My New Website

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Click the image above to be transported to Smithee's new home.

I've worked hard on that site for the past month to get it up to snuff, and I hope you will like it!

I'll put up all of issue 1 on the site as I have time.

 

This week I have been fervently working on the script for Issue #2 in the ware-wolf story.

I have tried to learn from Issue #1 what I liked and didn't like about it to make number 2 even better. Like I plan to blow away a zombie in the first few pages.

 

Smithee page 10 - I ain't crazy!

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Billy is a bit wild-eyed and on edge after his encounter with the ware-wolf, and Smithee is obviously skeptical.

My Facebook Page

Home Brew Medicine

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Welcome to page 5. Billy get's his wounds cleaned with home-brew alcohol. I re-drew Billy in panel 2. I like how haggered he came out looking.

I have switched ISP providers and now have regular service back - yippie! It is good to post from the comfort of my own home again, let me tell ya!

Incase you didn't notice, I have a new page of survival links reachable under the banner.Today I'm adding the CDC's info about zombie outbreaks I thought you all might be amused by. That's right folks, the CDC jumped on the Zombie bandwagon to utilize the metaphor of Zombies to teach the public about emergency preparedness, like I'm trying to do.

I've been learning about lettering and word balloons and had fun with them in this page. Thanks for reading!

Get ready to rumble

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Welcome to page 2. Spent most of my time making the fence cage. The cage is in the "Cold Room" where perishables are stored. Billy isn't very fond of it, considering recent events, so Smithee decides to tease him a little about it by tossing his new mitten into it. Probably not such a good idea. Billy can be temperamental. The cage is an emergency refuge incase they are cornered by Zombies. Or, to keep Billy from pilfering sodas. Also a safe place for valuables while they are out on a mission. Why doesn't everybody have a chain link cage in the spare bedroom?

Ware-Wolf begins

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And our exciting introduction into the world of Smithee Zombie Hunter begins! Here we catch Billy sneaking a home-brew soda. He kills people (well, hopefully not real people - just Zombies) for a living, so upsetting Smithee's inventory is no big deal. Besides, he has had a harrowing time lately getting that one mitten he is wearing.
I enjoy doing these drawings. With each one my pen & ink style gets better and I learn a little bit more. I use a digital pen to draw with in photoshop and compose it all in CorelDraw. My plan is to update every week, probably on the weekends like today. It all depends on what's going on.
Enjoy & Survive!

Smithee number two updates

I was at a thrift store yesterday and happened upon a book called "pride and prejudice and zombies". In it were some very nice old style pen and ink illustrations. I have been trying to decide upon the exact style to do my Smithee #2 in. I think I would like to go for the pen and ink style. I did the above picture in that style to get used to it. Are we badass zombie hunters or what?! Doing it in B&W style like this would also make it possible to get them printed thru KaBlam cheaper than if they were color - should I want to go that extreme route. For right now I still want to print them myself. But I questimate there will be around 50 cells or more to cram into a book. That's alot more than Smithee #1.
I went back and bought that book for inspiration.

Smithee number two updates

Last week I got together with Billy (known as Garvin Lee in this world) to take pictures for the were-wolf story.
I bought a stuffed dog a a prop for him to hold. He wore this military jacket he bought off somebody cheap for the medals and insignias. He had never tried it on before. It fit like it was made for him! I took some shots using a timer of ten seconds. He is always a fun person to work with and he goofed around for 9 of those seconds, then do the pose on 10 every time. I love to work with him cause he is an excellent actor and gives me expressions I could never make up in my imagination.
I have been doing my Plutonium cartoons in Corel. I started this one in Corel, but it just wasn't feeling like what I wanted to do. So I got out typing paper and sketched and inked these. It was more fun this way. Can't say I'm that great at hand drawn cartoons yet. I'm more of a life drawing or illustration kinda artist. I work better from real life. Cartooning is a whole nuther skill. But I won't learn it unless I do it. So, here I share the result to be done with it already!

Sample smithee 2 panel and THE GRIND

I spent the past couple days doing some test drawings for Smithee #2. I tried vector art, but while it was clean, it didn't convey the expressiveness I want. So I went back to doing a freehand pencil, then a sharpie inking. After recovering from the Sharpie fumes, I like it. Here is a sample - straight from the sketch book with some basic photoshop coloring.

In other news, I went to a meeting of the local art guild monday. I'm thinking of joining. See, I like comics and sketching, but also fine art. Fine arts is a different world though. There is just a different feel. Hard to put my finger on.
People can bring a piece of their work to the meetings and put it up on easels to share with everyone else. There was an oil of a lion's face, a ghostly pastel on black paper of a bulldog, some pencil sketches artistically taped to a piece of plan ol box cardboard, making a statement about homeless children, and other art of the like. I tagged along with a gentlemen who is a chef and goes to art classes. He presented an abstract colored pencil sketch that was nice.

I talked with the chef. I pointed out us artists that have good jobs have an advantage in that we don't have to have money stress take away from our art. When I was unemployed, it took ALOT to let go of the basic need for survival and do art. But at the same time, I did some meaningful drawings at the time. Such as this etching I did expressing
 my sense of how the grind of a monotonous 40 hr week job can feel like a grind that chews up your heart and soul.This was back in 2010 after 3 months of unemployment. I must say having an interesting life after work makes work less of a grind since your soul has other avenues to express itself without total dependency on your 'day job'.
Anway, I want to join the guild, but finances are tight this month, so I'm postponing till next month. They say members get display space in gallery's. It would be a thrill to show at a gallery, almost as much as having my own table at and an APE or Mocca convention!

Smithee number two mitten selling warewolf preview

Here are the VERY rough story outline sketches for Smithee Zombie Hunter #2 about a mitten selling ware-wolf. It's like a preview of my progress. I wrote out a script to work out the plot and what happens. Now I draw out quickie sketches for pacing, expressions and poses in pencil. If you can't read my handwriting - the way this goes is I finish a mitten and toss it into the cage I had Billy stay in overnight while I discerned if he was going to go wolf or not. He doesn't think it's funny and when I begin to close it, he points a gun at me and tells me he will kill me if I ever do that again! Then Smithee says "see if I ever knit for you again! Or kill blood thirsty , longhaired, bad smelling, mitten selling warewolf things while keeping you caged up so you don't turn warewolf during the full moon when warewolves power up and kill their room-mates!". I'll probably edit that line down in the final. Enjoy

Werewolfs in mittens

I am working on Smithee Zombie Hunter zine #2. It's about a ware-wolf that sells mittens and how Smithee saves the day while keeping the bitten-Billy locked up in a cage! Will Billy turn ware-wolf and kill everyone in sight or at the least become a VERY noisy neighbor?
So, I've been drawing werewolves to get a feel for what I want it to look like. This is one from my note book - not at all meant to be serious. Hope you like it anyway.
It isn't easy writing a comic, but it sure gives me something to smile about when I wake up in the morning - feeling like - finally, I'm doing something I really love to do with my life!
Mittens alludes to learning how to make yarn from dog (or wolf) fur.Billy is complaining about the cold and wants some mittens.And there is this ware-wolf that attacked him in the process....

Back from the dead!

Getting a job was more difficult than being without one, let me tell ya!When I finally started to get back on my feet and facing life, I also had to  face the BILLS!!! Big bad snarling stinky bills I shoved to the back until I could summon the courage to face their menacing threats! And when I did, one had gotten more vicious whilst it hid in the dark. Bills do that, they get more deadly when they are ignored.

I was able to draw while unemployed, and even after getting employed ( a little), but what knocked the wind out of my sails was one bill in particular. It took a week of fretting and early morning phone calls to put it to rest. And I kind lost my heart for art for awhile. Now I'm trying to climb out of that dark hole and back into art.

I'm toying with the idea of a diary comic, once a week posting. I'll see if I want to stick with that kind of commitment. If I do, here they will be.

Look out - he has a cook book!

There ya go. My first full page panel! I had absolutely no idea what it was going to be about before I did it. It kinda has to do with the fact I have been baking cookies on my car dashboard for the fun of it. Chocolate chip. I use a black ceramic bowl covered with saran wrap. It cooks about 8.5 hours. They are cooked all the way. But don't leave them too long after they cool. They get very hard. Otherwise, they are great!

Pure Zombie Hunter

OK. So here is the deal. I want attention!
Here I am out there hunting zombies all daylong, I have this blog, and all I put up is my doodles. You read the blog title and think zombie hunting comic. So where are the comics already?
Let's be honest, I have a real tough time drawing from imagination. So did Norman Rockwell. But, if I am realistic and patient with myself, maybe I can improve. So, Ill give it a shot and see if I can draw anything comprehensible. I do far better drawing from life. Cartooning might look simple, but it tougher than you think! Simplicity can be one of the greatest expressions of real skill.
My journey thru art has been rough. I don't know what is realistic to expect of myself. I had a mother who could draw PERFECT characters from imagination, and still thought she had no talent at all. It's humbling to have to work at it so hard when it was effortless for her. But it is also a journey thru myself as it reveals what I'm made of, my limitations and insecurities.
It is tough finding my own voice. My own place. And figuring out if my work means anything. I figure if anything I'll have a nice 'body of work' to leave my family who doesn't talk to me. It sure would be nice to find people in the here and now who get something from what I do.
I tried sharing my talent today when I got a baby shower card to sign for someone. I took a chance and did a cartoon baby saying "mom. enjoy your baby shower!" I don't think God gave me my talents to keep all to myself and not share with others. So, why not? Though it makes me squirm to think how it makes me stand out from the other folks who signed with the regular trite greeting card lines.

Hello and welcome fellow Zombie enthusiasts! This is the home of my innane ramblings and superficial attempts at meaning. As well as share my twisting odessy into comic publishing, and some of my free spirited attempts at sketching just for the pleasure of it.
It began with those plentyfull Christmastime full color flyers with all kinds of pretty people.
well, it goes further back, about 2 years back.

I have B&W survallence cameras and wondered to myself if I was in a survival world, or say back in the 1800's, could I make color pictures? Kind of like Doc made ice in the wild west in one of the back to the future movies. So I reasoned it out, did some research, and took some pictures with 3d glasses for filters and took the pics into photoshop and messed around. and to my amazement, color pictures from B&W!! Then I took my fantasy further and wondered if I could publish without a real press, with just crude tools? Instantly it came to mind the kind of pictures I have always loved in told books.
You know, before half-tones came to be where tonality was done thru lines. That always captivated me. But how did they do that? Can I do that?
They did it by taking a needle and etching lines in copper plates and printing them. Hmmm.
what about plastic plates?
Well, I came upon a large supply of cheaply framed posters thrown away with plastic sheets covering them, and the quest was on! It was quite a struggle to get it to work. I very nearly gave it up. I decided one last attempt and took a chance and got some Akua color itaglio ink and hesitantly tried it. And lo, it worked!
Over the next year I did etching after etching. I soon made my own press from a metal rollar and a clipboard along with some padding - since that's all an intaglio press it. And it has worked nicely and I have shaved down a clipboard in the process and had to get another.
I eventually moved to doing 4 and 5 colors. But after a year, I was looking for something different. Then the Christmas flyers started coming out, and I was intrigued to try drawing some people. So after doing a bikini lady, I got the idea it might be fun to do a bunch of etchings and make a comic!
With the help of some supportive friends, I arrived at the Zombie hunting theme.
I created a couple characters and layed out a couple comics. But I wanted to get my feet wet and just put out a Zine incorporating the characters and my methods for making color pics from B&W. I have them for sale on Etsy for a mere $2.00!
http://www.etsy.com/people/CalvinTheEtcher.
So far those who have read it have liked it. It is also in the Las Vegas Zine Library.
Feel free to stop by my store and tell me what you think!