Saturday, May 16, 2020

Original Art Sundays (Saturday) No. 277: Sharp Invitation Third, preview page

Hi all!
I've actually had this little ditty done for a couple weeks. Now that the semester's over (but grading isn't *cough*), I have time and focus to post.
Focus has been challenging due to COVID as well. My work in health care has taken on added challenges, compounded by welcome yet daunting promotion.
I decided to take a break from the Curt story and start the story that comes right before it, the story of my actual surgery. It's very short and quiet, planned as 4 or 5 pages, and serves as a prelude to the Curt stuff.
sidebar: I have rewritten the ending of the book entirely. It's a new 14 page story. So much before we get there.
In doing this book, I'm trying to avoid cliches whenever possible, but some are real events in my life, so I can't - won't - leave them out. One of the cliches is surgery.
It's considered gauche in some trans circles now to even talk about surgery, as it implies some kind of hierarchy. I have been guilty of this in the past, but I hope I don't do that any more, and that's not my intent here. I just want to relate how it happened,  how little, and how big, it was.
This preview page is one of those one-off light gag strips - four panels, just printer paper, soft lead holder, ballpoint pen, eraser and a bit of Photoshop. Simple, fast, bordering on crude.
When this conversation happened in the so-called real world, we both busted out laughing. My dry reaction here? It seemed right when I did the page, so I'm sticking with it.
Next: More of this story, bit more serious and introspective.