San Francisco Zinefest
September 2, 2010, filed under: News, Studio, by Lex
This Labor Day weekend I’ll be exhibiting at the San Francisco Zinefest! The event is Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 4 & 5) at the SF County Fair building in Golden Gate Park from 11am-6pm. Zinefest has been growing over the years and I hear it just keeps getting better. The show floor will be packed with Bay Area DIY artists of all stripes; if you’re a fan of the zine-scene or ever wanted to try it yourself this is the place to be!
I’ll have the usual slew of Kid B. merch on hand, including the newest book Kid Beowulf and the Song Of Roland, plus I’ll be bringing some exclusive preview pages of book three Kid Beowulf vs. El Cid! Check out the site above for more details–the show is free and open to the public!
“The night was moist…”
August 19, 2010, filed under: News, Studio, by LexAnyone reading my blog knows I’m a process junkie, from sketches to turnarounds to breakdowns to character arcs–I love it all, especially when it comes to breaking a story. I’ve read a number of books on crafting stories, a bunch of which come complete with graphs and charts and weird pyramid schemes that make my head hurt. I generally don’t pay attention to the graphs because I just don’t find them helpful, still I like reading these books and essays because they help me distill my own process, mull over my own stories and hopefully make them better.
If I were to describe my own writing process I’d say I was part “Discovery Writer” and “Outline Writer.” I like to have a basic structure for the story I’m telling, but I also like to let the story reveal things to me along the way (a lot of times these discoveries fix my outline problems).
For instance, some secondary characters in the Kid Beowulf series are Emer and Ermlaf, two Heathobards who decide to follow Beowulf and Grendel from Daneland into France (book 1 into 2). Emer (the small one) and Ermlaf (the big one), function primarily as comic relief in the books and as foils for our heroes. The more I write them though, the more I’ve discovered that they have a much larger role to play in the Kid B. mythos, especially in Kid Beowulf vs. El Cid. How far Emer and Ermlaf go into the series I’m unsure of, but I enjoy the dynamic between all the characters and am open to the possibilities.
In the meantime I’m continuing to read up on the writing process and have several blogs and podcasts on writing that I thought I’d pass along for other process junkies out there…
Cockeyed Caravan: a writing blog by an old college crony turned screenwriter Matt Bird. Matt has some well written and concise entries on the writing process worth reading. Updates frequently too!
see sara. see sara write: a blog by Sara Wilson Etienne, that also has some good entries on the writing process. I met Sara at Comic-con one year and she won me over with her shrewd purchase of Kid Beowulf! Sara just sold her book too–congrats!
Story Fanatic: Jim Hull’s really good essays on film and writing.
johnaugust.com: writing tips from screenwriter John August (I have no idea what films he’s written but I like his blog).
Art & Story: a really good podcast by comic creators Jerzy Drozd, Mark Rudolph and Kevin Cross. I’ve been listening to these guys while I draw–so much so, that it’s become Pavlovian and now I can’t draw without listening to them (a real problem if they run out of shows).
Writing Excuses: another podcast by writers and artists, Brandon Sanderson, Howard Taylor and Dan Wells. These guys are down and dirty, producing a show about writing that’s only 15 minutes long so we don’t procrastinate too long (damn them).
(PS: anyone happen to know what movie about writing “The night was moist” comes from?)
Never Been Kissed
July 30, 2010, filed under: El Cid, Sketchbook, by LexHere are the most recent pages inked for Kid Beowulf vs. El Cid. I realized as I finished the scene that this is the first kiss I’ve drawn in the series (there’s generally not a lot of room for romance from a 12 year old Swede), but El Cid is one of the more romantic epics (as I mention here) and for all the elements in my story to click, I really have to sell the fact that Rodrigo and Ximena are in love. The following scene is early in the book, after Rodrigo has gotten a drubbing in a duel and Ximena is nursing his wounds. It’s in this scene where the two of them talk about their hopes and dreams and all that other lovey-dovey stuff, while Rodrigo’s famed horse, Babieca, snickers in the background. (click to enlarge)
Comic-Con Kid B. Promo
July 23, 2010, filed under: News, by LexIn honor of Comic-Con International, my publisher is offering the first Kid Beowulf Iphone App as a FREE download! So if you’ve got an Iphone, Ipad, or Ipod Touch get yourself over to the app store, and download part one of Kid Beowulf and the Blood-Bound Oath! Hey, it’s free, how can you go wrong?
El Cid: Intro Inks
July 21, 2010, filed under: El Cid, by LexComic-con International is upon us and for the first time in seven years I won’t be exhibiting! I’ll miss being behind a table and chatting up Kid B. with fans, but I decided to take a year off from the madness and instead focus on book three: Kid Beowulf vs. El Cid. I look forward to a long weekend inking pages. Speaking of which, here are the first three inked pages from the new book. This scene takes place high in the Pyrenees where Beowulf, Grendel and the Peers are putting down a Basque insurrection. Enjoy the pages and Comic-con if you’re going! (click to enlarge)
The Society of Unordinary Young Ladies
July 15, 2010, filed under: Studio, by LexI took a detour from Kid B. this week to work on some pin-up art for my friend’s comic book series The Society of Unordinary Young Ladies. Created by Wahab Algarmi, it’s the story of a group of fresh-faced and talented sitcom girls who are in fact secret agents! The story is set in the 80’s and features Punky Brewster, Small Wonder and Lassie (to name a few); it’s full of pop-culture references and lots of inside humor only a kid raised on TV and Corn Pops would know. The SoUYL has a long and proud history of agents and I decided to focus on the team from the 60’s. Can you name them all? (click to enlarge)
L to R: Mary-Ann (Gilligan’s Island), Jeannie (I Dream of Jeannie), Jamie Summers (The Bionic Woman), Samantha (Bewitched) and Marilyn (The Munsters). Caught up in the Cold War the girls are betrayed by double-agent and their one-time mentor, June Cleaver, and become entangled in a dire plot by the Soviets who are mixing Tiki magic with Space Race technology to take over the world! (At least, that’s how I saw it in my head).
This was a lot of fun to do–thanks Wahab! The pin-up will be in the newest issue of The Society of Unordinary Young Ladies due out this fall.
El Cid: sneers, swash and buckle.
July 8, 2010, filed under: Characters, El Cid, by LexHere are few more cast members of Kid Beowulf vs. El Cid. For some reason I didn’t have nearly as much trouble coming up with these looks as I did Rodrigo’s. I especially like the look of this fellow below: Ordoñez.
He’s Rodrigo’s competition, as a knight and as a potential love interest for Ximena. Ordoñez has been in more battles than Rodrigo and is Count Gormaz’s lieutenant (Ximena’s father). He’s reliable and will do what you ask him; he does not confuse orders with moral clarity (something Rodrigo has trouble with). Ordoñez’s main goal is to best Rodrigo in whatever way he can.
Thankfully, Rodrigo has a few friends on his side including the fellow above, Pedro. Pedro is sometimes referred to as “Pedro the Mute,” though in the epic poem he does in fact speak–just not very often. I thought that was an interesting idea and am going to try and keep this Pedro mute through the book, to communicate he’ll draw images and signs on his slate breastplate. I’m not sure if this concept will work, but I’m going to give it a try and see what happens. It could result in some cool (and hopefully clever) iconography.
Along with Pedro, Rodrigo’s other close friend and confidant is Martín. Martín does speak–though his mouth sometimes gets him into trouble–he’s the quick wit or dry observation a grim story needs. In the original epic, both Pedro and Martín are bequeathed El Cid’s blades, Tizona and Colada, which they use in a final duel. Rodrigo inspires many men to his cause, but it’s Pedro and Martín who knew him from the start, join him in exile and keep him honest.
--Comic Buyer's Guide
"Kid Beowulf fights the good fight with comedic timing and flair!"
--sequentialtart.com
"It's fun classic literature combined with modern pop-entertainment."
--Gareth Hinds
The Collected Beowulf
"Kid Beowulf is totally enjoyable. I highly recommend it to would-be adventurers of all ages!"
--A. David Lewis
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