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.

 

Skulls and Paper

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I'm still furiously plugging away at getting Smithee ready for print! Garvin had the idea of making a variant limited edition cover, so I made that. I made the actual How-To-Spin-Yarn instructions that will ONLY be found in the print edition. I figured out how to layout the pages in the correct order for printing. Plus, throw in a couple traumatic (to me) dental appointments involving a double root canal to make for unproductive days recovering, and here we are.

I just happened to pick up a free comic day reprint of the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from the quarter drawer and was reading the saga of in the intro of how that came to be and got ramped up all over again to be publishing my little survival tome. In my book, I want not only to appeal to Zombie fans in general, but also to those looking for real life information that could theoretically be used in the event of needing to know this stuff.

 Speaking of real life - and diatomaceous earth - I have a new theory as to why it messed up my dog. In studying bladder stones in dogs, it seems that when the urine PH becomes alkaline, it promotes stones. And wouldn't you know it, that stuff alkalizes the PH of urine. Plus, part of her home-made diet was sweet potatoes -which are high in Oxalate's (stone forming material), not to mention a home-made diet rich in vegetables can also be alkalizing. Little did I know! To compensate, I give her vitamin C and Cranberry pills to tip the balance back towards acidic.

Nuclear War Survival Skills

 

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I Found this nifty free guide to share with you all. Something Smithee wishes he had! Smithee cares about YOU'RE survival, so he shares this link with you all.

If you're new to my blog,click HERE to go to the start of the Ware-Wolf story.
Enjoy and SURVIVE!

Time To Die!!

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Billy can be temperamental, but this time he really might have a screw loose!
In other news, I have thought about it and I'm going to split this ware-wolf story into 2 issues so it can go to print sooner. Plus, I have signed up for a table in artists alley at the upcoming Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival on 11-3-2012,  which is held at the Clark County Library on 1401 E. Flamingo Rd. and I want to be certain to have a book ready since Garvin said he would be there if I had a new book finished. I mean you would want to meet the man who inspires the character of Billy wouldn't you? Garvin Lee is an independent film actor who is actually on IMDB. This will be my first time tabling and I'm both really excited and really intimidated. Though, I actually was behind a table once back in the 90's at a Trek Convention where a buddy was trying to sell Enterprise phones. Never sold one, but I met someone who actually was a Borg and I won the costume contest with my Borg costume. So, we didn't make a dime, but it was a blast!

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!

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!