Wow—Issue ten is done. One more issue, and it will be time for a new trade paperback. Mind you, I didn’t render the last twelve pages of issue 10, so I’ll have to go back and do that. And, while I have the cover firmly in mind, I haven’t drawn it yet. Hmm, suddenly issue 10 just doesn’t seem so done. It would have been more fun to bask in the satisfaction for a while.
Working on turning the guest bedroom into my den is continuing right on track. Today I cleaned out the glass cabinet of Batman goodies I stored there. Handling this collection again made me smile—I mean, there are Batman bandages, Batman chicken & noodle soup, Batman cake toppers, a Batman night light, Bat signal projectors, Batmobiles, Batman Easter Egg set, etc. etc. In my defense, most of the stuff in this collection was pretty low cost, all the Batman Pez dispensers, Batman tooth brushes, Batman suckers, Batman pencil toppers, etc.
But, back to my future den. This is going to be my secret hideout, with a wall of shelves holding all my graphic novels, prose fiction books, and art glass, and maybe some upper end action figures. When I’ve got it done, I’ll post pictures. My grandfather’s easy chair is going in there, as well as my Alan Lee framed print. Soon, we’ll paint the room (this room has never been painted, and still has primer colored walls) and tear out the nasty old carpet.
Today, at the Indianapolis Art Center, I enjoyed a three hour pose with a model dressed head-to-toe as a Roman Centurion. The costume is impressive. I kind of blew it, because I got in a hurry and didn’t take the time the picture deserves. But, that’s OK! I’ve got pictures, and I will pain this to my satisfaction.
Last night, I watched the video of Dr. Steven Greer’s speech to the exopolitical crowd in Barcelona, Spain. The show was about an hour long, and it had some very intriguing moments. I’m not sure what to think of Dr. Greer, to be honest; he is vain, self-impressed, and a name and innuendo dropper, yet he also seems to believe what he’s fighting for. Much of the disclosure that has happened is a result of Greer’s pressure in the higher levels of government. He is a showman and a committed believer at the same time, so I find him perplexing.
Are traced photos the future of comic book penciling? I’m starting to wonder. I understand that the minimum threshold is much higher now than it was, say, in the 1980’s. I really became aware of this trend when Greg Land went public on his technique—the controversy has raged on to this day! Well, as you can imagine from my work, I prefer hand drawn and inked comics, but traced comics, if done well, can be quite beautiful too. Here’s the crux of it: If the traced photos are stolen from other media and photographers, that’s bad; if the penciler took his own photos and traces from those, that’s good. I don’t really care for comics traced from Poser figures, either, but I reserve judgment on whether the artist can make it look fluid and good or not. So far, my experience has been “not.”
I haven’t read any of this Blackest Night event at DC. When the trades come out, I will probably read the main series, but skip most of the supporting series and crossovers. I’m looking forward to it, though, because the concept is cool and Doug Mankes’ art is really impressive. I’ve been a fan of his since the Seven Soldiers’ “Frankenstein” mini-series. To be honest, I also hope they use Blackest Night to return some of their cooler dead characters to life. While I was still buying the monthlies, it seems DC comics were all about death, death, and death, and it was getting me down.
What change will Disney’s acquisition of Marvel have on the content of their books? I’d like to think “none,” because many of their titles (Captain America, Daredevil, Avengers (whichever title) are outstanding. In fact, with this current group of writers, including Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Millar, Ed Brubaker, Greg Pak, and Matt Fraction, this has been the richest time in Marvel comics since the 60’s. Needless to say, I’ve been bowled over by their books in the last few years. Let’s hope Disney doesn’t mess this up.
Have I rambled enough? Let’s say yes.
Scott.
I really like trade-paperbacks. I do not like single issues, which now cost $2.99 to $3.99. As far as I’m concerned, the economics are way against collecting the floppies.
Digital comic distribution seems to have arrived. As usual, the way was paved by the pirates and all their file sharing. ComicsXP is my favorite of the new digital distributers, and you can watch an excellent presentation about it 
In my opinion, Freddie E. William’s book “The DC Guide to Digitally Drawing Comics” is perhaps the most important book on cartooning written this decade. I like “how to” books, but most of them cover the same time-tested material again and again. William’s book is something new, a new way to cartoon.
I’ve been reading Ed Brubaker’s run on Captain America. It’s easy to see why he won his Eisner’s. Because of the rich supporting cast and super writing, the book has continued on for several years with the main character dead. I haven’t read any of the Rebirth material yet, because it’s not collected into trades, but I have high expectations for that too.
I’ve got an interview coming up in the new ComicsXP magazine, available free at http://www.comicsxp.com. This magazine has not been released yet, but the interview is by John Wilson, and some of my answers may surprise you.
I have taken it upon myself to create a master Photoshop resource file on my computer, one that includes all the brushes, textures, tool presets, custom shapes, custom paths, filters and patterns that I’ve either collected or created myself. This file also contains my photographic morgue, as well as Sketchup files I use regularly. I backed this file up a few days ago, and it took two DVDs to hold it, and would have taken 9 CDs. Yikes.
Over at the 
