Original Art Sundays No. 375: Inktober '24, part 1

 

 

Crossposting this from my Substack. 

We’re in the throes of Inktober!

3 of the last 4 years, I’ve made it through the entire month. Two of those years have been compiled in the book Spatters. I have 7 copies left, and it will be available at Queer and Trans Zine Fest next weekend.

Here are this year’s Inktober drawings so far.

Inktober '24, Days 1 - 6

• Day One: Batman inspired by John Cassaday

• Day Two: my stuffed Snoopy (that I got the day I met the man) in honor of Charles Schulz’s birthday.

• Day Three: an unusual take on my favorite creations, the Surrealist Cowgirls.

• Day Four: Pirate girl, inspired by my love of Gil Elvgren’s inviting poses.

• Days Five and Six: Moments from the work in progress Captives of Imagination.

I do love Inktober. I never follow the prompts. To me, it’s an opportunity to stretch as an inker, and I don’t like having too many terms dictated to me. However, it does offer something very useful, almost invaluable: deadlines.

Deadlines get things done.

Lecture is given on Wednesdays. Next lecture is on Fridays. Midterm grades are due soon. Zine Fest happens on October 19 and 20. Inktober is every day of the month. If the book is to be done by the holidays, there are printing deadlines.

Deadlines will drive one crazy, but they are so valuable. As Palpatine said about anger and the Dark Side, it gives you focus. And if you have something that has to be done today and a long project with no deadline, you tend to give your time and energy to the former.

But they can be traps too. If one has too many deadlines, everything collapses. I’ve gone through that a couple times. For me, the razor’s edge is having just a LITTLE more to do than I can handle.

However, it’s not just about methodically doing the work and dutifully meeting the deadlines.

A couple days ago, I picked up a copy of Harlan Ellison’s Last Dangerous Visions, published poshtumously, with final edits completed by J. Micheal Straczynski.

I sat up and read JMS’s Introduction and Exegsis, in which he gives personal insights into his relationship to Harlan and into Harlan’s private life, in a respectful but honest way. He revealed Harlan’s mental challenges over his lifetime, and how those challenges inhibited the creation of this volume for five decades.

This shook me. I had the honor of meeting and speaking with Harlan twice, and while I’m sure he wouldn’t know me from Eve, I clung to the conceit of calling him a friend. Some of that also stems from the artifice of intimacy resulting from liking someone’s work. Much of Harlan’s writing was brutally honest, and left the reader feeling like an invitation into the writer’s mind and heart had been offered and accepted. Ellison often wrote of such presumed familiarity as inappropriate, to say the least. I got that, but I still felt it. As such, I was shocked to discover that he wasn’t who I thought he was - or perhaps who HE thought he was. Mental illness is like that, I suppose.

But by choice or design, he got in his own way in completing this work, a work he saw as so important. Too many deadlines, not enough Harlan to meet them. And he took himeslf to task for that, in rather severe terms.

Do we all do that? Mental health is clearly a factor, but I think it’s not the only factor involved. Even creators without mental health issues face what Marvel used to call the Dreaded Deadline Doom.

I hold great rerevence for creators who methodically produce smart, impassioned work. As I discussed previously, I often hold the work in such reverence that I’m afraid to get it done. Sometimes that’s a conceit or an excuse. The deadline comes and you meet it (well, most of the time. I’ve missed more than a few, but made most).

I suspect that my truth is like that of many other creators. The Work is never as good as I aspire to it being, but it’s often better than I think it is.

I’ve been drawing, writing and teaching for so long. I hope to get The Big Work done while I still can. I will never be another Harlan Ellison, but that’s okay.

We’ve already got one, and I am forever grateful for that.

Thank you, Harlan.

Next: the work continues on both Inktober and Sharp Invitations. One or the other coming you way soon...

Original Art Sundays (Wednesday) no. 373: new Surrealist Cowgirls cover!

 In preparing a fresh edition of Surrealist Cowgirls for print for Autoptic, I found a preliminary for a different cover. I forgot I did this one, and I love it!

 

Nice. Just clean simple line art. I decided to use this one as a B  & W cover. It's very striking!

There will be four different Cowgirls covers available at Autoptic. I've posted the original and the Kevyn Lenagh version here before. This is the third. The fourth will be a sketch cover option. You can draw your own, or put me to work! While the Cowgirls have been in print before, this is a different compilation and the first time the work is available to the general public.

Autoptic is very close and I'm very excited. Looking forward to seeing you there!

Original Art Sundays No. 375: Surrealist Cowgirls Sheet Music Cover!

As my first Kickstarter continues (ten days left!), I'm working on new classes and plotting on the *BIG* graphic memoir, while I expand writing on a rekindled older project.

One of the items in the Surrealist Cowgirls book is sheet music for a ditty I composed as their theme.

Here's the B & W version of the sheet music cover.

I will add color to this and use it as the back cover for the book.

Lots of stuff here I like. Of course, my beloved Cowgirls. Maggie in a skirt, which we've never seen before. Homage to the vintage sheet music covers I adore so. I had some fun rendering the envirnonment, which I think is successful. The balloon sailing across the moon is a small homage to a neglected film, OZ the Great and Powerful, evoking my passion for all things Oz.

No need for an equipment list on this one. It's pretty much the same as last week's.

I plan to get the coloring done mid-week and will post it then. Expect something completely new in the next Original Art Sundays!

Kickstarter Follow-up 2: Surrealist Cowgirls, Kevyn Lenagh cover colored!

 HI all!

Took a couple minutes to add color to the alternative cover for my current Kickstarter.

I might play with the text a bit more. I like the Western feel of it, but I'm not sure it reads.  But overall, I'm very happy with this. I've had few other artists draw my beloved Cowgirls, and Kevyn's work charms me! Also, this is the first time I've colored Domino Chance!

Kickstarter follow-up: Kevyn Lenagh Cover!

 Quick follow up to yesterday's post.

The campaign started slow, but is picking up steam. One of the rewards is an alternative cover by Kevyn Lenagh. I just got the art a couple days ago and did some quick typography. 

The astute viewer will note the presence of Kevyn's iconic character Domino Chance!

It's in black and white right now, but I'm adding color. But hey, I really like the B & W!

Announcement: Kickstarter Make 100 Project

 HI all,

Just a quick announcement. My first Kickstarter, Make 100: Surrealist Cowgirls 80 Page Giant is live through the end of January.

Loyal readers are already familiar with the Cowgirls and know how much fun I have with them! I hope you take a look at the campaign and spread the word!

Original Art Sundays No. 295: Sharp Invitations: Curt, p. 26

 Hi, all. I hope you got something out of the little piece I did on 1/6 (arguably as important as 9/11, both days when our proud nation was attacked). We're back into it with a challenging page.

At the end of the last page, our heroine was evicted from hearth and home. Read on.

I may have made this page harder than it needed to be, but I'm fairly happy with the result. I played with numerous layout options before deciding on two tiers with exposition block in between. The one drawback is the last panel on tier one comes before the exposition. But I decided there was sufficient context to pull it off.

Strategic considerations: the challenge of land line phones! Though the first hand held independent phone unit was patented in France in 1917 (!), they weren't in common use until many years after the events chronicled here happened. So I used the old saw of phone cords and answering machines, hoping there is sufficient visual context for a modern reader. I also had the issue of showing a missing painting. I opted for a blank wall space with dotted outline. In reality, it didn't look anything like that. I know this page minimizes the impact of someone deliberately destroying family art, or some destroying art in general, but we must choose our moments in this drama. In the third panel, I used the conceit of popping in one of my favorite Surrealist Cowgirls characters. The area needed some weight, so I opted to have some fun with it. The weight in the bottom tier mostly comes from Photoshop patterns and fills. My emotional response to the suggestion that he would have me committed after we were married was not that drastic at the time. I was becoming convinced he was right about me. But I just LOVED Sara's response, just hanging up on him! He made 5 or 6 more calls not included in this page. Going into meticulous detail over such things would bog down the narrative.

The initial panel strategy for this page was so boring! Head shot, head shot, head shot.... blah... then I was re-reading the first run of Paul Chadwick's Concrete, and found a page of phone conversations that used some brilliant and simple visual devices (page 19 of The Complete Concrete). Inspired, I created new layouts for panels 3, 4, 6 and the text block, and popped them in using Photoshop. So this page took two full pages to do! I'm going to tweak a couple little things before this book goes to press, as we used to say.

Not as much pen and brush work as on some pages, but it's always about balance and doing what the page calls for.

Tools used:

• Canson Bristol (2 sheets)
• Nib holder and pen nibs
• Lead holder and no. 3B leads
• 4B graphite stick
• Magic Rub eraser
• Micron No. .02, .03, .05, .08, 1.0 and brush tip
• Tight Spot for corrections
• FW Artists White Acrylic 
• Doc Martin's Black Star Matte India Ink
• Photoshop. Mountains of Photoshop.
• Renaissance # 2 Sable Cats Tongue Brush

I picked up a few new tools while I was preparing for next semester's classes, and am eager for the next page, despite the dire place the story is going.

Original Art Sundays No. 289: Inktober, Week 3

Day

 Sigh. Next page is done except for cleanup and scanning, and I'm very proud of it. But I'm in grading Hell and don't want to take the two hours to run to MCAD and scan, so just to keep on posting schedule, here's the next week of Inktober. These will be old news to those who are with me on Facebook or Twitter, but I hope they give some pleasure anyway.

Day 15:

From the Surrealist Cowgirls, our old friend the floating whale mule Whalliam. I never get tired of drawing him, and this is iconic- the classic "HI" word balloon (he communicates by thinking one word at a time, always with a period, remember?), him floating on an abstract landscape, and the sun wearing shades, smiling down on him.

I miss the Cowgirls. It's been too long since I had a new story for them. Such a joy to create them!

Day 16:

A friend's labradoodle,  from photo reference.

On this and the above drawing, I did minimal cleanup. I liked the energy of the pencil marks, and the paper texture showing through on the image. These were just shots from my phone, not scans. I like the immediacy, though I would not take them to print for any major project.

 

Day 17:
When I was a wee tad, there was a Beatles cartoon series. MY mother didn't trust the Beatles' music until this series made them seem more innocuous, so the cartoon was my road in to my lifelong love of the Fab Four.

TV Guide ran an article on the series, including full figure illustrations of each of the boys. I copied those like crazy! I got particularly good at George, but decided to revisit John for this round.

Another quick sketchbook work with minimal cleanup. Just revisiting a childhood drawing joy.

Day 18:

I seldom do anything remotely resembling technical SF drawing. I like some of it, but it's just not where my strength lies. But since Inktober is about pushing yourself, and I had been diving into a re-viewing of the Battlestar Galactica remake, I decided it was Cylon time. 

Still quick, but I spent a little more time on this one. I love all the curvilinear aspects of the design. It's harsh and smooth at the same time. A bit more cleanup on this one too.

I sure got some mileage out of that small sketchbook this month!

Day 19:

I had a request to draw "a Seuss bird."

I spent some time enjoying vintage Seuss art and applied my own style to it.

Everything got curvy and soft in this one. Aside from a straightedge to draw the post, no mechanical tools at all. Another quick thing that was just fun to draw. I did a fair amount of cleanup on this one.

While my regular work is serious, bordering on grave, at times, I do get such joy from doing simple subjects.

Day 20:

Okay, very happy with this one!

I was getting irritated with me. I like the fast and loose drawings I'd been doing, but felt the need for something more... involved.

This is my interpretation of Jaeger from Carla Speed MacNeil's great work Finder.

Mostly a straight copy, but I did take a few small liberties to make it my own. More time on this one, with lots of cleanup and care.

Carla is doing a Patreon now, I guess. I just met her the one time, and found her vibrant and eager to share her work. When the funds are there, I will honor her Patreon and a couple others that are on my radar.

Day 21:

Another straight copy, this time the wonderful Neil the Horse from Katherine Collins!

Just cutting loose a bit. Pencils not removed.

As noted on the Rosa illustration previously posted, there's a misconception that funny animal books are somehow simple. Nothing could be less true. It takes a special technique to pull this stuff off, and Katherine is a master. I haven't talked with her for a couple years. Based on the Afterword in her Neil the Horse collection from Hermes Press (sadly, color covers not included), she went through a bit of a rough patch, but has endured.

Next: the new page, at last!

Original Art Sundays, No. 242: Queers and Comics Drink and Draw

After months of working two, sometimes three, jobs and dealing with writing assignments, I'm back in the art saddle, so to speak!
These illustrations happened as a result of my attending and participating in the Queers and Comics conference in San Francisco last weekend, which was possibly the best conference I've ever attended. In addition to my contributions to the Queers and Underground Comics and Trans Cartoonists Navigating the Industry panels being well received, I got to spend some time with old and dear friends, including Trina Robbins and Roberta Gregory, and make some unexpected new ones. The Queers and Undergrounds panel was satisfying in that I thought I had little to contribute compared to some of the luminaries on the panel, like Howard Cruse and Vaughn Fricke (with whom I later had a wonderful chat), but I held my own. And after the Trans panel, some folks asked where they could buy my books, so courtesy of the Dealer's Room, I sold come copies of Surrealist Cowgirls and the draft edition of Sharp Invitations.

The first night, Thursday, had an opening ceremony I passed on to share a couple drinks with my gracious host Noel in a Castro bar. However, I did attend an opening at Strut, a community health and wellness space for Gay, Bi, and Trans men that doubles as a gallery space.The opening of the work of Salvador Hernandez culminated in a Drink & Draw. The models were bears and leather boys. 

All the poses were short.

This was done before the poses had officially begun.
I was a bit apprehensive, as it's been a while since I've done live model drawing, but the key remains constant.
Remember the basics. Build the figure from the inside out, rather than trying to do an outline drawing. Looking around between sketches, I was surprised and dismayed to find so may artists trying to do an outline. The teacher in me wanted to take over, but I held myself back.
This was one of the most relaxed and easiest sketches. The subject sat relatively still for most of five minutes, enough to get a sense of mass and proportion and a sense of place.

The first official pose involved two models. This posed some foreshortening challenges, as one subject was prone while the other kneeled. I struggled with proportion issues on the feet for a while, then made the deliberate decision to concentrate on overall mass.
It was a special challenge to map lights and darks, since the light was gallery light- very bright and even, and offering few cast shadows! Still, something as simple as a hint of a cast shadow beneath a chair can do wonders in this arena.
As the note indicates, this was a 10 minute pose.
I wasn't particularly interested in facial expressions on these, but I did want to get a reasonably accurate sense of facial features and proportions.

This was part of the penultimate pose, another duo. I found the pose intriguing and the relative size variations of the two men a fun challenge.
I found myself losing my place in mapping the relative features and seemingly simple, yet not really so, proportions of the front and back gents. To try to remedy this, I went in with a brush tip marker and did some outlining in spot color. I think the decision to stick to one additional color was wise. Had I more time, I could have done some fun things with pushing background tones in both graphite and rust tones.
It should be mentioned that, aside from this one, these pieces are all done on marginal tooth sketchbook paper with #3 and #4 graphite pencils.
I was also the only person I saw using an eraser!
Please. It's not cheating to correct as you go. It's smart.
I took out quite a few construction lines, but elected to leave some in, as they add to the overall feel and energy of a piece sometimes.

The final pose of the evening was a complex interlocking of all the models- eight, I believe. The alternated facing front and back and linked arms behind the backs of the gent next to them.
I found this pose impossible. It was a fairly long pose, 15 minutes if memory serves, but I started three times and grew increasingly displeased with my results each time.
I made a deliberate decision to edit, and concentrated on a head shot of one of the leather men.
In retrospect, while this would have benefited from some background tone, I'm pretty happy with it as it is. There's a sense of confidence and repose in the face that I find very satisfying and reassuring. It's nice to end a session on a good note. While some might find it cheating to do a head shot in a figure drawing session, the reminder that this isn't a class applies to me too. The only people I'm answerable to in making my art are me and any clients/readers I may have.
Additionally, this is a good sketch, especially for the three minutes I took for it. Since photography was verboten during the session, you'll have to take my word that this is a reasonably accurate representation of the model's face.
At one point, I got frustrated by the barrage of testosterone I was drawing. This is not to disparage the models or the venue. I just wanted variety. At that point, I started drawing another artist, a young lesbian who was sitting directly across from me.

This is the first of two drawings I did of her. The second, which I liked much better, I gave to her. She left almost immediately after I did so!
When I saw her at the conference the next day, I apologized for my presumption and said I hoped I hadn't freaked her out. She replied no, she had to leave at that time as her girlfriend was picking her up. She added that both of them loved the drawing!
I'm very sad that this conference doesn't happen again for two years. I talked with one of the organizers, Jennifer Camper, about having one in the Midwest, ideally in Minneapolis. She opined that a smaller one might be a possibility. After watching her run about madly for three days, I could see her point. I still think it's a good idea. Not that I need another project, but I plan to bring this up to some friends and see if it goes anywhere.
Next new art: the anniversary sketch.

Original Art Sundays (Monday) No. 203: Rock History Sketches!

Posting a day late, largely due to working 50 + hours last week and again this week.
In a bit of a holding pattern over the next story, now that the most recent Surrealist Cowgirls story is complete. I did do a small print run of a Beta version of the comic for family & friends. It had a couple burps and blemishes, but I was still quite proud of it.
For this week, something light and a bit different.
As I believe I mentioned before, I was teaching History of Rock & Roll this semester. As the semester proceeded, I got in the habit of doing small sketches on the attendance sign-in sheets. Now that we're done, I've compiled them into one piece. Nothing fancy, none of these took more than a minute or so to execute- just quick ballpoint pen energy!
I've blurred out the student names, which makes for an okay background.

Again, just a fun thing. If I had considered compiling them in advance, I would have rendered some of them in the other orientation! I suppose I could have flipped them in Photoshop, but there's something disinengenuous about overworking doodles!

Next: I do have a smaller Cowgirls project that I've been poking at for a few months. Maybe it's time to finish and post that one. We'll see.

Original Art Sundays No. 202: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Bedtime Story, conclusion

As promised, the final page.
I feel like I've been telegraphing my punches on this story, but I hope someone is surprised by the ending!

The strange thing is that I picked the names Phoebe and Nicholas at random, and had no idea where the story was going when I started it. I just knew I had to use that image of the bird and the flame-headed dude and build a story around it.

I wanted the Phoenix image to reference Tezuka's work without aping it. I took select elements (wig span, body type, head feathers) and just drew her freehand.I think I got the effect I for which I was hoping!

This story has careened from hand text to digital text and back, here on the same page. The exposition inside the fairy tale is, for the most part, digital. I'm coming around to digital as a way to letter. It worked well on the story for the Russian comic, which is now out! But you have to be in Russia to read it. I'll post a link to the ordering page after I get my copies.

Not sure what happens from here. I have a germ of an idea for another Cowgirls story, but am toying with some other stuff as well.

Next: we'll see....

Original Art Sundays (Thursday) No. 201: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Bedtime Story, page 9

This was done by Sunday, but with classes ending today, I haven't had time to post.
The next page of the story is done, concluding the tale, and the final page will post on Sunday, December 21.
Here we go:

This layout is exactly what I wanted. In terms of the figures, I fudged a bit to get them laying down next to each other and still looking at the child. Also, the placement of the "dying names" word balloons was crucial.

Debated whether Phoebe and Nicholas' speeches were over the top, but when you're dying and have something to say, you just say it.

Sunday: the conclusion of this story.

Original Art Sundays (Monday) No. 200: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Fairy Tale, p. 8

Done on time, posting a day late. Still working too much! Getting the story done anyway.

Very simple, fast page. The intent is that the closed broken set of panels framed by the splash slow the time of the egg falling.
Phoebe's face can be seen either as a death mask expression or her staring in horror at the fallen egg. While the original intent was the former, I elected to leave it ambiguous, rather than adding a  few lines to clarify. 
One, possibly two pages left to this story. If my other plans are to be fruitful, this must be done this week.

Original Art Sundays no. 199: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Fairytale, p. 7

As promised, here's the next page of the story!

Blogger continues to give me problems uploading, but I've found a work-around, so not an immediate issue. As to the page itself, an inevitable plot development. I've told a couple friends the whole story, and when I get to this part, they're really shocked. It made me sad to do the page, but not so much, as I knew there was no choice for the story to resolve as planned. Still one little plot point I'm ironing out for the final pages.
Craft notes: a simple page once again. That seems to be my favorite way of working, simple and fast. I do like detail pages, but they seldom turn out as I hoped. This one is Copic markers and Proart heavy, thick India ink for the spotted blacks.
Next week (next month, same thing): page 8.

Original Art Sundays (Saturday) No. 198: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Fairytale, p.6

For some reason, I've had incredible issues with posting. See below for screed!
But here's the next page. The following page will post tomorrow, Sunday, November 30.

Sigh. Okay, numerous issues delayed this, mostly time and my own stubbornness. I really wanted to post the rest of the story all at once, but that proved impractical. The story is so close to done I can taste it. And I want to finish up a big batch of Cowgirls stuff in the next two weeks- no mean feat as I work 30 - 50 hours a week, not counting teaching and end of the semester testing and grading! Whew!
But it's time for this project to come together, at least in a Beta version.
Now thoughts on this page.
I like the top tier a lot. Simple and to the point. I really fought with the war panel. I'm very unhappy with it as it is. It has incredible energy but no focus. I'd like to rework it, but I'm still intimidated by the prospect of showing a whole war in one panel! I'm drawing inspiration from EC war comics and a recent reading of the Harlem Hellfighters graphic novel, which impressed me a great deal.
Still, the work and the joy of the Cowgirls continues. So close... so close...

Original Art Sundays No. 197: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Fairytale, p. 5

Well, posting on schedule!
Before I break my arm patting myself on the back, let's get right to the page.

 This is the page that sat fully done on the side of the board for weeks, while I completed the story posted last week (to be published in the Russian language!). I'm happy to be back at this story, which means a lot to me. It started out as something trivial, a bit of fun using a childhood creation (the flaming people), but it's become something more. Not sure if it's two or three more pages.

On this page, I wanted to convey a contrast between the peace Phoebe and Nicholas are enjoying and the impending chaos caused by their spontaneous absence. The background in Panel One is freely swiped from the Joni Mitchell For the Roses album cover. I'm still using the same technique for the borders- a fine ruled line with a freehand line over it for texture. It's not appropriate for every story, but I like it for this one!

I'm considering getting a set of word balloons from our friends at ComicCraft. As discussed last week, I like the idea of variety in them. While my hand rendered balloons, such as those on this page, are adequate, there are times when a more, shall we say, honed style is right for the page.

That's the key: what's right for the page. Sometimes digital lettering and precise balloons are out of place in a freely rendered page, as some of mine are.

Next: page 6 of the fairy tale.

Original Art Sundays: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Bedtime Story, p. 4

Well, I don't know how I did it, with another 45 hour work week and prep for teaching next week, but here's the next page!
Mostly very happy with this one. I want to do some photos and some serious mechanical drawing next time I do a restaurant scene. This is okay, but I'd like to do one that's stunning. Possibly in more of a "real people" story....
This was done in Copic ink markers. I did invest in some new brushes, but I want to make time to practice with them before using them on a page. And while markers do lend themselves to speed, these feel like ink and have very little fade to them.
The page:

Again, scanned in tiers in the interests of time. Rescan is mandated before going to press.

When working on the last panel, I kept thinking about the Mary Jane and Sniffles stories from the 1940s, with Walt Kelly-ish art from Al Hubbard. These stories, upon which I occasionally stumbled in my comic reading youth, have long enchanted me and are long overdue for a collection! Here's a sample page:
So elegant, so imaginative!
Next: page 5. Despite my original script, this is shaping up to be a 6 or 7 page story. I'm very eager to see this one completed. I think it's a really strong story, something I seldom say about my own work.

Original Art Sundays No. 188: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Bedtime Story, p.3

Again, page done on time, but extra work at the day gig created delays in posting. Still, the story goes well. Here's the next page.

Light on text this time, trying to let the story speak for itself a bit more. Clearly a love story, but I hope the turns of events offer some surprises!
Very light Photoshop on this one- just levels and cleaning up some errant marks. I invested in some new brushes this week, and am eager to break them in. This page is entirely brush tip markers, but I'll use some inks on Page 4.
Reviewed past pages in the process of scanning this. I'm much happier with the Cowgirls stuff as a whole than I am with the pages individually, if that makes any sense.
Next week: page 4!

Original Art Sundays No. 187: Maggie's Bedtime Story, p.2

Back again! So many weeks of overtime, along with having a very stubborn creative block on this relatively simple page.
Ah, well. Bitch, bitch, bitch, that's all I am.
I have a very clear vision of this story now, and have it mapped out. I did the first page with no idea where it was going.
Here's page two.

A couple details to resolve, notably the scanner shadow on the left of the last panel. My hand lettering on this page was strictly from hunger, very, very bad, so I reworked it digitally. 

The name "firedrake"is a German mythological term that I first encountered in Alan Moore's Miracleman. I use it here as homage to Moore, because I like the sound of it, and because the mythic overtones figure prominently into the overall story.

The firedrakes are modeled on a tribe I designed in seventh grade, based on the then-new handheld disposable cigarette lighters. I had all these wild nonsense stories of these flame-headed Native Americans running around saving stupid white people from their own folly. The white people, of course, were afraid of them. I never carried these stories to the inevitable conclusion of the white idiots killing off the cigarette lighter people. The last one of those stories I did was about the Lighter Tribe encountering a rock band called The Antz. Maybe I'll see if I can still draw The Antz, and add a sketch to next week's art offering for fun.

This story has three more pages to run. Look for the next page in this space in 168 hours or so!

Original Art Sundays (Tuesday) No. 183: Surrealist Cowgirls: Maggie's Bedtime Story, p.1

Posting a couple days late this week, only because of working extra and not having time to complete the page.
First page of a new story. Haven't mapped it in detail yet, but it will probably be 6 or 7 pages when completed.
I'm going for a kind of dreamy feel on this one. Lost of things on this page I like. The environment in the first panel works well. I think Maggie's "sick hair" in Panel 3 is effective.
Maggie is usually the one who's more serious and together. In most of the Surrealist Cowgirls stories to date, she's been the caretaker when one's been needed. Like most people who give aid, she's not all that good at receiving it! It's also an opportunity for Louise to show there's more to her than her sporadic "ditz" role.
Constructing the bid and fire villages was fun. Birdhouses: well, that's obvious. But the firehouses are always burning, which will be made more clear later in the story.

A few technical issues remain. I will rescan before going to press.
Next: either page two, or that four-page thing I'm doing on the side.