Deep In the Heart of Cryptozombic!

 

 

 

It has been a very long time since I've posted, I thought I'd be able to balance regular

blogging and updates as I began doing the flatting and colouring for Issue One of Cryptozombic but since this is my first time using a Wacom and manga studio 5 blogging (and clogging) had to take a back seat to getting the work done.

At this writing I have sixteen finished (words, colours, everything) finished pages and that leaves only sixteen more to go before I move on to the next comic "The Homeless G-Men" my goal is to have four comics ready for TCAF in May 2015. If all goes according to plan that shouldn't be a problem I just wish someone had told me to make sure all of my "loops" were closed in my original drawings, if you use Manga studio or any colouring program you'll know what I mean.

A.Shay Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com

A Very Good Place

(These are the folders where I keep my pages)

Sorry to have been away I've been trying to get two pages a day finished and really getting into the work. Very happy to announce that is has paid off, I have finished the first issue of Crypto Zombic (16pages!) I have added one page to the first issue of Homeless G-Men (18 pages!) and am making crazy progress on Battle Rally #1 (will be 16 pages) and the Annual THREE BEAST ARMY which will be a huge THIRTY PAGES!

The first two issues will be scanned, gray scaled and ready for the printer by the end of September.

This is a great feeling, I'll be posting finished panels/pages soon

cheers!

A.Shay Hahn

Progress, slow but steady

I have to apologize for not paying as much attention to this blog as I thought I would but the work getting these books ready has been keeping me very busy. I am working on four comics simultaneously, I hope to have at least two of them finished for TCAF 2015 if I get in. The stories are plotted lots of the page layouts have been done and I'm drawing/inking (reinking in some cases) and getting everything organized.

It's a huge undertaking doing this alone each "side" (as I'm calling them, a side is half a page) has many steps, I haven't even begun to scan or "greyscale" colour the pages (I'm doing all the interiors in black and white to save money on printing) yet. Then there's the work of adding the panel frames and dialogue bubbles then putting in the actual dialogue. It's a huge job, you can see why a team makes a comic and not just one person and I want my books to be as complete looking as a professional comic.

Above are some panels and notes from the four books.

Head over to "the mad craft shoppe" blog (see links, right side) where I'm having a Summer Sale to help pay for the printing costs.

A.Shay Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com

Project Updates Homeless G's

This is the longest I've gone without blogging in years but I've found there just isn't the time to do it if you're drawing/writing/inking for 8+ hours a day. Creating a comic by yourself take a long time if you want everything to perfect I go back over pages I've inked and add more shadows/textures, I am constantly bumping up the dialogue and tweaking the script as I go and I have yet to even scan these pages and start adding panel borders, word bubbles, gray scale (I'm doing the books in black and white to save money on printing) shading etc.

I am currently working on FIVE books at once, this was a conscious choice so I didn't get bored with slogging away at the same issue for days at a time, the bottom pic shows four of the folders that I'm working with.

The Homeless G-Men Issue no. 1 is at 29 "sides" (a comic page is two sides) that leaves about three more to go, this book is getting to be in a good place, I have the script figured out and hopefully it will be ready to go to the printers in a month. I also have 14 sides for issue #2 and six sides for #3. I just want to make sure that I have the whole Five issue miniseries story worked out.

C.Z which is the second series I'm working on is at approx. 8 sides and another project that I'll take about soon has 24 roughed in sides.

I am learning more and more every day about planning pages, panel breakdowns and becoming better at getting to a finished page faster - this involves being able to plan ahead for where the book is going and also just making fewer mistakes.

In time I will post some of the panels from the series so you can see where it's going but for now I have to head to the studio and get started.

A.Shay Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com

 

The Homeless G-Men and cleaned up

I had to leave before I was able to reorganize the walls at the Press Club, so they looked pretty sloppy for a week or so (see last post) but Jimmy Byron saved the day as he always does and tidied them up for me. The show is up for eleven more days so head on by for a pint and some live music, they've also bought new tables for their excellent back patio it's a great place to get off the main drag and chill out for awhile.

850 Dundas West is where it's at.

It's been a slow week here so far haven't accomplished mush besides a lot of gardening and cleaning around the house, I've been sketching and plotting but haven't produced the amount of work that I thought I would this week, here's hoping we turn a corner tomorrow

I did come up with a great concept for one of the crime families in Gull City that the Homeless G's go up against, just fleshing out their look right now.

A.Shay Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com



Homeless G-Men Drawings Up Until the End Of May

Work is still up at the Press Club (850 Dundas West) and selling steadily come on down, have a pint hear some music and pick up a drawing. All proceeds go to the printing of the Homeless G-Men comic which is really coming along, you'll see, I 'll post some pages over the next couple of days.

Reading any good comics ? Let me know, I'm currently reading Manifest Destiny, BPRD Hell on Earth with the killer art by James Harren and the Morning Glories trades and a whole bunch of other stuff.

A.Shay Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com



Character Drawings Locking Concepts

Trying to draw for at least six hours a day, the only way to improve is full immersion, eat, sleep, breathe comics and story. I am solid on Swinnerton Hale's design, he's the heart of the series. I wish he looked a little more world weary in the drawing and a little less like Gary Sinise but that's fine for now.

The second sketch is our "Black Widow" type "Blackstrap" currently she's just missing one item, something to make her a little different from all of the other kick ass spy types out there, it will come to me.

Hope everyone had a great FCBD

A.Shay Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com