Long Time No Update

It's been a while since I felt I was in a position to update this blog with progress on Chaos Knot and other comic-based projects I have. I keep my other blog over at plattipus more updated but only barely.

Chaos Knot is really beginning to take shape now. We're still working on issue 1 and it's absolutely gorgeous, stunning work from Jay. Just as a teaser, here's a panel from page 12:

If you look closely, you can see Charlie!

I have a poster from Jay as well, I'll put it up at some point when I know when I'll be launching.

On another note, I spent yesterday evening at a "Conversation with Mark Millar". The man's a comic writer's dream. Not only smart and witty but he's had the kind of career I'd give my back teeth for. Well, more than teeth :P I'm always in awe of people who knew what they wanted to do when they were young. He told a story about how he submitted his idea for Red Son when he was thirteen and DC sent him a very nice rejection letter. Funny how he came back and did Red Son for them anyway. At thirteen, I couldn't decide between a lawyer, an astrophysicist and saving the world as an eco-warrior...

The one thing I do remember, though, was always wanting to write stories. At school, at home, everywhere I went I was constructing new fiction. Let's hope that passion actually gets me somewhere now I've decided it's the career I want to follow.

Issues 0 and 1

Okay so I'm getting really hyper now! We're done with the basic work on issue 0! We just need to polish it off and Jay's going to letter it. Once that's done, I'm going to find a printer and get a set done up so we can send them out to publishers and I can take them to shops and cons. It's starting to happen!

Issue 1... What can I say other than it's already happening! I've got the cover and first two pages all polished, they look so nice, all shiny. I'm working on the blow by blow plot so I can quickly knock off the panels and send it all to Jay. Scrivener is definitely making my life a whole lot easier when it comes to writing it all, it produces a really clean comic script without any real effort.

When I've had time to work on it, I'll post a finished panel of issue 1 to let you see but seriously, it's looking good!

Jack...

Not only is this minor character taking over my whole story in issue 1, I now have the first art of him in issue 0. He's real, he's here and he's....

Jay's art has, once again, captured everything I had envisioned of this dirty wee bunny. Jack the rabbit, Jack the smoker, Jack the alcoholic, Jack the... well, let's face it, you wouldn't exactly be shocked if you walked in on that rabbit flicking through porn channels, would you?

He's gross, he's a pervert and I adore it!

Where has it gone?

All the time I thought I had before the end of November, where has it all gone? I think the time monster's been at it, eaten it all up and is using it to fuel the onset of my old age.

Thanksgiving weekend is just about over and I know Jay's been working on the first few pages of Issue 1. Can you believe it? We're on issue 1 already, it's a scary thought really.

He's done the sketch of page 8 of issue 0. I can't wait to see it, it's the first page with Jack in it. I bet Jay's done me proud. Then just some tweaks to a couple of pages and the lettering, and we're ready to go to print!

I need to print issue 0 so I can send it off to publishers, see what they think. Jay wants a few copies as well, plus I know of at least three comic stores that want to see it. Three doesn't sound like much but it's a start. Maybe I can even get the first printing all done up before I head to New York in February.

High Brows and Themes

Something I've been giving a lot of thought to since I got back from Birmingham is the high-brow concept of my comic. It was blatantly clear from my pitch that I hadn't given much thought to it up until that point so I've been trying to make up for it. This morning, while commenting on someone's blog (someone who asked me about Chaos Knot), I had a moment of inspiration about my concept so here it is:

Someone or something is turning people into random animals and it's the job of Fray, Jill and Jack to find out who and why. So in Hollywood terms, it's Colombo meets Alice in Wonderland, with a little Angel thrown in for good measure.

On the subject of themes, I've been thinking along the lines of this being a mystery type of story with Fray's personal discovery of power and responsibility flowing along side it. So for themes at the moment I have power, control, domination and revelation. Still sketchy on those but they're what I'm working with right now.

Story

Robert McKee's book Story was one of those recommended to me at the comic con in Birmingham earlier this month. I've only just managed to get my hands on a copy, despite ordering it from Amazon right away.

Let me first say I fully expected it to be one of those where I'd flick through it, read the introduction and put it on my shelf, convincing myself that I'd done my duty and got the thing. Oh boy was I wrong.

I am consuming this book at a pace I normally associate with the newest Harry Potter. It's amazing, inspiring and I can't get enough of it. I have never been so inspired by what is, in essence, a self-help manual.

The premise is to teach the reader how to write for the screen but he's more interested in teasing out the reader's talents as a storyteller. And he's enthusiastic about it. I've read countless books on how to write for this or that but in the end they're all tempered by the caution that, it really doesn't matter if your book/comic/whatever is good, if it doesn't get picked up, you're stuffed. This isn't like that. It pushes the reader to keep going, keep trying, because if you've got a good story, if you're a true artisan of the craft of storytelling, one day someone will see it.

There's caution in it too, of course, but it's about motivation and craft rather than telling you you're going to fail even before you've begun. A writer, it says, loves themselves - you must have a strength that doesn't need to be constantly reassured, that never doubts that you are indeed a writer. It says that a writer must love to write and bear the loneliness. (summarised quotation from page 21)

Even though I've just begun this book, I'm loving it and feel that it should be read by all up and coming writers, from novelists to screen writers to comic writers.

Character Exercise 1

I was finding it hard to get into Fray's head last night so I did a little IM conversation between him and his best friend Felix. Fray's SN is CelticKnot1180 and Felix's is FoolHard. Here's the convo (there's swearing in it, just to warn ya):

CelticKnot1180> Sup man.

FoolHard> Hahahaha like a fucking dream!

CelticKnot1180> WTF? You're high

FoolHard> lol, nah, I told Annie you'd be on at 9

CelticKnot1180> You're off by ten minutes, you're losing your touch :P

FoolHard> Nah, you're just a fucking tool, never on time

CelticKnot1180> Fashionably late!

FoolHard> Tool

CelticKnot1180> Dick

FoolHard> Limey

CelticKnot1180> Yank

FoolHard> Yeah yeah, least I didn't sell out to the fucking brits

CelticKnot1180> LMAO, least I get paid more than five cents an hour :P

FoolHard> Fuck off

CelticKnot1180> I'm gonna jet, I got a gf who wants to jump me

FoolHard> That's my sister you're talking about LMAO

CelticKnot1180> Yeah, she's a fucking goddess

FoolHard> Fuck off and get laid

***CelticKnot1180 has signed off***