How to Illustrate Books for Children: Expert Tips from a Professional, Part Three: Creating Characters

Excerpt from “The Conjurers Book 3: Fight for the Fallen”

Today’s excerpt from book three features everyone’s favorite character, Pimawa! He is certainly my favorite, but how did I come up with him? Thought I’d share his origin’s and also a few tips on how you can create your own characters for your story.

The idea behind the Conjurian was that it was a land of magicians, where they could be free of persecution. That meant, when they crossed over into our world, “The Flat World” as magicians like to call it, they had to disguise the secrets they brought over. Now, from day one, I did not want to inclcude the cliched rabbit out of a hat. However, during one brainstorming doodling session, I sketched these rabbit like creatures called Jimjarians. They are sort of like butlers for magicians. They were too interesting (and cute) to discard. I had to work them into the story.

Thank goodness I did. As the Jimjarian history revealed itself to me, I discovered they were much more than cute, fun companions. Their past is intricately intwined in “The Conjurers” story, as you saw in book two. Even more so in book three. No spoilers here. This happened because I put in the time exploring Pimawa’s personality and his family’s past. The point is, great characters take time.

I’ll share a few simple tips you can use to make your own unforgettable characters.

Tips for Writing Character Biographies

A character biography should provide readers with a sense of the character's background, personality, and quirks.

A great way to start writing a character bio is to answer these questions:

- What are some of their hobbies?

- What are their favorite foods?

- What do they like in bed?

- Where would they go on a dream vacation?

- What's their favorite TV show or movie?

These questions might seem very personal, but remember that making your characters as real as possible will make your story more compelling.

How to Come up with Great Ideas for Storylines

To come up with great ideas, one should be creative in their thought process. One can also look at the different aspects of a character or setting that can help them develop something interesting.

There are various methods to come up with ideas for storylines. One of the most popular ways is taking inspiration from real life events and developing it into a fictionalized version. Creative thinking can also lead to interesting storylines, by asking questions about the world and trying to find answers for them.

It is important to note that one does not need to have all the answers for an idea before they start working on it as they will come up with new ideas while they work on their project.

What's the Difference Between Protagonist and Antagonist?

In a nutshell, the protagonist is the good guy, and the antagonist is the bad guy. But not all heroes are good and not all villains are bad.

A hero can be a protagonist in some stories and an antagonist in another story. It's all about perspective. The same goes for a villain- they can be an antagonist in one story and a protagonist in another.

Conclusion: Writing Characters is a Tough Task but not Impossible!

You can do a great job of creating believable and compelling characters. The key is to understand the audience, genre, and story you are telling.

The most important thing when writing a character is to make sure that they are interesting. Create a character that has strong desires or motivations in order to give them something to act on. They should also have flaws or weaknesses that they struggle with and have an arc throughout the book - going from weak to powerful by the end of the story.

As always, send any questions my way or suggestions for what you’d like me to post about next. Cheers!

How to Illustrate Books for Children: Expert Tips from a Professional, Part Two

Opening to “The Conjurers” book three done in graphic novel style.

Usually book covers are my favorite thing to create. However, The Conjurers series has given me the chance to mix in my other favorite medium, sequential art, into writing children’s books. Obviously I’m biased, but I believe all books should be illustrated, not just middle grade series. While drawings are used to engage and enthrall young readers, It would be super cool to see Brad Thor’s next thriller brimming with Frank Miller style art. Just saying.

Now back to how to illustrate books for kids. Books can be illustrated in a variety of ways, from hand-drawn pictures to digital drawings. They should always be relevant to children's interests and needs.

Illustration is an important part of the book publishing process. When publishers are considering new books, they look at whether the illustrator has a style that is appropriate for the book's goals. If they like the artist's style, they may ask them to read the manuscript to get a sense of whether their art will work with it.

The illustrations in children’s books should be designed for young readers and give them a sense of what the story will be about or what some of its key events might be. The animals, people and environments in children’s books should have features that are immediately recognizable to their intended audience.

The illustrations in children’s books have a lasting impact on the imagination of young readers. They can recognize features of people and objects that they see frequently in their day-to-day lives. 

The Basic Steps of Book Illustration

The process of book illustration is a highly creative process. It involves a variety of steps. The artist has to think of the story and then illustrate the text on paper. Depending on the complexity of the text, it might take from one to three months for an illustrator to complete a single picture book.

Book illustrations are usually created with pencil, ink, acrylic paints or sometimes just with crayons and watercolors. The illustrator needs to be very creative in their work and come up with countless ideas that will encourage children to read books and learn unfamiliar words while they enjoy themselves at the same time.

There are many methods that illustrators can use in order to create their artwork for books. One such method is direct drawing, which is where an illustrator draws directly on paper and then inks over the drawing to create a clean line.

Direct drawing is a graphic process in which an illustrator draws directly on paper and then inks over the drawing to create a clean line. The artist can produce work of any size, from small sketches to large murals.

Over the years, I’ve transitioned from direct drawing to digital. While my preference will always remain pen and ink, digital art has a ton of advantages. The biggest advantage is time. A double page spread for “The Conjurers” would take me a day or two drawing with pencils and pens. Working in Clip Studio Paint, I can create the same illustration in a few hours.

Let me make one point clear, digital drawing software does not do the work for you. It is not “easier” from a skills perspective. The same drawing fundamentals still apply and you must continue to work at mastering those skills. Digital software only saves you time and ink stains on your hands. 

Book Illustration Tips for Authors

Successful authors understand the importance of illustrations. Authors can use images to introduce a character, describe an emotion, or to emphasize a point. Authors should have their illustrators create sketches before they write the story in order to make sure that there is no confusion or miscommunication.

The illustrator's job is not simply creating a cover for an author's book. They are just as much of an author as the person who writes the words on paper. The way they did a lot of books in the past was to select a moment in the text and illustrate it. It’s called “spot illustrations”. 

I like to use the illustrations as an extension of the storytelling. This means things I show in the drawings are the story, not a repeat of what’s in the text. The hard part is making this seamless in the reader's mind. 

Let’s finish up with a couple quick tips on getting started illustrating kid’s books. These apply to picture books to young adult novels.

1. Create a Storyboard

A storyboard is a blueprint for what you are going to create. There are a lot of ways to go about creating one - but there are some fundamentals that should be at the forefront of your mind when you're creating one. The purpose of a storyboard is to illustrate what is going on in the story.

Picture books rely heavily on storyboarding, as that’s what picture books are. Every word and drawing counts. Now for middle grade books like “The Conjurers”, the storyboarding process is a bit more involved. As I wrote the books I was deciding what would be text and what I would illustrate. 

As you can see in the image above, I opened book three with sequential art and no words. I love taking a cinematic approach to storytelling. And considering the book opens with a lot of action, why not pull the reader in using art? 

2. Make sure you know your audience

It’s essential to know who you’re targeting with any piece of content. Targeting the wrong audience will not only result in low engagement, but it will also be a waste of time for both the content creator and their target audience.

There are tons of books and articles on how to find your target audience. And you certainly should do the research. Let’s keep it simple today. If you’re starting out as an illustrator or author, do this: write and draw your story for one person. That could be a brother or sister, niece or nephew. Or you could invent the person. 

My son was in middle school when I started writing “The Conjurers”. So I kept him in mind when creating the characters and mapping out the plot. I would consider his concerns and worries. What was he into? What things upset him? What made him happy or sad?

Hope these short tips are helpful. Let me know what you think and send along questions or topics you’d like me to cover in the next post. Till then, cheers!

How to Illustrate Books for Children: Expert Tips from a Professional, Part One

Illustration from book three of “The Conjurers” Middle Grade Fantasy Series

Illustrations for book three have set sail! Currently, I’m working on chapter six. The manuscript is complete and the cover (oh wait until you see it!) is almost ready to reveal. To be honest, after I finished book two, I did not know where book three was going. I lost sleep thinking the third installment couldn’t possibly live up to the previous books and would leave readers unsatisfied with the ending.

And just when things couldn’t get worse, my editor suggested we needed to pull the villain from book three. Her backstory was a lot. Like several large suitcases of backstory that stretched back decades. To pull it off, the book would expand to over four hundred pages (probably). Doom, doom, doom with a side of doom. 

Every story has that “dark night of the soul” moment. This was mine, except it wasn’t fiction. But just like fiction, I had that wonderful revelation. You know the bit that was there all along, but you didn’t notice it? A character from “The Conjurers” webcomic got the call to the big league. Yep, I recast Latiff from a side story to the top of the call sheet for book three. And she didn’t disappoint. You’ll see. 

Back to the illustrations, as that is what my next several posts will focus on. I’ll try not to expose any spoilers from the art. As you can tell from the drawing above, book three picks up shortly after book two. Our heroic team setting sail on the sea of Dedi! Where are they going? Just you wait. You’ll get some hints from the next few drawings. All I will say for now is that they will encounter one of my favorite creatures I’ve ever conjured. The magician in me made sure that, like any excellent trick, this creature has some serious surprises. More on that next time.

I’ve stepped up the art game in book three. I wanted more intensity in the drawings to match the break neck action in this installment. I’ve added more intense shading and made the watercolor washes heavier. I think it adds more visceral reality and maturity just like the characters have matured through the story. Alex and Emma will face their greatest challenge yet and the art will match that intensity. Book three opens in a storm and that will be the calmest it gets. 

Book discount - Today only!

Conjurers Book 1 - $1.99 Today Only!

Super short post today. But it’s a good one. My publisher agreed to discount “The Conjurers” ebook for today only. if you haven’t read it yet, or want to send it as a gift to someone, grab your copy now. It took some work to convince them to give this a shot (thanks Elizabeth!) and I’m not sure if they’ll do it again.

Just click the button below and select your preferred eBook provider:

The Lighter Side of Book Promotion

Book Promo Art for The Conjurers Book One

I love making promotional images. However, I noticed I had fallen into a rut. Or, more accurately, doing what everyone else does. Not a terrible thing, because it works.  Mostly you slap a picture of your book on top of the cover art. It looks nice. The colors work well and it creates a harmonious drama to the image. 

One thing I try to force myself to do is to deconstruct something and try building it completely differently. This is super hard when re-writing stories. You’ve put a ton of work into an outline or a first draft. it’s difficult to scrap all that work. I know, I’m attempting to do it right now with a picture book that’s been sitting around for a couple years. Thankfully, it’s much easier to do with art.

Scratch up a doodle in a couple minutes. Don’t like it? Scratch up another one. Each time I do, I attempt to redraw it in a unique style or angle. It’s the same with book promos. I’m fortunate that I’m also the artist. I don’t have to charge myself for a few extra drawings. That’s why I should push myself more outside of the creative comfort zones.

With this image, I thought it would be cool to have a few of the characters loitering around the book. And I wanted them on a white background instead of a heavy, moody background. Voila! A few doodles later and I have some of the cast just chilling. Looked good on a white background but I tested out throwing in a subtle background. It works...kind of. I need to test it out and see if people respond to it. 

The lesson learned is that even when you’re doing something you enjoy, you need to prevent it from becoming a grind and step outside, walk around it and see it from fresh vantage points. Creativity doesn’t just happen. It takes thought and discipline. 

How to Write a Book - Research and Inspiration

Thought I’d share a bit about how and where I got ideas for the Conjurers books. First, I’ll be talking about my experience and methods and also potential pitfalls. Early on, when writing books and coming up with ideas, I would get swept away in the currents of research. Why? Because it’s fun and interesting and you can quickly forget that you’re supposed to be writing a book.

Now i have a rule for myself that I try my best to stick to. Although one tumbles down a rabbit hole here and there. The rule is “write first, research later”. I want to stay in that passion zone for writing the story. In a first draft nothing will or should be perfect. My prime focus is making sure that I like my characters, and the story is exciting and fulfilling.

The Conjurers is based on magic, actual real life magicians and my history of studying and performing. I had a lot to pull from in regards to characters and tricks I could use in the books. However, when it came to how magic works and why it was dying, I had a lot to work out. Even after finishing the first draft of book one, it wasn’t clear how real magic worked. What was the difference between a magician and a normal human (they’re called “Flatworlders” in the books). More importantly, why was magic fading out of existence?

When I would come upon those blurry logic spots in my story, I would write a note to myself to hash it out. Then, after the first draft, I could brainstorm the hows and whys of magic in the world of the Conjurers. The above painting is one of the “hows”.

Hieronymous Bosch has always been one of my favorite artists. Mostly because he was weird. However, this piece was my favorite and became a central inspiration for the Conjurers.

The painting depicts St. James converting a magician from his demonic ways. For me, in my world of the Conjurers, this became the basis for how magic had faded over the centuries. I found many other examples to pull from and used in the story. But I straightened all that out after writing the first draft. As I’ll show in my next post, I could easily spent months just studying the history of magic.

Drawings, Poems and Comics from my Instagram

Comment "free books" and I'll send you two collections of Dog eat Doug comics like this one. Food critics start young. What's the weirdest thing you tried cooking for your kids? . . . #familyfriendly #webcomicartist #instacomic #cartooning #newmom #newmum #motherhoodunplugged #newdad #dadlife

Comment "free books" for two free collections of Dog eat Doug comics! I always try to give my dogs veggies. Some love them and others despise them. And sometimes you think they like them until you find a stash of moldy carrots under your desk. . . . #familyfriendly #cartoonoftheday #funny #cartooning #funnydog #happydoggo #sillydog

In case you're wondering what I listen to while writing #staffy #adoptdontshop #rescuedoglife

Comment "free books" to get two Dog eat Doug collections full of Sophie shenanigans! Sophie knew anything in a box on the counter was delicious. She never snagged a doughnut, but she knew how to lift the lid of a pizza box, nip a slice, and let the lid close. Took us a while to figure out the diminishing pizza mystery. . . . #familyfriendly #freebooks #cartoonoftheday #funny #webcomics #comics #cartooning

Want a bunch more Sophie? Comment "Free Books" and I'll send you two Dog eat Doug collections. This comic is based on a true story. The joy of foster dogs. I haven't had any chewed up shoes, so I'm thankful for that. Gunnar still marks anything new that comes in the house. Does anyone else have that issue? . . . #familyfriendly #digitalcomics #digitalcomic #funny #webcomics #cartooning #graphicnovel #comics

We lost our gentle giant, Luther, last night. We adopted him right after moving to North Carolina. He learned a lot from Sophie before she left us. He was the most mellow, sweet spirited dog. I can't remember him ever getting into trouble. Never chewed up a shoe or a couch. Never got into fights. And as you can see from the photos, he taught a lot of foster pups how to be a dog. I was thankful to get to hold his paw right up until the end. He's with Sophie and Chewie now. It never gets easier. . . . #rainbowbridge #dogangel #adoptdontshop

Want more free funny? Comment "Free books" and I'll send you to Dog eat Doug collections full of Sophie! And don't miss her new adventures in the graphic novels. Books 1 and 2 are out now. Link in my bio. Not sure how useful it is, but I suppose it's a superpower. Used to love when my son would make mouth bubbles, totally unaware that he looked like some hairless being from Atlantis. . . . #familyfriendly #funny #webcomics #cartooning #comics

If you would like to read a bunch more Dog eat Doug comics, comment "Free Books" and I'll send you two collections worth of Sophie and the gang. Working on the fourth Sophie graphic novel today. Hoping I can sneak Gunnar or Weezy into this book. . . . #familyfriendly #Sophie #digitalcomic #funny #webcomics #cartooning #graphicnovel #comics #comicpanel

If you'd like a book full of comics like this one, just comment "free books" below and I'll send you two Dog eat Doug collections . I'm a Ford fanatic. Can you tell? This one started with a doodle of Doug racing a mustang. My dream car is a 69 Mach 1 or the Eleanor mustang. . . . #comicartists #familyfriendly #digitalcomics #digitalcomic #funny #webcomics #cartooning #graphicnovel #comics #comicpanel #fordmustang #fordracing

Comment "Free Books" and I'll send you two free Dog eat Doug collections full of comics like this one. And yes, my cats read Poe. . . . #comicartists #familyfriendly #funny #webcomics #comics #cartooning #graphicnovel #comicpanel

Free Comics

It’s amazing to stop and think about how many free comics there are online. We’re kind of spoiled. But that goes with the cartooning territory. I’m very fortunate to make a living drawing comics. The weird thing is, is that even before I was making a living drawing comics, or even if I wasn’t, I’d still make comics.

Case in point, this Primordial Syrup thing I’ve been doing. It started the same way all my comics did. I had to do it. Same with “Dog eat Doug”. I had to make it. This is true for most cartoonists. We’re constantly making cartoons. Now obviously, there is that part of your brain that says “hey, doofus, what if you turned this into a living?”, which is of course, the same part of your brain that over-complicates everything.

Thank goodness that part of gray matter exists. Of course it does make on heckuva bumpy ride when you do try and make cartooning a living. Which is why it’s important to separate that part from the creating part every now and then. Once you do start making a living, it can become all consuming. You get a tincy-wincy check from a magazine for a comic and bammo, that capitalist part of your brain goes into overdrive.

However, you have to treat it like a Tesla sometimes. Let the AI drive for a while and get back to making comics for the sake of making comics. When the syndication offer came in for Dog eat Doug, understandably, that became my entire world. Every other project, and even my daily doodles, got shoved into the back of the closet behind the five year old New Balance running shoes (which till this day I don’t know why I kept them).

This ultimately hurts the very thing you are so focused on improving. I learned the hard way that it was the seemingly superficial, waste of time things like doodling, or working on random ideas for comics and books, that keep that main project fresh. That crazy stream of consciousness, where bills don;t exist, is the very thing that helps sharpen the ideas you are trying to create.

Hence the reason I no longer scold myself for mindlessly doodling for an hour or two, or starting a single panel comic like “Primordial Syrup” for no logical reason other than to get the ideas out of that stream an onto paper. Or creating the Conjurers webcomic while trying to write and illustrate three books. Logically, it’s not a smart thing to do. In the long run, it’s the very thing that keeps your creative engine charged. Sometimes you have to let the crazy out.

The Latest Single Panel Comic

Here it is, my favorite so far. This one was in the notebook for a long time. Kind of surprising considering I love drawing city scenes. Especially vintage style shops. Do wish I had the time to do a more detailed rendering. But I spent most of the time getting the eyeball dude right.

It’s one thing to doodle an idea that you think will work. It’s another to get it to work visually. This one had to be realistic enough so as not to come off as silly. And, if I did it too realistically, I think the creepiness meter would’ve been off the charts. Happy with the way it turned out. Although I think it could use some more atmosphere, like exhaust smoke or a few bits of litter on the street. Something that could make you smell and hear the city.

Till next time, when I’ll be posting a Star Wars themed comic. And if you want to view these cartoons sooner, I post them on my Instagram first. See you on the flis-side of T-Day! Have a great holiday!

More Single Panel Silliness - Shank Monkey

For starters, Shank Monkey would make an awesome name for a band. This one began with a bunch of monkey doodles in which the monkeys performed all sorts of menial tasks such as grooming mustaches or applying make-up. And then boom, a little monkey showed up with a knife and shank monkey was born.

Before you ask, yes, there are t-shirts. I had to. Don’t know if they’ll sell or not, but shank monkey t-shirts needed to be a thing. You can get one by clicking here.

Onto the next! I’ll post another Primordial Syrup shortly. In the meantime, back to illustrating “The Conjurers, Book Two”.

The Ups and Downs of writing Middle Grade Books and Webcomics

Read “The Conjurers” webcomic from the beginning here. Or click here for the latest episode.

The Conjurers Webcomic is back! Yep, I’m posting about it again. And I’ll be posting a lot more often. From the beginning, the webcomic was a simple, quick exercise while I was writing the books. It was a small break from plotting, writing and rewriting (and rewriting and rewriting…), and illustrating the novels. Over the years I’ve learned you need creative outlets on the side to keep your main work fresh. At the same time, that outlet can't eat up all your time.

So I compromised. I would do another comics project so long as I could do it quickly and it was related to “The Conjurers”. A webcomic was the perfect medium. I could take secondary characters from the book and send them on their own adventures. It was more beneficial than I could have ever imagined. It helped make two dimensional characters more 3D. I got to see how they behaved when they were the focus of the story. So while the comic was done in a rushed (and admittedly sloppy fashion), the characters became more real and those little details made their way into the books.

In this latest story arc, one such character became even more important. If you’re all caught up on the comics, you know a bit about Latif. She was created strictly for the comic. Cut to writing book three. My main antagonist (one of my favorite characters to date) had a complex backstory that was interwoven with other characters in the book. In order to pull it off, that meant there was a lot more story which meant a much bigger book. Too big. My editor suggested we had to cut her out of the story. That’s the kind of story note you want to ignore or fight or stomp your feet until you get your away. Except that she was right (as usual). 

What does one do with a first draft of a book which has suddenly had the main bad guy ripped out? You could toss it. That of course is a bit drastic considering there are two books that come before it. Or you freak out for a few days until suddenly, yo remember that little side experiment you’ve been scratching away at once a week. And you realize your have the perfect antagonist ready to go: Latif. 

Yep, the cold, mechanical Dr./Pharmaceutical billionaire that came out of nowhere in a webcomic story that was not related to the books was suddenly the star of book three. Her backstory was not as complex or intertwined with the previous plots of books one and two. Which meant she could fit perfectly into book three. On top of that, she’s my kind of villain, in that she does not see herself as a villain. Latif believes she is the hero. 

Now I can’t go on too much more without giving away spoilers. I can say that my former antagonist, Mekinda, will have her story told one way or another. Maybe in the webcomic, or maybe, hopefully, in future books. In the end it’s another valuable lesson that telling stories is not always a clean, straightforward process. Sometimes the biggest hurdles become the sweetest moments of inspiration. 

How to effectively remove the monster in your closet.

This one started as a scribble on a napkin. I’m certain it came from my own childhood experience of watching a shadow creature creep out of my closet every night. I had lots of such hallucinations as a kid, and I’m certain they will inspire more cartoons. Kind of worth the paralyzing terror in the long run.

Once I finish today’s inking, I’ll rummage through the notebook and see which random idea to work on for next week. Lots to chose from. Lots still need some work. The key, I’ve found, is to keep the pen moving. Applies to both cartooning and writing. No matter how ridiculous or unintelligible, keep the pen moving. And when you’re not thinking about ideas, your brain tends to have a small, dark factory, hidden away deep in the grey matter, that keeps on grinding. You won’t even know it’s happening. Then, when you open the notebook, that factory sends a fixed punchline, or scene from a chapter, straight up to the front office.

In the meantime, I’ll have more posts about the upcoming books and the return of “The Conjurers” webcomic. And feel free to share these cartoons around. Always looking for new readers, especially if they’re a wee bit on the strange side.

Fishing Trip in Innsmouth

Indeed, another nod to H.P. Lovecraft. I was quite happy with this comic, even after finishing it, which is usually the moment I want to scrap it and start over. The style of the strip is evolving in a good, dark, gothic sort of way. Enjoyed creating the mood in this scene. Started off with detailed background sketch before realizing less is often more. In this case, I created the swamp with simple shapes and lots of washes.

Not all the comics will be so heavily Lovecraftian. However, when you discover his work in fourth grade, it tends to leave a lasting, grungy stain on your imagination (not a bad thing at all). Not sure what’s coming next week. I’m in the midst of finalizing book two of “The Conjurers” and producing more of companion webcomic (which re-launches this Halloween).

Rest assured I have more Primordial Syrups than Cthulu has tentacles sketched up in my notebook. I’ll have to flip through and see which one tickles my gothic fancy. Let me know what you think so far and of there is any interest in Primordial Merch. Shirts, mugs, wall hangings, blank notebooks and such. Drop me some comments!

Dog Rescue - Comics vs. Reality

As much as the comic follows my real life, I should know by now that reality doesn’t always have the happiest ending. I write the strip months ahead of the publication date. A lot can change in a month, and a lot did.

As most of you know, I have foster dogs in and out all the time. Then came Annie and Louise. And for almost a year, they were sisters. Both had issues, Louise more so than Annie. Louise came from a horrid background and has a severe fear of humans. With dogs, she was normal. 

After about six months we knew Annie and Louise had found their forever home. I had bonded with Annie from day one. That had never happened before with any dog. And I was committed to rehabbing Louise. A long and slow process, but worth it. 

Then reality strayed from the comic. Weezy got provoked by someone outside the fence. She jumped up and came down on Annie, nipping her ear. Annie instinctively struck back. The two locked up. I got them apart. It was a case of mis-interpreted cues that changed everything. Now, whenever they were outside and Weezy got anxious, both girls thought the other would attack. 

This becomes a situation that requires full time management, and with the other training Weezy needed and my Luther’s auto-immune disorder, not to mention the other fosters, the only way for me to help both girls was to have Annie moved. It tore my heart in half. 

The rescue, however, had another plan. They knew from the start that we were Weezy’s last chance and had wanted to put her down from the get go. They weren’t willing to move Annie and told us the decision had already been made. If they moved Annie, we were told she would be boarded and would most likely meet the same fate as Weezy. 

I’m in this to rescue dogs and to do whatever it takes to save as many as possible. Every dog deserves a chance, and after having Weezy for a year, there was no question that she deserved one. This was not some extreme, out of the ordinary situation. 

This happens with dogs and if you’re going to help them you have to be ready to handle it. I had an outside, professional trainer assess Weezy. Their conclusion: there was no reason Weezy should be put down, other than it was the easy way out. Sadly, the trainer had seen this many times before.

The only way I could get the rescue to re-foster Annie was to adopt Weezy. So that’s what we did. I signed the papers and they took my Annie. “Sucked” is not a strong enough word for that day. The only bright spot, and the most important, was that both my girls got to live. 

I’m keeping tabs on my Annie. And I’m keeping her in the strip. I’ll miss her forever. Dog rescue is not always easy and I never take the easy way out. My focus now will be giving Weezy the life she deserves, and nursing my Luther back to health. 

Return of "The Conjurers" Webcomic

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Yep. Finally. Now that all three novels are written, I’m slicing off a smidge of time to bring back the webcomic. There’s still a lot of work to be done on books two and three. A ton of fine tune editing and all the illustrations. However, with book one coming out next July, I wanted the webcomic to revived and breathing well before the launch. Mostly because, even though it’s a rag-tag experiment, I love it. I love getting to visit the cast of “The Conjurers” books outside of prose filled pages.

Also, I know as a reader, it’s always cool when yo can visit a fantasy world in multiple mediums. And it’s super cool when you can visit that world while waiting for the next book to release. Besides, there are so many people and creatures and places in the Conjurian that I want to see. The best way to do that is an ongoing comic.

The next installment will launch on Halloween, which falls on a Thursday this year. There’ll be a new episode every Monday after that. If you have no idea what I’ve been rattling on about, you can read the comic from the beginning here: https://www.gocomics.com/the-conjurers

Nightmare Car Repairs

I’ll probably repeat this several times, but these strips are ideas that strike me as funny at the time I doodle them. Doesn’t guarantee they’ll make sense. This is one of my favorites. The initial sketch was the clown poking out of the engine. Weeks later the mechanic labeling the problem as gasket clowns made me laugh. And there you go.

I liked how the final art turned out. You have to draw lots of comics before the style fins itself. I think I’m getting closer. I want them to be sem-realistic an not too cartoonish. Pretty good balance in this comic. The realism seems to heighten the dark weirdness and the humor at the same time. I’ll keep pushing and tweaking the style bit by bit and see where it goes.

In other news, my other comic, “The Conjurers”, which is a companion piece to the novels will be returning this Halloween! That too is an experiment and so far, I’ve enjoyed where the story has gone. Never been happy wit the art. Then again, I limited myself to one hour for pencils, inks and colors. Didn’t have the time while writing the books. More on that in my next post. Till then, leave a comment or drop me a line and let me know what you think of “Primordial Syrup” so far.

Singe Panel Cartoons - Shopping List

This idea lived in my notebook for quite sometime. Finally got around to sketching it up. Originally, it was a little demon-like creature running up to the lady to make his requests. Then I had the idea of not being able to see the creature, which, many times is a bit spookier. Has a bit of an “Evil Dead” vibe.

Lots more of these to come. I have a notebook full of roughed out comics. And I’m constantly doodling more. Drawing these weird strips has always been my default mode. It also helps to give your mind a break from regular projects, and I never really found a home for the weird stuff. Truthfully, I do them because this stuff clutters my head. Best to get them out.
For now, I plan on drawing one a week, although I write a bunch during the week. Maybe a collection in the future? We’ll see. What would you think about making prints available? And since I’m asking, would you wear one of these comics on a t-shirt?

Channeling my inner Lovecraft

This is one of the earliest Primordial Syrup comics I wrote. Sums up the tone of the comic nicely. Still not happy with the finished art. Wish I had made the creature more creaturey, with a bit of “Ancient One” flair. Still, progress not perfection.

In the coming weeks I’ll have more posts on “The Conjurers”. Currently I’m working on the illustrations for book two. Also sketching concepts for the cover. And I hope to have news on book one soon. A release date and maybe some actual photos of an actual book. Stay tuned.

Funny Comics - The Addams and Far Side Effect

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Another new Primordial Syrup comic. I’m going to try and post a new every Monday. Once a week should be manageable. I have a ton written. The art can take some time, especially when the style is developing. You can probably tell two of my biggest influences were Charles Addams and Gary Larson.

Addams, aside from creating the “Addams Family”, generated some of the best and weirdest single panel comics at a time when weird wasn’t exactly mainstream. My dad had a hardcover collection of New Yorker comics. I was six or seven when I stumbled upon it. I loved any book filled with cartoons, however, most of them, aside from the art, didn’t intrigue me. They were dated, although I wasn’t aware at the time that that was the reason. However, every so many pages would be a single panel that stood out. Kind of like “One of these things doesn’t belong” on Sesame Street.

On those particular comics, I noted the signature, “Addams”, and scoured the book for more. From that moment on Charles Addams was my Odin of cartooning. “The Far Side” came along a bit later, but had a similar effect. When most of your thoughts and ideas are strange, a bit dark and off kilter, or fall into the “I don’t get it” category, seeing the works of Addams and Larson were a beacon in a field that can sometimes drag you down a conventional path just to make a living.

That said, Primordial Syrup has no endgame. They are simply the ideas that make me laugh. They are the cartoons that, if I opened up a hardcover collection of comics, would be the ones I would read.

Single Panel Cartoons

Where the weird things are. I’ve always done single panel comics. The earliest ones I remember were in fourth grade. It was always the best way to get the weird images in my head out. They also made me infamous in high school. First time I got called to the headmaster’s office was over a single panel comic.

The comic, like most of my single panels, was only a fleeting, strange thought. No deeper meaning, just something that struck me as funny. This comic featured an average tree-lined street in an average neighborhood. Except an enormous soap on a rope had smashed one car parked on the road.

Long story short, they called me to the headmaster’s office after the comic ran in the school paper. I spent half an hour reassuring him that there was no deep religious connotations implying that god had dropped his soap-on-a-rope. 

Despite the momentary apprehension of a week’s worth of detention, I realized why I had always loved off-beat, bizarre comics. The sheer fun of seeing the hundreds of different interpretations over a bit of nonsense. With no effort of creating something that contained a profound statement or some worldly truth, it could inspire deeper thought unique to every reader. 

So ya, Primordial Syrup is the ongoing stream of strange that runs through my brain. I have notebooks full of ideas. I plan on rendering them into reality once a week. Let me know what you think in the comments. I’m always interested in what people think they mean.