Posting on Monday this week. I wanted to take the time to make this a double header. Not only is it a crucial moment in the story, but it's post # 300! Something of a milestone that leads me to reflect on my art, my goals and the evolution of my process.
When we left our happy couple, they were in the throes of a very tentative idyllic domestic bliss. Here's what happened next.
That's the way domestic abuse goes. Everything can seem just peachy,
and some innocent thing, like a phone ringing, can detonate an
explosion. No overt trans content in this part of the narrative.
The backgrounds on p. 39 are tentative but serviceable. I put in a wash background on the first panel, used an old school marker on the third, and blended them out in Photoshop.
I got excited with a couple things on these pages. The
last panel of p. 39 is influenced by Alan Davis' work on Miracleman
issue 3, page 21, last panel. I got all brave inking this one with just
one brush, and was very satisfied with the results. Some Kirby special
effects were modified after the fact in Photoshop. The poses reflect the characters' emotional state, a lesson I took to heart from Archie Comics artist Harry Lucey.
The splash page was such fun! A few weeks ago, I was intrigued by an accidental ink smear and the energy the effect gave. I wanted to to incorporate it into this story, and this seemed the perfect opportunity. To get the effect, I used Frisket to mask out a pencil illustration, then masked the live area border. I used a slip sheet to cover the text area, went in with my favorite ink and a big #8 angle brush, let it dry and then just lifted the Frisket. The Frisket is applied using either a brush pre-treated with dish soap, or with adjustable nib ruling pens. This process requires patience. Everything has to dry and fully set up before moving on to the next page. I love this process and will use it again where it serves the story.
The crucial question is always what goes in and what stays out. Editing, especially in your own work, is a three step process: selection, combination and elimination. I love intricate and detailed comic work. But more and more, I find I'm working by Alex Toth's mantra.
I'm very excited that this chapter is so close to resolution. This is the trick middle of the book. Most of the first third is done, and the aftermath of this chapter and the story resolution remain. I greatly appreciate my readers sticking around for this journey!
Tools used on these pages:
- Canson Bristol Board
- Triangle and T-Square, Ames lettering guide, masking tape, slipsheet (printer paper)
- 3B Derwent Pencil, tech pencil
- Inkwell dish
- Ballpoint pen
- Pen nib and holder
- Microns: .02, .03, .05, .08, 1.0 and brush tip
- Prismacolor marker gray 50%
- Dish soap
- Adjustable nib ruling pen
- Faber-Castell plastic eraser
- Dr. Martin's Black Magic Ink
- FW Acrylic White
- Dr. Martin's Acrylic Frisket
- Rubber Cement Pickup
- Brushes: Kingart Round 04, 06 & 08, Grumbacher Flat 02, Royal Synthetic Flat Angle 08, Princeton 10 round, Blick 02 & 06 round
Next: it gets more intense.
