STS-45: Redesigns

Through the comic, we've reached a few points where I've come to realize that a particular character design just isn't working, or needs to change to fit where the story is.

Aram got a complete redesign between issue 0 and 1.  His original costume was too garish and all over the place.  When the comic headed in a more grounded direction, he needed a more unified and realistic wardrobe.  So he went from some weird Korean/caveman combo to barefoot Frontiersman.

At the same time, Nika got tweaked a little.  Her gypsy skirts were replaced with a heavy wool skirt and thick belt, her ballet-inspired slippers became baggy boots, we cut off her long ponytail to give her a rough charm (and to remove the genie semblance), and added a long necklace to give back some girliness. 

Seren went from long hair to short at the same time, and upgraded her knives.  But her haircut was not a redesign.  It was something she did herself, off camera, probably with one of her daggers.  In a perfect world, all the other character changes would not have needed to happen, and Seren's own subtle change would be more unique.

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Lately, Marguerite's design just hasn't been working for me.  She seems out of place, even for a mystical creature.  My main concern was to make her look more resilient.  While I loved her original design, I felt she needed more coverage up top, and more weight in her outfit below to balance the design and allow the loose fabric of her dress to really pop.  And real shoes.  No one, no matter how magical, should have to trek across the countryside in dress sandals.

So from left to right: First we have Marguerite's original design, by Karen Ledford of Melfina Cosplay.  Second is our concept for her, though in the comic I never put the necklace and I pinched her waist more and lengthened the dress.  Last is the new design that will pop up next issue. (hah!  And I didn't notice until now that I put her in the same pose as Karen did!)

It was a challenge to stay true to the silhouette and colors balance of the original.  I also had to make sure I wasn't repeating design elements inherent in the other characters' outfits, so cap sleeves, loose sleeves, and longer gloves were not an option.  The boot covers are a favorite of mine that I've been itching to use, and keep the boots from being too Sailor Moon.

STS-44: Alternate Of Stars and Swords Page

Alright. Due to sickness, we had no Of Stars and Swords update this week. It's the first week we've failed to update since launching, and it bothered us both a great deal, but it was the best decision. Caroline, especially, has needed the time to recover from whatever hell we both managed to catch.

But it's Wednesday and I feel wrong not putting SOMETHING online for people to enjoy. So I've got something for you all, and I like to call it the reason why we don't let Caroline do the writing...or, alternatively, the reason why we should have her doing all the writing.

Below is the version of last week's page that Caroline gave me to letter. These days, she always does some flatting before I get the page, so color of various kinds is not out of the ordinary. But for this, she decided that she would put in her own words...



Just in case it wasn't obvious from the text and the color choices, Caroline enjoys turtles.

STS-43: Scifi Comic Preview - Character Lineup

Hey, everyone!

Over the past few months, I've been working on putting together a scifi comic to run alongside Of Stars and Swords. Plans are being made, scripts are getting finished, and art is even starting to come together! A couple of months back we showed off some headshots for the characters, but initial designs can only go so far.

Alongside starting on the initial pages, I recently put together a full lineup of the main characters. Caroline helped me tweak them to get things just right, and afterwards she inked the piece. So here's a look at the main cast. Should have a color version to come relatively soon, handled by Caroline of course. As usual, click to see a slightly bigger version!

STS-42: OSAS Splash Page Layout

Hey, everyone! Last week's Of Stars and Swords page was a big splash page that Caroline nearly killed her hand and eyes on. It's only fair to give you a look at the layout she put together, since this is one of the rare times she put together every step of the art. So here's her layout sketches which you can compare with the actual page by clicking this link!

STS-41: OSAS Horse Studies

Hello again! So this week's Of Stars and Swords page is full of horses! Before getting going on the page, though, Caroline did a bunch of studies and sketches on the layouts we put together. And here they are for you to enjoy, along with another look at how the layout for this page began to compare against where it ended up!

STS-40: OSAS Colors

Hey, everyone. I know we're quiet here, but that's only because Caroline and I are hard at work on Of Stars and Swords! We also just launched a Prose based side project for the webcomic, featuring its own story in the same world, if that's your kind of thing! And in addition to all of that, there's more prep and work going on for the long-talked-about Scifi comic. Not to mention random sketches, ideas for some prints, and other things that you're likely to see here as they get done. So yes, we're busy!

But I've got the perfect thing for this blog today. Caroline's been coloring the Of Stars and Swords pages just a bit differently lately. Trying some different ways to simplify what she does and still be comfortable with it. And then I threw Page 4 of Issue 2 of the comic at her. It's a travel montage, with five completely different scenes on one page. That is not at all easy, and Caroline really worked hard to make them all work individually.

So here, for your eyes, is the entire page minus those pesky letters I feel compelled to cover up all her careful shading with!

Slightly larger version on deviantart: http://seriousturtle.deviantart.com/art/OSAS-I2-P4-Colored-322742395

STS-39: Scifi Comic Preview - Headshots

Hey, everyone! We've been a little quiet on the blog due to chugging along on Of Stars and Swords. Hope you're reading and enjoying it, but this post is about another project we're working on.

Unlike Of Stars and Swords, I'll be handling the heavy lifting on the art, with Caroline only inking me and doing some basic colors (unless the plan changes on that end). So that means I've been spending a lot of time forcing my own art skills back into shape. It's rough, and I'm getting quite a lot of assistance from Caroline to have work that's actually presentable, but it's finally paying off.

So as a little preview of things, here are the headshots of four major characters for an upcoming Science Fiction comic. I'm in the process of putting together an 8 page short comic to get this off the ground, and the pencils on that should start coming along soon. After that, a full launch is to come!