Another Tabby sketch set

Another set of sketches~ not yet ready to move onto the other characters. Kazu arrives in Honolulu today~ I miss him so much it hurts! And so, there'll prolly be no new sketch for the next day hehe =) Still enjoying the Golden Compass CD, and yes... still good.

Tabby and the Golden Compass audio CD

Time to start sketching my old friends and getting myself comfortable in their world again. Above is some sketches of Tabby, I'd like to give her a little more fire in the final version. It's something that always bothered me, she was a little TOO quiet/pensive in the webcomic version. I had a hard time imagining her doing the things she was about to do without some kind of fighting spirit that wasn't present nearly enough. Also, I want her costume in the beginning to be different, more interesting and appropriate for who she is on the inside. Ah~ I'm having so much fun! =)

Also, helping me to realign myself with this, I purchased The Golden Compass audiobook. I listened to tons of Harry Potter audiobooks while I worked on Sorcerers & Secretaries, and they kept me in a pure storytelling entertainment mood that was appropriate for what I was doing and carried me through the project to the end. Now that I'm revisiting one of my favorite stories in The Golden Compass, I'm reminded of what I want RM to be more like. Something thought-provoking, engaging, a complex world filled with characters that grow dramatically and are affected by the world around them in deep and meaningful ways.

Like the book, I had a hard time getting into the audio version at first because of the nature of the story in the beginning. It really doesn't get crazy good until Lyra reaches the North, but once she does the book doesn't stop until the end of the trilogy. It was also difficult to get used to with a full cast after listening to only one person read the entire Harry Potter series. It's different, but still fun to listen to.

I also started nerding out after reading some reader reviews for the book on amazon.com (people seem to either love it or hate it, which isn't surprising considering the events in the book). This lead me to investigate the state of the movie, and I'm happy that Anand Tucker will be directing. Hopefully this'll be the last time the director changes... sometimes I wonder if this film trilogy will ever get made. If it really does come out in 2007 I'd be amazed. Either way... I'm both excited and nervous for the release of the movies, but happy that there'll always be the books. =)

Happy Holidays! (even Reman ones!)

Happy Holidays everyone (even Reman ones!). The above idea was thanks to Keurigi via the forums~ Thanks for the inspiration! =D Every time I draw these guys I get sooo happy. It's funny how certain characters can mean so much to you. Just can't wait to get back to making that story... I was thinking about how much I miss Kazu while drawing this. I miss you, Hon! =P

Also I spent some time at a quaint cafe/bistro near the university of hawaii called "Volcano Joe's". It has some pretty nice coffee~ did some thumbnails... today is gift exchange/ham dinner night at my mom's place. Hope everyone else is having as relaxed and refreshing end of year as I am~ =)

Waikiki and some doodles

Click thumbnails to see larger versions:

Just playing around with some new art supplies I got for xmas. I drew it while thinking about my day, completing scripts, researching boats, and taking a little busride out to Waikiki beach during sunset:

Mom and bro (Tim) watched me draw for a bit. I encouraged Tim to give it a shot, here are some of his more finished doodles. I love 'em!

Egg vs. Chicken

So there I was chattin' it up with an old friend from NY who works at Gamelab now as a visual artist, and he asked me: "Did you play Gamelab's new game over at Playfirst (the publisher)?" And I said no, so I tried it and then... I was knocked on my ass! I LOOOOVE it! XD Am I biased because I used to work with them? Perhaps, but just look at that graphic above and tell me that doesn't look like fun! Definitely Gamelab's most unified game yet in terms of visual/sound/storyline/gameplay, it all works together beautifully! I'm so proud of you Gamelab-ers....! Finally, some gorgeous visuals in american-made casual games while still maintaining easy to learn, addicting and challenging gameplay! I can't wait to see what you guys come out with next! Consider this one BOUGHT.

Download the free trial

Purchase here

I'm still writin' stuff~ just finished a 46 page script and jumping into thumbnails! I'll be trekking out to Waikiki today because they got a Starbucks there and well... I find it a good place to drink tea and get work done sometimes. =) I need to warm up my drawing skills a bit so I'll try to whip up some illustrations to post~ more later!

In Hawaii Once More

Once more, I'm in Honolulu visiting my awesome mom and brother. I love Hawaii. It's a beautiful paradise, and there's a peace with waking up to the sound of all the birds singing, sun shining, clear breezes through the radiant green trees carrying wonderful smells of flowers and sweets. This is only my second trip here, but every time I'm given a moment to reflect and regather myself while spending time with my familiy.

A year's passed since last time and it feels like my life has come full circle. So much has changed since then and I feel like a much more mature person than I was before. Being here last time reminded me that it was okay to expect more in life. Arriving here this time, it's reminding me how wonderful it is now. A lot of things were on pause, hobbies I enjoyed and projects I cared about, to make room for preparing myself for the rest of my life. Being here reminds me that things will be fine now and I can move on.

I'll be doing a lot of writing while I'm here so I'm not sure about how many visuals I'll have to post~ Been watching a few movies lately as well. Kazu, Ben, and I recently did a little double feature... Narnia followed by King Kong. I wasn't so hot on Narnia, I felt like the characters were non-existant, but it'd be a good movie for kids I suppose. King Kong however was just awesome, especially the scene in the ravine fighting all of the bugs... I just loved that! XD Of course the rest of the movie is wonderful as well, I highly recommend it. In fact... I wouldn't mind seeing it yet again before it comes off the big screen. You can just tell that everyone working on it was having so much fun, so there's a real sense of enjoyment behind everything in the movie that keeps you glued to your seat.

Also the horrific elements in it have a great balance between nightmare and humor. When things get too intense there's always a moment of decompression that results in a well-balanced emotional ride. After watching something like Narnia where the SFX were overshadowing the story, it was such a breath of fresh air to see something like King Kong where the effects and story went hand in hand. I hope more movies in the future will go in that direction... but I guess they can't all be so awesome. =P

Demo trade and studio photos

My good pal Becky Cloonan is the artist for the above series, Demo! FINALLY the trade paperback collecting all 12 inspiring issues is ready for order~! Click the above image to get to the amazon.com listing! =)

Also, for those curious, Kazu (who, by the way, will have work up at Nucleus' christmas show opening this Saturday ::phew:: hehe~)took a bunch of pictures of our new studio in our spiffy new place. I have to say, I never had such a nice workspace! I guess we both came a long way from drawing on the floor. Click the below image to see the pics:

Things have calmed down a bit since finishing up S&S. I've been spending the time regathering myself for the next book (preparing production schedules for the upcoming year for three different projects, writing scripts and dabbling with an RM proposal). Basically a lot of little things so when it comes time to get back into drawing I can do it without having to stop and write too much, cause that's where things tend to slow down a bit.

Still, I can't wait to get back into it so I'll have more work to show here. This place is gettin' kinda quiet! And huuuuuge thank you to everyone that pre-ordered S&S so far. It's weird thinking someone pre-ordered something I made! How neat~ =D

Last chapter of S&S up at Manga Online

Click here to read the last chapter (click "read chapter" button on the left)

Click here to comment on the last chapter

Click here to pre-order S&S book 1 at amazon

Well, that's it folks! The last chapter of Sorcerers & Secretaries book 1 is available to read online now. I'm eager to know what you guys think of it, and I can't wait to conclude the story in book 2! Things have been good with me lately, spent a week with the family relaxing but now I'm ready to get back to work! Click here to see some photos from their visit over at my livejournal account.

Now I have some time between books to do my short story for Flight 4 and some other projects that have been waiting patiently on the side (like working on an RM proposal).

That's all from me for now, more later! =)