Continued, Page 30
It has taken extra time to make this page, because I started from one panel of Wender, asleep, and decided he should wake up and do something, and take a whole page to do it. I also decided to use a new style, to set this page apart in feeling and treatment. This comes from many experiences I have had, waking up from amazing believable, yet easily forgettable dreams, finding my room too small and boring. I believe in writing dreams down, if you can, because they form a backbone for personal meaning, and stories with a kind of magic. Much of this story is built from ideas found in exactly this way. My sketchpad was my world of wonder, my bedroom was just a room full of junk and a bed. And an aquarium full of algae and half seen fish. . . nevermind.
Wender’s room is pretty bare, and the colors are mostly muted and dirty. I didn’t even really bother to finish or polish this page, because I want to get back to the fun dreams, and because I don’t want to ruminate on why it isn’t working as well. I think it is important to try different styles, and absorb new possibilities by going in a completely different direction. I am open to adding details later, like what the blank poster on the wall will have on it. Also, creatively speaking, not much has happened yet. Uendyr hasn’t actually created anything, right?
The lesson? Take notes and record what you’re creating, dreaming, trying . . . so you can have material to work from, practice and contrast. Also, allow some things time to sit and wait for more complete ideas.
By the way, this kind of break occurs all the time in creating. You can’t create constantly. You must also sleep, record, eat and live. Did I really need to say that?
Back to sleep, and on with the story!
I also added the little parade of breakfast carriers. As soon as it occurred to me, it felt right. Parade your old, unfinished or undeveloped ideas out and put them to work – You might find a use for one of them in the next adventure, or you might just start fresh.
One last word from good old Captain Q. Pay attention to those who have been here before- they may have some great ideas. I have said before to be game for constant change, and it will soon be revealed why that is so important. I actually find change a hard thing to handle, but flexibility has proven its value every time. (Not that I am any better at it in real life.)
Is there a creative message here? I’ve managed to insert one for every page so far. Be careful when starting a new creative direction? Learn how to land? How about that people who don’t understand where you’re coming from may criticize everything about you? Get up, dust yourself off, and get going again!
Choose your friends well. Surprise!
Sometimes, someone else is the reason you have to be creative, and you’re feeling the pressure. Maybe you don’t know where to go, your friends have split, and now the rain comes pouring down . . . Could it get any worse? It feels impossible to be creative at all.
On top of that we have the threats of bullies, the taunts of know-it-alls, and the fear and danger of monsters. It’s a good thing if you can get a head start and make a friend of a warrior, even if he’s a little one.
Obviously, this page shows how when you first decide to forge ahead, that’s when the most challenges come at you. Other competitors may seem to have it easy, and to be far ahead of you.
Some good things to remember; You have to keep your own pace, and not compare where you are or what you’ve done with someone else. You have to see your personal progress, independent of distractions and outside pressures.
I make my own pressure with this comic, but I m also a graphic designer all day, and it is quite restrictive, creatively speaking.
When you’re surrounded by jungle, it helps to look for your inner strength, that timeless potential, that passion and reason within.
What’s that supposed to mean?!
You don’t have to listen to me, I’m just a guy who draws.
Okay, I was looking for drama here. Uendyr is alone in the rain, asking the Doctor for help, while he tries to catch up with Zendu, who is far ahead, leaving red marks for him to follow. Its kinda like when your teacher marks up your paper with a red pencil, but you can’t decifer all of their scratches. Left to your own devices, you use what you know to keep going, and hope for the best.
He briefly remembers that he awoke in a bed, as a boy, but now believes that was the dream. You can really believe just about anything in a dream.
This is an almost completely new page, with Uendyr’s first panel being taken from the bottom of the last page, which was crowded.
I wanted to do a map-like drawing, a full spread image, at some point, and this is as close as I will get. I cannot actually map the Isle, since it changes all of the time. But you may recognize landmarks later, as the rest of the story unfolds.
As with any creative project I have had, the view looks simpler and closer than the real experience of working the project turns out to be. Also, even if you can’t see it, the opportunities are out there, waiting for you to be ready to arrive. Hope and Faith and Trust are necessary tools, along with seeing goals in your head, until they become real.
Plus, that annoying bird and his ticking have been left behind. . . . or have they?
Several lessons can be found on this beach. There are people behind the scenes, keeping track of the action, and where creative people are going. They are masterful at something, or wise, or old, or very large. They may be invisible, or just unnoticed, and they just may have some supernatural skills - Who knows? We're alone in the rain, in an unfamiliar jungle, just trying to keep up with someone we just met.
The dangerous monsters are coming, and we don't even know it yet. Maybe Radalus will give us a hint, in a dream or something. Too much suspense for you?
Keep going anyway. Find a direction, and trust yourself, that you'll find your way, you'll get up when you fall down.
What progress have you made on your own creative project? What wise old sage, or scrappy young woman, or angel, or ghost, or giant can you turn to for advice, or help, or different perspective on what you're trying to do?
How about a big hairy dog?
How about finding some tools in a magic battle cabinet?
By the way, jungle is hard to fake. Lots of complex plants,
vines, huge leaves and trunks. I'll have to do more sketching and research, to
see how to draw jungle! Just in time for it all to get submerged in a flood.
What is a "Viscient?" More suspense.
Another full width spread! I had to get one more in, to finish. Uendyr sees a way he wants to go, and makes a choice. He doesn't know if a princess lies in that direction, but he sees places that look interesting, and he will inevitably run into some danger, or beauty, so this is a good way to go. Some supernatural beings are on the trail, some to help and some not so helpful. This is a good time to take a break, then on to Chapter Two! Can you say "Cliffhanger"?
I wanted to wrap at least some of the ideas up nicely, reiterating what motivated some of the adventurers to press ahead: Treasure, Destruction, Learning, Monster hunting, Fun, Ego, and even confusion and mystery. The important thing for Uendyr is the theme of this first book: Decide to start. Be involved and interested, and press ahead.
I think that's part of what it means to be alive. There are a lot of storms to weather, a lot of challenges to face, a lot of things to live and friends to make. Obviously this isn't just at the center of creativity, it is part of any success, any accomplishment. It's about keeping a positive attitude in the face of obscurity and confusion. Being determined to endure.
In addition, Uendyr may have noticed that the land is changing, expanding as he heads forward. Distances on the Isle Obscura are deceiving. Until you can clearly see what you want, you may just be dealing with it one step at a time. You may be going the long way around, like I did making this book. It was slow going, since I didn't see exactly what I wanted it to be until I changed my direction to a graphic novel.
That doesn't mean that the previous twenty plus years, and notebooks full of written story and sketches were wasted. They gave me plenty of raw material to reference for how the story would, and would not go. They gave me practice, and they honed my sense of reason and interest and pacing, my skills at writing and drawing. They helped me learn the process that creativity follows, though it is very flexible and pretty much unique to every project. And they helped me define for myself who I am and what I want to express.
We're answering the simple questions at this point: where did we come from, what do we want to get out of this, and where are we going to go. We're not making definite judgements, or applying limitations to ourselves. There is room for error, because it helps us learn, and is pretty much unavoidable to a point. Uendyr is pretty pleased he has even survived, as he has fallen several times, been slung into a tree and shot at (kind of).
We're also making a connection to the people, and the world, around us. Interacting with new ideas expands our repertoire, and our understanding. So the creative process is an interactive learning process, and a production process too. Another great reason for me to make this graphic novel!
So what is ahead? I'm not into spoiling the mystery, but some has been revealed. We'll find out who the bouncing monster is, and we'll see what that strange building with the face turned to the sky is, as well as that strange shape of lines in the distant dunes. You can guess that many mysteries I have started in this chapter will get answered in successive chapters. Strange is just another word for new and creative.
My artistic style might change a few times, some characters will reappear, and we'll find out who the "Viscients" are, and what they represent. If you know the creative process, you may see some of it coming. We'll all stay on our toes, as I begin Chapter Two!
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