Graphic-novel goodies - senior show

Senior show was fun. Even got interviewed.

Graphic-novel goodies - Fine Art

It had a good variety of my art and I was so glad to finally show off my printed books. Also my friend Jennifer Paul was there showing graphic design work. When I was setting up I was starting to tear up. I'm really going to miss college when I'm finished.

My artist statement was:

Creating comics are like being the writer, actor, director, and editor of a movie all in one person. I write the story, the characters, the conflicts... I act out scenes in front of mirrors to draw the emotions of the characters. I direct the angles where I want every scene and character to be placed in each panel. And lastly I edit and manipulate the scenes to emphasize and hide what the audience sees. My work is the result of drawing, digital work, printmaking and publication both online and in print. It becomes a very involving experience. That’s why I like to make comics and will continue to create them.

Here's some pictures before the show:

Tutorial: How to publish a book at Lulu.com!

How to make a print of your comic for Lulu.com
By JillyFoo

Outline:
You need time, money and more time!
1. 300 dpi pages
2. Dialog
3. Page size
4. PDF conversion
5.(evil) Adobe Acrobat Professional
6. Book extras
7. Final steps

1. Make sure all your pages are at 300dpi

What is it?: It’s your page resolution!
Better quality for printing.
Every page must be this for Lulu.com.

Setting 300 dpi:
Traditional art: Set Scanner to scan at 300 dpi.
For photoshop/other art program users: before you draw the image, set the dpi to at least 300.
It is possible to convert less then 300dpi images to 300dpi, but not recommended. Using photoshop go to Image size - resolution -then set to 300 dpi pixels/inch(Also it enlarges the image. make sure the image size isn't too large.)

2. Dialog
For best dialogue print quality it is recommended you save original sized pages as a PSD all font layers intact.
Lulu.com needs the fonts to be embedded into the PDF in order for it to print properly.
There is a long and annoying way instructed by lulu.com, but if you have photoshop... when you save as a pdf make sure "include vector data" has "embed fonts" checked. (the newest photoshops embed fonts automatically I think.)

3. Page Size
Before you make a whole bunch of pdfs…
Decide your page size.
http://www.lulu.com/help/index.php?fSymbol=book_formatting_faq#FAQLink5
What ever the size try to have as much picture fill up the page as possible (without cutting out dialog.)
It is recommended that you format your book to be a “full bleed” for Lulu
What is full bleed?: It makes your content stretch all the way to the edge of the page! For story comics (that have splash pages or is not in panels) it can look nicer. Comics in panels not so much.

Gutters and bleed areas
Gutters and bleed areas are what’s going to be cut off.
Example:
Crown Quarto size: 2307x2979 pixels
Gutter area: 90 pixels
Top and bottom of page 38 all together 75 pix
Opposite side of gutter 75 pixels

4.Conversion to PDF (directions via Adobe Photoshop)
To make a standard 2307x2979 pdf page.
Crop the image to just the picture.
Observe the size. Wider? Higher compared to other pages?
Go to Image Size> height or width. Height> 2904 OR Width> 2127. (notice the 2127 leaves 90pix on both sides of page just in case if you don't know which side has the gutter.)
Then go to Canvas size> Height> 2979 Width> 2307.
Save as> PDF (make sure all fonts are embedded.)

5. (evil) Adobe Acrobat Professional
In order to upload the pages to Lulu you have to have all the pdfs as one big pdf.
You need Adobe Acrobat Professional for that. You can obtain it via trial download for free at the official adobe website (for 30 days).
Make sure you have all the pages in order. (AAP is going to scramble them for ya.)(Make sure all pdf pages are the same size in height and width before you put em in one big pdf!!)

6. Book Extras
Extra pages you might want in your book:
Copyright page
Table of contents
About the author
Filler art
Page numbers
Link to your website/webcomic

7. Final Steps
-Look through your final pdf! Check for mistakes! Prevent yourself from buying multiple proof copies.
-Make a lulu account
-Upload the pages to Lulu. If it’s a large file you’re going to need to use Filezilla program to upload. (directions at lulu.com)
-Upload your PDF front and back cover. Same size as your pdf pages except in jpeg form.
BUY A PROOF COPY! Don’t sell to public until it’s perfect!

If there's anything else just go through the Lulu FAQ
Or pm me but Lulu would probably be easier.

ComixPress uses the same format of a large pdf to make their books, if you don't like Lulu you can probably go through them instead.

Convention appearances 2007-2008

Planned Con Appearances for 2007-2008
-April 4-6 08: Anime Detour, MN (artist alley)
-May ?? 08: Anime Central? (artist alley?)
-Aug 1-3 08: Kakkoi Con, MN (artist alley)

Comixpress and colorist search

I'm experimenting with cheaper printing: Comixpress. I summited my first thing wrong and am waiting for them to tell me it's wrong so I can resubmit. My plan is to make a small TPCTH manga sized book and small comic books of just chapter 10 and 11. The due date is April before Anime Detour and Anime Central. If I want to remake the first book I have to do photoshop batch processing correctly or suffer doing it the hard way.

For the upcoming book covers I thought about it and I want to hire a colorist.
It would be for the three book covers of TPCTH. I want to still do the pencils and inking just have someone color them for me. The reason why is after making comic art for so long really good coloring(the kind that people actually buy at comic and anime cons) is just not what I do good at. I want to focus my talents at pencil and linework so I can become specialized in making that very good.
I'm planning on paying actual money and the colorist will be credited in the book. I have limits though.. I'm not a real company or anything so if you ask too high I'm looking elsewhere.

The kind of colorist I am looking for... someone that can do high contrasting colors and shadows like lights on figures in the dark. Can render realistic fire effects. More artistic painterly like, not cartoony or anime coloring like. Probably a CG artist but you can prove me wrong if I see what I'm looking for in your portfolio (AKA also can be your DA gallery).

I still haven't completely finished drawing the covers yet so I won't seriously be looking for a colorist until December. BTW since I am planning on paying money I'm going to be extremely picky and don't be offended if I refuse to commission you.

Email me if interested or link me recommendations.

What I have learned from making webcomics

I learned if you want something done always do it yourself.
Mostly for the print making for me. TPCTH print was delayed a year because one of my friends insisted that he do all the page conversions and it ended up he wasn't doing any of it. So during last winter break I did all the work and nearly went crazy ,but it was worth it.

Webcomics are not money makers.
You can make much more money by simply having a low paying job than selling anything related to your webcomic, BUT you get a lot more fame from making a webcomic. Internet fame that is.

You get better over time.

-You will become more confident in your work. Less hiding it whenever someone walks by if you draw in public. Less hiding it from the people you know.

-Less feeling like your work is crap after you read really skillful pro comics like CLAMP manga.

-You will also get in that "drawing mood" easier after you do it so much.

If your real life friends/family weren't interested from the beginning in your comic, don't expect them to become interested.
I got into webcomics through some IRL friends. I originally made a webcomic to impress them. Even though they loved webcomics dearly doesn't mean they liked my comics.

When writing a story go with what interests you.
Half of it's instinct really. If the plot (or an added scenario) makes you excited there's a good chance your readers will think it's exciting too. And it keeps you interested in continuing the comic.

A progression in style

My old and new work for your amusement.

First is my giant dog character, Bienfang. Didn't want people to always compare him to the wolves in Princess Mononoke. Made him more puffy and smaller eyes like a dog. Anatomy looks better too. Owning a real dog for a year helps.Starla and Scout. Working with these characters I really got to know their personalities and how they would react to situations. The expressions I think are the biggest change other than the obvious improvements overall.

Nameless(right) and Faceless(left) This is an inking of an old drawing. The biggest changes are in Nameless' anatomy and face. The hair was really messed up when I first draw this character. Now the hairline looks like it fits to a real person.

Darcie. Starla and Scout's older sister ten years before the present setting of the story. (She would be 12 years old in these pictures.) I really used to hate drawing children and didn't care much for the overly huge eyes. I was (actually from the beginning) going for a realistic manga style. It was really hard to draw children with out making them look like an adult with out the very big eyes. Now years later, I decided to drop the very big eyes and still manage to make kid characters look like kids.

Similar concept as Darcie. It's Starla as a seven year old. (The picture of her as a 17 year old is above) I used a photo of one of the 1st graders I taught this year a reference.

This character Chase changed the most. He's supposed to be 12-14 year old, not quite a kid not quite a guy. He goofs off sometimes ,but for the most part he's a serious supporting character. He knows a good amount of the secrets of the story, but is forced to keep it to himself due to his master and thus he feels bad about it. I do like the smaller eyes and more teenage look in the recent picture(it fits more with what kind of character he is), but he seems to look too attractive for a supporting character. (Looks like one of those emo yaoi bishies.) Much more cute than the main characters(my poor ugly Scout...).
So thus I both love and hate Chase.

(Oh yeah... I got Chase's hair part wrong... Either I change it or say it was always like that. Hahaha!)

Kinda funny ads I've found.

This one really cracks me up... World of Warcraft MMORPG becomes your life when you join. It's either WOW or the degree. Not both. Seriously.

Ok the drawing's very skillful but it also is...Learn how to draw the human figure very ugly! We at Leading Entertainment Studios pride ourselves in drawing figures very ugly. With our training course we will have you drawing the human figure very ugly in no time!

The Planet Closest to Heaven book is ready to buy.

Click here to get to the store. Just in time for Anime Detour too.

Future Webcomic Guild?

Tried to ask people about it on a few forums way back in December 2006. Not much luck at all. Thought I'd post it here. Perhaps I can get more into this after I graduate.

Are you from Minnesota or near the Twin Cities and interested in meeting fellow webcomic makers/fans in real life?
I want to start a webcomic meet up group if there is enough people interested( http://www.meetup.com/). If it happens the meetings would be in a neutral public location I'm thinking The Source ( http://www.sourcecandg.com/). I go there on Saturdays for card league and RP. I can talk with the owner to start up the meetings.

I'm thinking of calling the group the Minnesota Webcomic Guild. Sounds cool and official.
Who?
Don't have to be from Minnesota ,but close enough to drive to the Source in Falcon Heights, MN.

Why?
The reason is I don't really know any webcomic creators in real life. Webcomics tend to be a internet and (maybe a few anime conventions)only social life. I want the webcomic hobby to expand a little more outside the internet.

What would we do?
I'm thinking of going to local cons(Anime Detour, Fall Con?). Printing and selling our own webcomics as a group sharing a table. Maybe some tutorial meetings. Critique meetings. Hang out meetings. That's kinda what I got so far.

I have experience with club organizations. I started and still am an officer of the Anime Fan Club at Mankato State University since fall 2003.

Please reply or pm me if you are interested.

Older comics and images

Going to post some newer stuff later.

Famous People Interviews #1: Kristen Gudsnuk

This is the result of not having the Drunkduck interviews updated. I decided to conduct my own interviews for the enjoyment of hearing what people have to say about their art. In future issues I hope to interview local artists, illustrators, as well as webcomic artists.

Our first interviewed famous person is Kristen Gudsnuk. She creates webcomics at drunkduck.com, is an anime fan, and loves to make fun of emos. Her webcomic Misfit Assassins is about five psychotic yet goofy teenagers trying to straighten out their pasts as members of the Party of Peace's Assassin squad.

Real Name: Kristen Gudsnuk
Age: 19
Creator of the webcomic: Misfit Assassins

Jillyfoo: How long have you been into webcomics?

Kristen: Well, I didn't even know that they existed until last October. I had been working on my comic just for fun, and forcing all of my friends to read it, when someone said, "You should make this into a webcomic." Misfit Assassins isn't the first comic I've ever drawn, but it's my first webcomic.

Jillyfoo: What's the webcomic that got you into webcomics or (comics or manga?)

Kristen: I'll have to blame everything on my little brother. He made me watch anime, and I'm probably genetically predisposed to otakudom, so it just seemed a natural step to make my own manga. But the deciding factor was (get ready, I'm a nerd) watching Naruto. I thought, "wow! This show is well-written, beautifully animated, and it makes me cry a lot! I shall aspire to this amazingness!"

Jillyfoo: WHAT is your quest!?
(what's the goal of your comic makingness? Why are you doing what you do?)

Kristen: Well, I sort of view Misfit Assassins as a training-ground. I've already learned so much about making comics, and about writing and pacing, and there's a lot more for me to learn. So I'm doing this to solidify my skills and to improve at drawing and stuff. When I finish (which will be in a really long time; the story is pretty complicated in my mind), I plan on winning Rising Stars Of Manga (yeah! WINNING!!!) and then skyrocketing to worldwide acclaim and fame.

Jillyfoo: WHAT is your favorite color?
(Do you prefer black and white or color comics? and why?)

Kristen: My favorite color is SPARKLE!
I personally like to do my comics in black and white because it's faster, and because there's a higher margin of error when using color. Ok, so mostly because I'm lazy! ^^!!

Jillyfoo: I know assassin stories are real common place in the webcomic world, Misfit Assassins feels different though. It's hilarious. How did you come up with Misfit Assassins? How do you come up with stories in general?

Kristen: Well, before I rediscovered anime, I was toying with the idea of writing a short story about friends who get driven by evil old society to rob a restaurant and try to run away, and the story was going to be all about the naivete of childhood and the whole "the best laid plans of mice and men" kind of theme. (It's still in there, though, vaguely! That's Tom and Bertha's past, although they rob a convenience store!) But then I was bored at work and thought, "what if I made my story into a comic?" I thought that if it was going to be a manga, it needed to be over-the-top rather than really introspective, so I threw in superpowers, a futuristic setting, and assassins! And voila!
The story itself isn't really about assassinating people. It's more focused on the "Misfit" part ^_-! In other words, I've been trying to make character development a priority!
Although further along in the comic, there will be more "assassin" business... deep down, this comic is (well... more like, "will aim to be") about the ineffectiveness of government, and yet the pointlessness of revolt. I don't want to spoil anything though!!! (But some major, crazily unexpected plot twists are ahead, in the distant future, and you'd have to be reading my comic with a microscope to pick up on the vague foreshadowing.)

Jillyfoo: I love Eve and Flipper! How did you come up with those pair?

Kristen: I figured that everyone has their tragic pasts in Misfit Assassins, and it would get really dull if everyone wandered around like Tom, clutching their broken emo-hearts. So I wanted Eve to be non-scarred, buoyant and hardy; to recover easily, etc. Even though she doesn't have parents, she's not too bothered by it, because she has Flipper!!!! They're BFFs!!

Jillyfoo: What's with the emo jokes? Where did they come from?

Kristen: Well, when I decided to make a comic, it was in the middle of watching the Haku/Zabuza arc of Naruto. And that story arc was so depressing. Like, it makes your soul bleed. And I thought, "So that's the key to awesomeness! Maudlin, shameless emotionality!" I decided to make my comic as EMO AS POSSIBLE! Tom's got a dead girlfriend and a dead family that he may or may not have killed, King has a cursed eye that has caused lots of problems in his life, Leif and Erika have tragipasts that I shall not disclose... Zombie? I can't even go there! And much later (after the CRAZY PLOT TWIST!) there will be this other character whose sole passion was playing the piano... and whose arms are severed and replaced with giant metal claw things. (I'm a mean author!) But even though while brainstorming I literally thought, "What's the most depressing thing... ever? Dead babies? hmm..." I wanted my comic to be kinda funny too. So I sometimes give it a self-mocking, silly tone.
Jillyfoo: Your work has changed a lot since the beginning... many different materials. Any favorites you use?

Kristen: Well, I really like using my Wacom tablet in Photoshop. I used to not even have a mouse or drawing program other than MS Paint on my computer, so digital art was out of the question then. If I could grasp screentoning I would do it... in fact, my goal for this next plot arc is to do it all in Manga Studio.

Jillyfoo: Top favorite webcomic?

Kristen: HARD QUESTION!!! I have a lot of favorites! Here are some: Rainbow Carousel, Lola, I Come From Mars, Am I Still Here, and of course, the greatest one-paged webcomic ever made, The Killer Reaper!!!

Jillyfoo: Top favorite newspaper comic strip?

Kristen: ... .. I used to like Fox Trot... *cries*

Jillyfoo: Top Favorite country-of-origin comic?

Kristen: probably... Ghost World or something. ALTHOUGH! My brother's friend's mom's cousin is the guy who makes "Bone"! Isn't that COOOOL?

Jillyfoo: Top Favorite manga?

Kristen: ooh, hard one. I really liked Midori Days, and Gravitation, Deathnote, OnePiece, and FMA. Oh, and Ouran High School Host Club!

The Planet Closest to Heaven book teaser

Book estimated to come out: Mid-March. (It will take that long because of annoying minor glitches like every " ' " is missing from the comic sans font dialogue and a couple pages were too big.)

Made the "mom safe" version to show to my parents, education professors, and tween-age cousins.
Mom read the comic for the first time last weekend. At least she didn't say I needed therapy like she said for Demon Eater.

I want to also make a less cutesy cover too. Perhaps the cute cover(the one showing in the pictures) will be for the edited version and the cool one(I'm working on right now) for the unedited. I'm not quite sure yet.

I was working on the other cover in my printmaking class. It's creepy and it has Starla on the cover. Project is due on the 22nd so I'll try to have it posted before that here.

Also wondering if I should have a how to print comics on Lulu.com tutorial after all this is done?

All questions or suggestions please ask in the commentary! I'll be sure to respond.

Introduction

About me:

I am a college student majoring in Art Education and Art Studio.
I write and illustrate webcomics as a hobby.

My Comics are:
The Planet Closest to Heaven
My first webcomic I ever made. First appeared online July 2004. It's my attempt to make an epic Utopia comic where there are multiple characters as the main character. I seem to take too much time in character development so the story is a little slow. I try to write the story with a nice mix of cute, funny, and scary.

Demon Eater
My second webcomic. I was getting criticism saying I should try to do a different style from manga/anime and this somewhat sloppy artistic abstraction comic is the result. It's kinda a demented Pinocchio story. It's about monsters that eat each other to become higher on the ladder of success. It's much more fast paced than my first comic.


For this blog I am going to post some of my lesson plans and comic news. Maybe some comic reviews and interviews too!