Hey! It’s the Monday Blog…on TUESDAY! That’s just crazy!
I wasn’t feeling particularly bloggy yesterday so I played hooky. But I’m back this morning…at 5:30 am…My cat decided that she wanted to go outside and she wasn’t going to let me sleep until she got to go outside. I love sleeping and when I get woken up a full hour and a half before I have to wake up…well let’s just say I’m not feeling particularly cheerful this morning. My vision’s a little blurry as my eyes are having a hard time focusing this morning. Fun stuff.
This weekend, I finally finished writing the Deema’s Poppa storyline. It’s set to conclude on August 8th. That’s nearly 3 months for a storyline I somehow thought I could fit into a month and a half. Oh silly me! Anyway, I’ve only got two one-shot gags before I dive right into the next storyline which I estimate will last at least two months. (I’ll find it pretty funny if it concludes in less time considering how short I thought Deema’s Poppa was going to be).
The original plan was for the next storyline to be a big summer adventure. Strictly speaking, summer will be halfway over before it even begins and it’ll take a couple of weeks for things to get rolling, so it’s looking more like a fall adventure.
The last two weeks have featured the cast sitting around the dinner table. That made for some crowded shots in some panels. I’m glad that Manga Studio allows for moving layers around so I can maximize the exposure of each character.
I’ve noticed that I’m favoring thicker brushes when drawing. I used to use the .5 mm brush almost exclusively. Now I try to use the 1mm brush as much as possible. It works well for a close-up panel with two characters. More than that, I shift down to a .8mm. The .5mm is still useful for full-body panels with several characters. Whatever brush I’m using, I normally have to shift down a size when drawing Zoë because she’s just so much smaller.
I’ve been having trouble drawing smooth curves lately. If I don’t zoom in as close as possible, I have a lot of trouble drawing Deema’s and Barnaby’s heads which are full ovals. Maybe I just need to change the nib on my pen. I’ve been hesitant to actually change the nib, because I’m worried about what it means if I do and my curves don’t improve. Well, I’m biting the bullet and changing my nib as we speak. We’ll see what happens.
Okay, that’s all for now. Have a good week folks!