Lost Property

Daily doodle. Tharg the mighty.

2011-11-17T20:58:00.001Z

From the pages of the galaxies greatest 2000AD I give you the main man himself.

Daily doodle- 15/11/2011

2011-11-15T18:56:00.001Z

Today I give you a gift. The gift of death'as ssweet releassse.

Daily doodle. Rogue Trooper

2011-11-14T23:28:00.001Z

2011-11-11T21:29:00.001Z

Today I give you Judge Dredd.

Daily doodle- Middenface McNulty

2011-11-10T20:00:00.001Z

Seeing as I'be now got me a smartphone I am going to be posting up more of my workplace sketches. All of these will be going out with comic orders in future, so this is my only record of them. Today, Middenface McNulty from the 2000 ad strip Strontium Dog.

New Strip: Captain Gallagher.

2011-05-05T16:42:00.000+01:00

Coming soon is Captain Gallagher- written by Richmond Clements and drawn by me. This was a three page strip that I had a ridiculously short deadline for. Having achieved it I am now trying to keep the momentum going and the plan now is to complete a page of art each week for as long as I can possibly manage. Fingers crossed!

I'm alive!

2011-04-15T09:10:00.000+01:00

Hello? Ahem. I'm Bolt-01 and I'm very guilty of being rubbish at blogging. Unless I'm trying to flog comics, that is.

I'm not really drawing much these days- the 2000 AD board comp to the left is first thing I've really done since christmas.

So- I'm trying to get back into things- I've accepted a quick strip for Dave McDonald and his Tales of the Emerald Isle written by Rich Clements that has a deadline of end April. Hopefully I'll be able to use that to get back into the groove and start making progress again. I've still got a half pencilled strip for Mike Carroll sat in my folder that I really want to have finished.

Phew! Been a bit busy, but next week is deadline week!

2010-08-27T11:19:00.002+01:00

Next week sees the deadline for the new crop of titles, FutureQuake, Something Wicked, Dogbreath and Zarjaz. Zarjaz and FQ are already over page for their issues, with Zarjaz actually gaining 8 pages for the next issue in order to give the issue the chance to take shape properly, and Dogbreath & something Wicked both taking shape 'very' rapidly now.

The worst bit of the process is about to need to be done- the emails to tell folks that despite them hitting deadline- I'm bumping their strip to a later issue. I hae doing that- I've had it done to me, on several occasions and it always leaves a feeling that your work isn't as good as you thought it was. Of course the real reason for it is that I only have so many pages in each issue, and sometimes I struggle to actually fit the strips into 48 pages. Thankfully I've had a few shorter strips in, which make it easier to find room to manouvre. Still doesn't make it nice to have to tell folks that their strip is going to be another six months in the drawer though.

Anyway, what have I been Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll Still storming through page 3, because I’ve had to take a detour to draw page 36 of Fractal Friction!

The final page has been coloured and lettered by Jim Campbell, and very well too.

Completed this Week!

Publishing:

FutureQuake 16 Strip in this week:

Something Wicked 06 Strip in this week:

Dogbreath 24 Strips in this week:

Sun & Moon: Hunters of Bounty- Brainspotting

Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe.

Ongoing. This week lettered: Nowt. Got quite a few pages in- but until I get the new comics done they can wait.
Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.
Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

2010-08-20T10:26:00.000+01:00

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

I’m now back into inking this and steaming through page 3.

Completed this Week!

Publishing:

FutureQuake 16 Strip in this week:

Robo-Sapiens

Something Wicked 06 Strip in this week:

The Curse of Rama-Set

Dogbreath 24 Strips in this week:

Damned Mutants

The Gronk- Small Universe.

Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe.

Ongoing. This week lettered: Nowt.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics

Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren

Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape

Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren

Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Friday 30/07/2010

2010-07-30T12:56:00.000+01:00

Working On!

A quick piece for the 2000 AD message board comp this month. Based on an idea by Stephen Watson

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Still inking page 2. I hate losing momentum like this...

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16 Almost full. 1 strip out for final approval. 1 strip lost it's artist. Hopefully we can find a suitable replacement- but this is a big blow.
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10 BIG leaks about a certain strip and also the New cover too!

Lettering:

Average Joe.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 4 pages.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

2010-07-16T09:36:00.002+01:00

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Still inking page 2. I hate losing momentum like this...

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16 Almost full. Room for 1 strip left…
Something Wicked 06 Did I say that I'd got the confirmation of the cover artist?
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 4 pages.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

09/07/2010.

2010-07-09T11:29:00.002+01:00

Over at 2000 AD this week, in prog 1692, I got a rather awesome surprise. If yo look in the BG of the panel above, you will see a S/D agant with a beak- that is Whistler, a character I created many moons ago to star in some fan fiction on the 2000 AD website. The reason for Whistlers awesome appearance- It is a thank you from John Wagner and Carlos for being the continuity nerd for the current Strontium dog strip. The actual image was sorted by my good compadre in all this, Richmond; and he had known about it for months, in fact it was all his idea. Friends are good. As for what happens in the rest of the series- that would be telling :)

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
I got righteously stuck into page 2 last weekend- pencilling most of it in a single 2 hours blur, I'm now decyphering my scribble and laying down the inks.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16 Did I say that I'd got the confirmation of the cover artist?
Something Wicked 06 I've now sorted which strip is lead, and begun to arrange the cover artist for the issue.
Dogbreath 23 The Cover is now sorted!
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 2 pages. Got another 5 to work on though.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

02/07/2010.

2010-07-02T13:33:00.003+01:00

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Page 1 Inked, looking at getting stuck into page 2 over the weekend.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10
Zarjaz 11 – The ABC Warriors special- We got a rather nice extra for this issue through. No spoilers yet though.

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 5 pages.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

MONGROL SMUSH!

2010-06-25T10:42:00.002+01:00

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Page 1 almost Inked. Sorted all my design work for it now (Biro scribbles really, helping me sort out kinks in the look of things.)

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
STAR POLISHERS
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 2 pages.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

ABC Warriors- MONGROL. Starting work

2010-06-18T09:27:00.003+01:00

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Page 1 almost pencilled.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 0 pages.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Beginning! Mongrol- Blogging!

2010-06-11T13:29:00.001+01:00

Working On!

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Thumbnails complete- some storytelling tweaks made to make sure this rocks! Starting character sketches- so I’ll have something to share next week

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
A Better Place.
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Cover Assembly begun.
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 4 pages.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. Nothing happening yet.

04/06/2010; Catch-up!

2010-06-04T10:04:00.003+01:00

I spent last weekend working on the commission piece. Which is now complete! I've also scanned, lettered and hand-toned a print of this as well for the customer and I plan on having the whole thing in the post tomorrow.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Thumbnails started- some storytelling tweaks being ironed out to make sure this rocks!

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: nowt. However, I've got four to do, so I'll hopefully have them by this time next week.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.
Over on his BLOG, Locust talks about, and links to- some reviews of the strip.

Friday 28th May...

2010-05-28T10:12:00.003+01:00

After last weekends hectic rushing and meeting and drinking and a bit of selling, but mainly chatting- This weekend hopefully will be a little quieter.

Working list:
Drawing:
The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
The pages are now away to my trusty colourist and I've finished the lettering.

The image at the top is my entry for the 2000 AD site art comp this month. I even managed to colour this (though I did get some advice on things from Mini-Bolt as I was going along.

Commission. I’m drawing the family unit of a member of the Hive-Mind. Sketches started and I'm looking forward to this. I've also started laying out the board with the required perspectives and I'm hoping to be able to scan somethng worth looking at after the weekend.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Sketches started, as I've never drawn Mongrol before.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Cover artist sorted!

Something Wicked 06
Cover Artist sorted!

Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: nowt. However, I've got four to do, so I'll hopefully have them by this time next week.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.

Eagle Awards Rant...

2010-05-25T08:29:00.002+01:00

As many of you here will know- the Eagle awards are up and running full tilt now for 2010. This is for titles published in 2009, and FutureQuake has been nominated for the third time in a row. You can vote here, if you like, but read the rest of the blog post first please.

Okay- firstly apologies if this gets a bit obsessive- but this has been bugging me for a couple of years now-

The Eagles, as it stands at the moment, is geared to whoever can get the most votes. It has two phases- open nominations and once the shortlist from there has been decided (presumably the five from each category with the highest nomination votes) then the top five go through for a direct vote-off!

I'm really only focusing on the 'Best British Black & White' category- as that is the only one that I have a vested interest in.

The opening section- with the open nominations is fine- as many folks, myself included, will simply vote for their own titles and hope that they can convince enough readers and friends that they are worthy. This leads to a huge number of nominations presumably, however it seems to work quite well. Indeed this years list is really strong- and I am very proud to have made it this far.

It is the second portion of this that I would change. It is again an open vote. Which is personally a mistake I feel. The current system is open to vast numbers of 'Internet' friends being balloted via Facebook- Twitter- or indeed good old fashioned email to vote for titles that they may well have never read. What is wrong with that? Well, as long as you have read all the books nominated- nothing.

I, personally, feel that once the initial nomination stage is complete, then a set of all titles nominated is provided for a panel of judges- similar to the mercury music prize- where each judge will be able to vote across the board. Automatically there is less chance of 'who has more friends' being a deciding factor- and the work itself will be in a position to shine through. I think that the lead of the eagles should choose a different panel each year- made up of members who do not have a vested interest in which titles are nominated and that all votes are collated in secret.

That would be an Eagle award worth really working towards.

I'd like to say good luck to all those nominated in whatever category you are in- as I feel the Eagles are a fantastic thing- but in need of some work.

That Pre-Bristol feeling!

2010-05-21T10:39:00.005+01:00

It’s Bristol weekend. Traditionally seen as the biggest gig in the country- Bristol is based in two venues this year. FQP can be found in the Mercure for both Saturday and Sunday. I’ll most likely be on the table- so if you want a sketch from me, free if you are buying comics, drop by. I’ll also be looking at art samples all weekend.

Working list:
Drawing:
The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
All scanned and approved! The pages are now away to my trusty colourist and I’m going to sort the lettering.

Sneaking in next will be my entry for the new comp on the 2000 AD site. Then it is on to...

An actual, honest to god commission. I’m drawing the family unit of a member of the Hive-Mind. Sketches started and I'm looking forward to this.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Sketches started, as I've never drawn Mongrol before.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
MASON HE WROTE

Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

This week I've finished lettering a little strip for Matthew McLaughlin & Tony Rothwell Called Rek Fen-Birn. Only four pages.

Average Joe for InsomniaPublishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: nowt.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.

Red Sands
for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing: 1st chapter now available from Red Sands and it is all wrapped up in a lovely Alex Ronald cover, too!

As part of the continuing assault on Millarworld by short strips- I’ve relettered the Joy of Text strip from FQ10 by Paul Glasswell and Simon Penter. Simon has done a lovely colour scheme for the page so good luck to the both of them.

The Paginator is a single page strip for the Emperor and Chris Askham that is for the 2000 AD art comp this month.

2010-05-14T12:44:00.002+01:00

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
Inking Finished! Next I need to scan the six pages and sort them to my trusty colourist.

Sneaking in next will be my entry for the new comp on the 2000 AD site. Then it is on to...

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll
Sketches started, as I've never drawn Mongrol before.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

This week I've begun lettering a little strip for Matthew McLaughlin & Tony Rothwell Called Rek Fen-Birn. Only four pages.

Average Joe for InsomniaInsomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: nowt.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing: Hopefully launching soon- watch this space. Still...

May 6th Update.

2010-05-07T08:50:00.005+01:00

Working list:
Drawing:

I drew Fractal Friction P20. A lot of fun and a ‘very’ quick job. It was inked in a single sitting- which is rare, but a tight deadline is a great motivator. Thanks to The Emperor and all the rest of the chaps at FF for asking me to take part. Visit the link to see the final page, with colour by Matt Soffe and lettering by Jim Campbell.

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
Inking page 4!
The Fractal Friction page has gotten my drawing muscles moving again after being in neutral for ages- I plan on having this done- inks wise- by the end of next week.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

I’ve been contacted by a rather prominent member of 2000 AD fandom with a request for a portrait in the same vein as the pic of Hi-Ex! Organisers Rich & Vicky. Still early days, but I’m looking forward to getting the photo ref and working on a likeness.

Completed this Week!
Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Something Wicked 06
Dogbreath 23
Zarjaz 10

Lettering:

This week I’ve lettered KILLER-MEK, for Richmond Clements and Nick Dyer- this was their entry in the MILLARWORLD comp. Fingers crossed chaps.

I’ve also lettered a strip for Matthew McLaughlinand El Chivo that is due out later this year.

Average Joe for InsomniaInsomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: nowt.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing. This week I’ve been tinkering with a logo for them- think it is about there, some colour things to fix- which regular readers will know can cause me problems.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing: Hopefully launching soon- watch this space.

April 23rd: St George's Day!

2010-04-23T10:04:00.002+01:00

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
Page 1 complete- page 2 half inked!.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!

Publishing:

FutureQuake 16

Something Wicked 06

Dogbreath 23

Zarjaz 10
Slaine- A Place Of Shelter Ready for Print
Rogue Trooper- A Tale from the Trenches Ready for Print

Lettering:

Average Joe for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 3 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Angels of the Somme for Timebomb comics
Writer Alec Robertson, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing.

Red Sands for Starscape
Writer: Matthew McLaughlin, Art Bruce McLaren
Ongoing: episode 1 (8 pages) delivered to Starscape and ready for the next part.

Bruce has posted this on his blog- so I don't mind sharing; and next week I'll hopefully have something rather cool to share...

You ever have one of those days...

2010-04-09T10:59:00.002+01:00

Don’t know why, but since getting back from Hi-Ex I’ve not been able to face any drawing. A bit worrying as I was getting into my stride with the Crusader. I am trying to get past this by getting stuck into a new piece for the 2000 AD online messageboard.

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
Still inking page 1. Having a bit of a crisis of confidence at the mo.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!

Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
The Everything Box

Something Wicked 06

Dogbreath 23

Zarjaz 10
Judge Dredd- Xtras

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 10 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Strip with Timebomb for Alec Robertson & Bruce McLaren. Titled Angels of the Somme, Bruce McLaren is going to be knocking your socks off with this.

Red Sands! I've had the first 4 pages through from Bruce, and I'm hoping to get some lettering done this weekend.

Good Friday!

2010-04-02T10:08:00.003+01:00

Photofrom the Forbidden Planet Set.
Back from Hi-Ex and finally getting round to sorting myself out. First off the next time I’ll be at a con will be in May, at the Bristol Event. Hotel booked and everything. Check out the pic on the right hand side.

Hi-Ex was great fun, always a pleasure for me to be there as it is perhaps my favourite gig in the country. It was great to meet up with old friends and make new one’s too. I was even asked for sketches- which was nice. Maybe next time I'll remember to take photo's.

Photo from The Hi-Ex site featuring the team for Red Sands! And Leonia Carroll too.

Whilst there though I had a bit of a revelation. I’m a bit of a soft touch on the whole- I’m a fairly easy going kind of guy, so I tend to bend over a bit more than I should as far as strips are concerned. When it comes to scripts it is much easier to be tough- as there are a team of script readers who will all be aiming for the highest level of quality, after all entire strips will stand or fall on the quality of the scripts. I like to think that the team at FQP, as well as Dogbreath & Zarjaz, is pretty hot at sorting strong scripts.

It is the Artists that I need to push more. Most of the artists involved in the titles I produce are of a level where they are polishing their craft ready to approach publishers (I’m not going to put any names in this, just not fair) but there are some that need to be pushed a little harder. This is not a judgement on their drawing ability, not at all- it is mainly to apply the same harsh standards we use for scripts to art. I’m going to start asking for more re-working of panels, and where possible I would like to be able to get hold of a set of pencilled pages for strips so that I can pass judgement before ink is put to paper.

After all, the artists providing the work want to reach a standard where they can approach professional editors and gain paid work- so if I let them submit art that I feel needs work I am letting them down.

Therefore if you are an artist working on a strip for me and I tell you that there is something I want you to change- I’m not being awkward for the sake of it- I genuinely want you to submit artwork that knocks me out. I may be called SMALL PRESS, but that doesn’t mean we have to have small standards.

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
Still inking page 1.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!

Publishing:

FutureQuake 16
Strip Lettering: Bargain hunter- Completed
Strip Lettering: B.O.O.B.I.E. trap- Completed

Something Wicked 06

Dogbreath 23
Bit soon to talk about this…

Zarjaz 10
Judge Dredd- Red In Toothe & Claw Completed.
Judge Dredd- Xtras- Art received and lettered. Awaiting final approval

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 0 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission. However- I’ve just sorted the files for a set of pages that will hopefully be appearing at the Bristol expo!

Angels of the somme is a strip with Timebomb for Alec Robertson & Bruce McLaren. Ink is still wet on this, but I’m doing this as a thanks to these guys for all they have done for me.

I’m also part of the team for the sequel to Red Sands- Writer Matt McLauglin and Artist Bruce McLaren have asked me to join in the fun of crafting the follow-up to the original by Alex Ronald!

Friday 12/03/2010

2010-03-12T10:22:00.003Z

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
5 pages pencilled, and page 6 started. This is giving me grief.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!

Publishing:
Walking Wounded 03 Lettering.
Finished and away to the Denton Bros- Looking forward to this, and I’m hoping to be able to take some copies to Hi Ex with me.

Hi-Ex 03 Convention Programme
DONE. At the Printers!

FutureQuake 15
DONE. At the Printers!

FutureQuake 16
Strip Lettering: Bargain hunter- Ready for Print!
Strip Lettering: B.O.O.B.I.E. trap- Art received and prepped for lettering

Something Wicked 06

Dogbreath 22
DONE. At the Printers!

Zarjaz 09
DONE. At the Printers!

Zarjaz 10
Judge Dredd- Red in Tooth & Claw- Awaiting amended art files
Judge Dredd- Xtras- Art received and prepared for lettering.

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 0 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Froday March 05

2010-03-05T12:46:00.003Z

This was the entry for a comp that I joined in with Matt McLaughin on. We didn't win, but I had a blast drawing it.

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
5 pages pencilled, and page 6 started.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!

Publishing:
Walking Wounded 03 Lettering.
Death on the rock part 3. Art & Script arrived- Here we go!

Hi-Ex 03 Convention Programme
Deadline early March.
Nearly there….

FutureQuake 15
At The Printers!

FutureQuake 16
Strip Lettering: Bargain hunter- Awaiting Final Approval from full editorial.

Something Wicked 06

Dogbreath 22
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.
Almost ready- And you will love the result!

Zarjaz 09
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.
Soo close!

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 0 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

26/02/2010: Update Time

2010-02-26T11:41:00.002Z

Three in a row! Hat trick.

Whilst clearing out some old paperwork at home, Mrs Bolt has uncovered this from waay back in the day. Makes me smile now, but at the time I was very disheartened.

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
3 pages pencilled, and page 4 started.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!
Harry Potter commission, had the colours back from Mel Cookand all handed over.

Publishing:
Walking Wounded 03 Lettering.
Death on the rock part 2 Lettered and Completed. Absolutely superb work from the Denton Bros.

Hi-Ex 03 Convention Programme
Deadline early March.

FutureQuake 15
Deadline 1st March.
Final strip arrived and being lettered!

FutureQuake 16
Strip Lettering: Bargain hunter- Awaiting Final Approval from full editorial.

Something Wicked 06
Strip Lettered & Completed: Mirage

Dogbreath 22
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.
Strip Lettering: From Below Pt2- 5 Pages Lettered. One page awaiting
Case File 23 Assembled and sent for approval

Preparation underway for possibly the coolest thing we’ve ever done in Dogbreath- and we’ve done some cool stuff!

Zarjaz 09
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.
Review 01 & 02 Completed.

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 0 pages. 2 new pages available, but I've not been able to get to them.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Weekly update: 14/02/2010

2010-02-19T10:58:00.003Z

Working list:
Drawing:

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honeywith Chris & Steve Denton.
3 pages pencilled, and page 4 started.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll

Completed this Week!
Harry Potter commission, handed over the original- awaiting the coloured version back from Mel Cook.

Lobster Random- Entry for the 2000ad Art comp. I’ve not entered the last few, so I’m determined to get something good done for this. You be the judge.

Publishing:
Walking Wounded 03 Lettering.
One strip down, more to come apparently. Deadline early March.

Hi-Ex 03 Convention Programme
Deadline early March.

FutureQuake 15
Just waiting for 1 strip. Deadline 1st March.

FutureQuake 16
Strip Lettered & Completed: The Last Laugh
Strip Lettered & Completed: Mr Robinson
Strip Lettering: Bargain hunter- Awaiting Final Approval from full editorial.

Something Wicked 06
Strip Lettering: Mirage- Awaiting Final Approval from full editorial.

Dogbreath 22
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.

Zarjaz 09
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.
Strip Completed: FLESH – Extinctionville. Promo page to appear in Zarjaz 09.

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 11 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

Regular Updates begin here!

2010-02-12T12:29:00.005Z

I am hereby going to get back into the habit of posting weekly updates for the purpose of keeping a record of what I'm doing.

Working list:
Drawing:

Harry Potter commission
Inks completed, and I’ve sorted for it to be coloured as well. Very pleased with this.

The Crusader: Spoonful of Honey with Chris & Steve Denton.
3 pages pencilled, taking a break from this to work on the Potter commission, sorry Chris.

ABC Warriors: Mongrol- Blogging with David Withers & Mike Carroll (Links)
Mike has done a lovely template for this.

Completed this Week!
Thing From another planet Comp Entry with Matt McLaughlin
Submission confirmed- so fingers crossed. Matt has posted about it here.

Publishing:
Walking Wounded 03 Lettering.
One strip down, more to come apparently. Deadline early March.

Hi-Ex 03 Convention Programme
Deadline early March.
Approx 5 pages complete, with more to come. The Auction alone is worth the effort!

FutureQuake 15
Just waiting for 1 strip. Deadline 1st March.

Dogbreath 22
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.

Zarjaz 09
Waiting for all sorts! Deadline 1st March.

Average Joe Lettering for Insomnia Publishing.
Ongoing. This week lettered: 6 pages.
Unfortunately I can't really show anything from this yet- I don't have permission.

There. A decent update to be sure.

The Bridge!

2009-12-21T13:56:00.002Z

The BRIDGE is the school magazine for Handsworth Grammar, in Birmingham, which is the school that the mighty Mini-Bolt went to till earlier this year. Why am I posting about this- well it is because for the second year running, I out it together for them. The editor; Mrs Elaine Brown, was one of Mini-Bolts teachers and after she learned about my small-press activities they asked me to help out. I was only too pleased to accept- especially when they offered to pay me!

I'm quite pleased with how the mag looks, though there are things I want to sort for next year- making the interior pages tidier, fixing some nasty formatting shortcuts I got lumbered with due to the school's inexperience (ohh, hark at me!) with print techniques and generally giving it a bit more polish. That's if they ask me, after all...

Oh, and because I did the layout work I was able to push it to my usual printer for comics, which has hopefully given them a lovely x-mas bonus as well.

Friday 4th december.

2009-12-04T12:48:00.003Z

My Entry for the 2000ad online message board Advent Calendar. Quite pleased with this.

Friday 27 November 2009

2009-11-27T10:21:00.003Z

This week I have been recovering from Leeds and sorting stuff ready to start on the new Crusader strip. thumbnails are all done, but I've got to put it on the back burner for the Bridge- which is going to need a lot of work to get ready for printers.

I've also done some lettering for another member of the 2000ad message board hive. A strip that is for the board advent calender that starts on Tuesday.

Sam Slade!

2009-11-24T10:08:00.002Z

This started out as a 'You have 15 minutes to draw Robo-Hunter entry on the 2000ad online message board, but I got carried away.

The pencils took 15 min, inks approx 40 min, then I scanned it and started playing. I really enjoyed this.

Back from the depths- TIME TOURS

2009-11-01T08:36:00.003Z

Time for a little light pimpery.

A couple of months ago I drew a single page strip for the BACK FROM THE DEPTHS Fan publication headed by Malcolm Kirk.

The full issue is now available to download and I heartily recommend it. There are some cracking strips and some lovely artwork- including pieces by Johnny McMonagle and Matthew Soffe

Really must get back into this...

2009-10-08T16:16:00.003+01:00

I can't believe it has been nearly a year since I posted here!

Sheesh!

Okay- Working on:-

Mostly promoting the new comics, getting more Zarjaz made and amending the cover for the latest Dogbreath. Got a lot of ppost to deal with as the comp copies need to be organised.

Drawing wise I'm not up to much. I've a terrible cold at the mo, which is leaving me feeling really fucking horrible, and has majorly affected my concentration. However I have managed to ink the first two pages of the second half of the SD strip I'm working on.

I'm going to be getitng some lettering work from Insomnia comics apparently. I need to drop them a line and say sorry for not speaking at BICS last weekend.

Afternthe SD strip I am going to begin work either on a new Dreddheads- or more likely the next Crusader strip- and I'm going to try to ink that digitally. I reckon that I should be able to finally overcome my hand-eye issues with the stylus and hopefully get a greater level of detail into my work. If nothing else it will make for an interesting experiment.

For next time I'm going to try to get a picture to post as well- Surely I can do THAT...

Hi-Ex2 and more

2008-12-17T16:04:00.004Z

Since I last blogged here all sorts of stuff has been going on. I've done the full graphic design package for a school mag (and sorted the printing) and finished the pencils on the next installment of Whistler for Dogbreath.

Then I did this:

Which I'm pretty pleased about as it is in the current end of year 2000ad. Cue big, silly grin on my mush. Of course I didn't draw it, that was Declan Shalvey who did that bit. I just put the words on.

Next up I'm taking a couple of days before leaping into the inks for Whistler to work on the FQP X-mas card for the year and to do some sketches for a script I'll be starting soon for Mike Carroll that is possibly one of the most bittersweet farewells to a comic character I've ever read.

Strontium Dog vs Iron Man

2008-11-18T22:21:00.001Z

Strontium dog C Rebellion. Iron Man C Marvel.

Happy Halloween

2008-10-22T10:23:00.004+01:00

A larger version of the entry in this months 2000ad message board compo

Harvest!

2008-09-19T11:03:00.002+01:00

It’s almost time to start pimping the new comics. Last night saw the final CD burned of the current crop. Phew!

Working on:
The last Whistler story! There is anew episode in the new Dogbreath, and next issue will see the whole thing wrap up an leave the character in… well that would be telling.

Latest from FQP:

FutureQuake
Being Printed!

Something Wicked
Being Printed! Thanks to the efforts of Brett Buckle for getting the last strip in at the last moment.

DogBreath & Zarjaz
Being Printed!

Oh- remember those Kingdom Pics I did earlier this year? Well, Richmond has coloured them and they look lovely.

Dave

Crusader test & more.

2008-09-05T16:55:00.002+01:00

I'm FREE! Only joking. I've been drawing the Crusader strip since May this year, and it is only six pages. Mental I know, but It has taken me that long. I'm hoping the next couple of strips are going to be a LOT quicker.

Anyhow- this is a pic I did as a test for Richmond to see what his colouring would look like. Pretty impressive to my eyes is the answer.

These are also the latest crop of sketches I've worked on recently.

Colossus of the X-men.

A rather tired looking mutie.

News & Sketches

2008-08-26T13:33:00.003+01:00

Judge Dredd

Not done a proper update for a while, so here goes

Working on:
The Crusader for Massacre for Boys: I’m inking the last page as of today and seeing as I’ve been drawing this since May this year I’m going to be glad to see it finished. It has also opened my eyes as to what I can actually achieve these days. Not flippin’ much is the answer. I used to be able to do 3 pages (Full A3) in two weeks around my job & family, but not anymore.

Latest from FQP:

FutureQuake
The new FQ (11) is almost ready. Just waiting on Neroy and a few bits for the inside cover, then it is good to go.

Something Wicked
A much more perilous publication. Some issues with artists are putting this issue into a bit of doubt. Which is a shame as I really like this title and think this issue would be a corker if it comes together as I want it to. The latest thing here is that the cover art is being coloured by the mighty Mini-Bolt.

DogBreath & Zarjaz
Dogbreath is coming together slowly and Zarjaz is almost ready. The cover has to be seen to be believed and once this issue is done I can reveal the news that… Ah, that ‘would’ be telling. Suffice to say- there has never been an issue of Zarjaz like the issue we have planned for issue 07.

Dave

The Fat Man sings...

Keege's Day off.

Sketches

2008-08-14T16:57:00.003+01:00

Strontium Dog Johnny Alpha.

I Don't know what this guy has done, but he's in trouble...

Judge Death.

Sketches!

2008-07-24T13:00:00.003+01:00

One of my favourite series ever, the VC's. This may well get some more work done later, adding in a background or some effects.

a Mega-city monkey, out for a rumble!

Sketches...

2008-07-17T14:38:00.001+01:00

A rather Iffy Wolverine, though the hair has some nice texture to it.

Hulk SMASH Puny Pencil Monkey!

Judge Anderson.

More Sketches

2008-07-04T13:37:00.002+01:00

A Mega-City Fatty, looking fro trouble.

First sketch to reach happines of a character in the Crusader strip I'm pencilling.

Nemesis the Warlock.

In other news it is deadly quiet for the comics at the moment. Apparently copies of Zarjaz & Dogbreath are in FP shops- which is nice; but there is almost no artwork coming in. Scripts! We've got more scripts than we can reasonably run in the next three FQ's, which is leading me to thin that we may well close the doors again for a while.

The new inking tool is starting to settle down, the latest batch of sketches are looking almost as I want them to. So I'm pleased with my progress.

Rogue Trooper: MANHATTAN TRANSFER

2008-07-01T15:05:00.003+01:00

Written by Jon & Gorath scribe: Mark Woodland.
Pics by myself & Richmond
for the 2000adOnline message board comp this month.

Sketches.

2008-06-25T13:12:00.002+01:00

Sketch- Slaine

2008-06-23T11:10:00.002+01:00

Quite pleased with this.

Sketch- Dante.

2008-06-18T11:25:00.001+01:00

Never really sketched Nikolai before- and was quite pleased with how this turned out.

Sketch: Middenface.

2008-06-11T14:23:00.000+01:00

Middenface McNulty. Strontium dog.

Crusader Remixed.

2008-06-07T21:43:00.003+01:00

Just finished this and realise I've hit upon a much better version of the Crusader. Removing the hard edges of the visor and making it more like NEXUS is definitely an improvement.

Sketches: Paragon

2008-06-06T09:21:00.003+01:00

I've not long finished reading the excellent New Heroes books by Michael Carroll and whilst scribbling I got to wondering about the Character 'Paragon'.

These are the result:

A bit rough and ready, but I like the direction this was going in. Hopefully I'll get time to work up something more suitably heroic for him in the future.

Sketch:

2008-06-04T10:17:00.002+01:00

I've recently decided to start finishing my sketches to a higher degree. Not saying that the drawings are any good, only that I'm going to be keeping some sort of record of my scribbles.

First up is a reasonable headshot of a character I'm working on for the Brothers Denton. The Crusader (not to be confused with the Crusader that appeared in Daredevils drawn by alan davis all those years ago)

I'll be hopefully doing something every couple of days.

Strontium Dog: Nice Little Town detail

2008-05-30T12:44:00.003+01:00

A long time ago, before Futurequake, I illustrated a story by Richmond called Nice Little town. It appeared in Dogbreath 11 (iirc) and was never remarked upon again.

Now Richmond has decided that he wants to present this again over on the website with the illustrations in colour. Not a problem says I, I'll send the pics over and you can colour them and we will all be happy.

Then I looked at them.

I'm not the biggest fan of my stuff, in fact there is very little I've drawn over the years that doesn't make me cringe eventually. But there was one illo in here that I would not want to inflict on anyone again. Therefore I'm redrawing it. That is a part of it at the top. Hopefully I'll have this in a sort of finished state over the weekend and then rich can work his magic colour stick on top.

Invasion- Chippy.

2008-05-17T12:58:00.003+01:00

Here is the first of my entries into this months 2000adOnline messageboard comp. Lots of fun and one of my favourite jokes.

Bristol countdown: 15 days...

2008-04-25T12:42:00.002+01:00

Been a busy old week for me; On Tuesday I turned 38. Feeling old is just around the corner, but I'm not there yet!

I delivered FutureQuake, Dogbreath and Zarjaz to the printers this week, so barring 'The Great Warlord Sugi & Other Tales' that is it for prep for this years Bristol con.

I collected World of Weird from the printers, a comic I've been putting the finishing touches to for Ed Berridge & Bryan Coyle, and has been in the pipeline for almost three years! The finished product looks good, so hopefully it'll make some folks happy to read it.

MangaQuake 06 was also ready for collection, and includes an absolute gem of a strip. Titled 'love is not wrong' it is a superbly paced tale with art by first time published artist Sophia Grant. Sophia is also one of the folk who took part in the portfolio session at HI-Ex earlier this year. Nice to see someone dipping their toes into small press after that.

Art-wise I'm now inking page 3 of the Kingdom strip for the next Zarjaz, and I'm making sketches for a perspective based shot of Mega-city one for the 2000ad message board. Not sure if that will turn into anything though.

In the near future I'm thinking that we well make a third issue of FutureQuake next year, as we have a significant page count already in files ready to print. Things will have to be discussed before a proper decision is reached though.

I'll try to get a picture for next time I post...

Dogbreath 18 Detail

2008-04-11T14:00:00.002+01:00

I've posted the full version of this on the Quequam blog, but I like this enough to want to post the line art here. Very pleased with how this came out.

Time passes on...

2008-03-28T11:53:00.002Z

This week I've been busily working on Kingdom. Page 3 was completed (pencil-wise) in a flurry of activity and page 4 is coming together steadily.

We lost the cover artist for Dogbreath 18, which was a bit of a blow, and is still not sorted. I'm working on a back up plan of doing it myself if I have to, but I'm not keen on that to be honest. Think Dogbreath deserves a 'pro' on the cover.

The running order for the next FQ is all sorted now, and I think it is going to be a well received issue. Hopefully the last few pages of strip will be here within the week so I can get to the printer early for once!

Walking Wounded.

2008-03-20T14:12:00.002Z

Bit of a bias here, as I lettered the second issue, but the Bros Denton have sent me copies of both WALKING WOUNDED comics that are in print, and damn fine theye are too.

Featuring the war-time exploits of a group of supposedly unfit for duty soldiers, this is a well written and drawn series that will leave you wanting more.

Massacre For Boys

Work so far...

2008-03-20T13:59:00.002Z

Progress is slow on the kingdom strip. As the deadline for the latest crop of comics gets closer, the amount of time I have to devote to the artwork that I love shrinks.

Still, I can't really complain as I agreed to take all this on.

So far I am pencilling the third page (of five) and I think this is some of the best work I've done. However I feel like that about all my work till the ink is dry, then I can barely look at it.

Here's a rough scan of pages 1 & 2.

Set the controls for the heart of the sun!

2008-02-29T15:34:00.002Z

My latest entry into the wild world of 2000ad art competitions. The colour on here was provided, as ever, by Richmond Clements.

Kingdom! Coming soon

2008-02-29T15:29:00.003Z

As a taster for the strip I'm about to start for the End of Year Zarjaz, here are a couple of pics of the mighty Mutt- Gene the Hackman.

Gene the Hackman Copyright Rebellion.

Mecha KONG!

2008-01-29T10:21:00.000Z

The new art comp thread over at 2000adOnline is running well, and I've managed to get an entry sorted for it. The BG is taken from a photo and run through the 'Live-trace' function in Illustrator- twice. Once for the grey tones and again for the black line. I then composed the image in Photoshop.

Check the thread out, as it has some stunning artwork.

http://www.2000adonline.com/?zone=fan&page=messagethread&choice=21685&skipto=-1&Replies=102

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-21T11:36:00.000Z

Just realised its been a month since I last posted, so it is time for an update…

Working on:
Whistler is all finished and ready for printing. Need to sort myself a story so far page for this as it may seem a bit disjointed seeing as it will have been a year since the last episode.

Latest from FQP:
We’ve just posted the 2007 christmas card, thanks to the amazingly talented Johnny Mcmonagle for the artwork featuring Neroy Sphinx.

Something Wicked
ON THE CARDS is a strip I’m working on for issue 04, and here are pencils for pages 1 and 3. I’ve almost finished the pencils for page 4, and then it is time to start inking.

DogBreath & Zarjaz
Zarjaz is now all ours. Scripts are being read and artists contacted. I’v also begun a blog for the combined might of the galaxies greatest fanzines- nothing to show yet, but I’ll be linking it when it goes live.

Dave

Mutterings and rambles....

2007-11-22T14:13:00.000Z

Quiet today, so I thought I’d have a mutter to myself over here…

Working on:
I’m still putting pages together for Duke Etranges’ World of Weird, and apart from one sizeable strip, this is almost ready. Lots of faffing around with page layouts still though.

I’ve just sent a strip off for colouring that features PHOTON! In a healthy slice of action.

I’m in the Greytones stage on Whistler- up to page 4 at the moment, nearly finished.

I’ve also broken the A3 out for a strip for NEXT YEAR’s Something wicked. A four page strip called on the cards. I’ll be lamping bits up for it as time goes by no doubt.

Latest from FQP:
All pretty quiet at the moment. Lots of scripts being read- some going to artists for future issues, others being worked on to make sure they are as good as can be.

DogBreath & Zarjaz
Oh yeah, this is good. I’ve just secured the cover artist for the next issues of these titles (Seeing as it is going to be our first Zarjaz I am even more chuffed) and as soon as I can say who it is, I will.

Peeps the butler droid has been pressganged into our service and is in the process of collating the current files for Zarjaz ready for transferring into the Bolt-01 ‘Beast’frame so that I can begin sorting the new issue. Plans are already underway for some mighty impressive happenings.

Dave

Teamwork

2007-11-08T11:06:00.000Z

Hola!

Teamwork, that is what makes things like FutureQuake possible. I know full well that I am part of a solid team and that if I need back-up I'll get it. Comics are by there very nature a solitary pleasure, yet the biggest pleasure I get in this mad hobby is actually meeting up with my fellow comic folk and having a good natter about stuff. I know that If I was trying to do all this on my own I'd go mad, so thanks and thanks again to all those folks who are part of the team at FQP.

The current crop of FQP titles is barely in print and I've already received all bar 12 pages of the next FQ, AND the cover!

The new website is doing well, though the forum is dead, mostly due to me being unable to add new bits to it that I'd like. However, I'm sure that as soon as our Webmaster notices the emails he'll sort it.

In other news I am assured that I'll have all the info I need to take over on Zarjaz soon, and the enigmatic Duke Etrange has camped out in my back yard and won't leave till I get his comic ready for him either.

I've also had to raid the FQP bank account in order to pay for not one, but two conventions for next year already! Next year is going to be a busy one- with Hi-Ex in Feb, Bristol in May and Brum con III in October! PHEW!

Friday Sept 28th

2007-09-28T10:48:00.001+01:00

Phew, what a week! Too many late nights, followed by too many early mornings has left me a bit frazzled today- still, all be worth it in the end.

Working on:
Still pencilling Whistler, as I’ve had a couple of last minute jobs dropped on me which has swallowed a lot of my time. Still, I’ve got six months to finish!

Latest from FQP:
The Cd’s for FQ, MQ and SW are at the printers! I had a call this morning about a formatting error I’ve made on MQ, which I’ll sort for Monday, but the others are all okay! I’ll be collecting in two weeks today- maybe sooner if I can.

DogBreath
After all the grief I gave one artist about delivering his strip on time (and him doing so) I’ve had to delay this getting to the printer due to another artist having issues. Hopefully I’ll have this sorted over the weekend, which will still leave me enough time to get the comics printed.

Dave

Print deadline 4 days...

2007-09-21T10:25:00.000+01:00

‘Ow do? Decided to try and keep plodding on with this, as I always enjoy reading other folks talking about this.

Working on:
Still pencilling Whistler, reached page 4 of 5, so after that I’ll be doing the lettering and making sure it all works before I lock it in with the inks. I’ve also completed an entry in a comp for Mike Carroll’s New Heroes on the 2000ad messageboard

Latest from FQP:
Got my copy of Meg 263 this week, featuring NEROY SPHINX in the small press slot! The team for this episode are Dan Whiston (as ever) Johnny McMonagle, with colour by Richmond and the lettering by ME!! The strip looks great and I’m really chuffed for Dan and Johnny.
As for the new crop- Nearly there, Printers on Tuesday and still loads to do yet.

FutureQuake
The mighty Johnny McMonagle sent me a set of amended Neroy pages to make sure that the format difference between the Meg and FQ isn’t too apparent.

Something Wicked
Still waiting on three pages in order to make page count. I’ve been promised them, so hopefully we are good to go. Still waiting on some bios from creators, but if I don’t get those I’ll make them up myself. The worst thing is getting a strip finished and realising that there are issues with some of the text and that the writer isn’t answering emails. Do we amend as best we can or do we run a strip that has confused people on proof reading and needs explanation? It is a quandary worthy of Pat Mills himself…

MangaQuake
Nearly there. Got the amended strip we were waiting for and Rich has completed the list of bios. Nest up is sorting the inside page and away!

DogBreath
Shh, don’t talk about it or I’ll jinx it…

Stak is all printed and ready to go! Need to sort some preview images in the next week, but for now I’m not worrying about that.

Dave

2007-09-12T12:56:00.000+01:00

Hey ho. Not posted for a while, and I suppose I’ve only myself to blame for that.

Working on:
I’ve just completed some work for Cosmic Ray, and I’m pretty chuffed with it at the moment. Can’t really say what I’ve done, but it was great to have a chance at a character I’d not handled before.

I’ve just begun work on the third episode of the new Whistler, which will be in the spring Dogbreath. I agonised for ages over this and rewrote it several times to increase the action to a point where I was happy.

Latest from FQP:
Almost time for the printers! Each issue is at a different stage at the moment, so…

FutureQuake
All I need to do is sort out a half page and then it is ready to go.

Something Wicked
This is possibly going to be a slim volume. Some of the strips may not make deadline- yet if all goes to plan then we’ll still be able to run.

MangaQuake
Almost ready, despite some strips being missing due to creators apparently dropping off the face of the planet.

DogBreath
This is the tight one. One strip is only just being started and another one is hopefully going to be with me on the night I burn the CD! Talk about running close.

In other news, I’m hoping that STAK! Will be ready for the convention in Birmingham in October, and with Zarjaz on the stall as well, we are possibly going to be one of the most thrill-powered tables at the con!

Dave

2007-07-09T16:12:00.000+01:00

This is the first image I've been happy enough with to share for folks. I'm starting a strip which is going to have a completely different look to my usual work, so I'm spending this week putting together sketches and sample panels in an attempt to get the look 'right'

Tales of the GI: In the zone...

2007-06-27T14:14:00.000+01:00

I've not posted much lately- seeing as I've not really had anything to say...

FQP is plodding along really, sales are slow for the current crop, but we are in the period between issues now so I expect things to just carry on till we start to get some new strips in for the next issues.

I've finished a strip for Something wicked 03, written by my Jon & Gorath collaborator Mark Woodland it has a couple of panels I'm really proud of.

I'm also hard at work on the next episode of a strip with the mighty Sprout, see image for a tease. The second strip in this saga is five pages of fun, and I'm enjoying it so much i've managed to reach my fourth pencilled page since last Friday, a personal record, and the images are just falling out of the pencil.

The first episode of this characters tale (In the Dark) is over at 2000adreview at the moment, but it will appear soon in the Rogue Trooper fanzine "STAK!", that is fast approaching completion.

More soon...

Jon & Gorath 31

2007-05-24T14:39:00.000+01:00

Well, we didn't get the Eagle- that went to HERO KILLERS by Andy winter. Which I've now read and it is a top little book, well worth reading.

Forgive the length of time between posts, I'm all out of webstrips. I may still drop something in on here every so often, but until the next load of J&G get started then this may be it.

Jon & Gorath 30

2007-04-18T15:47:00.000+01:00

This is the last of the Gorath goes on holiday episodes, sorry for the wait.

Since last posting- FutureQuake has been nominated for an EAGLE Award! Please vote for us, as the creators who have worked on the title over the years all deserve some extra recognition!

Jon & Gorath 29

2007-03-23T15:03:00.000Z

Jon & Gorath 28

2007-03-09T09:20:00.000Z

Jon & Gorath 27

2007-02-23T09:49:00.000Z

Over on the 2000ad Review website I’ve had a new strip posted that was written by the mighty Sprout.

In the Dark

Working on:
Whistler II 02: I’ve pencilled the first two pages.
The Beast Within: I’ve thumbnailed the whole strip and begun sketches of the lead character.
Down the Rabbit hole: Thumbnails completed.

Latest from FQP:
The script pile won’t stop growing! For anyone out there who has sent us a script since November, please be patient, we are trying to get trough them all in the order we get them.

FutureQuake
We are up to 37 pages of completed work in the bank, which is comforting at this point of getting the issue together. We've also got a prospective final version of the cover! Really excited about this as I drew it- the first time I've thought a strip of mine was strong enough to support the cover.

Something Wicked
We’ve got 20 completed pages in for this issue as well, which is really nice. Another six pages arrived last night as well!

MangaQuake

Do you see that dusty wind-swept file folder over there? That is where MQ pages should be...

DogBreath
We’ve commissioned a strip that has the potential to be the absolute dogs dangly bits. Can’t say more, but it is really special.

Dave

Jon & Gorath 26

2007-02-09T10:27:00.000Z

Working on:
I’m actually starting the next Whistler and a strip featuring Werewolves for Something Wicked.

Latest from FQP:
Mike Allwood has managed to sort us a table for Bristol. Hurrah! The cheque is posted so I’ll soon be trying to sell some of the older FQP comics cheap to generate some cash flow.

FutureQuake
We are up to 46 pages of completed work in the bank, which may sound like we are about to roll, but these include the pages for something wicked 02 as well. Some bad news this week from an artist who is having some serious back issues at the moment (and I don’t mean he’s just bought a collection), so get well soon Gibson Quarter!

DogBreath
The commissioned folder took a mighty wallop this week when we arranged what could be a major article covering an aspect of SD that hasn’t been covered in any real depth before. More on that as it happens. We also commissioned a new 6 page strip and read the first case files book!

Dave

VC's: One Rule behind the scenes

2007-02-06T14:28:00.000Z

Coming soon to Zarjaz, I’ve done the art duties on a strip written by Richmond Clements. I thought it might be of interest to someone out there to see how I take the script and turn it into the finished page.

Apologies to anyone who thinks this is navel gazing of the highest order, but this is my blog, so Frick off!

Everything below relates to the second page of the strip, which doesn’t give away too much.

The finished strip ‘should’ be appearing in issue 5 of Zarjaz, which is due to be available in August.

1. Script.
Rich has a writing style that I like. He is terse and to the point. His scripts tell me who is where and then lets me get on with making sure that it works in the panel. For example:

Page 2
6 Frames

Frame 1: Smith’s pep talk seems to have worked, as they have all climbed from their cover and are on the battlefield. They are running in a group in front of Smith.

SMITH: SPREAD OUT DAMMIT! YOU’RE ALL TOO-

Frame 2: A shell impacts in the group, sending the four soldiers skywards, while Smith is diving to the ground.

SFX: WOOOMPH!

CAPTION: FRICKIN’ IDIOT GREENHORNS! I TOLD ‘EM DAMMIT!

Frame 3: Smith is on his feet. He’s with what’s left of the team. Two are still alive, their armour battered and cracked in places as they help each other up.

CAPTION: TWO LEFT. DUNNO THEIR NAMES. IT’S NEVER WORTH FINDING OUT.

Frame 4: Smith is pointing over his shoulder with his thumb towards the Geek lines. One of the recruits is beside him, while he other is crouching beside one of their fallen comrades.

SMITH: THE JOB’S THIS WAY, KIDDIES.

CROUCHING RECRUIT: SIR! HOLLIS IS STILL ALIVE!

Frame 5: Smith is standing over the injured Hollis, who’s being cradled by the other recruit. Hollis has a sizable lump of shrapnel sticking out of his chest.

SMITH: HIS NAME WAS HOLLIS, HUH?

Frame 6: The recruit is looking up at Smith.

RECRUIT: IS, SIR. HE’S WEAK BUT BREATHING, WE NEED TO GET-

…and there we leave it. Rich has moved the plot forward, given me a nice action shot to draw and set up a ‘turn-over’ to encourage the reader to turn the page over. All good. Next I’ve got to turn this into…

2. Thumbnails.
These are done in biro, on scraps of paper approx 15x10cm (A6) size. They are always rough and are there to show me how the various layouts of the panels will work. Unfortunately I only keep the version of these that I am using for the final, as it would have been nice to show the other versions I did and explain why that version of the page was scrapped. Another thing with this is that I can begin to look at the amount of text required and make sure I leave enough space in the panel.

3. Pencils.
As this is for Zarjaz, and given that Zarjaz prints at A5, I decided to produce the original art for this strip at A4. So… with my thumbnail by my side and my trusty automatic pencil in hand I produced this…

The pencils vary only slightly from the thumbnails, and I decided to make as much of the pencils ‘full’ as I could. In the past I have pencilled the bare minimum needed to convey the story and then gone into inks to add all the detail. Full pencils take more time but deliver a much richer feel to the finished page. This strip, and indeed all strips I’m working on at the moment, are pencilled completely before the inks are added. As this is a 6 page strip this means that I pencilled another 4 pages before the pens come out.

4. Inks
Not really much to say about these, as they are mostly refinements of the pencils. I did discover that I wasn’t drawing the helmet consistently in this strip, so I tried to alter the last panel to fit more in with how the helmet looks in later pages. Altering art in the inking is something I try to do less of these days, in an effort to raise my standard of finished art. Material wise I am a penman. I have a really nice Edding 0.1 nib pen that I have use for the last three months, and I’m lucky enough to have a box of cheap nylon tips that have a really fine point. They only last about 5-6 pages before the nib begins to blunt. After that they are good for outlines and filling in.

5. Tones.

Before I add the tones I transfer the image from the hand drawn to the digital. I scan at 300dpi in bitmap, which I then transform over to greyscale. The actual scan image is larger than the printed, so I adjust the size to make sure the page will fit into the available printing area for Zarjaz. Once I’ve got that sorted I save the document as a TIFF with LZW formatting. Then I have a page that I can play with to my hearts content from now on without destroying the work I’ve put in so far.

I’m colour blind (which is a massive pain in the arse as you would imagine) to the degree that I do not trust myself to colour anything. So this strip being in B&W was a nice opportunity to have a play with grey-tones. In the past I’ve toned my strips either with a pencil onto prints of inked pages or by selecting a level of grey in photoshop and plonking it on with a brush tool. Dan (who will be 16 in just a few months, where do the years go?) is something of a phototshop wizard in my eyes and he has created me a custom brush, which had a feel to it that I was happy to use. By sorting a couple of extra layers in the image I was able to apply backgrounds and details to the art that, in my opinion, really add to my image and lift it quality wise.

I am still learning to use this technique and plan on developing a ‘look’ for my pages that is both pleasing to work on and look at. Time will tell though.

6. Lettering.
Something I have really embraced over the last few years is computer lettering. I remember hand-lettering strips back in the ‘80’s and the results were always poor. I could not understand how the letterers of the time got such great results with the tools available. Of course I was just being crap and eventually I got better. The biggest aid to my lettering was getting access to a PC, as the simple matter of being able to produce the text in a uniform font across the whole strip really helped. I was also getting to be quite reasonable at crafting my balloons then as well, so my lettering was actually readable at last.

However it is Adobe Illustrator that has enabled me to finally produce lettering for comics that I am proud of. I’m still learning, but aren’t we all?

This page contains a set of standard balloons and captions as well as a cracking opportunity for SFX. Illustrator is great for this sort of thing as you can play with letter placement to your hearts content and then, when happy, you can finish the image in almost any style you can think of.

I’m becoming a bit of a font hoarder, and sites like Blambot are brilliant for getting started with lettering digitally. The font I’m using for this is ‘Evil Genius’ which has a nice legible style while still looking interesting. I’m sure I’ll change again soon though.

7. Final page
Here is the final page, all assembled in photoshop and ready for printing.

Hopefully this will be in the August edition of Zarjaz, where you’ll be able to see the rest of the strip proper.

Dogbreath 15 Feature

2007-02-06T14:21:00.000Z

Thanks to Matt Badham for this, appearing in the latest edition of the Judge Dredd Megazine (255)

Jon & Gorath 25

2007-01-26T12:54:00.000Z

Wahey, two weeks in a row! I’m cookin’!

This weeks J&G sees the start of a series of not-seen before strips. Enjoy…

Working on:
Legends of the …. I am pencilling the images for the eleventh row of fifteen.

Latest from FQP:
Bristol looks like it will be without me this year. Dan turns 16 over the same weekend, so it is very likely we’ll be doing family stuff. Hopefully this won’t stop FQP from attending, but we’ll see.

FutureQuake
We are up to 16 pages of completed work in the bank, with three more strips commissioned this week. Getting into a decent routine at the moment, though the strips are being generated faster than we can run them…

Dave

Jon & Gorath 24

2007-01-19T11:16:00.000Z

Hey there! I’m back, what with holidays and all that malarkey it has taken me ages to get back to being able to get anything done!

Working on:
A 2000ad based webstrip from the mind of Sprout is taking shape. I am inking the images for the seventh row of fifteen. Hopefully this will be something different.

Latest from FQP:
Should be booking the table for Bristol next week.

FutureQuake
Scripts are being read, and artwork commissioned. Some strips are also appearing which is nice. At present we have 41 pages of completed artwork ‘in’ though this is being split to accommodate…

Something Wicked
Issue 02 is now being actively planned for, with strips of a suitable nature being herded over from the main FQ. We have a cover all ready to go for this beauty that is stunning.

DogBreath
Got a plug in 2000ad prog 1518, which is nice, and I believe that we are also due to be featured in the Small Press pimp slot of the Meg. Hopefully this will lead to increased sales. Over the course of the convention in Birmingham, Rich and I met Nigel Dobbyn, who has agreed to provide us with a Middenface cover for a later issue, and the gentleman known as Rufus dropped hints about asking some other Professionals to donate art to the comic. He also had an amended version of the art for the cover to issue 15, which I am now arranging to use in any future printings of the issue.

Dave

Jon & Gorath 23

2006-12-01T10:23:00.000Z

Missed a week didn't i? Sigh... And I was doing so well an' all. Ah well.

Working on:
Jon & Gorath 25-31: 25-30 all inked, started the tones on them and will be lettering as I get chance.

Latest from FQP:
Coming soon to the Birmingham comic show! I've got some extra copies ordered from the printer so please stop by and support us.

FutureQuake
I've got copies of the colour pages for A little knowledge and as soon as I can get the lettering assembled I'll be putting them on the website. This is to offset the fact that some of the copies printed were too dark to allow the lovely art to be seen clearly.

DogBreath
I collected a proof from the printer this morning and despite being coverless it looks fantastic! Visit the FQP Shop to preorder a copy.

Dave

Jon & Gorath: 22

2006-11-17T13:07:00.000Z

Working on:
Jon & Gorath 25-31: 25-28 all inked.
DreddHeads: These now have a home! Coming soon to 2000adreview!
VC’s: One rule: Finished and awaiting checking by the writer. Then I’ll be sorting a step by step walkthrough for one of the pages, showing it as it progressed though from biro scribble to fully finished scrawl.

I’ve begun work on a new strip that is likely to appear on the 2000adreview site as well. Featuring a series close to my heart in a way I’ve not read about it before. More news as it happens.

DogBreath
Getting a bit tight now as It is only 2 weeks till we hit the latest I can get this to the printers in time for Brum con. Had a feature delivered last night that is an actual exclusive!

Dave

Jon & Gorath 21

2006-11-10T10:30:00.000Z

Working on:
Jon & Gorath 25-31: Plodding along nicely.
DreddHeads 04: Some tweaking of the last panel then finished.
VC’s: One rule: Being toned with the brush tool that Dan made me. A treat to use, but I’m having to go back loads as I learn something new it’ll do.

My strip sub for the Mighty Tharg was turned down. Maybe next time…

However, this is the entry that Richmond Clements coloured for me for the 2000ad online messageboard comp…

Latest from FQP:
Latest batch of comics is being collected Monday. I have only one left of each of the recent run.

Heard back from one contributor who had received their copy in less than 48 hours. Which was even nicer as he lives in San Fransisco!

DogBreath
32 pages complete, with more to come soon!

Dave

Jon & Gorath 20

2006-11-03T09:23:00.000Z

Working on:
NEW episodes of J&G, beyond those published in the latest Lost Property. Pecilling the third of 6and really enjoying them.

Latest from FQP:
FutureQuake 07 is going back to the printers this week, for another batch! Lancaster was a blast and we sold enough stock to cover the day. Next, Birmingham!

This weekend sees the rest of the contributor copies going out- so I expect to be spending a good hour in the post office!

DogBreath
Scripts are being actively sought, as plans for beyond just issue 15 are made.

Dave

Jon & Gorath 19

2006-10-27T11:50:00.000+01:00

Working on:
Zarjaz strip: Inks all done. Hoping to start on the tones very soon. Dan is making me a custom brush to use as, he reckons it will add more ‘life’ than flat greys.

Dreddheads: All drawn, lettered and I started tones last night.

Latest from FQP:
Have you seen our new
Website! Massive thanks to Quakemeister Barny for all his hard work on this.

Also, for anyone in the Lancaster area I urge you to visit The Ashton Memorial on Saturday this week. I’ll be there selling the latest gear from FQP as well as as much other stock as I can find!

FutureQuake

Is ready to rock! All collected from the printer and they look GOOD!

MangaQuake

Dave

Jon & Gorath: 18

2006-10-20T11:07:00.000+01:00

Working on:
Zarjaz strip: Inking page four, been waay busy
Had a cracking script through that I’ll be working on turning into a strip from 2000adreview in the near future.

Latest from FQP:
The Cd’s are in! There was a last minute problem yesterday with a font not working, but so far today I’ve not heard anything bad so I’m assuming that we are back on track.

DogBreath
Plans are afoot! Emails are being written and responses anticipated.

Dave

Jon & Gorath: 17

2006-10-13T13:30:00.000+01:00

Hiya, bit of a rush at the mo, so just a short from me.

Working on:
Zarjaz strip: Inking page three, with three more to go.

Latest from FQP:
New comics go to the printers on Monday, all the files are wriiten and 95% ready to get the CD burned. Also, check next weeks Meg for ‘hopefully’ a taste of the new covers.

FutureQuake
Still waiting for one last strip. This weekend is deadline though, so I’ve got a replacement ready for just in case.

MangaQuake
Almost there, the last pages ‘should’ make it in time.

Lost Property
Actually sold a copy! Woo and indeed HOO

DogBreath
This week I received three pages commissioned by Dr Bob, and after some tweakery these will be sorted!

Dave

Jon & Gorath: 16

2006-10-06T12:37:00.000+01:00

Available from the FQP shop, LOST PROPERTY 03. 36 pages of funnies and not-so-funnies by the tip-top talent of the UK Small press.

Including:

This is my entry on the 22000ad Messageboard comp this month.

Working on:
Zarjaz strip: Inking page one, with four more to go.
Dreddheads 04: All inked and waiting for the chance to get it toned & lettered

Latest from FQP:

FutureQuake
Just waiting on one late strip before I sort the running order and get to press!

MangaQuake
All filling up nicely now, with some late amendments being made.

Lost Property
See above for pimpery!

DogBreath
This week I received three pages commissioned by Dr Bob, and after some tweakery these will be sorted!

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: 60

2006-09-29T11:25:00.000+01:00

Working on:
Zarjaz strip: All pencilled and ready to ink.
A single page for the 22000ad Messageboard comp of the month
Dreddheads 04: All pencilled and the inks are underway.

Next week: New Jon & Gorath

Latest from FQP:

FutureQuake
The cover query I’d got has been sorted, as the strip relating to one of the covers is now delayed. On the plus side, I’ve now got the cover to next issue sorted!

MangaQuake
Received pages: 13

Lost Property

Available, hopefully, this time next week! Expect pimpery soon.

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 9

2006-09-22T10:41:00.000+01:00

Working on:
A new six page strip written by Richmond Clements that will eventually see print in Zarjaz. Featuring one of my personal favourite 2000ad series. I’m pencilling my third page this week and having a blast!

I’m also working up a single page strip for the 2000ad messageboard competition. Good fun these and this is a chance to try something completely different.

Latest from FQP:

FutureQuake Completed pages- 35
Pages to be lettered- 15
The cover query I’d got has been sorted, as the strip relating to one of the covers is now delayed. On the plus side, I’ve now got the cover to next issue sorted!

MangaQuake
Received pages: 6, including a sublime back cover.
The new covers are in the printers, and I plan on collecting them and having a postal run this weekend.

Lost Property
Printing! I’m all go for this now, with any late strips being carried over to next issue. I’ll sort a cover scan for next week.

DogBreath
Been contacted by some of the contributors to earlier issues, and hopefully will be receiving strips shortly, bit of a bonus that!

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 08

2006-09-15T10:05:00.000+01:00

Working on:
Father Whiplash- Finished inks and the pages have now gone to Richmond Clements for toning. Really pleased with the result of this strip, think it could be some of my best work yet.

Latest from FQP:

Taking place on October 28th is Lancaster comics con and FQP will be there.

The website is going to be getting a new look. No definite date yet, but the work has begun on redesigning the imagery and layout.

FutureQuake Completed pages- 25
Pages to be lettered- 17
This issue has two covers on the go, as we are unsure of the final running order. We have seen a preview of one of the images and it promises to be a stunner!

MangaQuake
Now available from the FQ Shop!
Received pages: 3

Lost Property
Strips completed- 50 so far, with the last few arriving soon. I can also reveal that if all goes to plan, this issue will be all colour printing where the strips need it. All for £2.00!

DogBreath
Nowt new but I’ve heard that there may well be some original art in the offing soon…

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 07

2006-09-08T10:34:00.000+01:00

Bit of a ramble this week, I’ve been asked about how Bryan and myself actually put the mixed art episodes together. The truth is not that well on my part, as I was impatient.

I sent Bryan rough pencils for each of the strips, showing who was where and what they needed to be doing.

After this I inked the epiode and waited for Bryan to send his part. What I should have done was wait for Bryan before inking.

Bryan sent me drawings to fit the roughs I sent him, which always delighted me. His work is so good. After I inserted Mike into the Yammer strips I transferred the file to greyscale, which in the long term was a mistake, as I’d love to be able to show the high contrast in the initial images. One of these images was also used on the cover for Lost Property 02, and was a good part of where the idea came from for that cover.

After this it was over to be lettered and voila!

Bryan sent me a rouch idea of what he needed Yammer to be doing for his strips, and if he’d got them, a rough set of images to match.

After that I’d draw the Yammer to fit the images and mail them to Bryan.

To my delight, I’ve found the versions of the strips that Bryan originally sent me, so I can now show the final couple of episodes in colour. Enjoy.

You’ve all seen the results of the strips over the last few weeks, and I hope that the above gives a bit of an insight into how I handled the technique. I apologise to Bryan now for showing some of his work without making sure, but it wouldn’t be complete without showing it.

Working on:
Father Whiplash- inking page 4.

Latest from FQP:
FutureQuake Completed pages- 25

MangaQuake cover saga- nothing from Mess studios for 4 weeks now. Even allowing for holidays this is not good.
Received a replacement cover from Mongoose McCloud which I’m prepping for print, along with a new inside cover containing a brief ’why?’ about the cover.
We’ve begun receiving interior pages for issue 03, and they have given us an idea for a very different cover.

Lost Property:
Covers done (wonderful colours by the mighty mini-Bolt) and a lot of the strips formatted.

DogBreath:
Received the line art for the opening strip, and mighty fine it looks. Hoping to have this ready for Lancaster, but it might have to wait for the Custard factory.

Is this the longest post I've done? Could be...

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 06

2006-09-01T10:04:00.000+01:00

Working on:
Father Whiplash- inking page 3.
Jon & Gorath- Greytones on part 23, pencils on part 24.

Latest from FQP:
FutureQuake Completed page- 25

MangaQuake cover saga- nothing from Mess studios for 3 weeks now. Even allowing for holidays this is not good.

Lost Property:
After last weeks push I’ve now got a lot more strip on the way, and I’m planning on starting to put the book together in the next two weeks.

Sorry for the rushed post, but I'm up to my eyes in real work. Should have something actually worth reading next week

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 05

2006-08-25T09:15:00.000+01:00

Some weeks are productive, and other weeks aren’t. I’m still inking Father Whiplash, but I’m only on the second page. Life is just too damn busy sometimes.

I’ve begun a push to get strips organised for the next issue of Lost Property, as I’ve only gotten approx 15 pages of strip so far. For those out there who don’t know what that is, you know the strips I run each week- three or four panel jobs, sometimes silly, sometimes not? I put out collections of those every so often and I’m prepping for another. If anyone wants to have a go, get in touch.

The MangaGate saga is still open and festering, with no communication during the last week, but a shedload of reporting being done. First I saw was a piece in Lying in the gutters and after that I saw links to several other forums as well. Thankfully the readers get that we are also victims of a wrong, and we’ve had some nice support. No sales though, which would have been a bonus.

Ah well, enough moaning, here’s the strips…

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 04

2006-08-18T12:28:00.000+01:00

This week I’ve been majorly busy trying to get all of Father Whiplash pencilled during a weeks leave. It is amazing how many ways there are to fill your day before you actually get round to drawing anything. However, I’ve managed it, and am now inking page 1.

My entry for the latest 2000ad online comp. Colours courtesy of my longtime collaborator Richmond Clements

For those of you who read this and do not read message boards, we’ve been subject to a rather fudged up piece of work, which is resulting in yours truly doing a lot more work for nothing than he’d like to.

MangaQuake message board

Read from about half way down and on through. At the moment we are trying to sort out a deal that will let us spin this into something positive and try to improve the vetting process in future!

Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 03

2006-08-11T11:13:00.000+01:00

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 02

2006-08-04T20:32:00.000+01:00

This week the crossover gets going properly. If I've ordered these right then you 'should' be able to follow the plots through both strips.

I've also had the pleasure of having Richmond Clements colour a pic for me for the 2000adonline website.

I've also rejigged the logo and ID badge for FutureQuake, to be unveiled as time goes by.

As for other drawing I've just completed line-art on the last page of the first part of the new Whistler strip for Dogbreath. Just need to add tones and letter the complete thing then that is my main contribution done!

Off work now for two weeks, so I'm hoping to get a whole strip done for submission to the Judge Dredd Megazine. If it is accepted, I'll make sure everyone knows!

Laters
Dave

The Mighty Yammer: Crossover 01

2006-07-28T10:52:00.000+01:00

The above is the opener in Bryan Coyle's Cannibal Salad strip that we did for Lost Property 02 as a crossover with the Yammer. Starting next week I'll be running an episode of both at the same time so that the strips will hopefully make sense.

This week we got some nice reviews in comics International. Check the
forums for scans.

This week I have finished the third Dreddheads strip, and put a couple of pictures up on the 2000ad Online website.

It has been announced that there is going to be a two-day comics event at the Custard Factory in December! A result for me as it is a local happening. More news as it happens.

Dave