In two sentences what is your STGN about?
A little girl who finds a haunted samurai sword on a school field trip and unites with the noble warrior spirit to fight an ancient evil.Click to read more.
Where did your STGN story come from? What were your trying to achieve with the art?
I tend to write dark and unpleasant stories. I wanted to do something fun and offbeat. The story has a wacky twist that most people wouldn't expect from me. I'm trying to let my inner 80's animation lover go buck wild
What was your experience like working on Samurai The Graphic Novel. Was it a challenge?
It was some of the most fluid comic creation I've done in a long while. No artist is ever satisfied with their work, however, I do fill like I pushed my talents a little further. Each project is a baby step.
What was your process for creating your story for STGN? Describe it step by step.
I always start with an outline. In this case, I limited myself to one sentence per page, so I had a 24 page outline, ((3) 8 page sequences). I do thumbnails based on the outline, adding dialog as I go.
I do the lettering/panel layouts in Adobe Illustrator, print out the lettered panels 2-up on 8.5x11 inch paper, and draw layouts. This lets me work the lettering into the image composition and storytelling better. I try to avoid placing characters in places that make for awkward speech continuity.
I draw the layouts in red pencil so they are dark enough that I can see them through a lightbox, but not so dark that it will obscure any corrections I draw over them in regular pencil (HB). I flip the layouts on a lightbox to fix anatomical mistakes and tighten up composition/perspective. I scan in the corrected layouts, enlarge them in Photoshop and print them out in a low opacity 100% cyan on 8.5 x 14 inch bristol board. I stole that technique from mainstream comic inkers who frequently work from scanned pencils emailed or uploaded to an FTP server.
I choose to work on 8.5x14 inch board because that's the largest size my scanner will fit. I got tired of tiling pages when I scanned them in. For some reason, there's always one part that doesn't seem to line up right. I used to pencil on the cyan layouts, then ink over that, but I've recently started jumping straight to inks. My pencils aren't particularly tight anyway, so it saves me a step.
I scan the finished page, flat it, and color it in Photoshop. All done
The Night Bookmobile, a new graphic novel by Audrey Niffenegger, is the year’s most exciting book about books. It's that rare, beautiful thing in the graphic genre: 40 full colour pen and ink illustrations that explore a bibliophile’s (dark) dream.Click to read more.
Richly evocative ‘The Night Bookmobile’ by Audrey Niffenegger is a cautionary fantasia for anyone who has loved books.In a long and wide book size of 8 x 11.5 inches, are illustrations of colourful bookshelves, a row of books showing titles on spines, a library-room of books, a reader hugging a book close to her, and a universal library right out of a Borges tale.
In an afterword to the book, its author and illustrator, Niffenegger, says, “When I began writing The Night Bookmobile, it was a story about a woman's secret life as a reader. As I worked, it also became a story about the claims that books place on their readers, the imbalance between our inner and outer selves, a cautionary tale of the seductions of the written word. It became a vision of the afterlife as a library."
One of Gizmodo's favorite actors now has his very own app. Proving what a nerdlinger he is, Simon Pegg's graphic novel is available for iPhone, iPad and Android simultaneously in 68 eye-popping pages.
The graphics tell the tale of his life, as told in great detail in his newly-launched autobiography Nerd Do Well. Downloadable wallpapers and a free excerpt from the book are also included within the apps, which cost $3 for iOS and £1.79 for Android—the latter of which only seems to be available in the UK at the moment, but I'm sure that'll soon change.
Stay tuned for the next update, the beginning of a new scene called: Stealing hope.
Ever thought about writing a graphic novel?Click to read more.
Not drawing one, but writing the script. Because graphic novels and comics need great writers. People who have never read them imagine that comic book plots doesn’t have to be as well-defined or as intricate as in a novel, and that any shortcomings in the story can be painted over by the artwork. Wrong. To be anything other than a noisy mess of colour, comics and graphic novels need a good solid script.
Here are the first things you need to know if you’re going to give graphic novel writing a go:
You and Your Audience
The Layout
Reading
Talk/Don’t Talk
Action!
“Why so serious?”
Wow, I've posted three days in a row. I'm on a streak! Anyway, today I thought I'd write about another graphic novel that I just read: The Lightning Thief.Click to read more.
We all know what The Lightning Thief is about, right? If not--where have you been? I was asked to review this book for a library journal recently. Okay, so I've read the book, listened to the book, watched the movie, and now have read the graphic novel. What do I think about it? Well, the novel is still the best way to be introduced to the story, but this graphic novel is a pretty good adaptation of the story (better than the movie, for sure!). Besides the fact that Percy looks to be 16-20 in this book instead of the 12 he's supposed to be, the artwork is realistic and well done.
Some of the scenes I really enjoy aren't here--the trapped tunnel of love in Denver, the semi-truck ride to Vegas, and my favorite Medusa. But for the most part the adapter, Robert Venditti, kept the pacing at a breakneck speed.
So if you have already read the novel series and are waiting in line for The Lost Hero, then you should pick this graphic novel up to see another view of the Half Blood world.
Cuba: My Revolution is a new graphic novel about a 17-year-old girl who forgoes her dream of becoming an artist to join Fidel Castro's Cuban Revolution. Host Allison Keyes speaks with author Inverna Lockpez, whose personal experiences shape the story, and illustrator Dean Haspiel.Click to read the transcript.
The town of Harbor Moon is hiding a secret that involves every member of the community. Many times stories like this involve towns hiding the deeds of one evil person to protect the whole community, but not Harbor Moon.Click to read more.
The town itself was built upon the secret in which it hides and everyone who lives there is involved in protecting it and each other. To keep their secret safe the members of Harvest Moon do not take kindly to strangers and do their best to steer them away using any means necessary.Awesome shot!
It seems as if the town has been successful at keeping outsiders away, until a soldier who just returned from Iraq pays Harbor Moon a visit.
First, you have to decide on your drawing style, writing style, distribution and only afterwards start.Click to read more.
The first step is to decide on your writing style. The easiest way is to find a partner, which is just as talented as you, and put all your efforts together.
After writing one or two chapters we recommend letting other people critique your work.
The next step is to think about your drawing style: are you talented enough or you need help? If you consider that your drawings will not please your audience, consider collaborating with someone who has the necessary skills in this field.
After you have finished the novel, you have to think about publishing your work: who is going to publish your master piece? There are several aspects you should think about before choosing a publisher: do you have to pay if the publisher is editing and proofreading your text; do they have the necessary experience; do they promote their authors on the Internet, on the radio or on the television?
Izumi’s killing spree may be at an end but his plans are just beginning. To draw Kei out he takes Tae as bait and issues a challenge. Kei has to go off and face him without his suit that can protect him. They have a shoot out old Wild West style with both of them getting offed. And that’s just the beginning of the latest volume.I can't post a copy of the picture, but I can link to a copy of a dinosaur attacking people. Awesome.
Kei finds himself back in the room with the big black sphere but he’s far from alone. All the big potential players Izumi killed are there too and so is Izumi. He doesn’t care about Kei anymore now that he’s back. This is where he feels most alive and this is where he’s likely gonna die judging by the way of things. Meanwhile Kei has been given an order, on the latest mission he has to get fifteen points or he won’t be coming back alive!
With no bio suit and facing a bunch of murderous and freaky dinosaurs, Kei’s chances are not looking good. It is a huge fight with a large party of players now which makes the story chaotic to follow at times. There’s a lot of blood and gore, this is GANTZ after all. But the lack of real movement in the plot and excessive violence for no point is getting tiresome. It needs to have something momentous happen, like a meaningful discovery about the black sphere or the game in general to keep interest flowing.
A dark comedy starring Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis. Photos too, Halloween is here...Click to read more.
Burke and Hare is a British dark comedy movie, based on the Burke and Hare murders. Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis are William Burke and William Hare respectively and the movies directed by John Landis. Its Landis's first feature film release in about twelve years, the last being his 1998's Susan's Plan.
Fox Searchlight is getting ready to adapt writer-cartoonist Daniel Clowes’ latest graphic novel ‘Wilson’ for the big screen. The book follows the title character, who is a self-loathing unemployed man who makes himself and everyone around him miserable all the time.Click to read more.
Director Alexander Payne is at the top of the list to helm the project. Paul Giamatti has been suggested for the title role, though neither the director nor the cast has been decided yet. Clowes is expected to write the film’s script.
If ‘Wilson’ is brought to the big screen, it would be the third movie based on one of Clowes’ works. His comic book ‘Ghost World’ was adapted in 2001 and was critically well-received. The movie even garnered an Academy Award nomination for Clowes for Best Adapted Screenplay. His comic ‘Art School Confidential’ was also adapted into a movie in 2006, but was released to mixed reviews.
Here's my work desk - you can see some of what I'm up to - though you can't see the many pencils and pens just off to the side.
Here's an example of a rough draft compared to the good draft after inking.
Here's an example of the rough draft versus the finished product.
Here's a sneak peak at the next page, showing the rough draft beside the penciled draft of the good copy. The skeleton in the opening image for the scene is a little intimidating - though I'll get to it sooner or later.
Please, follow along - I hope you enjoy it.
It felt like it was trying to come off extremely intelligent but in my opinion it was Overly Pretentious and Boring. i cared for none of the characters when i was reading. this Clark was pouty dull emo and depressed looking throughout pretty much the entire comic! and if you dont care for the Main character of the story, everything else is pretty much pointless by comparison. wasn't fond of at all how they changed the origin to Jonathan & martha kent hiking & backpacking in the woods when the SpaceCraft crashed! i felt like i was reading A Boring prequel to Superman returns directed by Brian singer! TERRIBLE!Read more here.
Gareth Hinds is the creator of the graphic novel BEOWULF, a retelling of the oldest extant poem in English. His most recent book, THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, is an adaption of Shakespeare's play. In a starred review KIRKUS calls Gareth Hinds' graphic novel "the standard that all others will strive to meet" for Shakespeare adaptation. He now lives in the Boston area and writes graphic novels full-time.Read more here.
This goes to show the artistic detail that the pros invest into their work. We can all aspire to do better work, and this goes to demonstrate some of the areas I can improve on in my own art. This is a really fascinating post!Below, I have collected my blog posts from the very beginning to the end of the creation of the first Hollows graphic novel, BloodWork. This was truly a labor of love--and a huge learning experience for me. I hope you enjoy the sneak peak behind what goes into one of these things. It took substantially longer to put together than a regular novel. It is due out July 2011, and I will be going to San Diego Comic Con to celebrate!Read more here.
