A long time ago, I dreamed of being an animator. I took classes and even got hired as an animation intern for a startup video game company (that never ended up releasing anything).
I learned quickly that hand-drawn animation is hard. It takes a lot of drawings to make something animate smoothly. To be a good animator, you had to be able to draw fast––a skill I lack even today. At the company I interned for, I was moved from animation to character design and storyboarding before the company shifted its focus entirely.
Despite never being a good animator, its philosophiesandprocesses created the foundation for not only my aesthetic but how I create characters and pages. While I call may call myself a comicker, in my head I am a failed animator.
I’ve talked a lot about using theartprogramProcreateontheiPad lately, and how I’m using it as a way to speed up some processes while also being a tool to jump-starting my creativity.
Procreate is a really impressive art program; I’m finding it more user-friendly and reliable than the Photoshop I use on my desktop computer at this point. It also has a built-in animation feature––not the playback function that I’ve used to make process videos of previous Sketch Fridays. After seeing impressive examples of animation people have posted online, I decided to try and figure out how it worked and, within about an hour and a half, I had a pretty good pencil test of Long John turning around:
The first bit I animated.
I created it in as traditional a manner as possible, drawing rough key frame poses––the main poses for the sequence––and then, based on how fast or slow I wanted him to move between each pose, I drew a reasonable amount of drawings between them (literally called “inbetweening“). All of these drawings were very rough––basic shapes and forms––drawn with the equivalent of a crayon or marker in Procreate. Once I was happy with the basic movement, I went back through and drew a more detailed drawing of each frame, doing my best to make sure essential elements and details were as consistent as possible between them.
Later that day––energized by the results––I added in some rough animation that had Long John run off the screen.
The first bit with rough running animation added to the end.
By the end of that rough running animation, I put the iPad down and thought, “Okay, I got that out of my system.” It was at least three hours of work for this very short and very flawed bit of animation. A few days later, I realized that I probably wouldn’t add any more to the animation, so I owed it to the sequence to go in and tighten up those rough frames.
While fun, this experiment confirmed that while I have the heart and head of an animator, I still don’t have the patience for it. This three-second bit contains over thirty drawings and a lot of critical thinking and happy accidents. If anything, it’s good drawing practice, a way to push myself when it comes to finding poses and angles to have ready for when I may have to draw something similar––for a single panel––in the comic. Who knows, maybe someday I’ll feel the itch again.
This nightmare is actually a composite of all 30+ frames of the above animation seen at once. Click image to see a larger version.
Normally, these posts are meant to celebrate the year that just ended. However, 2020 ended up a year not really worth celebrating; instead, 2020 became a year to survive and move past. Below is a list of the things that defined Long John over this very strange and difficult year.
VOLUME 4 RELEASED
For as low as 2020 got, without a doubt the personal high was with the publication of Volume 4 of Long John, collecting the entirety of Chapter 4 “Dead Words” and a new, all-exclusive 10-page Hellrider Jackie story, “The Patient Feast,” which brings back Josh Tobey as artist, reprising his duties from the previous Jackie story, “Save the Bones”, in Volume 1.
What made this book stand apart from the rest is that it was incredibly fun to make the entire way through. As said before, it was certainly the fastest a new book has been made since Volume 1 and sets the bar high for the series going forward.
I also can’t ignore the videos I made for each page, cinematically presenting the chapter panel-by-panel and set to music. I don’t talk much about music on this website, but it’s been a part of my life for over twenty years, and writing music––even short, minute-long pieces––was incredibly fun and something I’ll continue to do going forward (and maybe backward!). Writing the music and editing the videos stretched a creative muscle I don’t get to use very often, and really helped express the tone of the comic and that chapter in yet another potent way.
I also tried a short-term preorder that I think worked well––offering different bundle options at different prices, borrowing a model found in crowdfunding without actually running a crowdfunding campaign. I think, if pushed even harder (and if run for longer) it could prove even more successful for future releases and will definitely be doing going forward. Thank you, again, to all who preordered!
eBooks have long been on my mind. First, I discounted them––Long John is already a webcomic, why would anyone want an eBook version? Of course, a high resolution pdf is infinitely better than reading a book page by page on a website, waiting as every page loads in. Plus, the eBooks would have all the content found in the physical books. So, 2020 also saw the release of all the books as eBooks on Gumroad for only $5 each.
They were a challenge to make, but very rewarding when completed when you see them fill the screen on a tablet (I even slightly reworked all the covers, adding the chapter titles to them; Volume 1’s cover was the most reworked of the four).
COLLABORATION
Although this folds into the Volume 4 column a bit, this marked a banner year for seeing other people’s visions of Long John. Making this comic is a solitary venture and one that you could become precious with. So, it was an honor to allow such creative people whose talent I respect so much into the world of Long John.
I have had the pleasure of knowing John for awhile and was always impressed by his artistic flexibility and perpetual desire to try new things. He’s also one of the nicest guys in the world and I was lucky to have him ink and color a pinup for Volume 4 over my layouts as well as do some digital inks and colors over the “cover” page for the Hellrider Jackie short story in Vol. 4, “The Patient Feast” that will be made available as a print at future shows:
John’s enthusiasm and incredible eye for line and color is always inspired, even more so when he’s using those talents to bring Long John to life. In terms of art, aside from Josh Tobey, John is the only other person I’ve collaborated with artistically and it was surprisingly easy. I look forward to working with him more at some point in the future.
Josh Tobey
Of course, I can’t omit the fact that Josh Tobey returned to provide pencils and inks over my breakdowns for the new (and book exclusive!) Hellrider Jackie story in Volume 4, called “The Patient Feast.”
Here is a look at one of the double-page spreads from Volume 4’s short story, “The Patient Feast.” If you want to see the whole thing, you’ll have to get the book, either physically or digitally.
With the first story (from Volume 1), he lamented at not being able to fully go wild with the creepy, surreal visuals. So, this time, I did my best to let him do exactly that. I mailed him the pages with the breakdowns on them; basically all I actually drew were the figures on the page with very light guidelines for the background with instructions like, “go nuts.” What came back was some of the most exciting and wild art I’ve ever held in my hands. I’m really proud of that story for many reasons, the largest one being the vision Josh brought to this character and this world.
Kyrun Silva
Kyrun’s generosity and friendship is one of the things that helped me get through this pandemic (and continues to do so) both on a comicking level and on a personal one. His dedicated and prolific work with Taurus Comics is inspiring and was one of the main reasons I started working on smaller side comics in the off-time between my day job and working on Long John. Though not having (yet) collaborated on a comic, Kyrun and I have been collaborators in discourse, co-hosting the irregularly released podcast, Con Artists, with me as we talk about reading, making, and selling comics.
The irregularly released podcast about reading, making, and selling comics. Most recently, Kyrun and I have discussed being indie creators during apandemic.
He loves comics first and foremost, and, as I’ve been saying for years, his enthusiasm is infectious and motivating and definitely gets me to think of what I can do with comics as a medium as well as just a story I’m trying to tell. He is the constant reminder that comic books are exciting, fun, and unique forms of entertainment.
Also, while not a collaboration that involved me, Kyrun was involved in a collaboration that had a profound effect on me this year. For my fortieth birthday in September, Kyrun commissioned Simon Roy to draw Long John, a gift I’m still not sure is real or not despite literally hanging on my wall (next to the drawing of Long John I commissioned from Giannis Milonnogiannis).
Simon Roy is one of the faces on Long John’s inspirational Mt. Rushmore, along with people like Darwyn Cooke, Giannis Milonnogiannis, and Jeff Lemire. A page from Roy’s run on the Prophet reboot was the first piece of original art I ever bought, because that series and those opening issues were so fundamentally important to my development as an independent comicker.
Despite 2020 being a banner year of misfortune and anxiety––not to mention lost income from the cancellation of comic book conventions––it ended up being a very good year for me and for Long John. A new book, new tools, new stories, and new opportunities were all a part of this year because I was forced to hunker down and just focus on the art of it all.
I’m excited for 2021 (and beyond) for a lot of reasons, but I’ll look back at 2020 with positive memories for my creativity and growth. It may be a small success overall, but still a success nonetheless.
Normally, these posts are meant to celebrate the year that just ended. However, 2020 ended up a year not really worth celebrating; instead, 2020 became a year to survive and move past. Below is a list of the things that motivated and inspired me to continue creating.
WATCHED:
Source: History Channel
Alone from The History Channel
The one soaring success of 2020 has been tv shows. A lot of new content debuted this year but since everyone was home it was mostly a year about discovery as we searched through our Netflix queues for something different.
I don’t watch reality shows, but when I do they always tend to be a little weird. Alone perfectly captures what I mean. Sure, it’s a contest for money––ten folks are dropped at different sites in the middle of nowhere with a pack of ten items and all they have to do is survive. The last person standing wins $500,000. There are no backstabbing strategies or mid-game surprises; it’s just about who can last the longest.
This show does not mess around––success means doing the best you can with what you have. Source: History Channel
Of course, these are people who, generally, enjoy and thrive in the outdoors––survivalists of different varieties. And while luck plays into the kind of camp you get or if the weather is on your side, what ensure success is how good you are at what you do. Can you find a steady food source? Can you find fresh water? Can you prepare for the coming winter? Not only that, but they have to be their own camera crew as well as they take the title of the show very seriously.
While there is a prize at the end of it, it’s not a game––it’s very dangerous and your really have to know what you’re doing. For me, it becomes a show about watching ten incredibly talented people do what they do to the best of their ability. That’s the kind of “reality” I like to watch––surprisingly, it’s what I also like about The Great British Baking Show––people doing what they like to do and doing it well. It’s an ethos that drives the way I make comics––just do your best with what you have.
NOTABLE MENTIONS:
Source: Disney
Gravity Falls from Disney XD (watched on Hulu Plus)
This show was a revelation and almost took the top spot; however, the show proved to be more of a source of pure and honest joy than providing any inspiration to get up and make comics. It’s absolutely delightful and hurdles the impressive feat of making wonderful week-to-week stand alone episodes while also building a bigger overarching story. It’s truly perfect.
New Mutants from 20th Century Studios (formerly 20th Century Fox)
I waited three years for this movie and––through all of its developmental issues––quite enjoyed it. An admirable swan song for this branch of the cinematic Marvel line. Like a lot of the laterFoxX-Films, it ends up being maligned for not being enough like the glitsy and successful Marvel Studios movies––not “superheroey” enough––and, instead, ends up being a quite unique and interesting entry into the genre. New Mutants is best described as a psychological superhero thriller where, quite literally, the mind is the villain rather than a big bad guy that everybody has to team up to defeat. On a comic book level, I really like how they captured all the characters and their powers and worked to make a different kind of superhero movie.
PLAYED:
Source: Sucker Punch Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment
Ghost of Tsushima from Sucker Punch Productions (on Playstation 4)
When I was a teenager, all I cared about was Japanese history. I wasn’t into anime or manga in particular, I just loved the warrior/poet ethos (and cultural myth) of the samurai and loved how deep and old Japan as a culture and country are. In terms of fandom, I developed a strong appeal to the work of Akira Kurosawa, and have since stated that his aesthetic––especially that found in his late ’50s and ’60s samurai films (called “chanbara” in Japan)––were are particular inspiration on Long John‘s look.
When Ghost of Tsushima was announced, it immediately grabbed my attention for a few reasons. First, Sucker Punch Productions said it was a samurai game set in ancient Japan. Check. Also, there were going to be no supernatural elements to it at all––it will be grounded (as much as a video game can be) in a realistic setting. Also check. Lastly, they weren’t making an authentic historical Japanese game (Sucker Punch is an American studio, after all; you can only get so authentic with that) as much as making a game in the vein of Kurosawa’s chanbara films. Big check. A perfect formula to, at least, get me to try the game.
Ghost ended up being a very fun game that hit its marks admirably and its success (despite some drama, as there always is with every nerdy entertainment nowadays) proved to me that historical fiction doesn’t need to be mashed up with another genre to be accepted and enjoyed by fans as their grounded––but fictional––approach is exactly how I approach Long John.
Source: Thunder Lotus Games
Spiritfarer from Thunder Lotus Games (on Playstation 4)
Spiritfarer is a very small and tightly-made game that has you cast as a new “spiritfarer”––one who ferries the recently dead to the afterlife––after taking the role over from Charon of Greek myth.
What I loved about this game is not so much the game it self as it is what it says about the developer of the game. The two games Thunder Lotus made previously––Jøtun and Sundered––are not only very different from Spiritfarer, but are very different from each other. They are always well made and beautifully rendered and animated games, but they are never the same, which is something at the core of all the creatives that have had a profound impact on me. I can’t wait to see what they do next and be surprised by it.
Red Dead Redemption by Matt Margini (published by Boss Fight Books)
Boss Fight Books, for my money, is publishing the most interesting and reader-friendly games criticism on the market right now. Their books can be hit-and-miss based on the game a book is about and what you want to know about about that game. That being said, their books are always really well-written, thoughtfully written, and interesting, even if the book wanders astray for you.
I really enjoyed Rockstar Games’ 2010 open-world western, Red Dead Redemption (as well as its 2018 sequel), for its gameplay and deliberate writing, allowing for a game filled with subtlety and personalized ludo-narrative and cinematic experiences.
The world of Red Dead Redemption and its sequel have been many hours well spent. Screenshot from Red Dead Redemption 2, taken by the author on Playstation 4.
Having enjoyed many of BossFightBooks‘ previous publications, their intention to publish a book about Red Dead Redemption really excited me. Margini is an incredible writer and performed thorough research, crafting an interesting argument about the tropes of the western genre. By the end, however, I felt Margini was more interested in interpreting the genre than analyzing Red Dead Redemption. Despite that, the opening chapters are excellent analysis and fun writing as Margini fully ties a game touted as being “Grand Theft Horse” (because Rockstar Games is also the developer of the Grand Theft Auto series of games) to the history of the genre, making a clear argument for its revisionist approach as well as recognizing it as a legitimate member of the western pantheon. The book stands as a fascinating and compelling resource to go back to for a concise and surgical examination of what makes this genre tick.
My memory of 2020 is comprised mostly of anxiety and exhaustion. To be honest, I reached for anything to take my mind off of what seemed to be the new normal, despite that definition continuously changing from day to day. The things that really kept me going ended up not really having a direct impact on Long John as much as they impacted my drive––my ability to keep pushing forward despite being freaked out, despite being tired, despite not knowing what tragedy would reveal itself tomorrow. I wonder how I’ll remember 2020 years from now if I’m lucky enough to be able to keep pushing forward with comicking. With hope, I’ll look back and, instead of seeing a year of sadness, fear, and despair, see how much stronger it made me.
