looking about as pensive as always I imagine her. Good times.

We've got presentations coming up and I still need to figure out how to kinda start building a website but, uh, oh well! I'm about 80% penciled on Chapter One, I've got the go ahead to start Chapter Two, and this Thursday I'm going to eat so many damned potatoes my stomach won't know what happened.

Aww yeah, Hand Turkey Time!

The only thing missing is a re-watching of the classic holiday film ThanksKilling.

Poster Cover Stuff

2010-11-20T23:54:00.000-05:00

So one of the things I've been working on is the possible cover for the first chapter of City of Cards:

We're doing crits on Monday and I know there's some stuff I want to change or get feedback on. Oh, and my name won't be on the poster like that. I just slapped that on for now.

Other than that, been working on my little image of Candy:

Other than that, I'm about 80% penciled at this point. It's kinda weird coming up to the end but I can't wait to finish. Also, wow, I watched Sailor Moon again last night after I have no idea how many years. I haven't laughed my ass off so hard in so long. Oh man, wow.

Okay, back to work. Time for tea and whatsit.

Nuttin'

2010-11-13T16:49:00.000-05:00

Not a whole lot to post today because I haven't gotten a chance to scan anything and I'd rather focus on getting through these comic pages while I have a chance.

I haven't really read anything notable in the past week and I've been spending most of my time drawing/watching weird movies and documentaries to give me some sort of background distraction.

The guest lecturer this past week was John Brodowski and he was pretty awesome with a wicked sense of humour born out of B-Movie horror and heavy metal. I really dug his stuff because it takes pop culture notions that are already over the top and pushes it into parody by pretty much playing it straight. He also talked a bit about teaching comics which is something I just don't know if I feel a lot of drive for right now. Maybe if I were teaching adults? But it's something to consider.

So yeah, these next few weeks are going to be nuts because I'm working on a cover/poster design for my thesis presentation and I've just got a lot of work ahead of me in general. I'll try to update here if I get a chance. I like this once a week thing I've got going.

Is it Time for the Whimsy Bell Yet?

2010-11-06T17:43:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I have been being productive, but it's sometimes hard to express that through blog. I've been trying to desperately figure out how to do gray tones and my thesis advisor has been fantastic about supplying me with examples. I've also been looking at Vasilis Lolos's Last Call and that's been really inspirational.

So here's a sample of some more inks/tones from page 16 of City of Cards:

I haven't added the greys to the last panel yet and there are three more panels on this page that I've started. I tend to average around 7 panels per page, getting about as low as five and as high as 11-12. Why so many? Because it would mean it'd take 60 pages to get through the first chapter and there are only so many pages of beer and ramen a person can take in one sitting. Also, I've learned that my greys print really dark.

And for something different, a platypus:

Now that we're done with this, I offer two websites for your enjoyment:

Trololololololololololo

Industrial Painter

Both require sound, both will blow your mind. One is a classic, one is a classic waiting to happen. Both will probably have nothing to do with the website I'm building, but I can dream.

Ginger Nightmares and Horrible Color Choices

2010-10-31T15:11:00.000-04:00

First off, Happy Halloween to all you folks out there. In somewhat related posting is the Ginger Monster from a dream I had a few nights back that I decided to sketch out:

I dunno, it was some kind of a demon possessed urban garden and the only thing I got a good look at was the ginger before I got out of there. It does look a lot like how I like to render my ghosts, which meant the dream was pretty cool, but this also makes me want to get back into monster design. I'm thinking I'll tackle kale next.

Also, since we're on dreams, the final page of my random dream comic. In lettuce related posting, the music I listened to while doing this piece was from Salad Fingers so there you go.

And finally, the complimentary drawing of Plato to the one I did of Ace with bonus fugly color scheme.

Seriously, it's like all the worst parts of a 70s living room decided to throw themselves at him to see what would stick. I know he's supposed to have terrible, terrible taste in outfits but I'm just eternally grateful that City of Cards is being done in gray scale so I don't have to look at that orange more than I have to. No offense to orange. Some of my favorite snacks are orange.

Next time will be Candy. She has good taste in color, thankfully.

Dream 3 and I My Attempt at Something Small and Cute

2010-10-28T18:54:00.000-04:00

The third page of the dream comic. At least, I suppose if anything, this kind of drawing may prepare me for the ghost parts of City of Cards. I'd like them to have an intense feel to them that's different from the rest of the story.

As far as the main comic? I'm pretty much halfway done with the pencils for Chapter One right now and the feeling is almost overwhelming. It's seeing something actualized and I feel like if I slow down it'll sink in and really hit me that I'm actually doing this. I want the hurdle of the first chapter done as soon as possible because once I get to Chapter Two then I can really say I've begun.

Once I get a little further in that, I'll post some more. Till then, here's a quick color picture of Ace I drew that I'll probably use as a profile picture for my thesis presentation or, I dunno, a website? Sure, why not.

He pretty much only wears black and white so doing stuff with him in color is kinda weird since I'm just not used to thinking in color. I should do more of that though. Also, this is about as close as I can get to drawing something "chibi". I kinda fail at that and it doesn't really fit with the kind of art I like to do. This to me is my visual compromise.

I have Plato and Candy drawn as well so I'll get to coloring those when I get the chance. Halloween this year may not be anything exciting but I kinda want to see Paranormal Activity 2 since I liked the first one. I like a good horror film that relies a little less on ripping people apart and a little more on just making the audience feel really unsettled.

Other than that, the weather can stay as nice as it was today for the rest of the year for all I'm concerned. 70s with a slight breeze and gorgeous leaves? Uh, yeah, sounds perfect to me.

Bigfoot Spotted in Urban Area

2010-10-22T21:44:00.000-04:00

So while reworking some pages, I drew this. In fact, this was almost a panel in my comic, but Canto helped me figure out a better way of approaching that panel. Still, this was worth saving.

Followed by my next dream comic page:

Ugh, what a crazy, tiring, disease infested week. But still, stuff keeps moving along.

I got and finished reading Fogtown as well this week. It's definitely a book that's much better when you don't know the secrets. I mean, it's a noir crime story with a twist, that pretty much shouts "Don't spoil the mystery!". But, even though I had been spoiled I still really enjoyed it. It was dark, violent, and suspenseful and had everything you'd want out of this genre. Good read.

CoC Chapter 1 Progress Report and Peep Show

2010-10-18T20:25:00.000-04:00

Whoa, updating in a timely manner? It's happening!

For the next few weeks I'll post the strangeness that is my four page dream comic. I gave myself a couple of criteria in order to loosen up my art, practice working with a tablet, get used to large area of blacks, and to get something done FAST. All this doesn't make for oh wow beautifully perfect art, but it is a good challenge for me.

So yeah, each panel I set a loop of a moody song that lasts about ten minutes and had to finish each panel by the end of that song straight in digital inks. Some ran a tiny bit over, several I didn't even get to the limit, so it evened out.

I'm also gonna give a bump to the pinup calender I did a piece in because all the girls involved are amazing and deserve promotion. This is the piece I did:

We all drew names out of a hat and I got to draw the lovely Mia for the month of September. Yes, that is a crab smoking a cigarette. Lena Chandhok did a fantastic job with the cover and layout work and she was co-editor with Nomi Kane. Here's a list of all the contributors aside from myself, note that Betsey who drew me does not have a website yet: Lena Chandhok, Nomi Kane, Betsey Swardlick, Laura Terry, Holly Foltz, Melanie Gillman, Jen Vaughn, Bailey Sharp, Amelia Onorato, Beth Hetland, Colleen Frakes

Next, I've finished the thumbnails for the rest of chapter one of City of Cards and have started doing a little bit of penciling as well. I've gotten some good critiques so I'm in the process of reworking some of my pages, but also trying to keep moving forward. I've gotta say its an interesting experience especially since the parts I'm working on now are all pages centered around Ace and Plato. I've really enjoyed watching their personalities take shape and am kinda amazed at how much they've grown on me.

Also, a quick shout out to my buddy Canto for getting me reference pictures of him digging through a dumpster. Sure, he was going to do it anyway, but I live for accuracy. Seriously, the best friends in the world are the ones that'll go dumpster diving for art's sake.

Aaron Renier spoke here at CCS recently which gave me some surprising insight into how to approach my work. I found the way he feels stories gestate with him resonated a lot with me. I guess it's not always such a bad thing to forget stuff because if it doesn't stick with you then it probably doesn't matter. I think I need to be better about this approach and my massive pile of STUFF.

Speaking of stuff, I also picked up the new Cyanide and Happiness book and it's fantastic. The games at the back of the book are hilarious and I'm amazed at how funny I find some of these strips even after having read them multiple times. So yeah, if you're a fan of those guys, pick up their book. It's not for everyone, but it's my kind of humor.

And Now for the Rest of the Show

2010-10-14T03:04:00.000-04:00

Deadline over! But really, not really. In all truth the sixteen page deadline was a kick in the butt with a steel-toed-boot made of a false sense of accomplishment. Oh yeah, I'm totally happy to have dug in my heels and gotten down to work but this really is only the beginning. I got twelve pages of City of Cards almost completely done for that deadline so that did get me going, and I'll probably post the strangeness that is my dream comic up here as well that made up the other four pages.

From now on, it's all me and my amazing thesis advisor setting the pace and getting this work done. I'm ready, I'm excited, and there'll be a lot more to show in the next few months and beyond. I have plans. Oh yes, I have plans. First, some more from the pages of City of Cards I've been working on including the full version of page eight and some panels from the beginning of chapter 2 with Alex:

And now, sketch dump time. This is probably the best sketch of Candy I have drawn so far:

I have also realized that Plato will never, ever learn to shut up:

And I've been continuing with my brush pen environment sketches because they are really very relaxing:

Other than that, things have been awesome. John Higgins, the colorist on Watchmen and The Killing Joke, gave an impromptu talk this past Tuesday and even if I don't have a lot of free time I'm having an amazing time just hanging out with people in the studio.

Hopefully soon I'll figure out a proper update schedule. Till then I'll just try to keep up this once about a weekish thing I've got going.

Ink and Tone Test

2010-10-05T23:38:00.000-04:00

So I'm in the process of figuring out a new process of inking and toning and I thought I'd toss up some panels to see how they work on the web. I'm pretty darn happy with the results and how this comic is going in general. I love the polish that I get with digital tones and inks.

First, two panels of Plato from page 8 of City of Cards:

Next, a panel of Lily from page 11:

So far, not looking too bad. There's still a bit of a learning curve but again, the results are worth the effort. I also need to redo my model sheets so I'll see about getting those done in the next couple of weeks.

Also, I've finally been able to get some much needed sleep. Deadlines aside, thesis is rocking. Can't think of too much else except Ugly Americans starts again tomorrow and I can't wait to watch that.

So, uh, woo bye for now!

Hah, What?

2010-10-03T03:21:00.000-04:00

So I couldn't really come up with much for an update this week, but I wanted to post something so here's a panel of Plato I inked for the sixteen pages I'm working on due the 11th.

On the plus side this means I'm getting a lot of work done and soon there will be actual significant updatage?

Ah yeah that's what that means.

Also, year two thesis is blowing my mind. Who would have ever thought I'd get to work on something I love so much.

CoC Sketches and Some Reccomendations

2010-09-23T12:03:00.000-04:00

I'm getting to close to my personal deadline on my pencils for the twelve pages of City of Cards I've been working on. It's daunting, starting this project, but seeing the pages start to take shape has been motivating. I'm still no master draftsman but I really love seeing my world and these characters take shape.

Here's hoping the story actually works. *laughs*

I thought it would be a good idea to do a couple more ink tests with some doodles from class, partly because I wanted to practice working with skin-tone and with rendering the ghosts.

But yeah, I'll probably print these to see how they look. Finding the right tone for skin is tricky, but I'm definitely feeling like I'm not losing much with switching to digital. My ghosts are still looking just about how I like them even if I'm still not totally used to how crazy clean digital inking looks. I never thought I'd like it as much as I do.

Next a sketch of Alex I did during guest lecture today that I did a little tweaking on later. I like it enough that I may ink/color it. We'll see, though, because right now I have little time to spend other than completing pages.

My recommendations:

Book: The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russel because of its wonderful blend of science fiction and philosophy as well as amazing characterization. I don't want to spoil any of the story because so much of this work's strength lies in the slow and earned discovery of truths.

Music: Throwing Muses is wonderfully eerie electronic folk with poetic lyrics and available to listen to right here on the internet. Give it a go and enjoy some nice music.

Video Games: Batman the Brave and the Bold Videogame is honestly some of the most fun I've had playing a video game in a long time. I honestly don't have a lot of time for games anymore but I'm really glad I picked this up because if you're a fan of the show, it really is like playing the show. It's short, definitely, but great with a friend and we can all use a little silly fun now and again. So yes, I'm actually saying to go play this game.

Progress Report!

2010-09-20T17:55:00.000-04:00

So, I haven't had a lot to post up here lately, but that's partly because I've been busy penciling my pages for October and working on another side project I'll be posting up here later.

So, what do I have to share today? First here's a snapshot I took on Friday of the ten out of twelve pages I'd started at that point:

Next, since I don't have any more pencils scanned right now I figured I'd share something a little different, it's the sketches from today's class exercise where we were given three words and told to work out a story plot in ten panels. I actually really enjoyed this process and I'll be using what I did here later:

Definitely a lesson in concise storytelling. If you can't read the final text, it says "In the end I returned home, but my heart, my hope, and who I was remained in the depths."

So yeah, part of the exercise was to take a twist on a genre and I got True Love, Adventure, and The Underworld so there's only so much Orpheus I could stick in there. Actually, when I go back to reworking one of my stories this is a pretty good outline for where I want to go. Also, I really like drawing strange demon things.

Anyway, update! And now I can get a little sleep.

CCS Year Two: Thesis

2010-09-08T01:17:00.000-04:00

So, it's finally beginning. We've got 16 pages due on October 11th so my plan is to pick eight pages from the first chapter of City of Cards, four from the second, and the last four will be from a dream assignment we also have.

I'm going to try to get back to some kind of regular updating schedule, maybe twice a week so I can put up progress work from City of Cards, sketches, and other material. Not too much to put up today, but I figured I'd start with a couple of sketches done in class and at the Glory Days event and some pencils from the first chapter of City of Cards.

A sketch of the final design for Lily, Rick's secretary:

A quick sketch of Ace chilling done in class:

Some pencils for page 8 of City of Cards:

I'm ridiculously happy to finally be starting this project. It's a bit overwhelming at times, but it's about time I just went ahead and got started even if I'm not 100% at the level I wish I was at. But hey, it's a learning process, right? It can only get better from here.

Ink Test

2010-09-04T02:16:00.000-04:00

Classes officially started up this week so that and finishing up a project with some of my classmates has kept me a bit busy. I don't really have a lot scanned up at this point but I figured I'd post a test of a new inking/toning method I've been working on.

Yeah, I posted the rough sketch of this picture earlier but I inked this entirely in Manga Studio EX to see if that's how I want to proceed with my comics. Frankly, I really enjoy this process so who knows, this could be the way things go from now on. The program has a lot of options, including dry brush, and the G-Nib function is sweet.

So, well, starting now I'm back to working on City of Cards. I should have some actual completed work to show in the next month or so. Crazy time!

Doin' Those Things

2010-08-14T12:40:00.000-04:00

Okay, I'm back in the WRJ and figured I should post SOMETHING. I saw Scott Pilgrim a few nights ago and thought it was cute and fun and extremely well composed/edited. If you want to have a good time, it's got a solid cast and some great music.

Anyway, not been feeling too great today and I've got a lot of commitments/deadlines coming up let's see what I can do here.

First, another random pen environmental sketch:

I need to sit down and design the outside logo for The Cave for real. On the plus side, it doesn't have to be pretty/fancy because The Cave is kinda a dump. A well meaning dump, though.

And because I've actually started inking the comic, because I am damn determined to finish this thing, here's the rough sketch for the cover to OFHH:

Alright, and a quick rundown of comic threes:

RASL because I enjoy Tesla science mixed with philosophy in a gritty, immersing drama that is just beginning to unravel itself.

MW because Osamu Tezuka was a man ahead of his time with amazing range that keeps you on the edge of your seat as he explores the depths of morality and the levels people are willing to push their own sense of value.

Jerry Ordway, Pete Kraus, and Mike Manley's run on The Power of Shazam because it is fun, and one of the best versions of Captain Marvel's story I've read. Start with the graphic novel, but if so inclined I recommend picking up the back issues. They're pretty cheap and your local comic store will thank you for taking them off the shelves.

And now I need to get back to work but much love to you all.

Work in Progress and Distractions

2010-08-07T20:49:00.001-04:00

You know, it's felt like a long time since I've sat down and done a real drawing of Ace since I've had to put finishing my comic till I get back to WRJ. So, to make up for that I did this last night:

I've also been trying to get ready for thesis by doing layouts and other concept sketches since I'm pretty much just set up for sketches right now:

That's the first of my reference sheets for The Cave and I need to do a few more before I start making, hopefully, SketchUp! models. I want to have at least the few locations I know I'll be referencing multiple times laid out as best I can. Sorry for the random content but that's kinda how summer has been.

Speaking of random content, my brother is visiting and we're continuing this massive sort out of STUFF from our childhoods. Going through old puzzles, he told me to draw these two puzzles before he'd let me throw them out. I took my own liberties:

Yes, I know Shark Week is over, and the guys in the bottom picture are from something called Rock Lords which neither my brother nor I remember, but whatever. It makes throwing out stuff fun.

Stroll Down Memory Lane: Jeannie

2010-08-04T03:38:00.003-04:00

Okay, I'm continuing on this weird-ass personal nostalgia kick for some reason. Maybe it's all the watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer and listening to Cibo Matto, but I had the strange urge to go over the artistic history of one of my characters to see how she's changed and how my art has changed since I pretty much started drawing back in 2001. This is really mostly for my own records, but it's kinda interesting to see what happens when I decide to actually learn how to draw.

WARNING: This post contains old, crappy, high school infested art and should be viewed with caution. Scroll to the bottom if you don't want to hurt yourself.

First, 2001 and one of the first pictures I ever drew of Jeannie:

A couple years later, I haven't learned a whole lot but I thought it would be interesting to see what happens if I re-interpret the first picture:

A couple more years later in 2005 I do another interpretation and I guess I've learned something but the growth isn't really there considering I'm still treating this as a hobby:

2007 and I'm in Japan and I've had the benefit of taking a couple of real art classes. I don't get around to doing a new version of the original but I do a sketch of Jeannie I'm particularly fond of:

And today, I just finished the inks for what will probably be the next version of the original picture:

So what have I learned over all these years? One, if you want to draw don't start out with manga, you'll spend years trying to unlearn all that junk. Two, it's never a bad to revisit old ideas because if you're not sure of your progress you'll at least have something to directly compare things to. Three, ridiculously long hair is ridiculous and have I mentioned I'm a fan of Uzumaki?

Overall I'm generally happy with the direction my art is going even if I've still got a ways to go. I've kicked a lot of my old bad habits and I'm starting to regain a certain amount of confidence in my ability to progress.

Trumped Sketches

2010-07-31T03:12:00.000-04:00

Just a couple of pictures of Trump today. I've been kinda out of it this past week with way too many trips to the doctor and not as much energy as I'd like. The guy that drew my blood really did a number on my arm and I'm kinda fascinated by the result. That, and Pizza Hut delivered to my cardiologist while I was in the waiting room so at least it's been a somewhat entertaining week.

So first, a picture of Trump probably hallucinating and talking to Benny the Badger in the forest in her mind:

And then a quick sketch of Trump and a "ghost":

She has a much different relationship to the "ghosts" than her brother.

Not much else right now, but I picked up the first volume of Jeff Smith's Rasl this week. Read it people, seriously. I'll probably post more about it later once I read the second volume.

Faces of the City: Coal

2010-07-26T04:25:00.002-04:00

I'm back in LA and trying to clean out a bunch of old junk which got me listening to old music and sending me down a kind of personal nostalgia trip of sorts.

I used to write a lot of poetry back in the day and it's a bug I can't really get out of my system. Those that read my fables assignment this past year at CCS might recognize this guy as The Bat, but more to me he's one of the protagonists of a story I put aside to work on City of Cards. That comic/story helped get me through all the anger and frustration I felt in high school and college, so I figure the guy earned a spot in the background at least.

A good character is a survivor. Whether it be by passing down traits and experiences that help develop future characters or transplanting oneself from one abandoned project to another. If there is an inherent value or lesson to be learned from working with and writing a character it will find its way to get out there.

Ink-Somnia

2010-07-20T02:33:00.000-04:00

So, I suffer from insomnia a fair amount. In fact, I am posting this at 2:30 in the morning because I figure if I can't sleep I should at least be productive. Woo!

A lot of times when I can't sleep, I grab my brush and ink or if I'm not certain of my capacity to not spill ink everywhere I grab my brush pen and do some quick ink sketches. Nine times out of ten I draw backgrounds/environments because being able to slap down lines is pretty relaxing. Here's a few from tonight.

This also gives me a chance to loosen up my inks and lines which is something I desperately need to get better at. It's also why I love urban environments so much, well, one of the reasons I love them. When you make them messy, they feel more real and familiar. Sure, I love drawing trees and foliage, but finding the organic quality of rust and steel and asphalt is damn fun too.

I head back to LA on Thursday sooo, uhh, I have no idea. I'll be able to upload from there but I have no idea what I'll be posting. Hooray!

Comics You Should Know - Action Philosophers!

2010-07-15T01:08:00.000-04:00

First, because they're so damn cute, a messy drawing of Plato and Candy:

Candy is telling Plato that she'll kill him if he drops her, he's telling me to hurry up with the drawing because he doesn't want to die.

I probably won't ink this because I've got too much on my plate right now.

Comics You Should Know! Action Philosophers!

The Republic got your reeling? Symposium making you feel like a simpleton? Does the allegory of the cave sound like a drink you had last night instead of a metaphor for the perception of reality?

If you're like me and you've tried really hard to digest the works of Plato, which are still totally wonderfully relevant to this day, minus the misogyny and HUGE leaps of logic in order to make his theology better suit his own personal tastes, but sometimes find yourself tilting your head like a confused chihuahua at some of the big pictures he's trying to get at? Then look no further than Action Philosophers! to answer some of these questions!

Not just Plato, no, this book covers a huge range of philosophies from ancient to modern, from Lao Tzu to Derrida, with fantastic graphic clarity. Informative on its own, it also serves as a kind of cliff notes summary of these philosophers lives and philosophies which makes it a great companion book for anyone studying up on a particular philosophy.

It could have used a section on Adam Smith, but hey, can't have everything, can we?

CIty of Cards: Rick and Family

2010-07-12T16:18:00.002-04:00

Today we have another City of Cards character(s) introduction! I'm kinda going in order of appearance in the story, not really on purpose though.

Also, July blog updates will be random, but I'm hoping to update at least once/twice a week. What will I update with? Who knows! But today, you get to meet Rick and his family.

Rick has no last name, yet. He DOES have a surname, that's important, it's just that I have no idea what it is yet and if he took his wife's surname which is very possible.

Just a quick ink drawing, but starting from the left we have Rick's wife Satoko, completely inspired by one of the most awesome people I've ever known, a former teacher I worked with in Japan. Ms. Sato, you are amazing. Satoko is strong, independent, and very happy being a mother to two wonderful girls. She supports her husband completely and only wants him to take care of himself.

Next in front we have Rick himself looking a bit haggard here, but all I could imagine was how Rick would react if he thought his family/home was being threatened. Let's just say, don't mess with Ma and Pa Bear. Family is everything to Rick.

The littlest member of the family is Mari. She's eight, loves Benny the Badger, and has a record for the most words uttered in a single breath in under a minute.

On the end is Ann, who is ten, and is a bit of a bookworm who takes after her father in many ways. She's very smart, sweet, and loves video games.

Rick is a father figure to Plato and works as the equivalent of a social worker/lawyer/accountant and is way underpaid and under-appreciated for what he does. However, he wouldn't do anything else. Because of the circumstances of how he took on Plato's case Rick views himself as a sort of older brother/father figure to Plato and the whole family consider Plato one of them. However, contractually, Plato is not a member of their family.

Rick is quite possibly the most honest, sincere person you could ever meet. However, because of this, he's often a nervous wreck when he can't get things to go the way he wants for the people he cares about. He's lost a bit of hair and put on a few pounds because of this, but his wife loves him anyway.

Za Fyrurry

2010-07-09T17:56:00.001-04:00

Okay, I mentioned I had another project that I was working on? This isn't really a preview, but it certainly is related:

Recognize the characters? Dude, I'll mail you a cookie if you do. Doesn't count if you go to CCS or are in my "circle" because you guys will probably get cookies later anyway.

>>>

It's The Fury! And the Voidoid. From the Image Comics 1963 series that's seeing some crazy new light these days. For more information, check out information on Tales of the Uncanny – N-Man & Friends: A Naut Comics History, Volume 1 on Stephen R. Bissette's site and blog.

The stuff I'm working on right now won't be for Vol. 1 and I won't go into too much detail just that this is going to be a whole lot of crazy fun.

Also, check out this great interview on CBR for way more information.

ABHR Guest Comic

2010-07-08T15:10:00.000-04:00

So I was asked to do a guest comic for a friend and thought, hey, why not! It'll give me a chance to practice drawing kids and to be a little random so here's what I threw together:

His site is here.

I'm pretty close to finishing pencils on OFHH so hopefully I'll get to inking that soon. Also, I have another project that I'm involved in but I don't really know how I'll handle that once it's finished. Still, I'm excited and it'll be fun.

Also, summer is full of fail and I just want to sleep the heat away. This weather is not good for making comics.

Comics You Should Know - On the Banks of the Mainstream

2010-07-05T14:17:00.000-04:00

Not so mainstream but not really "indies" recommendations -

Okay, this post has taken a bit longer for me to figure out because I could just as easily list off a bunch of random comics I've read lately but I really wanted to pick comics that actually meant something to me or have influenced the way I approach my own comics. These picks aren't perfect, and they're not the most obscure indies titles I could probably have picked, but I'm not going to pick books just because no one has heard of them. Sometimes books are popular because they're actually good, or at least fun and pretty which is actually something I feel like there isn't enough out there in the comic world.

Hellblazer - Okay, was not even sure how the heck to put this in here but whatever, Hellblazer. Bloody hell I love this series throughout the years and how the character of Constantine has evolved. It plays with literature, it plays with the notion of good and evil and damnation and humanity and fate and picking out my favorite stories would be hard because there are just so many good ones to choose from. It should be no real surprise why I'm drawn to this series.

I suggest reading whatever you can get ahold of, but one of the benefits to the way the Hellblazer stories are told is they are often very neatly written into digestible story arcs. Considering I have no idea how long I plan to make City of Cards and I generally like the idea of a near open-ended universe this is a really great place to get influences. I recommend checking out the Family Man arc because of this solidity.

Sky Doll - It's French. It's so very, very beautifully French. But hey, it's now available in English so you have no excuse not to enjoy this beauty! But really, It's a French science fiction story about a "doll" (read: android sex toy) that "escapes" from her factory and goes on a journey of self-discovery. It's quirky, colorful, and the artists have backgrounds in animation which is really clear in the fluidity in the gestures and facial expressions of the characters. Marvel is releasing the series and unfortunately this means it's being cramped into their standard TPB size books which doesn't do the series justice. Still, it's worth a look.

It is by no means the most philosophically deep story about robots discovering their true self ever presented, but Noa is a likable character. Reviewers keep talking about the adult themes in this book, I just say it's French. So very, very French. I'm in love with the designs, the cities, the science fiction elements and for me, that's what the appeal is. It's pretty and as I develop my own science fiction universe, I want to look to examples of doing it right.

We3 - Alright, this is almost a cheap shot here but honestly picking these books has been really tough. Why We3, then? Well, number one I'm fascinated by human robotics experiments and cyborgs. Second, I'm really interested in the manipulation of readers' emotions through content. I told you this was a cheap shot, but that doesn't mean it's a bad thing. How many times have you seen those ads on TV with the sad shelter animals and just felt an overwhelming urge to rescue one of them?

Animals are vulnerable, and we as humans have the capacity to decide life and death and quality of life so easily when it comes to these creatures. We identify with these animals because so many of us are pet lovers, animal lovers, we get it. Sometimes you have to push the reader over the edge before you can really smack them with the greater realization. That's why I like We3 and that's why I like books that give you a really good, complex emotional punch to the gut because if it's done well we think about it well beyond the closing of the book. It's also eerily plausible, and the best science-fiction has that frightening grain of truth.

Monsieur Tofu Never Stood a Chance

2010-07-04T01:48:00.000-04:00

So, uh, we have some interesting conversations on the CCS messageboard and that lead to this:

At least now you know I'm still being productive! Or something...

I actually really do love tofu, but no, he stood no chance.

Ghosts of Samsara 25-26

2010-06-30T15:07:00.002-04:00

And we're done!

Well, it was a good test and I learned a lot from this comic so despite everything I'm happy with having done it. Seeing how my current script is going, though, GoS will probably be permanently shelved in its own little space because its continuity is just too far into the main storyline. Still, I love subways and ghosts so odds are I'll figure out a way to do this scene again and put it where it really belongs.

This fall, it really is all about the beginning. For now? Well, my next short comic project is in the works and while I was hoping to start posting it right away, for various reasons I'm having to postpone it. I'll probably start by posting some sketches and works in progress and if anything big comes up, I'll post about it here.

Ghosts of Samsara 23-24

2010-06-28T15:56:00.001-04:00

Alright, this is the last week of Ghosts of Samsara. I learned a lot working on this project and for that I'm still really grateful.

Ghosts of Samsara 21-22

2010-06-25T11:20:00.002-04:00

So, apparently Disney is now in the housing development market.

Sure, it's just luxury housing, but this is the kind of thing that gets my mind going. It's not like corporate housing ventures are a new deal, but this kind of dipping one's fingers into all the pots is always fascinating.

... and a part of me actually wonders what some of the houses will look like. I kinda doubt we're going to get too many recreations of the Haunted Mansion, but that'd be cool.

Ghosts of Samsara 19-20

2010-06-23T14:36:00.001-04:00

So, I originally came up with the idea for this story something like four, five years ago but only in the context of the whole City of Cards story and finding a way to make this piece stand by itself for my mini-thesis wasn't exactly the easiest process. I think if I ever attached this story to anything else these next pages would get taken out, but hey, practice is always good.

Hm, well, we're on the home stretch on this and I'm still hoping to get my next project up in July but there will be delays on that. I'll post here when I know more.

Ghosts of Samsara 17-18

2010-06-21T13:59:00.001-04:00

Not much to say this round. Summer is finally starting to hit so I'm kicking on the AC and hoping to get some sketching done.

Ghosts of Samsara 15-16

2010-06-18T13:39:00.002-04:00

I've been watching/re-watching a bunch of movies lately and I thought I'd just toss out one of my favorites:

Kairo/Pulse: The Original Japanese version because it reflects so frighteningly well on the nature of isolation in the modern age serving as a great supernatural horror film with a slight twinge of science fiction. I hate to even call it horror, though, because the kind of fear that this movie deals with isn't jump scares and boogie monsters, it's not even death, it's something worse than death and that is what's so scary. This along with the original Juon/Grudge are some of the best psychological horror films of the modern era, at least in my opinion.

So yeah, love that movie, but it's probably a good idea to go hug a friend or something afterward. Also, it's definitely a movie you want to really focus on because there's a lot of little details in the atmosphere that are key to really appreciating the movie.

Ghosts of Samsara 13-14, Junji Ito

2010-06-16T16:49:00.002-04:00

By far my favorite page in this comic for a lot of reasons. I thought about reordering things a bit when posting these pages, but I'm pretty much going for a warts and all approach to this, so even if there's stuff here that I hate/wish I could change (especially art-wise) I guess it's good to just put it out there and move on.

Still, this is my favorite page, no question. I think that it makes this whole process worthwhile when I can say I have at least a couple pages that I actually really am proud of. That said, yeah, there are definitely things I know now that I won't repeat in later comics, but at least I know so I don't end up screwing myself over later.

Comics You Should Know

Also, I should have linked this awhile ago, but I have a blog essay up at the Center for Cartoon Studies' Schulz Library Blog about Junji Ito and Uzumaki.

The you should know part is pretty much the entire essay, so no need to go into detail here.

New England weather also continues to be all sorts of crazy. I'm definitely looking forward to heading back out to LA in July.

Ghosts of Samsara 11-12 and sketches

2010-06-14T15:51:00.001-04:00

Just about halfway there!

I also figured I throw up a few random sketches today because, hey, why not?

First, a sketch of Trump and Candy.

I've pretty much cemented my look for Trump at least. That was pretty easy since she really is just the female version of her brother. I generally like this look for Candy. I'll get around to doing a write up for their characters eventually.

Just a quick brush pen doodle of what I imagine Ace will look like when he's in his late 30s-40s.

And a design sketch for Old Friends Hit Hard:

So, how about that live action Blue Beetle TV series, huh?

Ghosts of Samsara 9-10

2010-06-11T15:02:00.002-04:00

I'm starting to catch up on the most recent run of Doom Patrol. Part of the lure was the Metal Men backup but the series itself is pretty great, definitely worth checking out.

I also found a couple of mix CDs of 2008 JPop songs one of my co-teachers gave me before I left Japan. It's ridiculous how happy a bunch of random poppy Japanese songs can make me feel.

Ghosts of Samsara 7-8

2010-06-09T21:27:00.001-04:00

I don't necessarily believe in ghosts, at least not in the traditional sense of old dead relatives with far too much time on their hands.

But I do like the ghosts in this story, if only because they're damn fun to ink.

Comic, and Reflections of Nostalgia

2010-06-07T18:36:00.001-04:00

Heyo, almost forgot to update, but here's pages 5-6 of Ghosts of Samsara:

I miss trains, really. I know City of Cards isn't supposed to be set in Japan, but I loved riding the trains while I lived there. Frankly, that was half the reason I went to the city or visited friends was just so I could get on a train or a subway.

Nostaglia: The Anthology

I've tried to remain objective when I look at the shifts and trends in modern popular culture, but just as we lament the struggle and demise of the comic anthology in classes here, I find myself personally lamenting the demise of the television anthology series.

Shows like the Twilight Zone, Amazing Stories, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and all the various Playhouse series were amazing in the amount of talent created out of them as well as their capacity for experimentation in narrative and film. I've watched the Masters of Horror and Science Fiction series that came out and I wish that this format were as popular nowadays as it used to be.

I like to seek out these kinds of shows when I can but it just seems a shame that it's just not part of this current media generation as much as it was when I was a kid. Series like Masters of Science Fiction, calling upon some of the greatest science fiction minds of the last several decades, show the formats potential for actors, writers, and directors to tell stories that leave viewers with a quick insight into big possibilities and questions about the human condition without making up the viewers mind for them. It's like the short story versus the novel, and sometimes the poem versus the novel, and longer just isn't always better.

Not to say there aren't lots of new, great things being done, primarily through the internet because there's a lot less censorship and red tape. Heck, that's the reason I'm able to publish my comics online! Homemade review shows, sketch comedy, even serial dramas are being made by dedicated fans and artists are just some of what's out there. I'd like to see the anthology get some new life in the next couple of decades.

On that note, I'll end this ramble with a link to some great indie music I found while browsing b3ta: In The Hills, The Cities by James Edge and The Mindstep

Comic, and What I am Reading Mainstream v1

2010-06-04T14:39:00.001-04:00

First off, pages 3-4 of Ghosts of Samsara:

I love backgrounds and environments. Maybe one day I'll do a comic without any people in it because I love drawing settings that much, seriously. I hope to get much better at it as well.

Second, kinda like Comics You Should Know, I figured I'd post what I'm reading in the mainstream world and enjoying and would actually feel like recommending. It should go unsaid but this is a highly biased and completely non-objective list:

Booster Gold: Why? Keith Giffen, JM DeMatteis, and Chris Batista with covers by Kevin Macguire. Justice League International is one of the few series I actually go back and reread no matter how long ago the stories were written or how crude the printing may look compared to modern glossy comics and that's because the team involved did something amazing by making superheroes into relatable and likable people. I'd already been enjoying Booster Gold as a series, but I could not be happier to have this team on the series. Solid art, solid dialogue, and with only one issue with this team out so far I was able to get the same satisfying emotional sucker punch I got when I read JLI. I look forward to reading the rest of this run immensely.

Justice League Generation Lost: Same deal as Booster Gold for the most part. I'm a JLI fan and I actually think Judd WInnick is handling his writing end fairly well considering I haven't really read anything by him for the most part. It's nice to know that super hero comics can still have largely character driven storylines at times. I want to know what happens next not because of the "oh hey, what a unique plot device!" but instead of how the characters are going to handle the situation. Here's hoping it continues to be a good read.

The Flash: I'm a sucker for Francis Manapul's art. I loved his and Geoff John's run on Adventure Comics and I'm hoping this run will be as satisfying. That said, I'll keep reading it if only for Manapul's wonderful soft ink washes and refreshing style in a world where hyper-realism seems to be the standard by which mainstream comics are judged. I'm not really a Barry Allen fan, but whatever, it's pretty.

Joe the Barbarian: Yeah, it's Vertigo, but that's still mainstream to me. For people of my generation in particular, this story does a great job of recalling the feel of all those fantastic 80s fantasy movies about kids in the modern world being pulled into fantastic adventures. The art is stunning and this kind of trippy reality bending is something Grant Morrison does really well. It's definitely a series that I might almost recommend in paperback form to be able to appreciate the narrative, but seeing as only five of the eight floppies are out right now I just keep rereading the volumes as they come out. It's also nice to get into something that you know has an actual end in sight.

That's it for now. Coming to CCS I've been trying to devour pretty much any comic I can get my hands on and while I am reading a couple of other mainstream titles, these four are the only ones that pop out in my mind as notable. I might pull a non-mainstream list together later, but that's probably going to end up just being a list of books I've read from the library and liked, and maybe a manga list if I read anything that stands out. Genre, format, and company are never a deterrent for me if I think what I'm going to read might be enjoyable or well done.

City of Cards: Ghosts of Samsara Comic

2010-06-02T13:22:00.002-04:00

Okay, due to complications with printing and with my summer schedule I'm postponing sending out/selling copies of Ghosts of Samsara. In light of that, I figured, hey, why not just post it online? So I am!

Starting today, for the month of June I'll be posting two pages of comic every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. This is the compromise I came up with because I wanted to somehow maintain the spreads but considering I just spent three months on this dude I should share it with people. It's definitely a comic that I prefer to be viewed in person, but I hope it reads well enough online.

While I post these pages, I can now announce my first summer comic project that I'll also be posting here on my blog:

City of Cards: Old Friends Hit Hard

Like Ghosts of Samsara, OFHH will be a short vignette that takes place during a later story arc. However, since I plan to publish it online there will be a few differences: 1) color 2) process updates where I show you how I go about making my comic 3) SPOILERS.

Nothing major, but even more than GoS the events in OFHH may reveal plot points so for this fact I'm aiming to make it a wordless comic. Still, I've started pencils and I'm already pumped to get started on this 8 page mini.

City of Cards: Final Production

2010-05-03T22:18:00.001-04:00

And the DJ said
Have you heard the Ghosts of Samsara?

Well, the first printing of Ghosts of Samsara is over and I turn in my copies to my classmates tomorrow. I didn't update on time these last couple of weeks because of, well, lack of time and energy.

At least I wasn't alone in all this. Late nights and long hours was pretty much par for the course for everyone here at CCS. My final review will be on Thursday and I'm pretty sure of some of the critiques I'll get, but at least I can say I feel like I put a significant amount of time and effort into this project.

But, that also means I'm now free to start a new project, doesn't it? Well, I expect over the next few months a lot of world building, a lot of honing of skills, and, of course, comics. I have a definite project in mind and I can't wait to get started on it. One thing is for certain, it will take place in the City of Cards universe.

Thanks again for all your support and for those of you that have contacted me about getting copies of my mini-thesis I'll be contacting you over the next few days to arrange that.

City of Cards: Ghosts of Samsara First Print Run

2010-04-17T01:43:00.002-04:00

All right folks, first I'll psyche you up with another sample inking from this project. Final cleaned up version with text will be appearing in the book.

Seriously, this is the best thing I have done to date and I've been working on it almost non-stop for almost two months now trying to get it to reach my personal standards.

I'll be printing a first run for my final project assignment at the beginning of May, before May 4th, and if there's anyone that wants to order a copy please send a request to tereyachan@gmail.com

Cost: $5 in person, $6 shipped

What do you get for your money? Well, you get to own a first issue run of City of Cards, 24 pages of black and white comic with color cover, and I'll personally sign each copy as well. You'll also get my unending gratitude for supporting me as I begin the biggest project I have ever undertaken, and I don't just mean this comic, but my venture into City of Cards as a universe on whole.

Order now because one day this comic might actually be worth something. That, or when the world ends you'll have plenty of kindling.

To finish up, I've gone through my sketch book and pulled some of my favorite CoC related sketches that I've done throughout this past semester during classes.

Rick the lawyer:

Various sketches of Alex:

And Candy taking Plato to task for being a dork:

All art copyright CJ Joughin 2010. I'm already excited to get started on the rest of this project.

City of Cards: Plato, the Ace of Hearts

2010-04-10T00:07:00.001-04:00

One of my classmates Paul has been saying we should share old embarassing artwork to, I dunno, give each other some idea of where we're coming from and maybe give each other and ourselves something to laugh about? I guess I'm just starting early on that.

Okay, even moreso than Ace, you may want to avert your eyes because Plato has made an even bigger character change than Ace.

Oof, uh, well I don't honestly know when I drew that picture so I'm guessing some time in 2003 and it must be one of the earlier pictures of him because I quickly realized that something needed to change. Ugh, okay, let's move on...

Plato is definitely starting to live up to his name these days. In fact, when I started to redesign his character I did a lot more research about the philosopher Plato when thinking about what direction to go. Seeing as the original Plato's name meant "broad" as in big physically I decided to add a couple of inches to Plato's height and even more to his girth. He's definitely got a bit of the gentle giant thing going on.

Also, you can definitely start to see the big shift in direction I've been slowly pushing my art style towards and the look I've been developing here at CCS.

Plato is a much more straightforward character than Ace. This isn't to say he's blunt, more that his moral compass and philosophy on life doesn't tend to switch around much on itself. This makes him a great counterpart to Ace's constant mental imbalance.

Comics are better with friends. I drew that picture a few months ago, but it's still one of my favorites. Bill and Ted would be proud.

So, that's the first two main characters I'll be touching on for now as they're the two that will be appearing in my pre-thesis project that I'm working on. I'll continue to introduce the world of City of Cards and the people in it as I begin the main chapters following Ghosts of Samsara.

Next update I'll be putting up information for anyone that might be interested in ordering a first run copy of this comic and maybe some more sample work for you guys. I may take a break from scouring the archives for old art, though.

Comics You Should Know 2

2010-04-06T18:39:00.002-04:00

Brew for Breakfast by Nomi Kane

Time for another installment from Comics You Should Know! This week we'll be looking at something a little different in that it's not a webcomic in the sense that Mermaid Hostel is a webcomic but more of a blog with weekly diary comics by my talented classmate Nomi Kane:

Brew for Breakfast

Nomi's comics are honest and she has a great natural observational wit that comes across clearly in her work. She's got a punk rocker heart too and that's awesome. She's also the talented editor behind Tales from San Papel and is amazing at putting fantastic mini comics at a crazy pace.

Check her out and be sure to give all the Comics You Should Know a look as I post them!

City of Cards: The Ace of Spades

2010-04-03T01:15:00.002-04:00

This week I'll be introducing the guy I consider my main protagonist, Ace. I'm going to do my best to keep this spoiler free but I can't make full promises. Also, this week you get a bonus sample finished inked page from the upcoming comic Ghosts of Samsara!

First, ready for some true horror? I dug up one of my earliest sketches I did of Ace back in 2004.

The boy definitely has come a long way since then. Here's an updated version of him for comparison.

Originally Ace was designed to be some kind of street magician character but I can safely say that as much as I love magicians, that just wasn't in the cards for Ace. (oh man, the puns are already starting...)

I always had a couple of goals with his character that have definitely cemented themselves even more over time. Most importantly, I wanted him to be a ball of contradictions both physically and mentally. Physically, he's average height, somewhat average build though pretty built in part due to his work, and if you wrote down a description of him on paper he'd match a significant portion of the population. Off paper, he's definitely something else.

And finally, a sample inked page of Ace in the pages of City of Cards: Ghosts of Samsara:

I definitely think I'm striking the right mood with this page. Final version will have blacked out panel gutters and text added.

Next week I'm hoping to get to Plato so stay tuned!

City of Cards: Ghosts of Samsara v1.1

2010-03-26T17:03:00.001-04:00

Well, I figured it's about time I start introducing what exactly City of Cards is and what I have planned. Over the next couple of months I'll be posting my progress on the first full installment from this project. This is what I'll be doing for my pre-thesis assignment, but it's also part of the larger work I have planned over the next several years.

To start things off, I've got the preliminary cover art for Ghosts of Samsara, a 20 page vignette that takes place during the beginning events of the story.

I took the photo that I used for the cover back when I was studying in Tokyo in 2006 but CoC doesn't actually take place in Tokyo, just a fictional city based on all the different cities I've been to and that have inspired the idea of "city" in my mind. The story is a little bit of everything I enjoy writing/drawing including horror, science-fiction, supernatural, buddy-comedy, superhero... it's all in there in some way.

Next post I'll introduce Ace and a little bit about who/what he is. I'll try to keep these posts spoiler free for the most part.

Comics You Should Know

2010-03-21T19:50:00.000-04:00

Mermaid Hostel by Jen Vaughn

One thing I figured I could do on this blog is get the word out about some of the comics I get exposed to while at CCS. From the amazing works of the visiting artists to the tremendous output of my classmates, there's almost too much to go through.

So first, I direct you to my school's homepage: The Center for Cartoon Studies

The main page has a lot of information about all the guests that come to the school as well as faculty and student works. It's a great resource.

Secondly, I'll direct you to a great webcomic by artist Jen Vaughn who is currently a second year here at the school and a totally awesome lady at that: Mermaid Hostel

It's definitely one of the most unique takes on mermaids I've ever read and her colorful wash art style is really striking. She's also currently running a fundraiser right now so if you like what you see, feel free to send a little money her way.

Earshot and Sonar: Echoes of the Golden Age

2010-03-18T20:14:00.000-04:00

Okay, a little late but I still wanted to cover this project here in this blog because it was definitely an intense but awesome time. With the help of our editors Paul Karasik and Alec Longstreth, myself and five of my classmates were put in a group and given two weeks to create a 30 page full color golden age superhero comic complete with faux ads and editorials.

I won't be posting the full comic up here but I'll at least give a taste of the work we did.

First off, this sweet cover picture:

Pretty awesome, huh? Artwork for the cover was by Corey Middleton, an amazing artist and great guy to work with.

We all were paired up to individual 10 page stories within the book and this is what Corey and I did:

This project taught me that pastiche is way more fun than should be allowed. One of things I was largely responsible for in this project was writing, particularly the text for the ads and I fell in love with one of them especially.

I did the color on the mouse and the InDesign work and fellow teammate Ben Horak came up with the awesome design that is the Elephant Mouse. Seriously, I want one.

So that's the Golden Age project!

The next couple of months are going to be dedicated to my pre-thesis project, but for now it's Spring Break and I'm looking forward to getting some sleep and enjoying the awesomeness that is post-winter Vermont.