2005 was a very good year: I actually set goals, tried to reach them, and...actually did in some cases. With 168 pages drawn, it's the most I've ever done in one year. All the drawing really paid off - not only did I improve immensely, I started developing a style. And - yes, there's more - I printed and sold my first graphic novel, Room & Board, in August.
Room & Board - Volume Zero #1
February 2005 | 24 pages | Read It Now
This is the first chapter of my second attempt at a series. It's also the first full-length comic that I used screentone. I remember putting a lot of effort in the entire chapter; writing is still weak, but no longer makes me want to vomit.
How To Be A Lady
March 2005 | 18 pages | Read It Now
I present my first attempt at a 24-Hour comic: completely, utterly, goofy and self-indulgent, and now out-of-date as I develop the universe Sarae (see - even the spelling of her name changed) and the other characters inhabit. I had fun, of course, but I'm also sick enough in the head to enjoy the insanity known as NaNoWriMo.
Room & Board - Volume Zero #2
March 2005 | 20 pages | Read It Now
Writing's still weak, but it seems I was still putting effort in the art: I actually drew backgrounds. Plural. I still didn't get in the swing of toning or develop a toning style. Since Teagan continued to look like a girl, my obsession for the next few months became male anatomy. For art purposes, of course.
The Rose
April 2005 | 8 pages | Read It Now
I drew this for my school's magazine, since I was specifically nagged to do so (although in the end, the comic didn't wind up in the magazine - long story). It's based on a pretty obscure (and quite random) fairytale. I drew this in under a week. Forgive me.
Room & Board - Volume Zero #3
April 2005 | 20 pages | Read It Now
I finally start to settle into a toning style in this chapter, and also begin experimenting with hatching. Some parts (very few) actually look good to me, even now; there's a big improvement from just the first chapter. I'm also proud to say I finished this comic almost on the schedule I laid out. This is the final part of "Volume Zero," which was available as a graphic novel for a few months.
George & Isabella's Honeymoon!
June 2005 | 3 pages | Read It Now
This is a fan comic for Paradise Kiss by Ai Yazawa. But don't expect a great epic in these three pages - more like randomness and inside jokes. I also failed miserably at drawing George, and I don't think I ever stopped to decide whether to mimic Ai Yazawa's style (a difficult task) or just do it in my own, and it shows.
Witch Braid
July 2005 | 24 pages | Read It Now
I said I was sick in the head; I did another 24-Hour comic. I actually only completed 19 pages within the lime limit, then did a few more afterwards, just because. I'm actually very proud of this, since I pushed myself - I drew buildings, backgrounds, a two-page spread - and saw I could actually do better. (Like the previous 24-Hour comic, the name of the heroine has changed since the creation of the comic. Uiko is now Ulani.)
Misunderstanding
July 2005 | 1 page | Read It Now
This one-pager was just an experiment in doing a comic digitally, start-to-finish in ComicWorks. The two characters are Zeno and Kumani from another one of my someday-comics, Wild Angels.
Room & Board #1
October 2005 | 25 pages
Now the main story of Room & Board begins. It's a huge improvement from Volume Zero - as in, I went from unpublishable to maybe-almost-publishable. The writing's still rough, and I need to learn to draw cars one day, but I'm really proud of this. Unfortunately, I forgot to save these pages. And there was such a great drawing of Cassidy's house in it, too.
Room & Board #2
December 2005 | 25 pages
This chapter marks when I start going hatching-crazy and stray from the "shoujo manga" look. It also marks my increasing frustration with writing for a comic - when I strayed from the script, the dialog was great, but I knew if I didn't do scripts, the story would get stuck. Unfortunately, I forgot to save these pages.
Room & Board - Volume Zero #1
February 2005 | 24 pages | Read It Now
This is the first chapter of my second attempt at a series. It's also the first full-length comic that I used screentone. I remember putting a lot of effort in the entire chapter; writing is still weak, but no longer makes me want to vomit.
How To Be A Lady
March 2005 | 18 pages | Read It Now
I present my first attempt at a 24-Hour comic: completely, utterly, goofy and self-indulgent, and now out-of-date as I develop the universe Sarae (see - even the spelling of her name changed) and the other characters inhabit. I had fun, of course, but I'm also sick enough in the head to enjoy the insanity known as NaNoWriMo.
Room & Board - Volume Zero #2
March 2005 | 20 pages | Read It Now
Writing's still weak, but it seems I was still putting effort in the art: I actually drew backgrounds. Plural. I still didn't get in the swing of toning or develop a toning style. Since Teagan continued to look like a girl, my obsession for the next few months became male anatomy. For art purposes, of course.
The Rose
April 2005 | 8 pages | Read It Now
I drew this for my school's magazine, since I was specifically nagged to do so (although in the end, the comic didn't wind up in the magazine - long story). It's based on a pretty obscure (and quite random) fairytale. I drew this in under a week. Forgive me.
Room & Board - Volume Zero #3
April 2005 | 20 pages | Read It Now
I finally start to settle into a toning style in this chapter, and also begin experimenting with hatching. Some parts (very few) actually look good to me, even now; there's a big improvement from just the first chapter. I'm also proud to say I finished this comic almost on the schedule I laid out. This is the final part of "Volume Zero," which was available as a graphic novel for a few months.
George & Isabella's Honeymoon!
June 2005 | 3 pages | Read It Now
This is a fan comic for Paradise Kiss by Ai Yazawa. But don't expect a great epic in these three pages - more like randomness and inside jokes. I also failed miserably at drawing George, and I don't think I ever stopped to decide whether to mimic Ai Yazawa's style (a difficult task) or just do it in my own, and it shows.
Witch Braid
July 2005 | 24 pages | Read It Now
I said I was sick in the head; I did another 24-Hour comic. I actually only completed 19 pages within the lime limit, then did a few more afterwards, just because. I'm actually very proud of this, since I pushed myself - I drew buildings, backgrounds, a two-page spread - and saw I could actually do better. (Like the previous 24-Hour comic, the name of the heroine has changed since the creation of the comic. Uiko is now Ulani.)
Misunderstanding
July 2005 | 1 page | Read It Now
This one-pager was just an experiment in doing a comic digitally, start-to-finish in ComicWorks. The two characters are Zeno and Kumani from another one of my someday-comics, Wild Angels.
Room & Board #1
October 2005 | 25 pages
Now the main story of Room & Board begins. It's a huge improvement from Volume Zero - as in, I went from unpublishable to maybe-almost-publishable. The writing's still rough, and I need to learn to draw cars one day, but I'm really proud of this. Unfortunately, I forgot to save these pages. And there was such a great drawing of Cassidy's house in it, too.
Room & Board #2
December 2005 | 25 pages
This chapter marks when I start going hatching-crazy and stray from the "shoujo manga" look. It also marks my increasing frustration with writing for a comic - when I strayed from the script, the dialog was great, but I knew if I didn't do scripts, the story would get stuck. Unfortunately, I forgot to save these pages.
