Comic Genesis Forums

Hi Bryan!
Your little side rant.. (ha! Little my ASS! ) almost made me cry.
The Rich Rock is such a CUTE idea! I want cute, loving little kids like you were!!!!! ^^*

I wrote down the numbers,.. and when I turn 18 I think I might use them for my first ticket, do you (and your mom?) mind? They'd be for Canada's Super 7 (which means I'd have to add a 7th number in there... 7!) If you don't want me to, that's cool. I'll use Biblical numbers! (It worked for some woman in the Maritimes on TV!)

Anyways.. Yeah! So cute! *hugs*

And...
You said "...that my lovingly fast-food cultured brain is frequently hard to start up when I want to draw more, and I end up procrastinating before the long and enduring task of making one single page; SOC is a grueling piece to draw!"
I know exactly how you feel. I often feel like that with Thermalyte, and even with J-Force, which is still only in the EARLY PRE-Production process right now. I mean.. I don't even have my 3 main characters! Joy, the girl.. I know how I want her to look, and I like her name.. Then there's to be two guys.. I think I know how I want one of them to look.. But I haven't got a name for either of them. I have a basic plot and the first few strips vaguely floating around my mind.. but that's it.

And for a while.. (a long while, actually) I DID have the first page of Pelolos: Death and Rebirth in my head.. but now I kinda forget it, so it's not as funny. Besides, I had NO idea what to do after that, and you didn't even finish ACR yet! (ie: I'm waiting! *taps foot like sonic* ^_~)

I am so WAAAAAAY behind with Thermalyte.. She should have been in SPACE by now... *sigh*
And I'm also far enough behind with Nafta. I'm a horrible lazy-assed bitch!


And last week, I was reading some of your SoC archives, and I came across one of your rants where you said "Christine CAN draw! I know she knows I know it!" Or something like that. And that put me into a depression for most of that day. I was really sad, thinking.. "No.. I can't. I suck SOOOO terribly!" But not just 'cause of my artwork, but 'cause my lack of persistance, determination, artwork, character definition, sureness, and the fact that at THAT time, I lost my will to draw! (Aaaah! How horrible!) It's passed, now. And I feel better about my art now.. but some of the rest of that list still stands. (like lack of motivation)

Yesterday, I had the sudden URGE to draw up some Thermalyte pages! (YAY!) but I couldn't, 'cause I still wasn't done the CoL strip yet.
And if you look at it, you can SEE why I think I can't draw.. CAN'T YOU?
(Although, I really do like my last two "frames" with all the blood. Hehe. ^_~)

So, yeah.

I hear ya.
Just keep at it, 'cause I personally think that YOU ROCK, and your art and storytelling ability is FABULOUS, possibly the best out there.
And you know that Pelolos: PTEMAI- ACR is STILL my favourite online manga out there, right?

You have such GUSTO! Such UNQUIVERING hands! (er.. faith!)
And a wonderful stick-to-it-ive-ness!
And I admire you for that!

(and WHOA, can you COLOUR! Teach me, oh Bry-sama! PLEASE!)

YOU HAVE WHAT'S KNOWN AS A RICH HEART!

YF,
Christine the AC

Oh! And I check forums Waaaaaaay too often, too.
(especially Nafta's right now)...

-AC

AnimeCanuck wrote: Hi Bryan!
Your little side rant.. (ha! Little my ASS! ) almost made me cry.
The Rich Rock is such a CUTE idea! I want cute, loving little kids like you were!!!!! ^^*

Kids are very very adorable. And it's scary how they seem to know a whole lot about people. Everyone should think about when they were kid. Yes we did stupid things, but we also did some good things, and sometimes it takes a little thought and a little excavation to find them. My propensity to include "return to innocence" themes in my comics will reappear in SoC's 5th episode a bit.

I wrote down the numbers,.. and when I turn 18 I think I might use them for my first ticket, do you (and your mom?) mind? They'd be for Canada's Super 7 (which means I'd have to add a 7th number in there... 7!) If you don't want me to, that's cool. I'll use Biblical numbers! (It worked for some woman in the Maritimes on TV!)

No, I don't mind at all. My mom doesn't know, but I'm sure she wouldn't mind. Go hog wild with those numbers. But if you win big, you have to buy me the Tenchi Muyo perfect collection.

Anyways.. Yeah! So cute! *hugs*

And...
You said "...that my lovingly fast-food cultured brain is frequently hard to start up when I want to draw more, and I end up procrastinating before the long and enduring task of making one single page; SOC is a grueling piece to draw!"
I know exactly how you feel. I often feel like that with Thermalyte, and even with J-Force, which is still only in the EARLY PRE-Production process right now. I mean.. I don't even have my 3 main characters!

It's really hard for people nowadays to stick to a large task at hand. Sometimes it is because we don't like what we're doing. I wonder how we figure out whether that's what it is or if we're just really lazy. But I am confident you have a passion for drawing. I think everything has phases where we feel to tired to go through with it; sometimes we need breaks. Sometimes just have fun with drawing. Every so often I like to just draw stupid random things just for fun. I should actually be doing that more; it encourages creativity.

Joy, the girl.. I know how I want her to look, and I like her name.. Then there's to be two guys.. I think I know how I want one of them to look.. But I haven't got a name for either of them. I have a basic plot and the first few strips vaguely floating around my mind.. but that's it.

That sounds good. As I've said before, incubation is a wonderful thing to do before taking on a big project. Because if incubation proves fruitful, it probably means you truly want to do it. The latest comics I am doing and planning are basically the ones that haven't left my mind after all these months. LNSD is in need of tons more planning before I start, but I do want to start soon.

And for a while.. (a long while, actually) I DID have the first page of Pelolos: Death and Rebirth in my head.. but now I kinda forget it, so it's not as funny. Besides, I had NO idea what to do after that, and you didn't even finish ACR yet! (ie: I'm waiting! *taps foot like sonic* ^_~)

I know..actually, I've been drawing Pelolos quite a bit lately. I'm almost near the end. Don't worry. It'll end soon.

I am so WAAAAAAY behind with Thermalyte.. She should have been in SPACE by now... *sigh*
And I'm also far enough behind with Nafta. I'm a horrible lazy-assed bitch!

Wow, that's a lot of harsh words to describe yourself. Have more confidence, hon!

And last week, I was reading some of your SoC archives, and I came across one of your rants where you said "Christine CAN draw! I know she knows I know it!" Or something like that. And that put me into a depression for most of that day. I was really sad, thinking.. "No.. I can't. I suck SOOOO terribly!" But not just 'cause of my artwork, but 'cause my lack of persistance, determination, artwork, character definition, sureness, and the fact that at THAT time, I lost my will to draw! (Aaaah! How horrible!) It's passed, now. And I feel better about my art now.. but some of the rest of that list still stands. (like lack of motivation)

I wish I knew a way to motivate you to draw. If I did, I would. But everyone is different, and they get motivated to draw in slightly different ways. Part of my motivation to draw is that I want to see things , ideas I have manifest themselves. Even all these crazy ideas I come up with for Couches of Love stem from all these different things I want to try out artistically. Learning is definitely one fun part about drawing, as it is to see the final product.

I also wish I was more motivated at times; but I guess now that I'm doing 3 comics simultaneously, I'm not doing too bad. Still, I wish to do more, learn more effectively, improve faster. Anyway, motivation is something that is really interesting and elusive to me; if you have any ideas, let me know!

Yesterday, I had the sudden URGE to draw up some Thermalyte pages! (YAY!) but I couldn't, 'cause I still wasn't done the CoL strip yet.
And if you look at it, you can SEE why I think I can't draw.. CAN'T YOU?
(Although, I really do like my last two "frames" with all the blood. Hehe. ^_~)
So, yeah.

Well, what I can see from your last page, that it's not that you can't draw, but it doesn't seem you are spending as much time as you'd want on the details. I don't know how long it takes you to do one page, but for me, one page of COL or even SOC takes up to 8 hours. 8 hours is one heck of a long time - to get the most from it, I make sure I'm always learning how to do something. Trust me, I draw very very slowly. And COL is supposed to be a "side thing" for me, and now I'm spending almost as much time on it as I am with SOC, and definitely more time on it than Pelolos and LNSD combined. My advice is make some goals that you want to achieve in your page (artistic goals), and hopefully that will get you motivated. Then spend 8 hours on it. Of course I can't expect you to do that because you are a busy person. But if you do, and you still don't like what you see, then I'll see what I can do.

I hear ya.
Just keep at it, 'cause I personally think that YOU ROCK, and your art and storytelling ability is FABULOUS, possibly the best out there.
And you know that Pelolos: PTEMAI- ACR is STILL my favourite online manga out there, right?

You are much too kind. And I know that ACR's still your favorite. Hey, after I finish, I want you to do something: look at the first few pages and then the last few pages. That's three years of my life to improve! And I think I did quite a bit. Those first drawings look totally weird to me.

You have such GUSTO! Such UNQUIVERING hands! (er.. faith!)
And a wonderful stick-to-it-ive-ness!
And I admire you for that!

Oh, I've got quivering hands. That's what photoshop's for, to fix it

(and WHOA, can you COLOUR! Teach me, oh Bry-sama! PLEASE!)

That's why you got eyes, sweetheart! Sure, feel free to ask me for advice, tho' I think I'm no pro at coloring.

YOU HAVE WHAT'S KNOWN AS A RICH HEART!

You know how to color my face red. Thanks for the kind words.

YAY!!! Pelolos is almost done!? ^_^ (wait.. why am I so happy about this? I should be sad! It's ending! ... I guess it's 'cause there will finally be more strips to read... ^_____^)

You want me to look for your improvement? Okay! ^^ I'll do that for ya, buddy!

Please DO tell me how you colour. It's sooooo amazing! Especially the Zeila frame of your last Nafta strip... How did you do that neat design thing on her top AND the background and stuff?
SOooo cool!


I guess what I meant to say up there, is that when you draw, you put your heart into it. I don't. Well, I do.. but I don't put much heart into it (usually)...

But you... YOU PUT YOUR WHOLE HEART into it! And that's REALLY ADMIRABLE!!

So, yeah.



And 8 hours!!!? (well.. yeah.. I can see that in your stuff... *sigh*)
Whoa! For my Nafta parodies, I was spending an hour to 2 hours on them. All inclusive Photoshop 6 from beginning to end.

I dunno how much time I spent on last weeks strip. At least 3 hours, I'd say. But Hmmm..
Okay.. I guess I'll HAVE to spend 8 hours on this week's strip! ... Or.. At least 6.. (I don't think I have that kind of time, if you know what I mean..)
This week.... Coloured Pencils!!!!!
Markers were fun.. and GREAT for the blood effect.. (heh. ^_^) But the colours weren't exactly quite like how I would have liked them.

I hope I do an EXCELLENT job this time...
And STUMP you!!!


Hahahhahaha!

Hopefully I'll draw some more Thermalyte before school starts on the 3rd, too. ^^

Maybe also the Conclusion of my Pelo/SoC crossover.
We'll see. ^_~


yf,
Christine

Oh yeah.. and about me being "busy" ... Well.. I'm not really ALL THAT busy.

I'm really just extremely lazy, so I make myself busy with TV and stuff...


I'm into "relaxing" a whole lot.
If I'm tired or stressed out after work and/or school, I just like to relax and do NOTHING for at least an hour, before getting up and going somewhere.

So.... yeah.. Partly busy.. mostly lazy.. ^_^;

-AC

AnimeCanuck wrote:YAY!!! Pelolos is almost done!? ^_^ (wait.. why am I so happy about this? I should be sad! It's ending! ... I guess it's 'cause there will finally be more strips to read... ^_____^)

You want me to look for your improvement? Okay! ^^ I'll do that for ya, buddy!

Alas, yes, sad as it is, Pelolos is ending. But that's okay, because I gave you the go ahead to start it up again (that's your choice, I'm not forcing you, now); and after the ending, that means I'll cut my comic projects down from 4 to 3! Whew..

Please DO tell me how you colour. It's sooooo amazing! Especially the Zeila frame of your last Nafta strip... How did you do that neat design thing on her top AND the background and stuff?
SOooo cool!

Zeila's frame used a..some filter or effect called stained glass. I didn't know what it was until I used it. I thought it was pretty cool as a background, but decided to also have it on the dress as well, as having clothes blend with backgrounds is a commonly done thing. But basically, that was pretty incidental. Whoops. Yes, a lot of the cool things that I come up with are basically trial and error. But that's how you learn.

If you have any specific questions about coloring, feel free to bring 'em up on topics in the forum, and I'll be more that happy to answer them.

I guess what I meant to say up there, is that when you draw, you put your heart into it. I don't. Well, I do.. but I don't put much heart into it (usually)...

But you... YOU PUT YOUR WHOLE HEART into it! And that's REALLY ADMIRABLE!!

So, yeah.

Well, I love what I'm doing. What can I say.

And 8 hours!!!? (well.. yeah.. I can see that in your stuff... *sigh*)
Whoa! For my Nafta parodies, I was spending an hour to 2 hours on them. All inclusive Photoshop 6 from beginning to end.

I dunno how much time I spent on last weeks strip. At least 3 hours, I'd say. But Hmmm..
Okay.. I guess I'll HAVE to spend 8 hours on this week's strip! ... Or.. At least 6.. (I don't think I have that kind of time, if you know what I mean..)
This week.... Coloured Pencils!!!!!
Markers were fun.. and GREAT for the blood effect.. (heh. ^_^) But the colours weren't exactly quite like how I would have liked them.

I hope I do an EXCELLENT job this time...
And STUMP you!!!

I think you'll do fine. I'm very excited to see how you turn out after 6-8 hours of work. I have a feeling Ghis is doing the same with his, because his pages are really amazingly clean and colorful.

Hahahhahaha!

Hopefully I'll draw some more Thermalyte before school starts on the 3rd, too. ^^

Maybe also the Conclusion of my Pelo/SoC crossover.
We'll see. ^_~

I'd love to see more Thermalyte. I've been waiting too long. So long that I had to put Zeila in COL. Sorry about that.

gah, I suck at writing...

But I just wanted to say that I found your article on "The Rich Rock" to be incredibly profound, and say a lot of the things that I think a lot of us who've been doing this for a while (these days I suppose that means more than 3 months) have been feeling, but couldn't quite put into words. Its definitely the case for me, however err.. pretentious as that may sound...

I like SOC - I have to admit I only started reading it recently, but I'm constantly amazed by the ingenuity of the layouts and the structure of the storytelling - its just so well done. Its good stuff dude.

pOnju wrote:gah, I suck at writing...

But I just wanted to say that I found your article on "The Rich Rock" to be incredibly profound, and say a lot of the things that I think a lot of us who've been doing this for a while (these days I suppose that means more than 3 months) have been feeling, but couldn't quite put into words. Its definitely the case for me, however err.. pretentious as that may sound...

Ha, you don't sound pretentious at all! I was hoping other artists would relate to what I have to say. I always have these silly theories and ideas that try to explain this crazy thing called webcomicing. But I always like to put them out and see what other people think, and I am glad it was received well by you, one of the most admired webcomicists, of all people!

Anyway, I love hearing what other artists have to say about their work. I know Piro does that every so often, but I'd love to read more. If you find any (or write any yourself), please give me a buzz!

I like SOC - I have to admit I only started reading it recently, but I'm constantly amazed by the ingenuity of the layouts and the structure of the storytelling - its just so well done. Its good stuff dude.

Thanks so much for your kind words! Especially coming from you. Again, I also must admit I haven't got deeply into your archives yet, but I really intend to once my DSL arrives in the mail. But from the first time I've come upon your stuff, I was deeply impressed by your character style and versatility. I'll be visiting your forum often.

Anyway, thanks for remembering us little guys!

Hi Bryan, how have you been? This is Akira from "Tsunami Channel". I read your article "Rich Rock" through a recommendation of pOnju.

> Anyway, I love hearing what other artists have to say about their work.

Both "Experimental Comic Kotone (ExCoKo)" and "Magical Mina (MaMi)" are experimental comics to me. I'm experimenting on character development, story telling, comic layout, drawing style, and readers' reaction with these comics. "ExCoKo" is focused on girl side of me: cute joke, cute character, and love stories "MaMi" is more focused on boy side of me: action, fight, and victory.

I am a biologist/compute scientist. I am a person who wants to experiment/understand everything (Mina really does portrait me a lot). I am learning comic techniques through my two comic strips, so in maybe future when I really really want to start my original story, I have enough talent to tell what I really meant.

I have to admit that "ExCoKo" is based on "Tenchi Muyo", "Love Hina", and other Japanese love simulation games ("To Heart", "Tokimeki Memorial"). "MaMi" is based on "Cardcaptor Sakura", "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure", and "3x3 Eyes". There is no way any comic artists can come up with truely original story right from the beginning. By copying/learning from other favorite artists, then it's possible to come up with own style. Some people criticise me of being a copycat, but I hope eventually these two comics will become original little by little as I begin to develop my own original words...

One of the great thing about webcomic is, you have a way to express your work to the world very easily. Since you are free to do anything, yu can experiments on many different drawing/story telling styles and hear the reaction from readers. "Webcomic" is really a nice training place to level up techniques. "I want to improve more, More, and MORE!!" is the driving force behind "Tsunami Channel".

Akira Hasegawa wrote:Hi Bryan, how have you been? This is Akira from "Tsunami Channel". I read your article "Rich Rock" through a recommendation of pOnju.

Hey Akira! Totally great to hear from you too. Sorry I haven't been participating much on your forum, but I've recently moved back home and the internet connection is slow that I can only do a few things at a time. Luckily we're getting a faster connection in a few weeks, and I'll be able to visit your forum more frequently.

Both "Experimental Comic Kotone (ExCoKo)" and "Magical Mina (MaMi)" are experimental comics to me. I'm experimenting on character development, story telling, comic layout, drawing style, and readers' reaction with these comics. "ExCoKo" is focused on girl side of me: cute joke, cute character, and love stories "MaMi" is more focused on boy side of me: action, fight, and victory.

That's great. I've been enjoying both your comics (however if there was any way you could organize them so they are not mixed up would make for easier reading), and have been noticing your difference of styles. Just like my two current comic projects, both come from slightly different "sides" of me, as your two comics follow two different sides of yours. It's a well rounded balance, knowing that one doesn't have to be stuck doing only one thing at one time.

Also, drawing two different "genres" has proven you to be a versatile storyteller and artist.

I am a biologist/compute scientist. I am a person who wants to experiment/understand everything (Mina really does portrait me a lot). I am learning comic techniques through my two comic strips, so in maybe future when I really really want to start my original story, I have enough talent to tell what I really meant.

That is great that you always want to learn more. The faster and more that an artist is learning, I think the better. I'm interested in what kind of "original story" you have in mind, since I thought that your experimental comics are original stories in themselves.

I have to admit that "ExCoKo" is based on "Tenchi Muyo", "Love Hina", and other Japanese love simulation games ("To Heart", "Tokimeki Memorial"). "MaMi" is based on "Cardcaptor Sakura", "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure", and "3x3 Eyes". There is no way any comic artists can come up with truely original story right from the beginning. By copying/learning from other favorite artists, then it's possible to come up with own style. Some people criticise me of being a copycat, but I hope eventually these two comics will become original little by little as I begin to develop my own original words...

I certainly understand where you're coming from. I've noticed many of the similiarities too, and I have done the same thing. But it is nothing to be ashamed of to borrow from others, to be influenced, especially when your main purpose is to learn and develop (as you have mention in these past paragraphs). I love your characters. More by more they have and will become free standing individuals. You know when they are when they write themselves, and you see them as real people, who know how to act themselves.

Some people don't understand that a lot of the stuff out there on display is stuff that is in "development." I'm sure many who see your comic are impressed by its awesome looks, which in turn make them think or expect your comic to be a "final product," instead of a step for learning like you have intended it. Don't be discouraged. Keep on learning as much as you need and as long as you feel you need.

Oh, and by the way, I have a character in another comic who reminds me of Laika..same personality, she even looks like her! Anyway, this character once started off very malevolent, but by and by revealed her true nature to be a caring person. When I began your comic, I noticed Laika to do sort of the same thing, slightly differently, but in my opinion more effectively; once I said with good humor "I don't need to draw my comic! I'll just read ExCoKo!" I still love Laika, and the rest of your cast is great. Don't sell yourself short, your characterization is anything but one dimensional.

One of the great thing about webcomic is, you have a way to express your work to the world very easily. Since you are free to do anything, yu can experiments on many different drawing/story telling styles and hear the reaction from readers. "Webcomic" is really a nice training place to level up techniques. "I want to improve more, More, and MORE!!" is the driving force behind "Tsunami Channel".

You said the words right out of me. I relate to everything you say. You are a true sport, Akira, and I know you are going to make it big someday if you keep it up.

This is great, hearing from all of you! Please feel free to write more!