Bonnie Lass

A status update!

2012-01-21T22:49:00.001-05:00

Issue 1 of Volume 2 should wrap up within the next week or so!

Things are moving along quite well! I owe a lot of that credit to the convenience and intuitiveness of Manga Studio. Most of the processes have taken less than a week to do 22 pages each, and that stat is still blowing my mind…!

And since artwork and final compositing for that first issue will be done pretty soon, we needed to have issue two scripted so I'd have something to jump right into for Februrary (wondering now if I can beat the calendar and have artwork for #2 finished in 29 days; I'm thinking yes).
And as of tonight, I have a complete issue two script! Needs a little fine tuning, but it's got 22 pages of comic paced quite nicely, so there should only be a few wrinkles to iron out…

And with that, I'll leave you with a preview panel from early in the first issue of volume two (don't worry! Hoping to have an actual subtitle fairly soon!) which offers a WIP glimpse at how I'm handling the backgrounds in this arc.

And one final word before ending this entry: Thank you to anyone who donated to Comic Creators for Freedom this year! I believe somewhere in the neighborhood of $7500 were raised, to help fight human trafficking!
Special thanks to Andrew Leslie (@dethfilm) of the Freakin' Awesome Network for interviewing me earlier this week and helping spread the word about the donation drive!
I look forward to being able to contribute to the cause next year, and I hope you will too!

Interview and Giveaway Announcement!

2012-01-16T12:14:00.002-05:00

I was interviewed this weekend by Andrew Leslie over at the Freakin' Awesome Network. That interview went live today, and you can find it here: http://www.freakinawesomenetwork.com/2012/01/comic-creator-interview-michael-mayne-comic-giveaway/

I'm questioned about writing a strong, female character, my participation in Comic Creators for Freedom's 2012 donation drive, and some of my karaoke standards, among other minutia!

There's also a giveaway. All you have to do is share a link to the interview on Facebook or Twitter (also include the hashtag #BonnieFAN for the latter) and you're in the running to win all four copies of Bonnie Lass: The Legend, signed by both Tyler and myself.
As an added bonus, Andrew will donate another $50 to CCF on Friday if you all can tally up at least 100 shares of that interview across Facebook and Twitter by then! So get crackin'!
Free comics? Helping out a great cause? You've got nothing to lose!

New adversaries…

2012-01-04T13:03:00.001-05:00

Readers of the first arc may recall that the main villain remained mostly enigmatic throughout the first half of the story. While he is briefly introduced to readers at the end of the first issue, he barely manages to squeeze in his intro to Bonnie and crew by the end of issue two. This is fine and dandy for how the story of The Legend progressed, but this time we thought we'd try something different, something more in-your-face.

So in volume two, issue one, we're throwing a couple of brand new adversaries Bonnie's way, and having her actually encounter them herself early on, in a sort of "good cop, bad cop" situation.

One of those characters is Rubens. I'll just tease you for now with a rough panel from an early page. Watchers of my deviantART page may recognize him from a few concept sketches from last year (and before that, he was originally a very early design for the character that eventually became Trick). Well, he's made it into the comic proper, so we'll all eventually get to see just what he has to offer!

The cool-headed Rubens faces off against hot-tempered Bonnie.

And here's that early concept sketch from, oh… 2008.

…back when the whole comic had a different style. Rubens!prime is quite reminiscent of Trick's build because… well, that's the role he was originally designed to fill. Rubens now is a little bulkier, and not as ratty looking as Bonnie and the gang. Still working a punk hairdo, though!

Ready to Begin Artwork for Volume 2, Issue 1!

2011-12-30T21:09:00.000-05:00

What's a finished script for an issue of Bonnie Lass look like?
Something like this…

That's a full 22 pages of comic book scripted in about 13 pages of a Word document.
If I can help it, I'll get a few thumbnails started tomorrow, so I can still say I'm getting started on interior artwork before 2011's out!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T08:42:00.000-05:00

Bonnie poses for a cover shoot

2011-12-21T16:40:00.000-05:00

Here's a look at an early design for the cover of volume 2, issue 1. It's already drastically changed, but since I got pretty far along in this sketch before deciding to go more dynamic, I thought I'd share this "abandoned" concept. The flora and the little design touches actually are in the current work-in-progress, and were actually added in after this pose was already nixed.

Comic Creators for Freedom

2011-12-20T17:53:00.001-05:00

The next installment of Bonnie's legend may be a ways off, but she'll be staying busy between now and then! Next month Bonnie will proudly be part of a collaborative effort to bring awareness to human trafficking and provide support for victims of it—Comic Creators for Freedom.

The collaboration is simple: if you're a comic artist with a female character in your roster, have her join the sprawling snowball fight! She'll be facing off in a free-for-all flurry of fluffy fury with dozens of other gals, all brought together in one epic collage! In January there will be a fundraising campaign to benefit Love 146 and Gracehaven, two organizations dedicated to helping those victimized by human trafficking, and a desktop wallpaper of the epic snowball fight will be offered as a humble thanks to anyone who donates.

Human trafficking is an all-too-real, all-too-deplorable vex on the world today. Thus far Comic Creators for Freedom has raised over $15,000 to help fight back, and this year I'm proud to be a part of the stand. Please check out the Comic Creators for Freedom website for more information on the issues at hand and what you can do to help. Artist submissions need to be in by December 31st!

As for Bonnie, here's the image of her I contributed to this year's collaborative image!

Bonnie's still truckin'!

2011-12-20T14:32:00.000-05:00

Work on volume two continues! There have been a lot of good (and not so good) ideas pop in and out of the brainstorming sessions, with one of the main goals being to tell a more engaging story than last time. We've already had to put to rest a few concepts that, while they'd certainly be fun in their own right, would ultimately just alter the pacing of the overall narrative too much.

Plotting is not quite finished, but we've got a definite beginning, middle and end now, so while still working over some of the finer details of the arc, scriptwriting for issue one has begun and hopefully will be to a point where I can start drawing pages (at least thumbnails) pretty soon!

In the meantime, here's a doodle I worked up earlier as a segue between Bonnie work and the other comic work I'm expecting soon.

Work on Bonnie Lass volume 2 commences!

2011-12-06T19:36:00.000-05:00

With the print release of Bonnie Lass: The Legend #4 imminent, thusly wrapping up that story arc, I'm happy to say that story work on a volume two is underway!

Everything's tentative right now, but to the left is a sneak peak at how we'll likely be meeting back up with Bonnie at the beginning of this new arc.

There's sure to be plenty of action this go-around, as we're going to see Bonnie and crew square off with a number of new antagonists face to face! I'm looking forward to getting the scripts worked out so I can get started on production of the pages themselves. Hopefully we'll be seeing some page work before the end of the year!

And I'd like to make more of a production blog out of this site for this volume, so look forward to more production artwork along the way!

—Michael

Bonnie Lass: The Legend #1 is on shelves today!

2011-09-14T09:47:00.003-04:00

That's right! The first issue finally sees its day in print!

The acclaimed series comes to print, spinning the pure-fun yarn of heroine Bonnie Lass setting out to build her reputation as a pirate to be envied and feared. Bent on overshadowing her father, the infamous Cutlass, Bonnie's after the one treasure he did not claim — the Eye of the Leviathan. Humor, beauty, misdirection, mash-ups and a leading lady to fall for sets sail on the open seas.

The first issue weighs in at 32, full-color (and boy, are they colorful!) pages. At $2.99 we reckon that's quite a bargain! As for the rest of the mini-series, it averages about 30 pages per issue, so you can be sure that each month through December you'll be getting a big bang for your buck!
Don't forget; there's a Preview available here on the blog for those of you wondering what's in store.

It's Pirates of the Caribbean-meets-Cowboy Bebop, effecting it's own unique style and panache!

The folks at Red 5 Comics organized one heckuva print edition—certainly pleased here!

If you do pick up a copy (most appreciated!), first of all we hope you enjoy it and will be looking forward to next month's release! Second, please feel free to let us know what you think, here or on the Facebook fan page! Comments, reviews, fan art…! Anything you want to share—we're eagerly awaiting to see what you all think!

One last note: Michael has two more convention appearances coming up in October. October 7-9 is Tsubasacon in Huntington, WV, and October 22-23 is Wizard World Mid-Ohio Con in Columbus, OH! Michael will be selling copies of Issues 1 and 2 (if available) at the retail price, and will gladly sign them as well! Plus, the first issue has a nice, blank canvas on the back, in case you're inclined to get an additional, quick sketch to further personalize your copy! Tyler will also be at Michael's booth at Mid-Ohio Con, so you can get a double whammy there!

Thanks in advance to any of you who get out there today and pick up a copy! And if it's not at your local shop today, there's a chance it'll be in next week instead. And if not, you can still get your shop to order it—there are plenty to be had! While you're out there, make sure your shop is going to be carrying the title in the coming months as well! Four issues, one concise story!

—Michael

Bonnie Lass: The Legend #1 - The Unboxening

2011-09-07T21:50:00.000-04:00

Midtown Comics just recently updated their listing to include Bonnie Lass #1. Go HERE to order it and still hopefully receive it shortly after the actual release date of September 21!

"Bonnie Lass" Invades Comic Shops in September!

2011-07-05T11:06:00.001-04:00

Red 5 Comics announces the start of pre-orders for its latest comic title coming to print — the high-energy joy-filled “Bonnie Lass: The Legend” from creators Michael Mayne and Tyler Fluharty.
Earlier this year, “Bonnie Lass” was the premiere title of the “Red 5 Comics Digital First” line of comics that would debut on the web and mobile devices. This would serve as a testing ground for off-beat, off-genre or new-talent titles looking to build a following, buzz and track-record up-front to set-up a big splash in print.
“Bonnie Lass” spins the yarn of a brash and daring young pirate heroine in a world that mashes the familiar motifs of legendary sea-faring pirates with the tone of an American western and a dash of modern-day technology like automobiles and GPS. Filled with daddy-issues toward her infamous pirate father, Bonnie is after the one treasure he did not claim.
In its digital release, “Bonnie Lass” earned praise from reviewers…

“A perfect book to lure superhero fans into non-superhero comics.” – Renderwrx Productions
“A light-hearted adventure story that owes as much to Indiana Jones as Pirates of the Caribbean.” – Robot 6
“Bonnie Lass has provided something that has surely been missing from comic books of the past few years — crazy pirate action.” – Impulse Gamer
“It reminded me of some of those great Marvel comics from the late ’60s/early ’70s that seemed jammed with action and story and page-turning excitement.” – Kleefeld on Comics

More importantly, “Bonnie Lass” also earned the paid following of digital comic readers on the comiXology and iVerse reader platforms, garnering sales comparable to hard-copy favorites like “Atomic Robo”, “Neozoic” and “Abyss” — but without the benefit of a print release promotion.
As Red 5 is an independent publisher, your comic shop may not carry “Bonnie Lass” this fall unless you pre-order your copy during the month of July using order code JUL111217. “Bonnie Lass #1” of the four-issue series is a spotlight item in July’s Diamond Preview catalog and set for release on September 21, 2011 for just $2.99.

—via Red 5 Comics

Bonnie animation pencil test #1

2011-05-16T14:09:00.000-04:00

(Click to actually see the animation.)

Just a little bit of animation I'm working on. May take me a few weeks (haven't fully animated anything in about eight years, and nothing beyond roughs at that) but I'd like to make this into a nice little promo spot.

This first pencil test just shows the first third or half of the projected movement, and I do realize there are a few glaring pacing issues already—I fully intend to iron those out! =)

Issue #4 is out!

2011-04-13T14:53:00.003-04:00

It's finally here, folks! The conclusive chapter to Bonnie Lass: The Legend! Check it out on ComiXology or iVerse!

Hope everyone's enjoyed the ride! Let us know what you think over at Facebook page—you can leave a review, start a discussion, or just leave a quick comment. We'd love to hear from ya!

Who knows what's in store for Bonnie now!
I can at least presume she'll at least make the effort to buy a proper captain's coat...

Also, don't forget to read my interview with ComiXology!

Part 1: http://blog.comixology.com/2011/04/12/michael-mayne-walks-the-plank-with-bonnie-lass/

Part 2: http://blog.comixology.com/2011/04/13/michael-mayne-walks-the-plank-part-two/

Why Dr. Dinosaur Hates Bonnie Lass

2011-04-11T11:38:00.000-04:00

Been getting used to Manga Studio in the past week or so. Allows me to draw a whole lot more efficiently on the computer. Saves paper, and I think it's saving a bit of time as well.

Anywho, here's another bench test of the software. All the inking/blacks were done in Manga Studio, along with the flat colors. Took it into Photoshop for some color correction and the shading/highlighting.

Wanted to do some Atomic Robo fanart while I was at it, and figured Dr. Dinosaur (with his self-proclaimed yet shoddy origin story) was the best candidate for the crossover.
This isn't anything official for Red 5—nothing like that. Just some fun fanart of Team Robo's work!

Other art from this week...

2011-03-25T12:12:00.002-04:00

Forgot to post these as well.

Just another experiment in digital linework.

And here's a cross-over/fanarty thing based off of the other pinup from this week...

Bonnie cosplaying Yoko from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. Watch it on Hulu. If Bonnie Lass were animated, it would have much of the same kind of kineticism as Gurren Lagann.

Bonnie Lass #3 now available (in all the right places!)

2011-03-23T09:53:00.000-04:00

Wednesday's come and sure enough ComiXology finally has Bonnie Lass #3 in their catalog! Click on over to their store to start reading it now for just $1.99! It's got the biggest action of the series so far!
And don't forget, iVerse has had it since last week, so whichever venue you prefer, you've got your pick of 'em now!
Happy reading! And here's a little something for holding on!

Bonnie Lass #3 is (sort of) Available!

2011-03-17T09:52:00.000-04:00

Bonnie Lass: The Legend #3 hit the iVerse Comics+ store yesterday! Sorry for the delayed notice, but I didn't get word of it myself until about half an hour ago.

Those of you waiting on the ComiXology release, please hold tight! I'm hoping for a release next week since they've apparently got all their ducks in order, just waiting for Apple's market approval. I'll update when ComiXology gets it too!

For those of you getting your digital comics through iVerse anyway, enjoy! #3 picks the pace back up and introduces the giant Leviathan! It's sure to be a blast! 29 pages of action and revelations!

GIVEAWAY Announcement! (2/21/11)

2011-02-21T09:36:00.003-05:00

Hey, fans!

After much procrastination and hesitation, it's time for the first official Bonnie Lass contest!

The rules are simple: merely buzz about Bonnie Lass over the next few days on Twitter or Facebook and you've got a chance at winning a mini-poster (a facsimile of the image to the left) signed by both Michael and Tyler as well as a free, one-of-a-kind Bonnie sketch from Michael!

HOW TO ENTER

On Twitter, include a #BonnieLass hashtag in your tweet(s). Any other similar tagging will be nice (@MichaelMayne, @red5comics, etc.) but isn't necessary because of the 140-character limit.

On Facebook, simply tag the Bonnie Lass page (make sure you're a fan first, otherwise it won't work; also make sure you select the Bonnie Lass page from the dropdown menu which will appear once you start typing in the name—merely typing it won't confirm it as a tag) in your status by typing @Bonnie Lass. This tags the page and easily lets us know that you are in the running! If you don't tag the page I can't guarantee we'll see it, and thus it won't count as a "ticket" into the drawing.

UPDATE 2/22/11

On Facebook, simply LIKE any of the posts on the Bonnie Lass page from this week. I've run into the problem of not actually being able to be notified of the page being tagged nor being able to search for up-to-date instances of the page being mentioned, so I'm assuming there are some people's "entries" I'm missing as a result. For the remainder of the contest, please just LIKE the things that are posted this week. Sharing the links is nice too, and would be greatly appreciated, but I won't be able to see instances of that either, so Sharing won't affect your entry tallies. Sorry for the mixup! Hope you'll keep entering!

You can "enter" as many times as you want on either site and increase your chances of winning! Each instance of the appropriate tags (except for auto-retweets) is a valid entry!

WINNERS

At least four winners will be randomly chosen (random number generator, based on number of valid entries), two from Twitter and two from Facebook.
I (Michael Mayne) will contact the winners via direct message on whichever site their winning tag was on, to get shipping information.
Failure to respond to my message within 48 hours may mean that somebody else gets the prize, so be on the lookout!
I'll also post a winner's list, so in case there's any trouble with me getting a hold of the winners, the winners can contact me.

DEADLINE

All tags made between 9am EST, Monday, Feb. 21, 2011 and 11:59am EST, Wednesday Feb. 23, 2011 will be entered into the drawing. Deadline may be extended to allow for more entries, in which case the number of winners will increase as well!

That should be it! Hope to see a lot of Bonnie talk over the next few days! =D

New Comics Wednesday! Issue #2 is finally here!

2011-02-16T10:08:00.001-05:00

Bonnie Lass: The Legend - Part Two is finally here! This one really gets you more familiar with the world that Bonnie calls home, and new conflicts arise! You don't wanna miss it!

Here is the direct link for getting it on comiXology: https://comics.comixology.com/#/issue/7902/Bonnie-Lass-2
And it should be up on iVerse's Comics Plus app as well!

Spread the word, and get people to read the comic and Like the Facebook page (http://facebook.com/BonnieLassComic), follow Michael on Twitter (http://twitter.com/MichaelMayne) or just direct them here to the blog (http://bonnielasscomic.com)—There's a contest coming up soon involving some free artwork, and the more people that know about it the more I may be able to give away!

Stay tuned, and let us know what you think of the mini-series so far! Please, voice your opinions! Comments, critiques, doesn't matter! Hopefully issue #3 will hit the market without any holdups next month! =D

Ahoy! The Lass' been 'round longer than I recalled!

2011-02-11T17:54:00.000-05:00

Found an old sketch from Autumn of 2004, hidden away in an untouched-since-college box of sketchbooks.
Turns out I'd doodled up a character that is essentially Bonnie about a year earlier than I thought! I imagine this was just a nameless piratess and her bird at the time, sketched out just to come up with something new, but she's clearly a precursor to what would eventually become the Bonnie we know and love today!

The Pullbox reviews Bonnie Lass #1

2011-01-19T15:56:00.000-05:00

Bonnie Lass: Not Your Typical Red 5 Book

They're a fan of the fourth-wall-breaking! Are you?

Bonnie Lass review by The Gorgeous Geek

2011-01-15T20:05:00.003-05:00

You may have noticed…

2011-01-15T17:36:00.000-05:00

bonnielasscomic.com now brings you directly here!

Special thanks to Dawgbyte Productions for the domain service!
Need a website? Need a logo? Need some other kind of web service?
Drop them a line!

Three Interviews—Two Old, One New

2011-01-13T20:27:00.000-05:00

First, the new: Here's an interview I did with Troy of Impulse Gamer:

1) Bonnie Lass was released digitally first. Did that affect the way you created the book at all?
Michael Mayne: Not at all. Bonnie Lass was conceived as something that would ultimately (hopefully) make it to print. Even considering the growing popularity of digital comics, I never thought the layout and composition of the "book" needed to be significantly tailored to fit within any kind of perceived constraints.

2)What do you think of the digital realm and comic books? Are you interested in exploring this new media and its potential for comics?
...

CLICK HERE to read the rest!

And from a couple weeks ago: Here are a pair of interviews conducted by Richard over at the Jazma Online Forums…

Michael Mayne Co-Writer/Illustrator Bonnie Lass

Tyler Fluharty Co-Writer for Bonnie Lass

Enjoy the reads!

The Reviews Keep Comin' In!

2011-01-13T11:14:00.000-05:00

Here's a rundown of the reviews I've found since Issue #1 was released!

Kleefeld on Comics
Omnicomic
Renderwrx Productions
Jazma Online
ComicBuzz
Impulse Gamer

Some honest, welcome critiques here and there, but every one of them has been a positive review so far! Let us know if you stumble upon any more, or better yet—let us know if you write one yourself!

"Bonnie Lass" Ready to Set Sail

2010-12-22T10:56:00.000-05:00

Red 5 Comics welcomes "Bonnie Lass" to their line of great comics!
Here's a direct link to Issue #1 on comixology's web browser viewer: https://comics.comixology.com/#/series/5548
Also available through comixology's and iVerse's movile device apps!

Full press release below!

Red 5 Comics is pleased to announce the newest addition to their acclaimed line-up, “Bonnie Lass: The Legend” from creators Michael Mayne and Tyler Fluharty.

“Bonnie Lass” spins the yarn of a brash and daring young heroine and her two muscle-headed sidekicks as they set out to build a reputation as swashbuckling pirates to be envied and feared. Bent on overshadowing her father, the infamous Cutlass, Bonnie’s after the one treasure he did not claim — the Eye of the Leviathan. But there are other forces at work seeking to claim it for themselves.

Bonnie’s world blends the familiar cultural motifs of the most legendary sea-faring pirates of the 1700s and 1800s with a the tone of an American western and a dash of modern-day technology like automobiles and GPS. The unique setting lends unexpected and wildly entertaining twists to a traditional pirate tale.

“Bonnie Lass” was created, written and illustrated by Michael Mayne and co-written by Tyler Fluharty. Mayne is a freelance illustrator and graphic designer with over twenty-five small press children’s books and novel covers to his credit. He recently illustrated the “Gearz/VSS” comic from Bluewater Productions.

“Bonnie Lass” marks the first title in a line of digital-debut comic series from Red 5 Comics. These titles are the best of the creator-owned off-beat, fresh-talent, eclectic or genre stories looking to build an audience and acclaim before making the leap to print editions.

“Bonnie Lass” debuts on the comixology (http://comics.comixology.com — iOS, web and Android) and iVerse (http://www.iversecomics.com – iOS, PSP) digital platforms on December 22. Issue #1 is a plus-sized 34 pages long for just $1.99.

Storm's a brewin'…

2010-09-17T18:46:00.000-04:00

Hello again, Unresponsive Void!

So... Three months since an update? Yeah, most of the activity has been on deviantART, and even that's died down during the publisher hunting process...

But I'm just here today to drop a small info bomb.

Bonnie has a new home on Facebook!
It's an actual Page now, as opposed to the old Group. Makes it easier to "like." And you like "liking," don't you? So hop on over and like Bonnie!

An actual big news update should be coming soon. And the Facebook page will probably get first priority as far as updating, so be sure you're a fan!

Psst... Another sneak peek...

2010-06-10T22:14:00.000-04:00

See that cruelly unembiggenable thumbnail? Hop over to the Bonnie Lass Facebook group to catch a bigger glimpse at the opening spread from Chapter 3! Don't forget to join if you haven't! Yes, I'm talking to you, Unresponsive Void! =)

I've been hammering away at the pages the last couple of days. The interior artwork for Chapter 3 ought to be finished by Sunday, and very likely as early as Saturday night.

With as quick as the work's been going lately, I might be finishing up all the other stuff I have to go back and do with Chapters 1 and 2 by next weekend...! Or thereabouts...

Nearing the end!

2010-05-27T10:28:00.000-04:00

OK, so it's been a month since the last update. I'm terrible at progress reports, I guess.

But the fact of the matter is, I've been really busy, both with Bonnie Lass and other projects, the latter of which is of no concern here, so about the former...

I'm shooting to wrap up chapter 3 sometime during the week of June 6th. I've got four panels left to ink on the pages I already have roughed (24) and then five more pages to draw and ink from scratch. I believe nine pages are already flatted, leaving twenty to go. I'm hoping that only takes about four or five days. Then it should be another four days or so to lay in the shading and misc. color effects and text. So, yeah, hopefully just another two weeks or so.

Though, after that I've still got to go back and finish a few pages for chapter 2. And illustrate the covers for chapters 2 and 3.

I wish I was better at this whole "work in progress" thing. It's just really impractical for me to scan in pages that aren't actually ready to be digitized yet... And the pages that are worked digitally so far have what I would consider notable spoilers.

A sense of accomplishment...

2010-04-28T23:22:00.000-04:00

I don't know what sparked in me this week, but I feel like I've gotten quite a bit of inking done in just the last three or four days...

There's a lot more black on the pages, covering up the red now. Many of the pages are only waiting for a panel or two to be inked. Several of the pages toward the end will be relatively easy, as they are occupied by larger panels that I'll breeze through once I start on them.

Page 7 of Chapter 3 is an interesting subject. Something was bugging me about the roughs, so I worked them over till I thought I'd ironed them out, but once I started inking I realized there's one panel where Bonnie's figure is unnaturally elongated. Fortunately I drew her in such a way that I'll be able to nudge her down to size in Photoshop.

In another panel, Bonnie is comparatively too large as she stomps toward Monet. I actually haven't inked Monet yet, so I could just redraw him and ink him to match her, but I think his size in relation to the composition of the panel is just right; it's Bonnie whom I will resize slightly in Photoshop, methinks.

I'll try to remember to post a comparison of this page—the cleaned up scan before and after artistic edits. You'll get an idea of the kinds of "errors" I stick with on paper, only to digitally edit them later.

More production inks...

2010-04-27T17:40:00.000-04:00

Another one of the digital-ready pages. Just thought I'd post a clean shot of a WIP before it's colored at all.

Chapter 3 gets some color!

2010-04-26T22:31:00.000-04:00

Still doing major work on the inks for Chapter 3, and I got the first full page done today. There are several others on the verge of being done, but I wanted to color a new page since it's been a while—at least for Bonnie Lass.
Just flats and a little bit of background texturing done, but it's coming along smoothly.

Ahoy, amigos! It's a Bonnie Lass wallpaper!

2010-04-21T11:49:00.000-04:00

Click the link to download the fullsize from my deviantART page. The link takes you to the standard Windows sized wallpaper (768x1024) so if you're running anything at that ratio, that's the one for you.

There's also this link for the standard Mac screen ratio of 900x1440.

Presenting... By the Pint, #1!

2010-04-20T00:04:00.000-04:00

Ladies and gentlemen, here is the first of the 4-panel "By the Pint" comic strips, starring characters from Bonnie Lass!

The art style will fluctuate as I find a quick, workable approach throughout the first several strips. The humor, however, will pretty much maintain the current level of Suck from here on out.

St. Patty's Day Bonnie

2010-03-17T18:36:00.000-04:00

The coloring job on this beast took about 5 hours, I think. I don't know why. I did a little experimenting, but not too much, I didn't think... Oh well. 'Twas fun. And now I can officially say I was festive for St. Patty's Day...

Boobs and beer... It must be Bonnie!

2010-03-11T10:57:00.000-05:00

Just working on a St. Patty's Day pinup of Bonnie for an art jam over on deviantART. Between actual work on the comic and other stuff, ought to have this done by... St. Patty's Day, at the latest.

Proof of Purchase Inking

2010-03-10T19:50:00.000-05:00

Yes, they're webcam snapshots. I told you. I just have no use for scanning them in right now because they're obviously not done.

You'll see that I'm being rather unconventional with my process (or am I? I don't know). No real order in which I work on any given panel (or page, for that matter). Basically, whatever seems like a fun subject to ink at the time, or whatever seems fastest, gets done first. So there are inks on every single page of roughs so far; there's just not one, single page in and of itself that is completely inked.

Also of note is that I don't really have a clean, pencil state. I just go from semi-polished roughs straight into inking. As a result, roughing takes a little longer than it would if they were literally "roughs," and inking probably takes a bit longer because I'm still technically making decisions on the composition of the lines. By skipping the pencils, I'm probably only saving about 10-15% of the time it would otherwise take. Actually, I'd say that's a pretty good number in the long run. Glad I just did the layman's math on that...!

And... I roughed (I believe) all of the above pages while re-watching the last few episodes of Gurren Lagann. You can tell. I inked parts of the top pages while watching Die Hard. You can't really tell.

Oy...

2010-03-10T01:01:00.000-05:00

Upon trying to streamline the process of drawing The Officer Delgado (Bonnie's ship), the design itself has undergone some changes.

Over the two years that the project's been in some kind of development or another, the Delgado went from a bulky little fishing boat just barely big enough to carry the makeshift cabin on-deck (back then it was an RV), to a clunkier, bigger vessel, and from there a taller, leaner version (with a generic delivery truck replacing the RV as the "cabin").

Since the last major revamp, it's taken on a few minor tweaks, most of which I've felt were innocuous enough to slip in without retroactively going back to alter previous shots of the ship—going with the notion that over time the readers would remember certain details of the ship in pieces, and later when it's seen as a collective whole, the latest "version" of the ship is the definitive amalgamation of those sometimes contradicting details.

Those details have been slight enough up until now for me to feel comfortable leaving them be. But tonight while roughing and inking Chapter 3, I finally started to develop a more streamlined technique for sketching out the shape of the ship. In doing so, it makes the lines of the form really look a whole lot more appealing, but it slightly moves some of the details around.

Unfortunately, I don't think it's "slightly" enough. More on the "noticeable" end of the spectrum. So it looks like I'm going to be going back through some of the pages in Chapters 1 and 2 and touching up certain shots of the Delgado. Chapter 1 will be the chore; in Chapter 2, there are only a few long shots of the Delgado to begin with, and the ones that could use some adjusting really wouldn't require much at all.

The actual work doesn't really bother me (I'm just going to make all the edits on one new layer, over top of the other work layers); it's the waiting on the Photoshop files to load. Bummer...

In the end, it will be worth it. The Delgado will look a whole lot nicer (for a ship that's supposed to be a junker, anyway).

The inks. They cometh.

2010-03-08T12:31:00.000-05:00

So I've been inking Chapter 3 (rather casually) for the last two or three days. Still have 5 pages of roughs to get to, but I ran out of Bristol paper on Thursday, so I need to get to Hobby Lobby and pick up some more.

So in the meantime, I decided to go ahead and get a jumpstart on the inking. I'd like to get about 10-12 more pages done this week, at least. That would put me past the halfway point on inking, whereupon I'd only need another week and a half to get onto coloring and lettering.

Chapter 3 is definitely moving along very fast (err... compared to Chapters 1 and 2; practically speaking, I'm probably only working about as fast as I would actually NEED to work to be professionally efficient). But, assuming I don't have too many other projects crop up in the next few weeks, I should be onto the coloring phase pretty soon!

I'll try and get some visuals up here soon, so it's not just wall after wall of text. Since I haven't done anything digitally yet, though, I've just had no need to scan anything in. Maybe some crude webcam snapshots will suffice... at least during the roughs/early inking stages...

Movin' on up...

2010-03-03T18:36:00.000-05:00

Nothing new to show, but the roughs for chapter 3 are more than halfway done. I even lessened the page-count, bringing it down to 30 pages. If all goes as smoothly as it has and I keep working as much as I can, I'll have the roughs done in less than a week!

I'll try to expedite the inking process as much as possible while keeping it from deviating from the look of the first two chapters.

Then coloring and all the other digital stuff should go a little smoother as well, since I'll be modifying the automated part of the process a little.

Boy, am I glad I went ahead and scripted chapters 3 and 4 at the same time! I'd say knowing that in the back of my mind has been motivating me a little more even during the roughing stage...

Bonnie and Co. practic CQC

2010-02-25T15:47:00.000-05:00

Kicking off the "Production Blog" phase of the comic. I've got plenty of material to share as of now, I just haven't scanned any of it in. It'll show up in due time.

For now, here's something I just worked up for chapter 3. The character interaction and composition for this shot was proving to be rather tricky on paper, so I took to the Mac to rough it out on a bigger scale, so as to avoid wasting lead, paper and eraser until I got it just right.
From here I'll just use the screen on my iMac as a makeshift lightbox and trace all the important lines for pencil & paper roughs. This works in my case because I happen to draw very light to begin with, and even lighter when I know I'm pressing against my flatscreen. XD
So if you have a heavy hand, I wouldn't suggest it.

Anyway, this isn't what the final comp will look like, as I'm going to be making room for another character in the immediate foreground. And of course the details are just roughs as well, so I'll actually be making the characters look themselves in the final phase.

That's all for now. The work beckons!

Page 10

2009-12-28T16:18:00.000-05:00

Page 9

2009-12-23T16:16:00.000-05:00

Page 8

2009-12-21T19:23:00.000-05:00

A little late in the evening, but here it is!

Page 7

2009-12-18T20:41:00.000-05:00

Page 6

2009-12-16T21:25:00.000-05:00

Page 4 & 5 Spread!

2009-12-14T21:54:00.000-05:00

And here's today's (big) update, before it too becomes late...!

Page 3

2009-12-14T21:53:00.001-05:00

Sorry this one didn't get uploaded when it should, O vacuum of hyperspace...

Page 2!

2009-12-09T21:49:00.000-05:00

Kept forgetting to upload this before the end of the day... Made it! =D

Bonnie Lass Finally Hits the Web! Cover and Page 01!

2009-12-07T23:48:00.000-05:00

New pages will tentatively be added every Monday-Wednesday-Friday. Enjoy the madness!
—Michael