The future of comics!!! Bryan | Sun Jan 24 23:56:33 | [76]
My good friend and mentor Steve Scott posted a most excellent blog on his Dev site. click here Go read his blog then come back here. I had too repost my 2 cents here because comics are changing and exactly what they will be in the future is still up in the air. The problem isn’t any one thing. Lets look at the average comic specialty store. As much fun as they are, you basically add another dollar on to comics prices, because they exist. So, sometime in the 80’s we create a market that helps pull comic off the drugstore racks. The comics use to be used as an advertising tool for kids and they didn’t have to make a ton of money. Following the comics as a collectable trend you take the audience you picked up at a young age growing up and demanding a more adult comic. Now Blackest Night is a great example. I freaking love what they are doing with the Corps, but as a child my Mom would not have liked the blood and gore. The writing in my opinion is better today than ever. I know many golden age fans will disagree and that’s ok, I feel no need to argue an opinion. But what the more adult storylines are doing, cuts off the new younger audience, that is needed to sustain any industry. The work Steve Scott did with the adventures series I.E. Iron-Man, is exactly what we need more of. Disney needs to focus a ton of new Marvel Books on a younger audience. Go to any comic store on new comic day and start an under 18 and over 18 tally. Heck, when we went to watch the nearly sold out TMNT movie you could count the kids on one hand in the audience. Now enter modern day entertainment. Video games are the new pop art form. Why read a story when you can live it. Why read about saving the world when you can do it one shot at a time. Not to mention the fact that instead of seeing it drawn we can watch our superheroes on the screen and they look 100% believable….. Well most of the time. Heaven help us the Wolverine movie sold well. So, what’s the right course for us creative types? Breaking into the mainstream can be hard and even when you are in it, doesn’t always mean steady work. I have a hard time thinking about going the Marvel DC route, when people I see as art gods aren’t working steady. So, there are web comics. I truly feel the web comic market is going to keep growing. I am about to finish over 3 years of hard work and print the first Neo-Earth web comic. Jenny, from The Zombie Hunters stated that it takes about 4 years of not missing updates to see a return on a web comic. I believe Jenny is dead on. I haven’t made my 4 years yet but within the last year I have went from a few hundred hit’s a day to recently 4 to 8 K unique views… Don’t be happy for me though it takes about 30,000 sustained daily views to quit your day job. I may be their in another year or two, but even if I’m not, I do like my day job most of the time. I am an art teacher, which gives me wonderful kids to work with and a built in study group. You see where we are leaving kids behind the Japanese with small collected affordable kid friendly….well sometimes kid friendly books, are glad to grab them. In 10 years of teaching I see Manga almost daily where as I have never, not once seen a traditional comic. How sad is that. I have once in a blue moon seen a trade however so there is hope. Also, every class has a few kids that read their weekly web comic/cartoon. Penny-Arcade without a doubt reigns on high. Wow I never type this much. I went the day job till I make it route, because I felt the alternative would be many years of ramen noodle and to tell the truth I love my new house on the lake “Steve you have to come visit this summer, my art room is set up for drawing comics and the guest room sleeps two.” I know many people out there can’t spend 4 years on a web comic that will only drain income but I feel more and more, that will be a strong market. That’s my two cents.
In other great news NENW is updated with 3 more pages ready too go. After checking out Jessica’s new stuff go Visite Steve Scotts dev site again…Just click on the pic below.
Greetings my friends. I hope the holiday season was good to you. It was nice to spend time with the family. I have a new add out today that more or less announces that Neo-Earth, is on its final chapter. This is true. I have about 8 more pages to go and then it’s time for minor rewrites and printing the graphic novel. Now what will become of the site you may ask? Well, not to worry. The first book may be ending but new stories are to come. We will have a short story for your enjoyment witch takes place briefly before the return of magic to earth. Then we will have a three comic epic co written with Bon Ha, hat takes us up to….. Well read it and see. I have truly loved working on Neo-Earth as you have come too know it but truth be told this isn’t the first story I published in this world. Heck it’s more like the third or fourth. In any case the characters are not going to be discarded never to return, but my intention was always to have Neo-Earth be about the world and characters that exist in it. When it concludes I will be glad to answer any questions that may linger, but only in person….. That means you will have to catch me at a convention. I mean what’s going on with Greg anyway? What was Radcas final fate….. I need to get some sleep now but we will talk again soon. Oh and go watch The Frog Princess if you haven’t already.
Later my friends,
Bryan King
Avatar the true danger. Bryan | Wed Dec 23 23:58:35 | [74]
Alright peoples it’s time too talk Avatar. Truth be told I need to watch the movie again, I missed key plot points because of CG side nipplage…. I joke, I kid. Avatar was a great movie that needs to be watched in 3D. I find it funny that the press is announcing hidden political agendas in the movie…. If you think the political statements were hidden then you where truly distracted by the blue cg flesh. The fact that they actually say “shock and awe campaign” is a little hint at what they are pushing on us. I say so what. The weak minded may be swayed into believing whatever they are pushing, but so what. It was still a great movie. I go to the theater to be entertained, not to decide my political views. The real danger in this movie is the Thundercats factor….
Let me explain. Pre-Thundercats, we didn’t have the mildly disturbing presence of Furies. Thanks to CSI, the infestation has been brought to the attention of the general public. Now before I get some hair raised, I have too admit I love you guys n galls. The furies always pay well for artwork and they truly come up with the craziest thing too draw. In any case it was once stated that Cheetara from the Thundercats was why people wanted too $^%# animals. I’m not sure how true that is, but on reflection the C woman was kinda hot and may very well be the gateway drug too Furrydome. This brings up the true horror of Avatar. If a poorly drawn 2d cat woman could get the ball rolling then the 3D CG reality of Navi is going to bring in a wave of furry suite toting people to the cons like never before. Be prepared … Parents watch your kids. Don’t let them be the lion in the Wizard of Oz. Screen their Halloween costumes. The next generation is going too be highly influenced by Avatar…… and it won’t be a political influence…..
NENW has been updated Bryan | Wed Nov 4 23:57:50 | [73]
NENW has been updated and darned if you can’t see Jessica’s art improving before your very eyes. We should have the stories out on time for the next few weeks and look for random comics too update as well in the next few days. Go look at Jessica’s new stuff on her deviant site right here. http://shiezka.deviantart.com/
Greetings and salutations my friends. Monica and I are settling into our new home at Lake O Pines. I spent my summers up here with my Grandfather and cousins. Moving up too the lake is a big check mark on the things too accomplish in life list. I am glad to be settled in as well so that I can start my blogs back up. It is conventional knowledge that an artist must not only sell their art but also themselves. With that in mind I will try too be more accessible too my readers. I hope do a few drawing broadcast and produce more than a few how too on art. I feel that Photoshop tutorials are all over the place so I think I’ll stick too more traditional art tips. Oddly enough it seems that the old techniques are become less common every day. I remember a local comic pro telling me once that mechanical pencils are only used by amateurs….. In any case the old standard was that if you couldn’t create the image by hand then you where useless in the busyness. This is so not true these days but I do feel learning to render and object realistically and with traditional medium do in fact give you an edge. Well it’s getting late and I have the Fall festival too prep for. Enjoy the double page spread. It’s going to get crazy in book 3.… The final book.
Be prepared … Parents watch your kids. Don’t let them be the lion in the Wizard of Oz. Screen their Halloween costumes. The next generation is going too be highly influenced by Avatar…… and it won’t be a political influence…..
