I started making a comic!
This month I figured out that making comics may just be the way to tell my stories. And to that end, while I did make some original pieces for Rimworld, I started drawing my very first comic!
I was always fascinated by the simplistic style of Anime and Manga, and my drawings are made mostly with that in mind. This, of course, works amazingly with this new project of mine. The simpler I can make the drawings, the better!
What shocked me a little this month was the intense amount of work that goes into art. I mean I knew it was work, but just how much was a mystery. Especially for someone like me, a beginner, who still needs her wireframes and basic shapes put into place before even making the first sketch! Mad respect to those who have been doing this for a lifetime, and thus just see the object they are drawing without having to do all these extra steps.
Art Project: Rimworld Assets
At the start of the month, before the comic stole me away, I managed to remodel some pants into a mini-short version. I also reworked the lines on the body model (albeit some touch-ups are needed), as the different thicknesses started to really grate my brain. Those two assets are the final ones I have modified so far, that are not entirely mine. For the next little while, the things I make will be originals, much like the above Maid attire (which is still in need of some touch-ups, as well)!
Who wouldn’t make a maid happen in a game, if they can help it? Though I didn’t start there, oh no, I began by creating the Gift attire pictured below. My husband can now wrap up his harem into a ribbon dyed with his favourite colors! Who knows, maybe the girls can even be color-coded for better colony management!
I also learned an interesting new aspect of Rimworld assets – masking. Rimworld uses certain colors together with a filename marker that help it know when to color an item and when to refrain from doing so. For Example, the eyesore above is the mask for the Maid attire, where all the nearly black areas are covered in red, while the rest of the mask is solid black. This lets the game know that the blackish parts of the attire must be kept as is. I find it quite a neat way to work with assets and colors!
The joy of making things beautiful and real
I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of this nonsense of censoring traditional feminine sexiness from games. People can’t possibly be so foolish as to not understand that there is, as much as we would like to deny it, some modicum of objectivity when it comes to these things. There’s a reason why certain types of ladies are at the top of the Twitch or OnlyFans hierarchies! And it is the same reason why all the other ‘influencers’ do certain things in their campaigns. Sex sells. And the objectively beautiful sexy sells even more.
As you can tell, my creations are not shying away from the shape and attraction of the full feminine figure. At the same time, I take pride in not making the body have ‘balloon tits’, as many of the other artists have done. I consider my enhanced model exactly that, enhanced. She has all her bits and bobs, and heaven forbid, I dare show her off.
Here’s the kicker, though – I show my creations off, because I admire the feminine in most of its shapes. This by necessity, then means that I don’t admire some of the variations. And that would be correct. I have no intention of drawing overly masculine females (or extremely feminine males, for that matter). My women are sexy, traditionally feminine, petite or full depending on the character. Of course, every now and again, there is a time and a place for sickly forms or overly gluttonous ones, and of course, an Ursula, or a Yubaba. But they too, are gorgeous, and not pretending to be something other than they are. Crazy strong too, by the way, both of them witches!
Art Project: DA!
Ah, my first ever comic! I have had so much fun just doing the thumbnails and the 3 pages of sketching. And I ended up putting together a concept art sheet for the three characters involved in this story, or chapter. Who knows, maybe DA! will become something more in the future. Right now, however, it is just providing me with education and a boatload of fun!
Before I could start the sketching process, I made a rough storyboard in my brainstorming journal. It was two pages long. I transferred it to Krita, and made the initial pages as I had thought them out. What I didn’t know was that my husband had some things to add to the narrative, and so, the story became longer. Spurred by this minor detour, I decided to redo the whole layout. The comic is now set to 8 pages, instead of the initial 2.
I must say it is better this way. I was trying to cram way too much into way too little. Now the panels are a nicer size, and I have more leeway in the way I showcase the events! One fun thing I’ve tried to do with each page is that every single one would end on a sort of cliff-hanger. I would love for the readers, you guys, to be turning the page thinking ‘oh, what’s next?’.
Character design, something I’ve avoided
Did you know that I have never in my life, not once, drawn a character properly? I’ve kind of just been winging it thus far. Which has worked in a way, I guess, but at the same time things like hands, feet, and faces are often lost. Because to heck with drawing hands! Or feet! Just make them into hooves or hide them with a convenient but yet non-belonging rag.
Alas, I must get over this hurdle if I am to draw comics. Or game characters for that matter. And so, I made my protagonist a cat-man, my npc an elephant, and my villain a spider. You’d think the semi-humanoid cat-man would be the biggest issue… But have you ever tried to make a dynamic spider? Try it out. Make poses. Yikes! I dream about legs and fang movements… And of course, I had to give the Spider a monstrous mouth, which all spiders have, evidently.
Drawing these three characters over and over again in various different poses and with numerous expressions has taught me more than any tutorial ever did. Finding references, studying the anatomy of things, and then twisting it into the form I need it to be in has been truly revelatory. It’s almost as if my husband was right, when he growled at me as I opened my umpteenth video on how to draw this, that, and the next thing. The man is a genius, I’m telling you!
Next stop: finishing the sketch
I have 5 more pages to sketch, and then I can begin the inking and coloring of the comic. It will be such an exciting time for me, seeing the already vivid panels come to life properly! I’m doing my best not to worry about the quality so much, my main goal is to finish this comic and to get it out there. And hey, if nothing else, I think the story is a banger! Makes me giggle anyway.
I am also working on making my own font for the comic, from my handwriting, much like the prototype I made in the above picture. Pretty cool, even if I say so myself! After I figure out the font, I’ll need to rework the text elements of the comic, see if I can come up with a more compelling dialogue scheme.
The final touches will be the cover in full color (since the comic itself is in greyscale) and the compiling of the creation. We shall see how long this project takes, as I write this, it has been 20 hours. I’ll keep tracking the time, it’ll be interesting to see where we end up!
Psst! Don’t forget to check out the News and the DevLog for more projects!