The final version. So working like I do, with multiple drawings/levels/etc paid off. The truck was on the wrong side of the street. Changing it was a breeze and took perhaps ten seconds. Zoomed in a little, moved some things around. Composition is generally the first thing people work out. With me, it's the last. One of my artist close friends can't understand how I do this or why but he's a painter and I can't see working that way with paint either. Anyway, this was fun and while it was a lot of work, I'd happily do more. Let's see if the potential client likes it.

EDIT and here's an alternate version that I like more. This is why I love working with Illustrator; I can make all sorts of variations without disturbing the original work.

WIP of the fox. Things are mostly set, though I can still monkey about with the composition which is a good thing as I just noticed that the truck is parked on the wrong side of the street. Let's hear it for separate elements.

Here's a rough mock up with the background. Still some elements to add, but this is the basic idea. Fox is going to the record store to trade some discs. He's early. They're closed.

The second part of the illustration has been done and scanned. This isn't the final pairing of the two at all but it's an in process look. That's the fox's ride, and isn't it sweet?! Technically, this illustration is supposed to be of Portland and those little trucks aren't available in the States but if they were, I bet the hipsters would be all over them.

Working on a larger illustration using this guy. I like to work in real layers, scanning them in, adjusting the composition on the fly. Probably not the best way to work, but there it is. Pen and ink.

Morning warmup, pen and ink. Had fox on my mind.

Morning warm up (these are getting more elaborate). Used some of my photos of Rome with a clothing ref from an episode of "I Love Lucy." Ink, Illustrator.

An evolution chart of Joe Flash. I'm the only one that seems to really like him, but that's ok.

A little promo piece from Tamino using one of the minor characters, Howard the dog. Ink and Illustrator.

/?> I was going through my old stuff here (I've really had this blog for 7 years?!!) and found old Retail Q. Cat just sitting there making faces. Since some people are less serious about today's holiday than others, I drew this up.

Morning warm up/mash-up.

Two from tonight. The top one is just an exercise, juxtaposing one of the bunny characters and a fashion photo. The second, well, that's not every day but it's often enough. Biography isn't MEANT to be this depressing THING but that's what it ends up being half the time.

Two versions of the same page. I was in different moods when I drew them, so that's the deal.

Morning warmup.

Lineless version of the bunnies. Hmmm....

I've done a lot of work on this story in the past couple of days. I have to; it's due at the end of the month. What was going to be an 8-10 page story will now be 16. I don't think I've ever put this much effort into something this short. I hope it pays off. At the very least, it's been good for me, has made me get more action and fluidity into my stuff and allowed me to experiment again mostly in layout, text and really just presentation all around.

Morning warmup on the right. Comparison drawing of how I drew the character a year ago. A lot of changes (Flick's taller) both in style and conception of what the character is. Things have become less cartoony, a little more serious. What was going to be a quick, goofy little D+D comic has taken on something more. At least I hope it will. This is this year's project. Now to actually get down and DO it.

Morning warmup. Still working out the kinks on Flick though I think this is pretty close to what I want. Though I plan the comic to be in black and white, I might throw in the one color to emphasize the mages and magic. We'll have to see.

Latest page in the Crawford and Cromwell story. The hand drawn lettering really took a lot of time but I don't think I could even consider getting away with using a font. This is something that a cintiq would easily have made quicker. Ah, well.

Couple images for the new year. Definitely going back to the rabbit for my stand-in. The crow works better in other applications though I like crows better than rabbits. Neither is really me. I just like to draw them. I guess the rabbit does sort of personify my inner fear.. or maybe I'm just reaching. Sharp is just a morning warmup. I have to do more thing with those characters and environments.

Haven't done an entry in the Bio comic in almost six months. Here's two in two days. Timmy Hartigan and junior high were subjects of "Harlon," a short comic I did that's available here: http://home.comcast.net/~x8099/thomasblue/harlon.html

More morning warmups. Still working out the kinks on the design of these guys. Eventually I'll actually draw the new comic (a goal for the new year). Still, learning their structure can't be a bad thing. Re-designed Flick as I was given advice to vary the characters' looks as much as possible, especially as everyone's a rabbit. Added some water to my sumi ink and it thinned very well. No more pudding.

Just some morning warmups. The ink was thick and wouldn't flow so these aren't as slick as I'd like them to be. Still, practice is worth doing. After new year's, there will be more of a schedule to art as, right now, I'm not getting enough done and am not focusing enough on getting things finished. Delve Deep is one of those things I want to make serious progress on in the coming year.

New Year's card. I've done a few of these over the years, but not consistently or often enough. The mythical village at Year's End is almost more a feeling than a place. To me, it's eternally night, a quiet little place where the only sounds besides snowfall and light winds are people huddled together happily, partying. It only exists at one point in time and yet, it's always there. Dunno. It makes sense to me somehow. Anyway, Happy New Year's, all.

Happy Holidays, all!

Added the third character needed for this image, Princess Zelda. Yes, she's the latina basketball player on the left. I admit, she's the least interesting design of the three but I'm just not as good with women. I like her concept and the idea that she's not the usual princess character. I picture her as the brawn of the story and 'Link' as the heart, the opposite of what the game usually has.

A more reluctant hero pose. Needed some more 'fun' today, so this. UPDATE: added a friend to the image. This thing is fleshing itself out way too much in my head. I have lots of other things to do.

Did two more of these, one last night and one tonight. Gives me something to smile about after working a day in retail holiday-ness.

This is about the most commercial thing I've ever done. While I don't mind looking at others' fan art, I've never really wanted to do any of my own. Is it 'beneath me?' I was probably being a bit snooty in that regard. I also wonder how it is that so many people can sell commissions and posters while depicting other peoples' characters. When done just for fun, that's one thing. Licensed material? That's another. And yet so many do it. Well, this is just for fun so I can dodge that moral bullet. Oh. It's Link from the Legend of Zelda series though depicted in the present day.

I haven't painted in a long while. Too long. So I took some time away from things I have to get done and painted this today. It's a lousy picture but I have some editing left to do on it anyway.

A couple more of these just for fun. Trying to work a little more on the anatomy. Make the eyes smaller, like the otter to add something more to the faces.

And here's the other two members of the party in a morning warmup drawing, Armand and Flick.

I'm still drawing these guys. I think 2013 is going to have two goals; do a final edit on Tamino and try and at least publish that as an epub and to work on Delve Deep. Keep it simple, pour effort into those two things. I'm also seriously thinking of making Delve Deep a black and white comic, or perhaps a grayscale one to make publishing with an actual publisher easier. Did these two tonight as simple warmups and was happy with them. Really, I have to finish the Crawford and Cromwell story and that's a whole other mindset.

I realize I've been neglecting my blog when it comes to this little short story I've been working on. These are pages out of sequence but are two of my favorites for the project. They won't make sense on their own but I can't post too much so as not to ruin the potential sales. I'll post a link when the anthology goes on sale.

Another warmup. Obviously I was far more into the figure than the bench which is just wickedly mucked up. Oh, well. That'll learn me. This was just a warmup anyway as I was in the mood to -ink-.

Morning warmup. Got a new scanner last night so happened to capture the pencil drawings before I inked it this morning. Usually the pencil marks just die their usual death, crumbed to the carpet. There will always be a life in the sketch that's lost in the inked version but there's also a solidity that's in the inks that's missing in the pencil. Ink is about decision. It's digital in its way; yes or no. Or is that binary. I guess what I like about ink is that there isn't any hiding, any going back. There it is, that line. I made that choice. Move on. It's also a mark of pride when I can make an inked drawing without smudges on it. This is one of those rare ones.

And then I went ahead and colored it in Illustrator.

Another one of these. A boring pose but a different shape of head. Just an evening warmup.