#I'm not good at telling a story and conveying it in a comic but I want to keep trying

[kbluebirdart]

A pre-calamity story. that's it that simple. sorry for the language mistake in advance!

That super long post!

Thanks for reading!

#it's silly I know #i tried lol #I'm not good at telling a story and conveying it in a comic but I want to keep trying #keep trying to improve #super long post #botw zelda #botw link #comic #here's more silly comic #my art #botw #zelda #zelink #fan art #botw zelink #long post

[feathernotes]

Hello! My name is Krispy, and I’m the co-creator of the webcomic Ghost Junk Sickness (along with @spacerocketbunny​) It's story time!

GJS is a webcomic published by Hiveworks and features two bounty hunters with an unstable dynamic who are pushed to pursue the deadly bounty dubbed the Ghost The current iteration of GJS is about 9 years old (and wrapping up next year!) It’s been an incredible journey full of ups and downs. We’ve learned SO MUCH creating this comic, and I wanted to share some of it’s origins with you all in hopes of inspiring more folks to take chances, make mistakes, and get messy- and make that comic!

The origin of Ghost Junk Sickness came from our love for Magic Knight Rayearth and Final Fantasy 7. Vahn, the protagonist of GJS, was basically a mash up of Hikaru and Cloud from those two series. The very first version of this story has unfortunately been destroyed, and this map is the only piece I have left of that world. Character art still exists though, and it was pretty funny to see how obvious we were with our inspirations at the time.

The original attempt at the story was called Crew, and my sister Space and I worked on it in 2002-2004. We sort of got lost in our own ideas after that, and weren’t as focus on making the comic (now lost). A few years later, I decided to try my hand at it and it looked like this:

This was all done on low quality paper, whichever I could find at the time and some pencil crayons. This attempt was over 600 pages long and had a pretty random story plot, much like the first version. I could not tell you what it was about haha 😅

My second attempt (then called Divine Ace) I wanted to look more 'traditional manga' and kept with just inks and tried my darndest to tone on the computer (it never worked out). This one lasted over 400 pages, and was more allinged with my liking to edgy action anime and games at the time. It was also Trigger's first appearance!

After experimenting and eventually wanting to change- I started to work with Space again, and we collaborated in full on our first fancomic for TF2 called "Be Efficient, Be Polite." It was a good lesson on how we could coordinate our shared skill sets and plan out who did what as far as the whole process of comics go.

All of these comics (save for the very first lost version) were hosted on DA the day we got our hands on a scanner. It was our first taste on being 'webcomic creators' back in the day, and it was very fun! We didn't much care for readers, only the process of completion at the time, so a page done was always a victory worthy to be celebrated (and back then, we had more time to make pages!)

And so, as the years went by and we decided to move on from our fandom roots, Space and I went back to the Crew/Divine Ace project and redesigned and overhauled the entirety of it. (You can see the full evolution here) We wanted to re-asses what the story, comic, and characters meant to us, and how we could convey some pretty important ideas and concepts to our potential readers. From that, Ghost Junk Sickness was born, and began pre-production in 2013.

Years after, we find ourselves reflecting on how much we've learned from the process of going ahead and diving in head first. There were certainly many iterations and years it took to get where we are today, but realising that it all began that day Space and I decided to scribble some pretty mediocire comics in our homework books and papers. Because that is the beauty of comics- The many skill sets, the hats, and challenges that come along with creating them. And how much we've become better at so many things along the way. So if you read this and feel nervous about diving head first into your first comic, I'm here to re-assure you that things will feel tough, but exciting. Things will feel really hard but amazing when you're getting your story out in front of you with such an incredible medium. Webcomics will always be my favourite because of how accessible it is to any skill set. And know in your heart of hearts that there ARE people out that that LOVE to see growth, they love to see the progression of your journey. So get out there and start creating that comic that's occupied your brain for so long, and start breathing that life into your OCs and your world. The only way is up with webcomics, and the only way to start is just by creating now.

#webcomics #webcomic #ghost junk sickness #hiveworks #feathernotes #me talking

[stil-lindigo]

hi! i'm currently taking a stab at a short comic for the first time and i was wondering — if you're willing to share — what goes into the “base” of your projects? your creative notes have been a HUGE help in pinpointing things i might want to outline in my own work before i actually start making the project, but i'm still incredibly curious about the initial work and planning that goes into the making of yours. love your art!

hello anon! first of all, congratulations on starting on a comic! I hope you find it very fulfilling, and a great learning experience. To answer this ask, I'm going to use bite of winter as the main example for my work process.

Text: More often than not, I start with the entire textual part of the comic finalised. This is kind of obvious, considering my comics are entirely built around it serving as a sort of narration substitute, but it stays true for comics that are just dialogue as well. Speech bubbles will always take up more space than you think. It's good to have all the dialogue finalised before you start so you can accommodate them in the thumbnailing process. --

Thumbnails: I make thumbnails for all my comics so that I can, at a glance, see if things are cohesive. I'll often spend a lot of time at this stage, since it's also the part where I wrack my brain for smart things I can do compositionally (sometimes I go into comics knowing what sort of smart things I want to do e.g the comparison between the open grave + the empty bed was the entire inspiration behind making shallow grave). Thumbnails are always quick and dirty for me. I know my own brain, so I always just do the bare minimum and know I'll be able to interpret it later. Here are the thumbnails I made for bite of winter.

note: the bright blue border on all the 'pages' is just to indicated where i should try to keep my panels.

it's extremely shitty but it's decipherable to me, and the whole point of thumbnail is that you're hopefully saving yourself time in the future by getting all this planning out now. --

3. Colour: Colour blocks are how I plan out how a comic's colour scheme should look as a cohesive package. Although I didn't used to do this for comics, I do it now ever since I wasted around 8 hours on patchwork canary just fiddling with the colours (ugh). I'll usually go into a project knowing what kind of tone I want to convey with it, which gives me a launchpad for what kind of colour scheme I'd like. For instance, RED, one of my best comics, only uses three colours (black, white and red) and that limited colour palette enhances the message behind it. I think it wouldn't be nearly as impactful if it was all standardly coloured - having that contrast pushes Red's impact as a significant character in the narrative by making her pop on the page.

In a similar vein, almost all of the sunset's emotional complexity gets expressed through its colour palette of red, blue and yellow.

Even though it might be more conventionally coloured with shading and whatnot, the choices behind making certain scenes darker/lighter and etc really sells the story more in my opinion.

These are the colour thumbnails I made for bite of winter. It's incredibly rough, but at a glance you can tell the comic doesn't have any particular page that is jarring or pulls you out of it.

As one more note: I'd advise doing all thumbnailing/colour-blocking at a much smaller size than the actual page is going to be. It keeps you from obsessing over fine details, and encourages you to just block in shapes and colours really quickly.

--

that's all from me for now. I hope this helped, and I wish you luck on your project. Pace yourself! Comics are more work than people ever say they are, and it's good to just take your time and enjoy the process.

#askbox #anon #comics with lindi

[sweetbottletops]

Neat little interview with Arai Sumiko.

(Bad MTL below the cut. Especially note already nuanced love talk in the original language further removed by MTL)

── What was the idea for the story of two girls, Mitsuki and Aya?

I've always wanted to draw a story between girls. I also like the story of two people from opposite worlds with gaps, and I think that's where I came up with the idea. I love to draw, and I used to post things like two-page comics with no dialogue on social media from time to time. I thought that if there were no lines, it would be easier for people overseas to spread the word, and even if they didn't understand Japanese, they would enjoy it. One of them is the source of 『気になってる人が男じゃなかった』.

──『気になってる人が男じゃなかった』 received a great response when it was announced, and now Arai's X has more than 1 million followers. Was the announcement on social media also due to the ease of communication overseas that you just mentioned?

I didn't think it would be like this, so I didn't think too much about it (laughs). I was very happy to be able to connect with people from overseas through SNS. There was a time when I lived abroad, so I feel that spending time in a completely different environment has made me who I am today. Perhaps, the number of stories between women in the world is not as large as that of love stories between men and women, or between men, so it may have been suitable for social media.

── Why did you want to depict the relationship between two girls?

I think the relationship between women is very intimate. That feeling when we got really close…… They wear matching clothes, listen to the same music, and spend hours together without talking. It's not like love, it's a love that has always been there. Isn't love over when you break up? I have a bit of a prejudice in me, and I want to draw something that transcends it. If we can be together even if we don't have a relationship title, I think that's love. I'm sorry, it's hard to understand.

── I've always longed for a relationship that can't be named, or a relationship where it's just two people, so I feel like I understand it.

We all have a lonely part and loneliness that we can't share with others. Especially when you're young, everyone has a lot of different feelings. However, I think that if I can create an existence that resonates with such a soft part of my heart, it will last a lifetime.

── How did you come up with the character of Mitsuki, who was thought to be mysterious older brother, but was a cool girl? It's completely my preference, but I love people who are women but can see the masculineness, so I created the character of Mitsuki from there. What if a sober girl actually has a tattoo? And such? I also wanted to depict her kindness. Mitsuki is unconscious, but she is naturally compassionate.

── Handsome and gentle, isn't it? As a way of depicting sexuality, the feeling that the existence of the person is affirmed as it is, including the fact that she is a woman, is conveyed from the drawing, and it is exciting.

Thank you. I'm happy because I'm particular about the shape of Mitsuki's slightly bony wrist line, fingers, and nails. There are parts of the picture in Volume 1 that make me think, "Wow" when I reread it now, but I did my best to make Mitsuki's expression when she tells Aya that she wants to be friends. From the time of the name, I drew a lot of facial expressions (laughs). I've improved a bit at drawing, so I've been drawing a lot lately, and I think I'm good at it a lot.

── It's a memorable scene where the two become friends at school.

I love the American TV drama "Glee" (a music-comedy-drama about a high school choir where minorities gather), and I grew up watching that show. I was moved by the story of a sparkling person who seems to have everything, but in fact has emotions that cannot be told to others, so I wanted to draw it myself. Aya has that element in it. Aya is feminine on the outside, but she is shy. When it comes to other people, she's the kind of girl with a lot of grit who confronts her with a "huh?"

── In the second volume, the individuality of each of them became more apparent.

Mitsuki hides herself at school, but the way she hides her personality is actually very attractive. It's fun to depict how talking to Aya brings out more and more of her true self at school.

──It's so nice to be the most yourself when you're with the people you love. Being able to be yourself means having confidence in yourself. By not worrying about what people think, you will be able to see what you care about and the right person for you. Like Mitsuki brought Aya closer. The person who is most saved by being dignified is yourself. That's why I want to value my own individuality, and I draw manga with the hope that I will be able to do so.

── Music is also an important element of this manga. It is colored in two colors, yellow-green and black, which are rare in manga, and when I first read it, I thought it was rock.

Actually, I chose yellow-green 15 minutes before the first episode was posted on social media (laughs). I didn't think it would go viral, and I thought it would be nice to have a rock feel and a slightly dangerous color, so I put it in on a whim. That Last Minute Decision (the last minute decision) may have been a good one.

── NIRVANA and other music are featured in the film, but what is Arai's own musical journey?

When I was little, I loved BECK's album "Guero" the most in the world, and I remember dancing to it at my father's office. That's where my love for rock music started. NIRVANA's music is exceptional, but I also sympathize with frontman Kurt Cobain's feminism and pushing the boundaries of gender. I was an only child, so I spent a lot of time alone, and I moved to a place where I didn't speak the language, so I feel like I was able to cultivate my imagination while filling in the silence with music.

──Even in 『気になってる人が男じゃなかった 』 the music connects the completely different worlds of Mitsuki and Aya and expands them even further.

Let's see. The last scene of Volume 2 is very memorable for me. Aya stops Mitsuki from getting off the pedestrian bridge that can be taken as a stage, but I think it's a friend, and I think it's love. There's also a love for the music that Mitsuki makes.

── "This song connects the world!!" I was also fascinated by the straight line. Is there anything you keep in mind when drawing music?

In my case, I'm completely self-satisfied and just put in the music I like, and I can't say anything admirable, but I think a lot about which songs go well with each scene. There are scenes made from music, and the scene where Aya and Mitsuki hold hands in Volume 2 came to mind when I was listening to The Shins.

──Official playlist But it's also fun to read while actually playing music.

I'm a little embarrassed because I choose it myself (laughs), but I'm happy. I didn't tell anyone, but the official playlist is trying to arrange the songs that Mitsuki and Aya each chose so that they alternate as much as possible. Of course, the flow of music is the most important priority.

──Knowing that changes the way you listen even more! I'm looking forward to seeing what the future holds for them. Thank you very much.

[x]

(Is she a Dianna Agron stan? This is the second connection after this earlier in the year. Also I think this Glee thing gives her an honorary Tumblr diploma too.)

#I saw the typo hours later #I'm putting two and two together and declaring her a Dianna Agron stan #the guy she was interested in wasn't a guy at all #arai sumiko #green manga #manga

[nocturnalazure]

heyy i think studying the trend of ts4 stories editing style will really help you improve your visuals. I know that picking an aesthetic is a choice & i honestly think you should stick to what you like instead of following the mainstream but popular stories are popular for a reason & you might engage more readers by following their storytelling formats (ex: using captions instead of text bubble, using different reshade/gshade based on the mood of the scene, show your sims moodlets, etc.) but ofc popularity isn’t everything and you have loyal readers already so i’m just gonna root for you & wish u good luck❤️

Hi anon, and thank you for your message and recommendation!

I hear you and you're surely right about what is popular, but I see how most TS4 players do their storytelling, and I personally find those visuals rather standard and uninspiring. I believe the word that you used is key: it is a trend. Which means, for one, that it can be a temporary thing, but above all, that it isn't necessarily an improvement.

Typically, captions. There is a reason why speech bubbles or their equivalents are widely used in comics and graphic novels: they are easy to understand at a glance for the reader, and versatile enough for the author to convey the proper tone. Captions hamper creativity and readability, imho.

I do like the effect of Reshade or Gshade or other -shades. I tried installing it, wasted a whole day, failed, was disappointed, uninstalled it and never touched it again. And then I thought: I spend a lot of time selecting my decor and background. I want them to be visible, not blurred. I want the details to be seen in their entirety. It's true that blurry backgrounds and dreamy filters make for pretty, atmospheric pictures. But do I want my story to be atmospheric? No, that's not my purpose. I want my story to be emotional, gripping, interesting. I'd like the reader to focus on the dialogues, the characters' face, the actual content of the story, not the feel of it. To me, visuals enhance a story when they explain by themselves who the character is and what they think. They don't need to be sophisticated to do that.

(Not to mention that Reshade is capable of putting a strain on my computer and I don't want it to overheat. The game already crashes enough as it is.)

I know it's just an idea among others, but showing moodlets is not something I will ever do because I don't do gameplay. I just tell a story using the Sims 3 as a medium. Many of those popular trends do not apply to my style, in fact.

If anything, I'd like my story to be read like a manga, not watched like a Netflix series. My stubborn use of speech bubbles and detailed backgrounds is what makes me different, and maybe that doesn't coincide with popular.

Because in the end, "popular" is just that: defined by prevalence but bearing no guarantee as to quality or innovation.

I thank you for rooting for me and thank you again for taking the time to send me a message, because somehow my head is clearer now about what I want and do not want for my story. I have no idea whether or not my visuals are globally appealing to other people, but *I* like them as they are. I'm willing improve technically, if I believe it will bring something essential to my work as a whole, something I'm missing for it to make sense. I get that my aesthetic may seem outdated to some, and it is unfortunate that so few people are ready to give my story a chance, but just like you said, I have a bunch of loyal readers and that is priceless!

#replies

[harlequinchaos]

Now that I'm older, every time some form of media is adapted in a new format (book to movie, videogame to tv series, animation to live action, etc.) I always take the criticisms of it with a grain of salt because I feel like what it means to adapt successfully means something different to everyone.

I always feel like people want an exact 1:1 adaptation but fail to realize the nuance that comes with each form of adaptation. Sure you can break every piece of media down by like, setting, character, and plot, or specific story beats or even down to specific physical details but people fail to realize how this is going to read to the consumer across different forms.

Scenes that are in a first person point of view in say, a book, are going to read different than a scene of a movie, which similar to a play or show on a stage need to be designed in a way the consumer can digest.

In a book, you can slowly be fed information as it is deemed necessary to the story. Details can be intentionally left out, leading to inaccurate judgements that can snowball into larger consequences. With movies or television, as soon as you see the scene or characters, you're seeing them as the whole bigger picture. The details are either there or they aren't, a faster judgment can be made, more meaning can be inferred by visuals, so a character's motivation becomes more of a driving point. A plot element intentionally left out in a book, can alienate the consumer if not properly handled in a movie or television setting, and part of adapting that piece of media is ensuring it's done properly, and I feel like people don't understand that. The art of adaptation is how consistent purpose can be conveyed while adhering to the rules of the established media.

It seems people just want, "the same thing" as a book, tv show, or a movie, videogame, comic, animated version, or in a live action version and it just Doesn't Work Like That.

Each form of media has their own rules of what 'works' and a good story will utilize those unique aspects of that form of media to tell the story; but the method of how that story is told has to change in order for it to be a successful adaptation.

#idk im ranting #thinking specifically of: #the last of us #the hunger hames #gone girl #batman in all its versions #marvel comics vs movies #romeo and juliet the baz luhrmann one #fleabag #the xmen movies #shitty anime adaptations too like ghost in the shell #or any Disney animated film to their live-action versions #v for vendetta #mario #the mario movie #mortal kombat #lara croft #resident evil is another one that can be studied in depth and that's just game to game with the new remakes #adaptations are fun and i think people are too hard on them or just don't know what they're talking about half the time

[mashounen1945]

A whole-ass analysis of Sonic's relationships with women, started by one stupid meme I saw on Discord

Description: Eggman showing a photo of Sally Acorn (from Sonic SatAM, with a design from the Archie comics), Queen Aleena (from Sonic Underground), Blaze the Cat (from the videogames, with a design from one of the 2010s games) and Princess Elise (from Sonic 06), pointing at that photo and saying "Dear Sonic fans: if Sonic is a freedom fighter, why does he keep supporting monarchs? Curious."

I know this is supposed to be funny (and Eggman is being fallacious in order to make his nemesis look bad, which is to be expected), but it actually got me thinking.

We've all seen at least one Sonic fan complaining (either rightfully or not) about writers always trying to shoehorn introduce a human girl as a new love interest for Sonic. This seems to happen no matter what piece of official Sonic content it is, whether it's made in Japan or made by Western authors, whether it's tie-in/licensed media or material directly controlled/overseen by SEGA and Sonic Team.

Well, here's another similar phenomenon, which is why I'm writing this: in so many continuities both Western and Japanese, there's frequently a female character from royalty whom Sonic becomes or already is emotionally close to.

In the Discord server where this image was posted, someone else brought up a good point: Sonic being a "freedom fighter" or any other sort of guerrilla warrior is a thing only in the now-defunct Western continuity (SatAM & Archie, and the British comic published by Fleetway), whereas he's "just some guy doing his own thing" everywhere else. The interpretation of "Sonic is a free spirit" by the many branches of the Sonic series comes into play here, too: "just some guy" Sonic from the videogames and "freedom fighter" Sonic from SatAM are different interpretations of that description of the character's personality (this will be important later).

After looking at that image, I realized something else: in most cases, the fact that those characters are royalty either isn't heavily relevant to the plot or isn't treated as something unequivocally good/desirable.

Sonic SatAM didn't really emphasise Sally being a princess and the heir to the Acorn King's throne. It was in the pre-reboot Archie comic that some writers started focusing on Sally's status as royalty... and also being weird and creepy about it in the process (pre-reboot Archie-Sonic is also the only piece of official content outside of Sonic Underground where you'll see Sonic actively defending a monarchy, albeit this happened only because of Ian Flynn's awkward attempt to create drama, not because he intended to convey a pro-monarchy message through his stories).

The same happened with Blaze: as far as I remember from playing Sonic Rush, her being a princess is casually mentioned a few times, and this happens mostly when Blaze is talking to herself and thinking about something, not during a conversation with another character (there's one specific instance where Blaze's status might be relevant for her character arc, but I'll talk about that later). Something similar happens with Merlina in Sonic & the Black Knight: she's royalty as well (Kinda? I'm not sure which exact position she used to have in Camelot's society before Sonic showed up, but I'm sure it was an important one), but the conflict she's part of is related to a different facet of her personality, and you could tell the story anyway without mentioning Merlina's status.

For Blaze and Elise (and Sally, but only when the writer is not Ken Penders or Michael Gallagher), if any of those characters being royalty is mentioned or focused on, it's not really portrayed in a good way or as something that makes any of them happy. Blaze being "the princess of Sol" comes with the duty of protecting the Sol Emeralds, which led to her isolating herself, and her character arc in Sonic Rush is all about overcoming that and trusting others once again.

As for Elise... Well, there's a reason why, when people try to argue the story for Sonic 06 could have been great if given enough time, they often use Shadow's or Silver's story rather than Sonic's as an example of 06's potential, but still... At least the bones for a compelling story surrounding Elise are already there, and I'm willing to bet it'd be kinda similar to Blaze's character arc in Sonic Rush.

And here's another similarity between Blaze and Merlina. The latter felt she had the duty to save Camelot at all costs, and while it's debatable whether or not Merlina was being emotionally crushed by that self-imposed duty in the same way Blaze, Elise and Sally were, it's clear that her obsession with that duty backfired spectacularly and ended up being potentially harmful to everyone else in Camelot in the finale of Sonic & the Black Knight.

[The only exception to all this, as well as the only case where Eggman may be at least partially right in that meme, would be Queen Aleena (who also breaks a trend here, since she's Sonic's mom in Sonic Underground). But the consensus in the Sonic fandom is that Underground is so far removed from what both the character and the franchise represent that it's not really Sonic content anymore, so it doesn't count.]

Another important thing here is the whole thing about Sonic being a "free spirit", and here's where someone else (in another, different Discord server) said something like this:

This just circles back to being "free". When Sonic writers focus on characters being of royalty, it's usually shown that having to run things in an entire nation, being responsible for the well-being of everyone there, realistically is a difficult thing to handle, especially for someone who's a late teenager or a young adult at most (Blaze, Elise), even without all the magical/mystical baggage that comes with having to guard/protect a source of near-godly power (a parallel universe set of seven Chaos Emeralds, a dormant half of a God of Time) on top of being expected to rule an entire country and care for its people. Sonic is a "lost factor" that characters like Blaze, Elise and Sally need in order to feel a bit of happiness and relief because he's "just there", but he still fights for everyone he cares for when he needs to.

This could also be applied to Merlina, and even the genie Shahra in Sonic & the Secret Rings (shout-out to @silvermun for accurately pointing out the similarity between Elise, Shahra and Merlina regarding their motifs in their respective stories).

#Sonic #Sonic the Hedgehog #Elise #Princess Elise #Elise the Third #Sonic 06 #Sonic '06 #Sonic 2006 #Shahra #Sonic and the Secret Rings #Sonic & the Secret Rings #SatSR #Merlina #Sonic and the Black Knight #Sonic & the Black Knight #SatBK #Sally Acorn #Sonic SatAM #Archie Sonic #Archie Sonic comics #Sonic Rush #Blaze the Cat #Sonic Storybook series #Queen Aleena #Sonic Underground #Doctor Eggman #Doctor Robotnik #Aleena the Hedgehog #analysis #sonic opinions by mashounen

[tiredspacedragon]

BIONICLE Retrospective

2002: The Bohrok Swarms

Part 1.4: What Lurks Below

*ahem*

Anyway.

What I'm learning as I go through these comics is that, unlike the novels, which are written to be satisfying reads on their own, the Bionicle comics are not meant to be looked at in isolation, one issue at a time. At least not when they are portraying the events of the main story.

See, exactly what the comics cover is never consistent. Some years, the comics stick closely to the main beats of that year's story. They'll cover all the main battles and important scenes from the books or movies, they'll have much of the same dialogue, and so on, like a visual summary of the year. But other times, the comics stray away from the main plot to tell unique stories not found anywhere else, and in my opinion that's when they're at their best. That's why I liked To Trap a Tahnok so much, while I feel I have to come down hard on What Lurks Below.

To be fair, these comics are the first depiction of the events in the Bohrok Nest. The story they tell is not adapted from any other media, it was written for this medium. So it is, technically, an original story. So maybe what I'm really getting at is that the comics aren't the ideal medium for conveying the central plot in general. There's just not enough space to pace everything properly.

Case in point, this issue has really big Part 1 Energy. It doesn't feel complete. There's no clear narrative arc to it, it's just a series of "and thens." The Toa escape the lava by passing through an illusory wall, and then Tahu joins them by blowing up the Tahnok nest he was trapped in, and then they fall into the chamber the Krana are meant to be placed in, and then that opens then door to the Exo-Toa armour, and then the battle with the Bahrag starts.

Now, it's worth noting that this kind of narrative structure is not inherently bad. In fact, it's a structure often used in myths and epic poetry. Ancient stories, particularly ones that would have been transmitted orally, of gods and heroes and monsters, didn't always have clear causal storylines, often they were just series of adventures, sometimes with clear morals, sometimes not. And given how Bionicle itself is often portrayed as a legend, this kind of structure does seem somewhat appropriate.

And if that was the point, I would say it's actually rather clever. But I don't think it is, because if it was, more of the comics would be like this, rather than just this issue. No, what I think happened here was just a case of janky pacing. This issue could have just been about the Toa's journey through the tunnels, and left the discovery of the Exo-Toa and the confrontation with the Bahrag for the next issue. Or, it could have saved time and skipped the tunnel segment completely to focus on the main conflict. As is, it's all setup and no payoff, which is what I mean by Part 1 Energy. It feels more like the first half of the issue that follows it, and less like its own entity.

On the other hand, I do suspect that's actually intentional. The point is to build suspense and keep readers excited for the next issue. And fair play to Greg, as an issue of a bi-monthly comic, I have to commend What Lurks Below for doing its job well. But as an instalment of a story, a chapter in the tale of the Bohrok invasion, I have to say it does not hold up so well upon revisiting.

Now to stop being a major downer for a moment, stepping away from the big picture and looking at the little things shows that What Lurks Below does have merit to it. We have the first appearance of Makuta's belief-based illusions, which, while they go unexplained here, have always been a plot device/mechanic I've found fascinating.

And we get some good character moments from the Toa as well. Lewa saying "There's nothing [Pohatu] and Onua can't bring down," is unbearably sweet, that unshakeable faith in his brothers only feeling more powerful in light of Lewa's own current vulnerability. Not to mention the display of cleverness from Lewa in figuring out the illusion, and from Tahu in using his power to heat the air and cause an explosion, blowing himself out of the Tahnok nest he'd been sealed in last issue. I think that moment where he explains what he did, his speech notably slowed, is the first time, and one of the only times, we've actually seen Tahu visibly weakened and exhausted. So points for expanding the Toa's characters.

...Unfortunately, looking at the little things also means seeing the little downsides, and there's plenty to nitpick here. Why is there lava out of nowhere, and where did it come from? Why are all 48 Krana required to open the doors to the Exo-Toa, which are supposed to be a failsafe? What are Cahdok and Gahdok even doing in separate rooms when they're nigh invincible together, especially since they've been together every other time we've seen them anyway? And, what stuck out to me most, why is Gali the narrator of this issue? Her specific perspective doesn't add anything to the story, and actually gets dropped around halfway through the comic anyway. It's just...odd. This whole issue is a series of odd decisions. Some understandable, some not.

Anyway, on to Part 2!

Next up: The End of the Toa?

#bionicle #bionicle retrospective #what lurks below

[starlightshore]

Thanks for the Measured Response™. Unfortunately the character limit doesn't allow for much nuance in asks. My issue isn't so much with the character's actions as the way their conflict is framed. It always feels like we're supposed to judge Asriel way harsher - for ghosting the person responsible for their trauma - than Chara, who is actively trying to hurt them. I know you don't want to trivialize abuse, but the story still botches the subject pretty badly. Still, good luck with the rewrite.

(sighs) please anon, while I do appreciate the effort to acknowledge the lack of nuance in the previous ask, I would much rather you approach me more reasonably. I don't appreciate you coming to me, a complete stranger to both of us, with this attitude of already guilty. can you please learn to talk to people more reasonably? like, I'm living my life out here and you come and accuse me in a really rude way of promoting abuse or whatever the far-fetched conclusion that ask could come across as.

I am more than happy to accept fault over my writing and do my best to improve, but I want to do so on friendly, acceptable terms. please withhold condemnation and explain how and why you feel the story was mishandled. You do so really nicely in the second ask and I appreciate that.

Ultimately, regardless of my intent, my story didn't convey the message and that's, at the very least, mostly my fault. I can try to explain why I'd argue I didn't fuck up as badly as you paint me as, but I will accept that the story I wrote was not emotionally paced well made it weigh more towards cruelty without the hope and understanding I wanted the story to be read as.

I want to stress that I take abuse deadly seriously. I'm a victim of emotional abuse myself and this is something I am desperate to portray in all of its ugly, dirty detail and I want to do it without hurting people. I obviously failed when I first wrote this and I want to say thank you for coming to me about it, even if I feel there is still some friction here I want to express that gratitude. But also please be aware of how you approach people. (referring to the OG ask here).

Anyway

i wanna defend myself here a little and say I think you're missing the bigger picture of the framing of that scene. I feel you forgot the context of that scene and where it's placed in the story. It's this post.

Previously, that entire chapter had Chara idolizing the Asriel they knew as a child. Their timetravel ability being removed meant they longed for that power to control the narrative and live in the past. its like, metaphorical shit for how when growing up its hard to move on from the past and accept that you're aging.

That scene was the point where Chara realized that Asriel wasn't perfect -and has never been. The story is framed by Chara's POV exclusively and navigates Chara's feelings about their separation from Asriel. The "abuse" of that scene is the feeling of an older sibling telling them to "fuck off" and "stop acting like a victim" which are like... like devoid of the context of Asriel's perspective (which we didn't have at this point in the story) is a very hurtful and emotionally damaging thing to say to someone. I can see how someone reading that, who could have been through a similar situation, would react very badly to seeing that in the comic. Thus the content warning. I honestly don't know if "abuse" is the right word here, but what is someone going to have blacklisted for this? Like I said, my goal is to avoid hurting so I'm not going to not tag it. It's an issue of vocabulary vs. accessibility. I still wouldn't know what to tag this tbh.

the overall narrative of the comic is that Chara's perspective of Asriel was holding themself back. they were wallowing over a perfect picture that never existed -which reflected how they hate themselves for not living up to the perfect angelic ideal that they obviously could never have lived up to.

Chara condemning Asriel for being Flowey and being a jerk is the first step towards chara acknowledging their own blame in the equation. pretending the problem doesn't exist and that you're inherently awful doesn't fix things. Immediately after tossing out Flowey, they realize they are a flower as well. (literally becoming the thing they just condemned Asriel)

Once The two reconcile with the help of Actual Adults in the situation, the story changes POV to Asriel. It's then we're given context to Asriel's perspective and to show, that yeah, both of them Suck as people. That both are capable of majorly fucking up. And that's because the tools they're given a life of trauma and being reborn into a world that doesn't understand your damage is in itself traumatizing.

so idk man. the framework here serves a purpose and while I plan on showing a more nuanced and balanced pace -I really need to show the characters having more things going on than their larger conflict + be happier with each other. (the problem with writing for an askblog is that its very reactive and its easier to lean into tension and relationship drama than focus on the lighter but necessary moments. I know for sure the redraw will be better at this)

But yeah the framework, as it stands, feels good to me. Maybe in the details of how it's shown I'll be able to handle the nuances more gracefully but with the larger goal in mind, I'm not sure how I can change that? I would really love to hear your thoughts on that.

#personal stuff #sams replies #uhhh man irony about a post discussing tagging but do i tag this as #negative #because there's some harsh criticism and feelings in here on both ends so #idk really #i gotta say idk how i feel about tumblr being the method we discuss this as honestly i feel this kinda conversation would be better suited #in DMS. because I don't want this to be a public topic because its very clearly a personal one for both us #i DON'T like discussing abuse so casually... its honestly a painful topic. in the abstract like this its not too bad but its defs not ideal #i'll grant you the need for anonymity tho so i don't mind but i'd prefer we talked privately somehow? eugh. hate writing long posts #i hate how i feel like i gotta word vomit to get my point across without being misunderstood its the woooorst #long post

[yesireadbooks]

Writer Questions Tag

This is gonna be loonggg... haha. Thank you @starbuds-and-rosedust for the tag!

Gently tagging: @the-chaotic-writer @holdmyteaplease @enne-uni @ashwithapen and an open tag for you!

1) What motivates you to write?

Ok, this is a very philosophical one. I've always had a lot of stories but never the right audience to tell them. So, I began to write. This was an on and off thing going on for a while and was basically a thing I did during holidays. But, now that school is a bit easier and the work load lighter, I can start telling my stories. So, whilst the need to tell my stories is one motivation, I also want to write something which would leave an imprint on the reader(s). Something that would either someone finds relatable or opens up someone's perspective.

2) A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

Ooof, so, there is this one opening I'm in love with. Mainly cuz it attacks me haha. This is from Experiment 615.

Word on the streets is that if you see a scientist and a policeman together, you are either the next experiment, or the last one is near you. But no one thought of a story for when five policemen, two scientists and ten soldiers and two army generals arrive at the Chromia State High School. So, here is one.

3) Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

This one undoubtably goes to Hoshito, whom you might already know cuz I rant about her like a lot. She is a toddler, speaks only Japanese and an adopted child following the death of her parents during a car crash (I'm sorry, little one). She is so adorable and sometimes instead of writing, I just keep smiling at my screen.

4) What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

This is a quite hard one; I've never thought about it. But now that I did, I think my favourite part is reading through the second or third draft, which would ideally be the best version of my wip.

5) What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

Ouch, this one hurts my self-depreciating personality. I think I am good at conveying emotions via psychiatric reactions. That is becuz I tend to find ways to info dump in my wips and this is the way I info dump Psychiatry. That helps me write some realistic foreshadowing as well as maybe comical hints.

6) What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

I love the engagement and encouragement of the community. Because, after my English Teacher, this is the only community that has actually said something good about my writing. Academic and Fictional.

7) A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

I find notepad very very useful in my writing. I use LibreOffice Writer for normal writing but sometimes when I have only sketch ideas, or poems, I first write it in notepad and then, cross edit with multiple tabs open.

8) A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

Ooohh, now I won't bombard you with this, I have @scalmropia for that, but I will rant about the royal attire I made for the Monarch and Princess Admiral.

9) What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

This is something I often tell myself. Take a moment and do something else, like maybe draw an OC or make a map or maybe even do something crazy like writing a national anthem or an army skit. That way, you can help yourself immerse more in the wip(s) while also reducing the pressure. Personally, doing this has made me think up better character dynamics, flow of story and even some new pre/sequel or unrelated wips.

Also, try unrelated short stories and poetry. That helps to stretch and loosen you brain muscles (not literally haha) and in the long run, help with your main writing.

Also, doing something else also might push you for balancing wips and other creatives. It did that to me.

10) Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters:

Well, it goes without question that @holdmyteaplease is my biggest supporter while @enne-uni @sanbukk3t @anonymousfoz @steh-lar-uh-nuhs @starbuds-and-rosedust are some of my biggest supporters. Thank you so much y'all, much love and appreciation! Then when I comes to people whose works, I love, I cannot stress this enough, I LOVE ALL OF YOUR (plural) WORKS.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk..!

Clean question set under the cut

1) What motivates you to write?

2) A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

3) Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

4) What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

5) What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

6) What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

7) A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

8) A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

9) What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

10) Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters:

#tag game #thank you #writing #writeblr

[jojo-schmo]

Crap, I'm down bad for this roleswap scrap au, I'm doing fanart and he angee when mask breaks mid battle to simulate the shift in the beast dedede fight, but i can't do angry angled faces for SHIT- Sorry for cussing, I am trying to do this face and it makes me so annoyed that i can't do it in a way that I like it-! thank you for bringing this to my life you are a freaking queen/king/lord(depends on gender as lord is gender neutral), and i freaking love your art hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh-!

Hahaha oh my goodness! It's an honor to have inspired you! I'm excited to see your take on the story!

It's okay and totally normal to be frustrated but try not to direct that at yourself! Easier said than done I know, but don't give up! Sometimes it takes me a whole page of drawings or dozens of revisions to get the facial expression I want. Here's a few ways I've personally approached it:

I posted this a while back but these excerpts from "Making Comics" by Scott McCloud really help me with facial expression exercises! Combining different emotions to convey someone's thoughts is really fun! And reference everything you can too- If there's a cool clip of a fight scene you really like, try drawing those characters' expressions!

And if all else fails, sometimes I find myself making the face that I'm trying to draw so I keep a mirror at my art desk to reference my eyebrows and mouth positions and stuff hahaha! It gets to the point that when I'm drawing a character that's upset or crying I'll sometimes start accidentally tearing up with them. It's an awkward conversation to have when my coworkers walk in on me during my lunch break and get concerned, and I have to be like "No sorry, I'm just feeling this fictional penguin drawing's emotions with him."

But yes!! I am not a professional, but I am a big advocate for having fun when telling stories. Enjoy and create the story that only you can tell because you are unique and great!!

#ask #swearing #roleswap scraps #shuuuucks thanks for the compliments! #you know what I kinda liked being called all three of those titles they just all made me smile hehee #she/her is what I've been going with but now this website is making me contemplate they/them as well- at least on the internet hehe #I appreciate it!! :D

[dethkomic]

Writin’ Comics and Junk: Part 4 - Comic Compositionin’ (Part 2)

It sure looks like things have finally begun to pick up in our ongoing saga of heavy metal people and their friends! Things just get more interesting from here, so don't miss the next one!

The next Dethkomic update will be Tuesday, April 25th, 2023!

At this time, I'd like to give a special shout-out to all of you who have offered up your OCs to the Dethkomic overlords! I'm working on getting everyone's cameo appearance into the book for issue #7!

Right now, though, we have another comic book tutorial to share. It'll be a briefer one than usual, today, but covering a very important part of comic book composition, regardless!

The Art of Sequential Direction

Last week, we covered the general aspects of comic book layout, so I thought this week would be a good place to go over the more detailed bits that make up the panels in a page. Check it out below the cut!

Take a look at the two page layouts, below. Which is more interesting to your eye, at first glance?

The first page doesn't offer much in the way of variety, while the second page is chalk full of it -- it's not hard to understand why the second example looks and feels more exciting to read.

One of the things I tell creatives who are starting out in comics, who usually are coming from a background that's full of one-off pieces of art and very little sequential work, is that comic books -- especially action/adventure comic books, work best if you look at them through a director's eye.

This was one of the first things that was told to me as a young comic book artist and fan, and it's something of a never-ending journey. I love to watch movies and shows while my mind picks apart what the director was trying to convey in the way the camera was set, how the scene pans or stays still, what music was playing, how the dialogue carries -- all of it! Comics may not have as many moving parts as a movie, but you can probably guess that when it comes to conveying emotion through scene-setting, they are basically the same.

Just like the movies, comics have some ground rules that can help you make them more inviting and simultaneously exciting for your readers. Each one of these isn't terribly hard to do, but you'll be amazed at the impact they can have on your comic. I have three very, very simple ones that you can do, immediately:

Change the Size of Your Characters.

The above advice was handed to me in the same era, if not the same week, if not the same sentence as the advice about looking at your story as a director. One of the easiest things you can do and indeed, one of the most important things you can do -- before you even start to get a grasp on what types of scenes evoke what type of mood (we'll get to that...) --is to change how big or how small your characters appear, panel to panel. Basically -- pan the camera out, or in. Your readers' eyes will be far more likely to stay focused on what's being said and what's happening, if the scene changes just a little bit in this way.

Change the Camera Angle.

That horizon line that tells us where the end of the world is? The one that separates the ground from the sky? Move it up or down, chief. That's it. That's all there is to this one. Sure sets the scene differently, doesn't it? Notice how your characters, no matter what size you drew them, now look either really big (if your horizon line is low) or really small (if the line is up high) in the panel. That's what we wanna see -- make those guys change size!

Change the Panel's Tilt.

Okay, so now some of your characters are really big on the panel while others are small, and your horizon is way up, way down, or completely off the panel! Good work. Now pick one or two panels and turn them at a 45 degree angle. Or a 90 degree angle. Or if you're really bold and are making some kind of statement, turn them upside-down. Especially the panels where you're going to have trouble fitting the necessary dialogue balloons in -- this is a great trick to find yourself some more space.

Now that you have those down, you have a go-to for when you are just dragging it on finishing a page. Especially the pages that don't offer any particular points of interest and are just there to move the story to its next, more interesting part (shoeleather, as they're sometimes called). Even boring pages can be made way more interesting with the use of those three easy tricks.

Getting into the nitty-gritty, comic book professionals have a wide variety of shots that we typically fall back on when it comes to directing our stories. Each one can be used for different purposes, and to convey a different message. Another piece of advice given to me early on, was to treat my comic pages as if I had to tell the same story that was written out, but without the dialogue. If I could do that -- if I could look at what I'd drawn and get a good impression of what has happened without the characters saying a single word -- that was a good indication of a successful page.

So what are these types of shots and how do we use them? While this is by no means a complete list (Just google "types of comic book shots" or similar), I'll do my best to examine some of the more common ones, and give examples:

The Establishing Shot:

In the above example, we can see that Nathan is head of the table, in Charles' usual spot. Dethklok is on one side, Baen-Shee is on the other, and Toki isn't shown, but that's the joke -- he's so far away his speech balloon is coming from off-panel. Murderface is conspicuously absent. Establishing shots are important because they show the reader, at a glance, where everyone is and where they are in relation to one another and their environment. You should strive to have one establishing shot per-scene. Some people say per-page, and I think that's also good advice, if not a little extra work.

The Long Shot:

Oftentimes, long shots are establishing shots. The camera is far enough away from the subject that it gets most of/all of their whole body in the panel, as well as a good chunk of the environment. This gives both entities equal "weight" in the storytelling. What's that? Did I just call the background an entity? I sure did! Remember that.

The Medium Shot:

A pretty standard shot. Here's a guy. He's talking now. Maybe he's saying something important, and maybe he isn't. Whatever is happening, it's not doing it with great impact, and that's the point. Use these basic halfway-up-the-body angles when you're just establishing that something is being said or done, and by whom.

The Close Up:

Now it's getting interesting. We're zeroed in on one or two characters' faces to the point that we're forced to consider their facial expressions above all else. Must be some real tension going down, here.

The Extreme Long Shot:

Hey! Where'd my freaking house go??? Sometimes the environment is more important than the characters in it.

As I said, these are but a small sampling of all that's available to you as a comic book creator, when setting the scenes in your story. Next we meet, I'll go into some of my thought process when it comes to putting a page together and how I'm making decisions regarding the flow of the story, transitioning, layout, and more.

See you then!

#dethkomic does writing #tips on writing #comic advice

[inkbeanjo]

i have a question if you do not mind. I love your webcomic and it makes me want to write my own shadowrun story, but i am not all that familiar with the lore and i was wondering, would it make sense for me to write about a character who is 75% cybernetics and they aren't a cyber zombie like the one in Dragonfall? or would like having 75% of your body replaced with cyberware just straight up kill you?

i don't mind at all! honestly the best way i figured to go about writing a shadowrun story was to like... write a story that wasn't shadowrun, if that makes sense? neo automisia started out as a combination of retelling events that i got to play through in some tabletop games, and also conveying bits of moni's end of things that i only ever got to explore in writing and private roleplay- shadowrun was fun and a cool thing to write/play for, but quickly i started realizing that to write a straight up shadowrun comic would require adhering to strict lore established in canon, and also learning/navigating that lore in essence, that would mean that not a lot could change, and what i'd be writing would be bound by the text- so i decided to start breaking away from shadowrun/shadowrun canon as soon as possible, something i've not gotten to hard establish yet but will once chapter 3's done and some inbetween stuff is released. doesn't mean it's not a good place to start though! as for cyberware, this might help put things in perspective- during play/from chargen, moni's starting essence hovered around 1.21 out of 6, which is like... 80% chrome. shadowrun's got the same issue as cyberpunk RED when it comes to augments, in that having them is supposed to somehow dehumanize you- i'm uncomfy with that as it indirectly suggests that even implants the recipient would die without are dehumanizing. so in games i didn't let essence decide whether or not moni was a cyberzombie. it was just a number, and the lower it got the happier, more at-home in her skin she wound up getting- something i really try to convey when i do art of her late-story iteration. when games had to be put aside for irl stuff/work/classes/etc and i took up capping off her story on my own, she ended play with .08 essence xwx if you're gonna tell a story, go nuts with it! decide the canon you operate within for yourself, as opposed to what's in the core rules- if you wanna write characters chromed to the gills, or tackle essence as otherizing propaganda as opposed to hard-established "you will die if you hit zero", then you should write that uwub

[scopophobia-polaris]

Sorry if this is overstepping bc using social media as a Social Platform gives me anxiety so bad i will throw up but like. Oh my god, youre such a creative inspiration??? To me??? Like okay ive been following your zelda stuff for a While and just aaaaa its so good. Like. 1) I love your worldbuilding??? So much??? Your version of Hyrule is the only one I've seen that makes me feel like its a real place where people live and that has a breathing ecosystem and folklore and society and I get so excited whenever I get to learn more about it?? And you made me really emotionally invested in OOT which was just a zelda setting I never thought too much about but now Timey is so near and dear to my heart like. Love their immaculate vibes!!

And just. If youll allow me to gush for a second. You're really good?? At comics??? Like you inspire me to try and work on comics myself bc you're just really good at dialogue and general page pacing and your paneling is so fun like. Idk . i just really like comics as a storytelling medium and you do really fun stuff with your panel composition and how you convey your ideas in illustration and i wish??? I was better at describing it but the world youve built and the story youre telling is just so so impressive to me I think its cool as shit. Also ur OCs rock even as somebody who p much just knows them from Memory of Younger Days I think they are very cool and interesting and I wish I could read a bajillion books about them.

Just like. I love your work a ton!!! And wish i was better at social media use and literacy to better convey it but just. Ur a big inspiration for me to work on my own projects and i think youre pretty amazing at what you do! So. Keep up the good work with whatever youre wanting to do, and also sorry if this comes across as weird!!

NO NO NO there is not an overstepping of boundries!!!!! Honestly thank you a whole bunch like 🙇‍♂️🙇‍♂️🙇‍♂️ I don't know how to explain but I get very worried all the time that stuff isn't going right and it's nice to know when people do like this....thing???? I'm doing??? And I just like knowing....is that weird? But seriously thank you I don't know how to say this in proper words but, I really do genuinely appreciate what you guys reach our and say such kind things and are just so nice😭‼️ and it gives me a billion warm and fuzzy feelings and It's like ah yeas keep working someone is watching you are wanting to keep working so keep going!!!! Its...it's not over stepping at all and thank you 🥺

#i hope i dont sound like a big dummy im just constaantly a wet noodle #soaked with tears

[mitziholder]

reading your blog feels like when you're slouching and someone yells at you to sit upright. i'm not a good writer at all and i unfortunately love romance and tropes (i don't read fanfiction though) but i used to want to write, and you inspired me to at least give it a try, maybe one day i will be able to write something interesting. i hope i remember to check back when the day comes that you publish your comic

I appreciate you taking the time to write in :) I don’t mean to be like a drill sergeant or anything. don’t get it twisted - I am not anti-fun (self-indulgence). in fact, I would be flattered if someone found my characters entertaining enough to fuck around and write about them whenever I do publish. I also don’t think anyone has a responsibility to focus on becoming a better writer...

but I think it is a good idea for reasons I’ve outlined before. it’s the basic essence of communication, of having a deeper understanding of the world that we live in and the people who populate it. in my experience, writing helps me organize and articulate my thoughts/feelings. if I did not do that, I would go insane. and the communication of those thoughts and feelings tends to demand a response... so I’m not just screaming into the void. more than that, I consider critiques/reviews - as a response - a way of helping me sharpen my points and my ability to express them (whether I agree with those critiques or not)

better at writing = better at communicating = better at thinking = win (we are a social species)

I don’t think romance or tropes or what have you are inherently bad; as with any element of writing, it is simply a matter of how you use them. it bothers me when people fully rely on them for every aspect of a story; that sort of “shorthand” can be useful for conveying relatively minor story beats which do not need as much time to be developed, but if your entire story is shorthand - shit that has already been written a million times by a million different people in a million identical ways - then what is the point? it can be fun, and that’s okay, but it’s not really communicating. it doesn’t tell you anything you didn’t already know. like benching the bar unto infinity etc etc

THAT ASIDE

I am shooting to publish ch1 by the end of the summer hopefully? still doing layouts + work + school blah blah yeahhh it’s coming along. lettering is driving me nuts. but we are making progress.

yay :)

I wish you the best in your future writing endeavors!

#updated the fucking font #ask

[lynxgriffin]

I've caught up to (some of) the comics I was reading of yours and OH MY GOD 600+ (666 to be exact, OOH SPOOKY) pages for paper trail with intricate lore and genuinely tear-jerking moments. Funny things, heartwrenching things, use of game mechanics proper that I could totally see in a DR chapter, and things seemed so consistently IC. Every panel was wonderful. Your use/repurposing of Ralsei and having him be but one small aspect of a larger spectrum of Asriel was INCREDIBLE. I have so many words racing in my brain and none of them come out in a way that seriously conveys how I feel after reading that. I came out of the read as if in a daze, hours past bedtime unaware of what the time even was. It was so incredibly cool to see a re-imagining of what ASRIEL (not to be confused with Asriel) would look like within your own headcanon as well. I especially liked the later pages showing your process with how you gave him the glasses outline for his markings. IT IS JUST ALL SO COOL AND THOUGHT OUT AND AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

Genuinely beautiful storytelling. You're so multi-skilled. An absolute treat to have that storytelling accompanied by beautiful art. Loved your pose work, loved your perspectives, loved your weaving of game and comic into a tight, hmm, scarf let's call it. Thank you for making it available in PDF too as it was easier for me to read that way. I can't believe this was free. I mean just WOW. When I'm doing better I am throwing something at your kofi or other tipping platform. I feel guilty just having this and giving nothing in return.

I understand this is super spoiler heavy so you might not want to publish this ask. I just had to tell you how much I appreciate your work. Thank you for the many years spent dedicating yourself to making something for others. I'm sure it wasn't easy.

Ooooh my goodness, thank you so much for the very long and very kind message! I'm so glad that you enjoyed the story so much and thought all the various elements worked well! It was so much fun to think up and work on and I'm glad you got all that back from reading it, too! It makes it all worthwhile!

Just aaaah this is such a nice thing to get in my inbox, and it keeps making me smile! Thank you so much!

#ask lynx stuff #PT ask #PT positivity #!!! To the person asking about a specific tag for post-PT talk! #I'll be using 'PT positivity' for that! Hope it helps!