Lona 6 is up!

Yes, I haven't forgotten you.

Go to lona.mildlymiffed.com and bookmark it. Heck, it's a Tumblr so you can be one of my followers.

Although, I have been thinking quite a bit about my format. One thing you may have noticed is that my panel spacing is very regular and, some of the images are repetitious. Also, lets be honest the lettering needs improvement, and I will probably have to clear up dialogue at some point.

Basically, what you are looking at is the first draft of the work. Just like a strictly written story, a comic book requires planning, editing and revising. While I have the entire outline in my head, and a lot of the visuals in my head, there are tons of things I can't do until I actually see the work.

I probably am not going to end up redoing much of the artwork. Unless there is a major inconsistency or something that just plane bugs me, I am not touching it. I will be making notes to myself about things to address when I am done (yes there will be a few things.)

What I am realizing is that any project this big, requires an iterative process. There are things I will not be able to really determine until I know the overall format of the printed work, such as panel spacing and arrangement, which are really easy to play with in the digital format, but must be logically laid if I am to ever print the thing.

Also, there are things I know I shouldn't completely commit to until I see the work as a whole. These are things like dialogue, lettering, any kind of visual effects, and panel tricks. I know I am trying to discuss some complex concepts in only a few lines per page, and I have to also tell a story. also, they have to go with the visuals, so it's kind of intimidating to just write a series of lines without them being fully integrated with the pictures. I will be taking some time this weekend, to flesh out more dialogue though. When I am done drawing the final panel, I will probably revise it all anyway. As for panel arrangement, and effects, that is something I kind of need to look at for the work as a whole. It's easier to see them after I have the images drawn, and like I said, those are really easy to play with in the digital realm, especially, when my images have four times the linear resolution as do the standard publishing format. (Always do everything in high res.) Like the visuals, I will be making notes to myself for each page, but I will not be doing serious revision until I can see the work as a whole.

Finally, lettering. I am getting better with every page, and with inevitably rewritten duologue, there is no point in jumping the gun, just to redo it twice. the long and the short of it is, that once I am done drawing the final page, I will have another couple of months of revisions before I will consider it done.

Ah, this is just a little different from a four page story or a one panel comic, that I do in a few days.