Little Steps

It's been a while since my last post because it's getting more difficult to report on progress without giving away crucial details of the story. I'm probably going to switch my blog schedule to weekly posts to accommodate this little issue, so stay tuned every Friday for new installments.

For this week, I'll share with you my ongoing struggle with satisfying self expectations. I know this story won't get finished overnight, but since I already know the conclusion in my mind I can't help but feel a sense of disappointment every day I go to bed without actually finishing it. I take little comfort in whatever progress is made each day because all I can think about are the pages left to complete. It seems like the finish line is stretching further and further away from me, rather than getting closer.

I always tell myself that the journey is more important than the destination, and I've always felt that way about art. However, I really want to finish this project, and it just doesn't seem like I ever will. I've never spent five years on an art project before, and I'm not sure I'm well suited for this kind of creative timeline. Hopefully this is just a passing angst I'm feeling today, and tomorrow I'll find new motivation. It just seems I have to find that new motivation more often than usual these days.

I'm at a point in the story where even showing an entire panel will reveal too much spoiler information, so I'm relegated to close-ups for now. In this panel Carl is expressing a level of shock that I hope will be shared by the reader at this moment when the full story is released. #Inktober

Productivity Without Progress

I completed two pages today, which should be very satisfying, but it actually got me no further towards finishing the book. As stated in my previous blog, I think I might have rushed through the last few pages in terms of pace. My initial solution was to slow things down with the next few pages to compensate, but today that seemed like a cop out (which it should have from the very beginning).

What surprised me was how easy it was to add two extra pages BETWEEN pages that have already been completed. Normally if I've left gaps in the narrative it would require redoing an entire page to accommodate a couple extra panels, but no - apparently I rushed through the past few pages so majestically that I was able to add entire pages, uninterrupted between existing pages, to fill in the gaps. I essentially achieved the perfect level of incompetence to allow for entire pages to be inserted within the completed narrative as a correction - SCORE!

In spite of where the day started, I think the new pages work out well, and I'm glad I spent the time to clean the story up. However, it also means that I've made no real progress towards the end of the book. I usually motivate myself with the realization that each page completed brings me one page closer to the conclusion of the story. Unfortunately I finished today with the same final page I started with, albeit with a better lead-up than existed this morning.

#Inktober

Mix It Up

Losing perspective is the biggest challenge I encounter with this project. Without anyone else to consistently bounce ideas off of, I can easily get lost in a direction that would kill the overall story. I do have an editor who I bring in when each book is done, and he combs through it with a keen eye for errors and narrative flow. I'm lucky to have this guy doing his thing, but unfortunately he only comes in at the end of the creative process. This can lead to uncomfortable situations; let me give you an example -

When I gave my editor a working draft of "Shadow Play" to go over, his initial feedback was painfully revealing. He loved the story, and proceeded to go over the narrative and all the things he liked about it - before I had to stop him. He was actually describing a completely different story than the one I thought I had written. When we sat down and went through it page by page, I was able to see it through his objective eye. At best, it required an interested reader to fill in a lot of gaps with assumptions and educated guesses, and at worst it was just plain confusing. I ended up redoing "Shadow Play" from scratch. No revising of pages here and there, or fiddling with the text - I completely rewrote the whole damn story. So if you're curious - yes there is a completed alternate version of "Shadow Play" that has never been to print. I'm sure it'll make an interesting bootleg one day.

The lesson I learned from this is to step back from my project as often as possible and work on other things. Getting too engrossed in the story can lead to developing dangerous blind spots that obstruct seeing obvious narrative gaps and inconsistencies.

#Inktober

Tempo

I just finished a two page sequence that felt like it was paced very well in the script, but once I see the pages inked, I now think it rushes through some key action.

I remember this as being the primary takeaway from my first book; be explicit and be patient. It's easy for me to assume the reader is following along with my thought processes so it's tempting to rush through a sequence of events and feel that it plays out coherently for the reader. Put simply, I needed to start using two pages to convey what I previously would pack into one. This makes me more conscious of the story and aware of the audience, rather than just spewing ideas as they form in my head.

Anyway, I have the luxury of revising the next few pages to adjust for this. Just thought I'd share one of the issues I deal with from time to time.

#Inktober

Tools of the Trade

Thanks to a thoughtful request, I'm allocating this post to describing the tools of my trade. For the current book, my surface base is the Borden & Riley #234 PARIS BLEEDPROOF PAPER FOR PENS paper. It's a very smooth surface, but also flexible enough that it doesn't crease when handled too much - which my pages often are, and this has been an issue in the past.

My medium of choice is the Sakura MICRON Archival Ink pen, #2, #3, #5, and #8. I should note that the second book, "Shadow Play," was inked with traditional crow-quill pen nibs and India ink on illustration board, and I encourage you to examine and appreciate the differences between the two techniques.

The following is an image of my actual workspace with a page-in-progress, followed by the required inked image for #Inktober, which again - I encourage you to caption. The last image is of my cat, just because he's awesome.

#Inktober

Rainy Day Inspiration

The story finally entered a another chapter today, and it's injected new energy to into my daily schedule. It feels like I'm on a whole new story with the change of scenery, and the artwork is flowing more smoothly as a result. It also helped that there was steady rain all day to keep me focused on work and not tempted to go outside and distract myself.

I'm actually going to get back to work so I'll keep this post short. If there's anything about the creative process for making this book that you're curious about, feel free to send me a message. I imagine I'm going to run out of things to talk about before the month is out, so I'm happy to address any questions that might be out there.

#Inktober

Working Based On A Schedule or Working When Inspired?

I struggle with a problem many artists should be able to relate to: How to motivate myself to work when I don't feel inspired. There's an old Faulkner quote that I always found enlightening and frustrating at the same time - "I write when I’m inspired, and I see to it that I’m inspired at nine o’clock every morning."

There is definitely something to be said for having a set schedule for work, and I make sure I have dedicated time for graphic novel work each day, but it doesn't always mean I get quality work done during that time. However, when I work while inspired I always get a high volume of quality work done. The problem is that I'm not always inspired when I need to be. Therefor I've settled on a hybrid method.

First thing is that I make sure I'm at my drawing table for a set time each day and prepared to work. I'll start with some warm up sketches to get loose and hopefully be ready to tackle the next page in front of me. If for some reason the drawing is looking or feeling forced, I'll usually stop for a while and take care of some of the more mundane tasks such as scanning and cleaning up pages, or fiddling with the script. If I don't get much drawing or inking done during this scheduled time, I tend not to worry too much about it. I've ruined my share of pages by forcing through work when I'm not feeling it.

The way I make up for lost productivity during scheduled time is by having my book and supplies with me at all times so whenever inspiration strikes throughout the day, I'll have my tools with me to work. Since I only need a table and chair for my workspace, I can turn most environments into a suitable studio.

So far this method has keep progress moving along at a steady pace, although it would be easier if I could figure out Faulkner's secret.

It occurred to me today that it's going to be difficult to post an image each day without revealing too much of the story. To manage this, the panels will necessarily be cryptic. I invite you to submit captions, and if I get any interesting ones I'll post them. #Inktober