Complex Actions

It’s been a really crazy week (I try to not bitch about things on the internet, but believe me, things are insane right now,) so it ended up being Friday instead. Just need to finish some coloring on the comic. Unfortunately, this one loses too much without the color, it wouldn’t make sense. I’ll see you guys tomorrow!

The schedule for the comic isn’t 100% finalized…we’ve had a Tuesday and two Wednesdays recently. Looks like Wednesday/Thursday-ish this week. Here’s a sketch in the meantime.

No, my Tumblr posts won’t usually be cross-posted to the comic proper. Just…always feel bad when I leave readers in the lurch for so long. I’m really used to the idea of being a tri-weekly comic.

So, Tal and I conceived this comic weeks before it was time for it to run, and, starting it one morning when he wasn’t around to ask, I inadvertently changed the script a lot. Still, while the comic doesn’t have quite its normal storytelling style, hopefully the joke (which is still the same) still gets a giggle! I’m more concerned about the proto-drakes and frost wyrms in the mailbox with the lions, to be very honest.

It also had to be Gimm and Hestian, because the idea of him trying to ride a cat was funny to me.

…not entirely sure why we find the mail system of Azeroth so very funny. But we do.

Apollocon was this last weekend! It cut into my normal work time for the comic, but I did sketch this. I thought I’d share it while you guys wait for the comic tomorrow.

This is a yet another character study of “Bug,” a (the main) character in a comic I hope to someday draw. Something just felt “off.” After comparing with the initial sketch of her, I realized that she had four wings in the other, not six. I prefer four, I think. She’s also got a super-long torso in this one, more than the other, but I think being really lanky just works for her. The wings will revert, but this element will hang around.

I’ve been waiting for ages to put that onomatopoeia into the comic. One of our dogs really makes this sound when something scares her, or at least did when she was a puppy. She would definitely have been on the “weak or infirm” list, if mental facilities were factored in.

…Yep. Stiiiiill reconciling the scheduling. But I was just not going to blow my first update night on the new schedule. Those of you still reading have been more than patient, you deserve comics.

…Let’s do this thing. Tuesdays. We’re trying Tuesdays.

I worked about 55 hours in my day job last week…which isn’t a problem! To be honest, the comic and assorted commissions historically take me longer. The trick is getting those 50+ hours reconciled with the comic and art, and working out where any hobbies fall in beside those things. It’s absolutely do-able, but I’ve messed up my priorities and scheduling more than once over the last couple of weeks and am looking for the right balance of…well, everything.

Tuesday’s comic is very close to done. I could probably put it up tonight without too much problem. But because I am a mean, mean little artist, now is as good a time as any to get back onto a schedule.

Well, the resident comic-artist’s life has been busy lately. My wrist pushed me into some decisions and, just shy of two months after cleaning up my resume, am finishing up training in my full time job as a graphic designer (this allows me to not only have a somewhat more reliable income than comic merchandise and freelance commissions, but, more than that, also let me do things that don’t bug my wrist as much for large chunks of the day).

This does not mean the comic is ending.

The comic isn’t ending.

Actually, much of my free time has gone into a big overhaul we’re working for for Complex Actions. We have some pretty site changes for you soon…and some very exciting larger changes further down the road. Tal is locked in discussion with some very cool other people regarding those. Some of you may also remember our always-on-the-horizon story-based comic project, Ars Matris. My lunch hours–and a lot of after-hours–are being spent on style and character studies as we prepare for this. So…so much to do, so little time!

Anyway, thus divided, CA will have to remain on a once-weekly schedule for now…which should regularize very soon. In the meantime, lots of cool things are around the corner.

Ah, if only all politics were so straightforward. Of course, now they have to go recruiting. For some reason, fewer and fewer people want to sign up…
- Some backstory on Kestulefa? Hmm. Well, I suppose it’s possible that this is the case. Or maybe it really was just a goblin tanning bed….
- Cahotska was a paladin throughout her life and of course fought the Burning Legion throughout it. It took awhile to figure out why she might ally with Kestulefa if the above were true…but really, if she can accept that she, an undead agent of destruction, can move beyond base instinct, she’d have to allow an eredar a chance. It’s entirely possible that she hangs around half to keep an eye on Kes, hm…?
- That really is our guild standard, yes.
- No, we don’t (habitually) burn our members alive.
- That’s probably because we aren’t running Blackwing Descent yet.

The comic’s update schedule is still one a week, ish, but I don’t believe we’ve settled on an update day yet. It’s going up as it’s finished right now. Sorry that your schedule is cut down, readers, but I hope you enjoy what we have!