Character Designs - Ashley - Part Two

Ashley in Colour
Ashley's Expression Sheet
Ashley's Head Turn

Ashley's Turn Sheet

Here's the last of the character designs for Ashley. This is all finalized work from the rough - The turn sheet, the head turn, the expression sheet, and the colour. I did these on slightly bigger sketchbook paper - 9X12, save for the colour which I did in my regular sketchbook because the paper was better for colours. They're in non-photo blue with mechanical pencil for the lines, and the colour was done with gel pens, prismacolour markers, and prismacolour pencil crayons.

We'll start with the turn sheet. I do a different turn sheet for every outfit, depending on the variation. This one needed a full turn because it was completely different from the basic outfit I usually draw her in, but if the outfit changed by, say, she took off her hoodie and the only thing I needed to change was her shirt, same pants, I wouldn't do a full turn, just a half one of her waist up. Actually, this outfit does change a bit in the comic, with addition of a life-jacket, which I did just a rough sketchbook turn for. But I'll show that with the other extras. Most animation turns require a three quarter front and back as well, or in place of the full front and back. I prefer to do the fulls because I think they cover more, without any unecessary extras. Plus, drawing the full back is hard, and practice makes perfect. I start with a basic front sketch, then add in my horizontal lines when I'm sure it's the size and placement I want. I do the rest based on those lines, and make changes along the way until it's perfect. This is probably not a good system, as it involves a lot of eyeballing, but it works for me.

Next I do the head turn, which is pretty much the same. I start with my basic sketch, then do the horizontal lines, then follow them for the rest and make changes. With the head turn I do a three quarter shot instead of a full back or a three quarter back. I do this because I think three quarters for the face is especially important, since it's what you see so much, and because for a character like Ashley, the back of the head is very simple and doesn't really need a close-up. I got it pretty much down with the full body turn. If a character has something important or complicated on the back of their head, then I'd show it. I always have rougher sketches of stuff like that if I need them. I also have roughs of her right profile as well, because there's some difference with her bangs and earrings on that side - she has only two pieces to her bangs and two earrings - if the character was the same on both sides I wouldn't bother.

I must confess - this expression sheet is actually old. I did this about a year ago, for a portfolio, and used it because my style hasn't changed much and I was happy enough with what I'd done. Everything else is new. My only gripe is that the drawings are small. Anyways, for most expression sheets in animation they require at minimum five basic expressions - neutral, happy, angry, sad, and surprised. I've of course done millions of expressions for Ashley, but these basic ones for a finalized sheet are good for me. I like to do expressions as warm ups or when I can't think of anything else to draw, starting with these five and variating from there. I'll probably end up doing another sheet for Ashley in the future, I'm never happy with these for long.

And finally the colour. I'm not sure how necessary this was, but I like to have coloured models around just in case. She'll most likely appear in colour in the cover so it'll be usefull then. I just do a basic neutral standing pose and expression. This also helps to give me a solid idea of the texture and details of her outfit, things that might get missed in turn sheets, since they're mostly about shapes. This wonderfully highlights my constant struggle to find the perfect colours for jeans. I wanted these jeans to look old and faded, I think I did a solid job. I'm happy with them.

So that's it for Ashley. Next, the same things except for Daimon, the other main character. Thanks!

Production Art 1 - Character Design Roughs - Ashley

(Ashley Roughs)
(More Ashley Roughs)
(Ashley Costume Roughs)

Hi! The first thing I do after roughing out my comic is production art - character designs, location designs, object designs, and anything else that needs designing, as well as shade testing. I think most people do this before starting any comic stuff at all, but I prefer to wait until I have my pages roughed and script finished because that gives me a better idea of exactly what I'll need to be designing. Of course, you should always have a good idea (a finished, sketched idea) of what your main characters, locations, etc should look like before you start the comic.

I started with characters because I like character designing, and because I already had a lot of stuff already for these characters, all I really needed to do was costume design. I'll show you the base designs for this character next week, this week I'll just show my rough plans. I did these in my sketchbook, with minimal reference. Just enough for the clothes. I've been drawing this character for such a long time that I don't use much reference for her when I'm just doing basic stuff. For clothes and outfits, I like to use Polyvore.com It's good for really simple outfits like this one, but not very useful for more creative stuff, and any kind of mens clothing.

My characters have "default outfits" that I use for art and pin-ups, and when I run out of ideas. But I try not to have them wear the same clothes all the time. I think first of the environmental requirements when designing an outfit. For this one, we're going to be in a lake on a cloudy day. So it would probably be cold and damp. But not too cold, since it's not winter or fall, so no coats. So that leads me to a basic hoodie and pants. Ashley is a very basic character when it comes to outfits. She has personal touches, (like the belt) but is overall pretty usual, which makes finding reference for her easy, since all I have to do is go to the mall. She's the type who always wears jeans, so jeans were a must for the pants.

Finally I had to pick shoes. That's where you see the most variation on the sketches. Ashley usually wears converse shoes, (or at least they look like converse. I'm not a logo person.) but I thought they might be a little too thin for walking around damp forest. Also, they looked a little strange with the way her jeans flared out - the way they scoop back in makes her jean bottoms drag on the ground, which would get them wet and muddy, and I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about. UGH. So I also considered putting her in boots - I came up with a really basic boot design when I was doodling a winter outfit for Ashley. After some reference, I found the design I had looked a lot like UGGs... UGH. But, it fits well enough. I imagine these of course being a much better version, with good soles and warm fuzzy insides and you get the picture. And I stuck the tops of her jeans in her boots, like she would in winter. I ended up liking this a lot better, so it was the one I went with.

I also did a quick extra sketch of what Ashley would be wearing under her hoodie - not necessary but I like to know, just in case. The rest of the little details, like the stripes on her hood and the roundness of her belt buckle were just last minute things I added in to differentiate this outfit from her other ones.

Once I knew which outfit I wanted, I did a couple pages of rough Action Sketches to test her out. I did this to get a feel of how she moves in this outfit, and what she looks like in it, to see if it really suited her. It's like when you see something you love in a store that seems totally you, and then you put it on and its all wrong. Characters have that too! I stuck with fairly basic action poses, and tried to add some in from the thumbnail panels. I tried to get a variety as well - Action doesnt always literally mean... well, action. It basically means dynamic, interesting, with personality. Not Neutral Standing Poses. So I got some of her moving, but also sitting, and standing with attitude.

The outfit came out fitting like a charm. I could imagine exactly how she would move in it in my head, and the only thing I had doubts about - the boots, came out great. They reminded me of the boots all the characters had in How to Train Your Dragon, how huge and fuzzy they were and they just stomped in them. I really loved that.

Next, I moved on to finalizing my clean designs - my turn sheet, expression sheet, and head turn. But, I'll save that for next time! Thanks!

Ogopgo - Rough Pages 2

Here are the rest of the rough pages from the Ogopogo story. Hope you like them!

Here are the rough pages for the Ogopogo story.

After I finish a script the first thing I do is make rough pages. They are exactly what they sound like - rough, thumbnail versions of the final comic in it's entirety. I use them purely for planning everything out - what the panels look like, how they're arranged, what's in them, where word balloons go, everything. I also use them to decide what size word balloons need to be and what dialogue goes in them. They are SUPER simple, I use only quick gesture drawings, sometimes just stick figures, and do everything in pencil on cheap paper.

Once I finish with those I go back and edit them. Sometimes I redraw, erase and add in stuff. I add in little notes about panels for details I need to remember, but don't need to add into the thumbnail. Everything goes on the thumbnail before it goes on the final page. The scans I'm showing you now aren't even final, they still need to be edited again based on the production art.

Sorry about the images not being in order. I've been having some image problems with blogger, which apparently a lot of other people have been having too, and I had to switch to the old editor, which I'm still figuring out.

Thanks!

Announcement - The Book is Done!

((This was actually posted on my tumblr on Saturday. Sorry it took so long to get here.))

 

It’s done.

I just made the facebook post and now I’m posting here. I feel like screaming it from the rooftops, but its damn cold out and I dont know how to get to the roof anyway, so the internet will have to do.

I’ve finished my book.

Well, it still needs to be edited, and it’s only a first draft. But its a novel. It’s a whole book that people can read. It’d be really crappy if you read it right now but like, you could. It’s finally finished.

I posted about this a little awhile back, when I finished the third part, or maybe it was the second. I broke it up into four parts so that I could go piece by piece, and it made it easier to manage the story. I celebrated everytime I finished a part, usually by baking myself something like cupcakes or brownies. This time I’ve decided to get a cake. I cant bake because I have no oven but yeah. I dont know when Ill do that, maybe tomorrow but probably next weekend as I’ve got homework. For tonight I have a chocolate bar. Yes I love sweets and goddammit I deserve them because I wrote a fucking book.

Oh my god, it feels so good to say that. I’m saying it outloud as I type this. I wrote a book. Theres so much difference between that and “I’m writing a book,” or, “I’d like to write a book.” In my case, three years difference. I think it was three years. I cant remember how many times I started and stopped, then went back and rewrote. I cant remember how long it was between the first chapter and the next, and all the other little breaks in between. The first part was the longest. The second part also long. Third flew by like nothing. Fourth… a bit of both.

I first came up with the idea when I was in eighth grade. I wrote my first book in seventh grade. Well, it was really more of a novella. And it sucked. Lets just leave it at that. I had ideas for other books, but none of them were anything like this one. When I came up with it I didnt want it to be a book at all, I wanted it to be a comic. I still do. Thats actually what I have to do once the editing on this is done, make a comic script. I can do both of course come on. I made a little comic at the end of the year, and everyone loved it. And the idea never left.

People get ideas and they grow out of them. They come up with new stuff. Or maybe they dont. I didnt. And I hope I never do. Its changed so much since then. Oh jeeze, originally I wanted a horror-comedy series, kind of like a sitcom. hooboy. Now it’s an EPIC (thats right i said it. its epic.) fantasy adventure horror romance action series for teens. Um… I have a bit of trouble with genres. It’s changed because I’ve changed. I grew up with it. It kept me sane as a teenager and now it defines my life in so many ways.

I have other ideas for stories, which might be better than this one, who knows. But this is my first. It means more to me than anything. I cant describe truly… I hope I gave you a bit of an idea in the splooge above. And no doubt theres so many spelling and grammar mistakes youll wonder how im a writer at all.

The name of my series is My Guardian Demon. The first book is called Sympathy for the Devil.

Ogopogo - An Afterword

  Alright, a few more things now that you've read everything. Actually, considering the way this blog is set up you're probably reading this first, in which case, scroll down and read the explanation and then the stories first.

Once again: Thank you! For reading, critiqueing, etc. You can get back to me here, through Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or by E-mail. Feel free to make a public or private message, I don't care. Please try and remember that even though I do have an ego and appreciate it being stroked, I'm not just fishing for compliments. I want a critique. If you don't wanna give one then that's fine, any feedback is better than none.

Ok, enough seriousness. If you want to know more about Ogopogo, here are the links I used for my research:

Ogopogo Monster

Stories of Ogopogo

Ogopogo Quest

Ogopogo, Real or Myth?

  You can also find some cool videos on Youtube if you just search for "Ogopogo." And by cool I mean videos of waves in a lake and people freaking out. It's pretty hilarious. This is of course just a small part of the research I did, but that other stuff is kind of boring. Of course if you want to know more about Lake Okanagan and Harpoon Guns, let me know!

      Hopefully soon I'll be posting my comic thumbnails, and then after that my production art. I'm kind of using this as a way to document my process, so I know what's worked and what hasnt for the future. Feel free to critique that as well. I apologize for the sketchy updates, but school is pretty brutal. Once again, thanks for reading!

And Ogopogo Was His Name - Script

Ogopogo

By: Leah Powell (2010)

[SETTING: Lake Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada. Midday. A grey day, looking like it should be raining but isn't. The sky is occasionally streaked with light but mostly clouded over. The lake stretches out, bordered by a fringe of trees. The lake is still and dark. In the distance there's a bridge that stretches across the lake. In the centre of this scene sits a boat. It's a small, cheap motorboat. Two figures sit in it, one of them looking out over the water.]

CAPTION: Lake Okanagan, Canada. The "Ogopogo" is a legend around here, the great snake in the lake. Everyone knows him even though he's never been seen. He's never attacked anyone... until now. That's why we're here.

[A teenage girl looks over the side of the little boat into the water, staring at her reflection. She's dressed casually with a lifejacket, with blonde hair and blue eyes, and a rounded figure. She looks bored.]

CAPTION: I'm Ashley Thorn.

[She turns back into the boat and looks to the other figure.]

ASHLEY: "Why do I have to wear a lifejacket but you don't?"

[The other figure is reading a large map that obscures his face.]

CAPTION: And this is Daimon.

[He lowers the map, revealing himself. He's a bit older than Ashley but still young. His skin and hair is pure white, and he wears black clothing. His hair is very messy and his eyes are huge and bright blue. On the right side of his head is a single black horn. He looks at her like the answer is obvious.]

CAPTION: My Guardian Demon.

DAIMON: "Because I am immortal, and you are not. And because you don't know how to swim."

[Daimon puts the map on the floor of the boat, getting down on his hands and knees with Ashley following.]

CAPTION: Yes, a demon, as in Hell and fire and evil. But also, a guardian, as in protecting and helping and well, kindness. Together, we solve the world's problems. Or at least we try to. Or we hope to. Someday. Right now we just handle the Supernatural problems.

[Daimon points to a spot on the map. We can see the markings of land next to it and the bridge not too far from it.]

DAIMON: "Right. Now, there's been some suspicious activity in this part of the lake." 

ASHLEY: "That's right next to the bridge. What kind of suspicious activity?"

DAIMON: [packing up the map.] "Annoyed nature spirits mostly. But!" [Raising a finger for emphasis] "Nature spirits don't get riled up for no reason!"

[Ashley looks at him doubtfully.]

CAPTION: Actually yes they do. They lose it when people litter near them, among other things.

[Daimon climbs up to the bow (front) of the boat and points enthusiastically over the side.]

DAIMON: "All right, so that should be over...this way!" [He looks back to her.] "Let's see what's there!"

[Ashley starts up the boat, still grumpy. They drive over to a little peninsula of trees and rocks, steering around it. They enter a circle shaped clearing of trees, rocks, mud, and the occasionally piece of wood. The boat slows down as they enter, everything is still and they take in the scenery.]

DAIMON: "What's that over there?" [Pointing]

[On a bank of rock there's what looks at first to be a pile of wood... but on closer inspection is actually a discarded boat, with wood panelling. It's a large, expensive yacht, freshly abandoned. It's crashed and broken but not deteriorated.]

ASHLEY: "It's a yacht. That's an expensive boat, who would just abandon it here?"

DAIMON: "Someone who wanted to get rid of it." [He smiles, excited.] "Someone with something to hide. Let's drop anchor and take a look."

[Ashley tries to lift the anchor but can't. Daimon steps in and kindly takes it from her, tossing it over the side. It splashes down and disappears into the dark water. Suddenly, the chain pulls taught roughly. Ashley and Daimon look curiously over the side. Bubbles pop up around the chain, first just a few, then more and more until the entire boat is surrounded, and the water is rough and choppy, rocking the boat back and forth.
    Ashley and Daimon hold onto each other to keep from falling, but it makes no difference as the boat is suddenly tossed up into the air, and they both go flying. They try to keep a hold of each other but get separated. Daimon reaches for Ashley but is stopped as something grabs onto him mid-air. Ashley lands on the yacht with a harsh thump, and the little boat crashes into the bigger one.
    Ashley pushes herself up to see what happened, and looks up in fear at a towering shadow of a great serpent - Ogopogo. Ogopogo does not look like the traditional sea-serpent; his body is hard like it's carved out of wood, with a cylindrical but still serpentine shape and a head like a tough helmet. It has two ram-like horns and spines on its back, and is covered in bright swirls and shapes like tattoos. Daimon hangs from one leg from its smiling mouth filled with sharp teeth.]

ASHLEY: "Daimon!"

DAIMON: "Don't worry about me! Just get to safe-"

[Daimon is tossed suddenly into the air by the serpent, who bites down as he falls back, and Daimon disappears behind the teeth.]

ASHLEY: "No!" [She grabs a log and throws it at the monster. It bounces helplessly off and Ogopogo turns curiously towards her. She throws another and it hits him in the snout.] "Gimme back my Guardian!"

[The monster moves closer to her, and Ashley quickly jumps behind the yacht, scared. As it gets close, something suddenly explodes inside its mouth, smoke and fire erupting from between its teeth. The monster recoils and spits Daimon out, but he grabs onto its snout and jumps onto its head, digging his claw-tipped fingers into its stone-like head. Ogopogo thrashes its head around in protest.]

ASHLEY: [looking up cautiously over the side of the boat] "Hold on! I'll help you!"

[Ashley looks desperately around. She climbs on top of the yacht and looks inside the driver's cabin. Inside, the interior is trashed, with beer cans and random fishing equipment tossed everywhere. She spies something under the driver's seat, something that looks vaguely like a gun. Ashley adjusts herself and climbs feet first into the cabin, grabbing the gun and climbing out the opposite window again.
    It's a harpoon gun - a big giant gun that shoots big giant arrows with rope attached to them. She climbs on top of the yacht again and aims it.
    Ogopogo continues to toss its head around, trying to toss Daimon off. It finally succeeds, and Daimon goes flying head first. He crosses his arms in preparation as the serpent opens its mouth to bite again and Ashley aims the harpoon...
    Daimon pushes a huge cloud of fire at Ogopogo, and the gun goes off, sending Ashley flying backward. The spear pierces the monsters neck, and it recoils to both attacks, roaring in anger.
    Daimon falls harmlessly into the water just before Ogopogo hits the water with a huge splash, pushing Daimon back to shore. The monster is still. Daimon climbs up out of the water and back to Ashley, who is lying down on top of the yacht, groaning in pain.]

DAIMON: "Are you all right?"

ASHLEY: "Yeah. Are you?"

DAIMON: "Fine. Just another day in the life." [He holds out his hand Ashley takes it and he helps her sit up.]

ASHLEY: [looking down at Ogopogo] "Is it dead?"

DAIMON: "No, just injured. Ogopogo is an old monster, that wound will be patched up in a few days. What was that thing you hit it with?"

ASHLEY: [looking at the gun] "A harpoon gun. They use them for whaling, not for catching sturgeon. Not something you usually find in a lake like this."

DAIMON: [picking up the gun] "Hmm. I'm sure authorities would love to see this, and find out whoever owns this fancy boat."

ASHLEY: "Then our work here is done?"

DAIMON: "I think it is."

[They look off into the distance, as the sky clears up a bit and sunlight starts to streak through the clouds.]

ASHLEY: "How are we going to get back?" 
   

END