Gone Fishing 9

It's been a while...

Things have been happening but not so much on Gone Fishing. I am 25 pages into 40 so the end is in sight and the main monsters have been introduced: the werefishmenthingos!

Gone Fishing 8

While I do like doing covers I thought that this time I'd get some one else to do it. My good friend Shintaro Marky seemed the obvious choice. Here are a couple of his process sketches. As this next book will have 2 stories I've been thinking about publishing them back to back as in, you read one story, turn the book over and upside down, and read the next.

Gone Fishing 7

As I've moved along through this crazy world of art I've come to realize that white out is your friend and just as much a drawing tool as an erasing tool. I use white out over white paint or ink primarily because it's faster but also because it suits my style. I am intending to get the gouache and sponge out later on, though.

Zarjaz

I have been lucky enough to get to do a Dredd strip for English 2000AD fanzine Zarjaz. The script was by Karl Stock and should be coming out Oct/Nov.

Here are some sample panels:

Gone Fishing 6

Another page - in progress.

Some Fishing

Script Editing

Being a creator I'm at liberty, at anytime, to change the script. Which is good in my case as I never start drawing with a complete and concrete script. My process is one that goes back and forth. I have all the dialogue and action down but I don't have the pacing. I work out the pacing as I thumbnail. I have rough page breaks but with all the mucking around I do I can go from 40 pages to 48 or to 36. I constantly edit and revise the action. I hope I get a better product because of this.

Here is an example of some pages of script that I mucked about with.

The above sequence was edited down into the page below and then changed some more. More changes are likely to occur as I draw these pages. What works in a thumbnail doesn't always transfer to the page. Also as I write for myself and I know what's going on, to save time I write the barest directions.

Old Comics

With much prompting I have decided to post up my old comics online! Starting from the mid 90's eventually ending I don't know when. Check it out http://tomboninsoldcomics.tumblr.com/

A crab.

Some more fishing and a distraction

Work progresses on the next Dicks story 'Gone Fishing' with these rough inks. Strange fish, giant spider crabs what could be in store for our undead heroes?

Also, here's a distraction inspired by Bisley.

Gone Fishing

Gone Fishing is the title of my new Dicks comic coming out through Milk Shadow. Here is the first page.

More Dredd

Some more fun with Dredd.

Dredd is aging and is around 70 years old but he still has to look strong taught rather than soft and flabby. Not an easy thing to do. I don't think I made him look his age, though in 100 years or more a 70 year old may look 55.

He-Man's Blood

A bit of fun with Skeletor.

Time for more Dicks

It's been a couple of years now but I am finally ready to embark on a another Dicks adventure. The story is called Gone Fishing and involves monsters (what a surprise). In preparation I've been doing a few sketches...

I'm trying out new techniques and working in a way that is more fluid. By which I mean more natural to the way I sketch. Only the first drawing had any preliminary pencilling so the final pages will be tighter than these sketches.

Over most of my career as a comic artist I feel I've not really been true to myself, trying to achieve a style that doesn't come naturally. I've learnt a lot from doing that but I've always felt that my work never quite got there, always fell short. I hope this new old approach will work out.

An Article

A little article about me and comics in the local rag.

Old Killeroo Pinup

Having a little rummage through my old work I dug up this piece from 2 years ago.

The List goes Amazonian

The List is now on Amazon! All of you who haven't bought a copy click here and get one now.

This little comic has been the writer Paul Bedford's baby for many years now. Paul showed me the preview way back in 2006 since then over 150 pages, 3 volumes and a complete GN have hit the stands all over the world! Paul has also just been commissioned to turn it into a screenplay. So say you were there first and get your copy today!

2000AD Submission

I've just sent off my third submission to 2000AD. My first was exactly 10 years ago. I hope that in that time I have improved and addressed the problems they identified and that it will be enough to get me that first contract.

I realise there's a flaw in the submission process in that (as I understand it) editors are looking for reliability as well as talent. You can't prove reliability in a submission and talent... well, that's up to them. The best you can do is as soon as you get rejected is submit again.

Anyway. Quite a while ago now I read through the submission guidelines and it seemed that this time they wanted submissions like the Americans do with pencils, inks etc. I found this strange as 2000AD doesn't often break up the art process with usually just a writer, artist and letterer. Anyway, I had been told previously by Mark Chiarello, in showing him my work, that I was a penciller not an inker. So having had several rejections as an inker I thought I'd try my luck and submit pencils. On completing the pencils (to a script they supplied) I looked up the sub guidelines again and found that they had changed back to completed art. Bummer.

I don't usually do much pencilling because I feel stifled when appling the inks and my work ends up stiff and lifeless. I didn't feel like starting all over again as I had other things to get on with so I inked over the pencils and I'm not displeased with the result. Things definitely would have turned out differently going about things the usual way but one always learns thing doing things differently.

You be the judge.

Holed Up written by Richard McTighe can be found and downloaded here and is a fantastic little script.

And now the inks.

Some More Doodles

A couple of drawings to stop me going crazy whilst working on other projects.

These were done quickly without any penciling just for fun. I may end up reworking them but they are what they are. I used just one nib for each of these drawings.

This one did the top drawing (bad photos I know). and the nib underneath did the Dredd drawing.

Computer Killeroo

Here's a pic I did a while ago of the infamous marsupial Killeroo. He was drawn on the computer in Corbenesque style. I had been thinking about doing my penciling on the computer to maybe streamline my process and not dowse my page in graphite. I then decided I might as well ink it. The result is ok (though I can see lots of faults now. the idea was to be able to see and rectify faults more easily) but I didn't like the detached nature of using the wacom. One day I might be able to afford a cintiq...

Flinch Review

Though Flinch is getting on a new review has popped up. Read it here.

Lego porn

Last year I spent a few months with my son making all the lego sets (that I could recognise) in our collection. It comprises of my old collection, the new sets we've bought and several secondhand bulk buys and ebay purchases.

The collection.

The new stuff...

 The secondhand stuff...

The old stuff...

The Bionicles - secondhand and new (plus a creator dragon - new)...

The left overs...

Some More Colour

I've recently been trying to get a hold of this colour thing. I do alright with traditional mediums but using them the way I do to colour line art is a fiddly and annoying process. So I'm having a go with the computer. Here are the latest pieces with line art and variations.

These are entries for the OzComic challenge. First Lobo:

And then Ironman:

With this next one I put a waterfall over the background to add some texture.

And a nice night sky for this one.

I just realised I should extend the blast from his left hand down to the bottom of the page. I'll post an amendment soon but you get the picture.

Some of my other attempts at colour can be found here, here and here.