Trace

This week's "What the Doodle?" on Creative Juices was TRACE. I drew this guy with a brush pen in my sketchbook and added some color in Photoshop. Check out what the rest of the FableVision crew came up with here.

SpongeClops!

The October 2009 issue of Nick Magazine is about to hit newsstands (if you're lucky, it may have already!). When you pick it up, the first thing you'll notice is that this is practically an ALL COMICS ISSUE. I only noticed one ad, that's how full it is. I'm told that in these remaining months the magazine will be jammed full of comics, so that's at least something to look forward to. There is a ton of talent and cartooning on display in this issue, including comics by Corey Barba, Dan Moynihan, Gahan Wilson and Graham Annable. You would be a fool not to snatch it up, so be on the look-out.

Now, if you turn to page 3 you'll see my third published SpongeBob comic, "SpongeClops!"


I wrote this comic almost a year ago, so I've been sitting on it for some time. Of the bunch I've worked on so far, it's probably my favorite. Mainly because it features Plankton and one of his evil schemes to get at the krabby patty formula. Plus it's one of the few I penned myself—it has a good amount of dialogue. I scanned it directly from the magazine because I don't have a digital copy with the speech balloons. It's 4 pages in 3 images (below), as it appears in the magazine.






(note: Blogger has a tendency to overcrunch jpegs, so hop over to my Flickr page if you want to see them sharper.)

I have to admit, when I pitched the idea I wasn't sure if I was even allowed to monkey with the features of the characters. But they went for it! By the time I had finished the comic, they were actually beginning to look normal this way.

Below are my pencils:





And here are my inks
(this is the final stage before I hand it off to Wes Dzioba to color)





I hope kids especially get a kick out of this comic (and of course, you too!)

I'm working on what will undoubtedly be my last comic for Nick Mag right now. So, one more to go!

Serpents on the brain

One more from the sketchbook...


Below is a loose page. I think I have a story spinning for this fellow.



In non-serpent related news, the long-awaited update to the FableVision website went live on Friday. WOOOOOO! It features a new interface, with plenty of recent projects (some of them may look familiar if you frequent my blog)—a mix of animation, games, websites, apps, and print work.


The direct link to FableVision Studios is now:
www.fablevisionstudios.com

Jinx the Monkey gets an update

A few nights ago I was looking at my website and all of a sudden I realized how old my landing page was—almost 6-years-old. I've made changes and tweaks to Jinx the Monkey over the years, but the image of the gramophone on the flat blue landscape had remained intact.


It's an old drawing, and while there's nothing wrong with that, it feels incredibly dated to me now. It's a quality I can't help but attribute to it, even though I still like the drawing. My gramophone character actually takes center stage in the most recent comic I did for ARGH! (issue #6 should be out shortly in Spain). Here is the first panel.


(I posted another teaser panel earlier this year)

He's basically the same character, but I draw him a little differently now. Anyway, I'm not ready to do a major overhaul of my website, and it didn't feel right to replace the gramophone as the host, so I essentially lifted the drawing from the ARGH! comic (redrawing it in Flash) and created this new landing page.


While the original landing page (which you can still view here) was meant to serve as a "splash page" before you entered the Flash site, the new one provides jumping off points to my website, my comics page (which is also in dire need of a redesign), and my blog. At some point I envision adding animation—so you could crank up the gramophone and wake him before entering the website. But the static image works for now.

Have a look --> Jinx the Monkey.com

Before I sign off, here is another illustration of the gramophone that you may remember from a previous "What the Doodle?" The word that week was VINYL.


I think he looks good in blue (in case you didn't notice already...)

Extinguishable

This week's "What the Doodle?" was a longish word: Extinguishable. I admit I kind of went off on a tangent to create a pretty bizarre looking creature. The candle has already been extinguished, so what remains that might be extinguishable....hmmm?


Here's my original pencil sketch. And below is the inked version (I did this one in Flash).


As always, be sure to hop on over to Creative Juices to see what everyone at FableVision came up with.

Interview on Ink Mountain

A little over a week ago I was contacted by illustrator and cartoonist Phil McAndrew to do an interview for his fantastic new group blog, Ink Mountain.

--> Read the interview here

I talk about my work, my infleunces, my job at FableVision, and issues concerning Nick Mag. I'm biased, but I think it came out great. And it features a bunch of my artwork. It's a bit more personal than the more process-focused Q&A recently featured on The Tools Artists Use (also a fun interview if you haven't seen it yet). Phil did a great job presenting me with thoughtful questions, and I did my best to give interesting answers.

Also, I would encourage you to check out the blog itself. The current list of contributors includes Phil, Britt Wilson, Graham Kahler, Kate Beaton, and Vicki Nerino. They're doing a great job digging up inspirational work so far, with a special focus on individual artists.

Water

More sketchbook pages...







The other day my car was towed because I parked on the wrong side of the block for street cleaning (it swaps every other week). I went to the closest tow lot, only to find out it wasn't there and likely at another lot a 20 to 30 minute walk away. But it still wasn't positive. Add on a pair of jeans, a backpack, and a sweltering 93 degree day, and I found myself in the shoes of one of my many tortured characters (namely, the dehydrated ones).

It gave me a little more empathy for them, but not much.

What is it with my characters either leaking fluids or needing water?

Stubble

The What the Doodle? gods were shining down on me this week. Somehow (and I didn't pick it) the random word generator spit out the word STUBBLE. That's right, stubble. I decided not to go with the obvious (draw a hideously gross face, add a pinch of nose warts and a dash of chin stubble), so I came up with this scene. It's actually kind of cute for stubble, I think.

Be sure to stop over at Creative Juices to see what everyone else came up with.

Oh, and just because it was that easy to find in my sketchbook, here's that "obvious" approach. Consider it a WTD? bonus.

Interview on The Tools Artists Use

Bill Turner of The Tools Artists Use recently asked me if I'd be interested in participating in a Q&A for his blog. Here's a link to the interview.


The website features a bunch of talents artists who share insight into the methods they use to create their artwork. It's a wonderful resource for anyone interested in process. You should also check out Comic Tools, a blog I also frequent where Matt Bernier and "MK" delve into the tools involved in making comics.

New Sketchbook

I bought a new sketchbook last week and broke it in tonight. I've been trying to play loose with the brush pen—taking some time away from doodling in Flash (where I'm more apt to work tight).


It's fun...I just glide along.
If I goof up a line, no undo—no problem.


Here I kind of mangled his foot, but oh well.
He doesn't need to walk.


And here's a happy fella I doodled on copier paper. WOOF!