I worked about 15-20 minutes past my timer today since I was almost done with page 3 and wanted to finish. It defeats the purpose of sticking to some sort of time management, but I have most of the day off today and I figured finishing would be a good thing. My hand did start to hurt, and I think I figured out why: pen pressure. I was never taught, like many inkers, how to use … Read More
Had a bout of hay fever this morning that disrupted my sleep, so I decided to sleep in an hour instead of getting up to draw. Then I had to go to a school and work on some drums. I got finished with my daily hour of comic work about 20 minutes ago, so I did go through my rehab, just 7 1/2 hours late. My hand began to hurt again, so I had to find … Read More
Today I actually got up at 6:50 AM and got to the drawing board just before 7:00. Woo hoo! I finished inking page 1 and it looks a little better than yesterday. I a little over-worked, but better. I had to stop myself from over-working the page too much because I could feel myself trying to find ways to make the page look better, but any more noodling and hatching would’ve made the page look even … Read More
Today I began inking page 1 of my 3 page story. I like the inking process very much, but I think it takes me a while to warm up. I’m not very happy with the outcome so far, but then, the inks lack blacks and rendering as I haven’t gotten to that stage yet. However, I’m not really digging the line work. I think of “style” as 2 separate categories: idiosyncratic and technical. Idiosyncratic style is … Read More
(Got rid of “Self-imposed.” I don’t think that really matters anymore, right?) * Didn’t get to draw very much this morning; once my wife got out of the shower, I went down to spray a wasp nest. I wanted to make sure she’d be available in case a swarm of wasps attacked me and put me in the ER. I made a huge boo boo when ruling my final page. The safe area is the wrong … Read More
This update is coming late because I actually had to go into work this morning… and I’ll be going into work from now on, as well. This means I’ve got to make sure I get up around 6:50 AM, draw from 7:00 to 8:00, and if I can, make a quick post before I leave at 8:30 (where’s the shower, you ask? Don’t worry; I work with plants, oft times in the field, so I get … Read More
Here’s what I’ve been up to the last couple of days: Not bad for someone a little rusty, huh? I like the second page much better. The look is, I think, a bit more confident-looking. Both pages have their problems, to be sure, but the first page has a less confident execution than the second, and there are some awkward choices, as well. Now, my first thought, when I noticed this, was, “Hmm… wouldn’t my first … Read More
(I’m getting kind of tired of writing “Self-imposed” everyday. Oh well) Just when I began to feel like I was starting to draw well and was going to have fun, the timer went off. Finishing up the pencils for page 2 of what is turning out to be a 3 page story (I guess it’s a story). I continually have to remind myself that I need to hold the pencil and pen a lot looser when … Read More
Got off to another late start because I got up at 7:20 AM. I’ve been pretty good at making sure I draw every weekday morning for at least an hour, but the other half of that schedule was to get up at 7:00 and be done at 8:00. Luckily, I don’t have a dayjob that requires me to be there at a specific hour, and right now I’m doing some work at home. But, while I … Read More
Back for my second week of drawing comics in the morning when I could be sleeping. Today I tried to finish the page I started last Friday, and I would have finished, too, if it weren’t for those pesky kids… I mean, if it weren’t for that stupid head I was trying to draw. I got stuck on a panel where I have my fat guy sitting on a park bench, leaning back with his arms … Read More
It’s the last day of my first week of my self-imposed comics rehab (what an awkward sentence). Except for a few late starts and some rustiness at the drawing table, I’d say it’s been fairly successful at getting me back to the drawing table on a regular basis to do nothing but draw comics. So far, it’s been different from the way I’m used to working; I usually write myself some sort of script and then … Read More
(There’s gotta be a better name than “Self-imposed comics rehab”… but it’s pretty accurate. I guess I’ll leave it) Unbeknownst to me, the wife got up at 7:10 AM, so I got off to a bit of a late start. I got to the drawing board around 7:30 because I had to take out some lightbulbs in our kitchen. Tip: if you buy ceiling lights from Ikea (like the previous owner of our condo did), make … Read More
Got a late start today; I went to see Watchmen last night, so this morning I was flipping through the book. This post is also coming late because I had work to do after my drawing session and I forgot to post an update. In any case… I inked yesterday’s page, and it turned out okay. There are some rendering and linework things that, like usual, I started to overwork. I had to stop myself before … Read More
Before I get to today’s report, I want to point out that the inspiration behind my self-imposed rehab was this very site: Comic Artist Rehab. * * * I got to the drawing board today and looked at my doodles from yesterday. I actually wasn’t repulsed by what I’d seen, which was very odd; yesterday, I was disgusted. I’d doodled a pair of lips in a close-up shot and sketches of a guy sitting. So, I … Read More
So, I made an announcement on this site on 9-13-2008 that my “sabbatical” from comics was over, that I was, once again, going to make comics come hell or high water. This was not a lie. Unfortunately, however, it has been slow going. I won’t go into details, because I don’t want to offer up any excuses, but let’s just say that picking a project has been difficult (the one I was going to pick conflicted … Read More
