Monday, December 31, 2012

End of the Year

It's New Year's Eve! The year of 2012 is coming to an end! Today's post will tell some stories of the first year of this blog.

On a particularly boring Wednesday on the 8th day of February, I started the blog with my first blogpost. The next post I wrote began the ironic adventure of the Super Rooster comic, where I explained the five different versions of the comic series, and that I had started my sixth, and what I hoped would be my last, attempt.

Soon after that, I started Rabbit and Robot, the nutty improvised webcomic of mammals, robots, rock monsters, and nature spirits. I had a lot of fun making up the story as I went along.

In came Spring, and I started adding more content to the blog. I made a few posts of some of my older comics, and I started doing random sketches. I got a Twitter account (which as of yesterday has 10 followers). And then I came across my "due date" for the Super Rooster script, but I was only a third finished. So I bumped up the date (for the first of many, many times).

I had my friend Joey Han draw a Rabbit and Robot page, which took the story to an interesting turn. I changed my Super Rooster plans and started a different story. I entered Summer, and between camps managed to keep drawing comics, and I got a deviantART account that I never use.

Autumn came, and I was pretty sick of drawing Rabbit and Robot, so I ended it with an "epic finale" (though I have a strange urge to continue it...). Sometime after, I finally realized that I was never going to finish that Super Rooster Sampler, and I ended the project altogether, adding a pathetic sixth attempt to my list.

But ending these two projects cleared up my plate, and I started thinking of a new webcomic idea. I was careful that time, and only said that I hoped to release it in November, which obviously didn't happen. Then came December, and I wrote about a game Zack Wright and I made up, and I drew some holiday pictures, and I started writing an end-of-the-year post describing the whole year even though there isn't a soul in the world who would care, and realized that I had reached the end of the story.

So, I hoped you enjoyed all of that nonsense, and I look forward to the coming year. I think my resolution will be to "never tell you people about things until those things ready to be published." Happy New Year, everyone!

Oh, yeah - as it's the end of the year, here are the seasonal blog headers of 2012:




Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

To celebrate, why don't we all read that "classic" Super Rooster Christmas special? (Actually, it was almost as bad as the Star Wars Christmas special, but you can still read it here!)

Enjoy the holidays!

Friday, December 21, 2012

Winter Sketchin'

A snowman, a Santa, and other Wintery things.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Role-Playing Comic

The Role-Playing Comic (RPC) is a game created by my friend +Zack Wright and I. The game can take you on any sort of adventure that you and a friend can brew up!

What You Need:
  • Two people
  • A pencil
  • A sheet of paper
  • Optional: Dice (of any number of sides)
Basic Gameplay:

The best part about the game is that you can add or change any rules you want. But we've established some basic gameplay rules that we use.

Each person is either the writer/artist of the story (or the "Game Master," as the geek world would call it,) or the player, who gets to decide what to do in the world that the GM creates.

The GM would start by either asking the player to choose a race, class, location, etc. for their character, or deciding all that himself and getting straight to the adventure. He then draws the first panel, which would be the starting location.

We usually draw scenes in a from the player's point of view, because it makes it feel like they're in the world. The player then looks at the comic panel, and decides what to do. (When the player decides what to do, the GM should write it down, so it can be read like a story afterwards.)

The GM would then write/draw the next scene, based on the player's decisions. (We usually don't draw the panels and words left to right, like in your average comic; we find it easier to draw from top to bottom, like in the example.)

Stuff You Can Do:

Like in real life, the player can do whatever they want. Also like in real life, the Laws of Nature (aka the Game Master) set limits to what they do. They can either declare it physically impossible, or perhaps have chance decide with a dice roll. Here are two main things players can do in a game.

Talk: As the player, you can go up and talk to anyone you wish. Their outcomes can be varied, from offering to help to pulling out an axe and trying to chop you in half. (I usually don't draw a new panel for each piece of dialogue. I prefer to just write the text and add a little floating head next to it, like in the example.)

Battle: Battling plays a big part in Role-Playing Games. We've tried many methods for battling, but there's one method we use the most. When the player decides to battle a character, we'll draw a battle panel, containing the character ready to fight, the character's battle statistics, and their health (see the example). The player and GM take turns rolling the dice to fight each other, until one of them is defeated. (For more info on battle, see "Statistics.")

The rest is up to the imaginations of the player. We've done all sorts of things from buying potions to riding Giant Spiders to raiding small Inns to rob them of their root-beer.

Statistics:

Like in RPGs, we usually give the players Statistics. The standards are Health, Attack, Defense, and Gold (or other monetary system). These numbers are constantly erased and changed as the player battles and gathers items. In battle, the player loses Health for each hit they take, based on the enemy's Attack, and can gain Health from many things, such as potion or food. The amount of damage they do to enemies is based on their Attack, which can be gained from stealing weapons from defeated enemies.

So, That's It.

These are only the basic rules we've established, but by all means, experiment! Try playing with over two people! Add your own favorite Role-Playing elements! Undertake the goal of creating the strangest situations you can!

So, that's our game. Here's the complete page from the example, which can now be read (from top to bottom, remember) as a comic! Enjoy.


Friday, December 7, 2012

Swedish Chef Sketch

To test out some new pens, I drew the Swedish Chef. Børk Børk.

Sunday, December 2, 2012

December News

It's December! A new month has come, and hopefully it will be a more interesting month (blogwise) than the previous month! Actually, I'm pretty positive that it will be, because I've got quite a bit of things planned this time around.

I'm almost ready to start my Sci-Fi webcomic! I've finished the first script, save a few names, and I've got all my materials ready (14'' by 17'' bristol paper, some new nib pens, a full bottle of ink). All I need to do, besides coming up with a name for the series, is… actually drawing it!

I have a few new types of blogposts that you'll see a bit of this month. The first are stories, which I talked about in my previous post. The second is something so incredibly amazing, I'm not going to even say what it is. But it involves my friend Zack Wright.

Lastly, I've decided that I'll do sketches by request from all of you readers. You can make a request via commenting on this blog, Twitter, or any of my other social networking accounts (see my About page). I'll even put your name on the post, to make you happy.

So, yeah, I appologize for only writing 3 posts (new record!) last month. But this month, I'll be sure to keep posting. Stay tuned!

Friday, November 30, 2012

Stories

Hello, everybody. This is only my third post this month. Obviously, I've got to write more posts.

One thing I enjoy doing that I haven't really expressed on this blog is writing stories. Comics are a different type of storytelling, and "News Update" posts like this don't involve much writing skill. So some days I might post a random short story on the blog for you to read.

I hope I write more posts next month. See y'all.

Friday, November 23, 2012

Turkey Sketch

I let my imagination wander this morning.
I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving yesterday! I apologize for not writing a single post since November 6th, but I've been concentrating on my upcoming webcomic! I'll be sure to keep the blog updated while it's in the making.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

November News

Hello, fellow blog readers! We've entered a new month, and that means it's time to share a couple bits of news I've been hiding from you for the past few weeks.

First of all, the "New Webcomic" idea I have is still in development. I've got a main plot, and some general characters. Now, I will reveal some valuable information to you: the genre is Science Fiction! I hope to release the new comic this month, but I'm not making any promises.

Secondly, my fellow comic fans and I may start a new blog! It'll be in the form of a Comics newspaper, with articles about the comics we read and recommend, news about upcoming books and films, comic-related polls, and more. Joey Han and have been discussing the project for a bit, and it may come out in the next month or so.

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Happy Halloween!

Alright, you've got to be a Marvel fan to get this Spider-man joke:
















Oh, yeah, and I've added a bit of Charlie Brown in there for you. Happy Halloween, everybody.

Upcoming Webcomic: It's coming along, people. Stay tuned!

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

The Joker sketch

Today I drew this, err... elaborate Joker sketch. I'm actually quite proud of it.





















Now I'm going to tell you the steps of how I created this maniacal Batman villain. First I drew it on pencil with a blue pencil and inked it with a nib pen and India ink. Then I scanned it onto my computer.

I opened the file with Photoshop, and started coloring the flats. These are the plain colors that fill each shape. Once I'm finished with that, I start shading the colors in, to give the picture some depth.

The Dodge tool brightens the colors. The Burn tool darkens them. Once I "burned" the edges of the Joker and the other stuff, it looked like it does now.

Sunday, October 14, 2012

A Sad Story

Way back in February, I said that I was going to start a new Super Rooster series. I originally stated that it would come out in Spring. I wasn't finished with the script by then, so I moved it to Summer. Then I decided to stop working on that script, and I started a Sampler comic script. So I finished that script in June, and started the pencils. Four months later, and those pencils are still only a quarter complete.

But I've decided that I don't like the script. It's not that the jokes are bad, but I'm starting to lose interest in the idea as a whole. The setting and characters don't give me much stories to tell. Each one would go along the lines of "Evil animal uses something to catch chickens, then Super Rooster saves the day!" If I want to make this comic, I'll need time to make some changes and widen the possibilities, hopefully to create a more interesting comic.

But, no, I'm not going to bump up the release date again. I'm going to put the project on hold. This means that I won't be working on the current Super Rooster comic anymore, and I'll be starting other comic projects. I'm trying really hard to think of a cool webcomic idea, and I'm almost there.

Oh, yeah, and I've made a new rule for myself: Don't set release dates until the comic itself is complete.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Magneto Sketch

Here's a sketch of Magneto I drew today:



















Before I used the mighty power of Photoshop to edit/color the drawing, it looked like this.

Also, I'm getting to closer to coming up with a webcomic idea, so stay tuned!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

From the Archives: Bean

Today I'm going to do another From the Archives post! This is a thing I started in March 2012, and ended in March 2012, but I decided to do another one today.

This comic is called "Bean" It was started sometime in 2008, and I wrote three (and a half) of these books until 2010. The stories were about a lima bean who went on lima bean adventures.

I've scanned some spages for you here. The first two are pages 6 and 7 of the first book, "One Courageous Lima Bean," and pages 10 and 11 of the fourth, unfinished book.


 So, yeah. This is how my mind worked when I was 10.

For a full archive of From the Archives, click here!

Monday, October 1, 2012

October News

Hello, fellow readers. I have a bunch of things to say, but none that are important enough for their own blogpost. So, (roughly) every month I'll do a "News" post like this, for tidbits of random blog info.

Last month (September, for those who don't use calendars), I beat a new record for least number of blog posts in a month. A measly four posts. This is very saddening, as you loyal fans (anyone?) had little to read here for thirty days! For this, I apologize.

I completely re-wrote my "About" page. It's got a new description of me. And some links. Check it out here!

I'm still thinking of a webcomic. I've got dozens of ideas, but I'm still trying to pick the best one. More information on this soon.

Lastly, I've got a little sketch of Bilbo Baggins:


Friday, September 21, 2012

Sketch: The Tree

This piece was suggested by Joey Han. His original Tweet was " Hey John! You should draw me. Me hiding in a tree. That'd be cool." So I drew him in a tree, but then I drew tons of other stuff in the tree. So I ended up creating a great big tree of comics, geek culture, puns, and other odd things.



Monday, September 10, 2012

Rabbit and Robot: The End?

I'd like to start this post with a question. How many of you actually like Rabbit and Robot?

Anyone? No?

Well, me neither.

I mean, it started as a fun little improvised experiment. But it got boring sometime around #13. So I've decided to end it, right at the climax, with an ink shortage as a good cover-up story.

As for all you "Rabbit and Robot buffs" (I say jokingly, as there are none of you), you can always go back and read the story at the Rabbit and Robot page! And if you demand a resolution, just say so in the comments.

I'll start a new webcomic soon, so keep lookout!

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #22

Here is the twenty-second installment of the improvised series. Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #21

Here is the twenty-first installment of the improvised series. Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.















P.S. If you think the lettering and art look terrible, it's because I need sharper nib pens. That way I'll have more control, and smoother, thinner lines.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

More Random Sketches...

Today's random sketch is Spider-Man and the Green Goblin (with a new coloring technique)! I've posted it on both deviantART and Twitter.

With my new deviantART page, I'll probably be posting a lot more sketches, which I'll be posting on here less often. So be sure to check those sites every once and a while!

Monday, August 27, 2012

Random Sketch: Captain America

In honor of legendary comic artist Jack Kirby's birthday, I've posted a sketch of one of his many famous superhero creations on deviantART!

As I was hiking Mt. Washington yesterday, there will be (yet another) Rabbit and Robot delay. Sorry about that.

Friday, August 24, 2012

New deviantART Page

Today I've created an account on deviantART, a large online community for artists. I'm not very familiar with it yet, but I'll soon figure it out. The link is http://johnrcomics.deviantart.com/ .

Oh, yeah, also, I'm leaving for camp today. I'll be back on Monday. I've asked a friend to do Sunday's Rabbit and Robot, but we may see a delay.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Random Sketch: Scarecrow

Today's sketch is fan-art for Skottie Young. I drew his Scarecrow from the Oz series.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

New Rabbit and Robot Page

Today I created a new Rabbit and Robot page. The old "page" was just a list of all the Rabbit and Robot posts, but this new one has all of the comics, in chronological order, in a comfortable reading format. Check out the new page here.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #20

Here's the twentieth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Monday, August 13, 2012

Back to Work

Well, I have no more camps for the rest of Summer, so I'll have a lot more time on my hands to work on Super Rooster! I have calculated that if I pencil 2 pages a day, (which takes longer than you'd think,) then I'll finish the penciling in, uh... 7 and a half days!

So, yeah. This is a work week. I'm going to create this comic once and for all!

Rabbit and Robot Delay

When you're 14, "My weekly webcomic is overdue," is not an excuse to stay up until 12:00 PM. So I'm sorry to say that Rabbit and Robot #20 (which is already finished) will be postponed to next Sunday. Here's a little preview, though:












Confused yet? Just wait 'til next Sunday! See ya.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Comic Status

Today I've created a little gadget to keep you updated on my work. It shows you the status of the comic I'm working on ("The Fire Wand"). Right now it shows that I've completed the script, am working on the pencils, and haven't started inking yet (I may add more categories in the future, such as "coloring," "printing," etc.).













I'll be updating it regularly, so you can keep watch on my progress. See you later!

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #19

Here's the nineteenth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Random Sketch: Heat

I think this is a good representation of how I feel right now:

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #18

Here's the eighteenth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.
















Also, this Tuesday is my 14th birthday! Just to let you know. Well, you probably didn't care at all, but that's just the sort of thing you'd expect to be put on a blog, so there it is.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #17


Here's the seventeenth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Random Sketch: Batman

Today's random sketch is... the Dark Knight!

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #16

Here's the sixteenth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Independence Day

Happy 4th of July! (Yeah, I know the flag has 50 stars and 13 stripes. I was drawing free-hand!)

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #15

Here's the fifteenth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Monday, June 25, 2012

Super Rooster Sampler Script Complete!

Good news! Unbelievable though it may seem, I have completed the first draft of the Super Rooster Sampler Script! Here is a glimpse of some of the pages of the draft.

Also, the story now has a name! Never more will I refer to it as the "Super Rooster Sampler," but the story is now called "The Fire Wand*."

So, now that I've finished the script for The Fire Wand (though I think the dialogue could use some improvement,) it's time to start production of the actual comic!

I'll keep you updated on the production in further posts. So long!


*Yeah, I know. I'm terrible at titles. You don't need to rub it in!

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #14

Here's the fourteenth installment of the improvised series! Need to catch up? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Random Sketch: Asterix

Today's Random Sketch is Asterix the Gaul! Asterix was always one of my favorite European comics. Maybe I'll draw Tintin another day...

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Rabbit and Robot #13

Here's the thirteenth installment of the improvised series! Are you new to the story? You can read all of the Rabbit and Robot posts here.