Indy Comic Book Week: Update 07

Hmm, well isn't this a little... ominous....

Solomon Azua: Full Preview

Full Preview for Solomon Azua. Available for 2.99 at local Dallas retailers and select stores nationwide Dec 30th. Retailers, contact jakeekiss[at]gmail.com for ordering information.

Let me know what you think everybody!

Indy Comic Book Week: Update 06

Mmm, that looks an awful lot like a cover....

Indy Comic Book Week: Update 05

Indy Comic Book Week: Update 04

Who likes updates on wicked comics coming out soon? Everybody that's who! Couple of pages and a quick snapshot from my cover process on Solomon Azua. Hope you guys dig!

Indy Comic Book Week: Update 03

Crossposting from Indy Comic Week and Indy Comic Week blog

Not finished turnarounds per se, this is more me working up to them through a design. My Schedule for the book is rather precise, and because of that I'm front loading with all my design work and such to minimize problems in the drawing pages process.

Here I'm working out the design and flow of Cephalopod mechsuits. Mainly it's about finding the proper silhouette and sweep for the design, to keep the weird, alien element of an undersea creature, while still allowing it to convincingly travel on land.

This will be the first book where I upload my entire process from start to finish (probably including each stage of my pages) so I hope everyone digs it. Later in October when I'm working on pages proper I may even live cast while I work.

Ikati

Another piece for Aron Head.

Indy Comic Book Week: Update 02

Crossposting from Indy Comic Week and Indy Comic Week blog

Well, I said there'd be more character stuff coming. Today we've got June Vooday, companion to good ole' Sol throughout my story. Trying to keep a "lived in" sci-fi feel for the costumes and characters here. While I love outlandish sci-fi, and this book will definitely go there, I want the characters to have a rough edge to them.

Next time, VILLAINS!

Indy Comic Week: Update 01

Crossposting from Indy Comic Week and Indy Comic Week blog

Good day everyone! Since we've got a little over 3 1/2 months until Indy Comic Week I figured I'd start the ball rolling with updates. My name is Jake Ekiss and I'll be contributing a book called Solomon Azua. It's a Pulp sci-fi adventure tale starring the eponymous Solomon, otherwise known as the "luckiest man in the universe".

First post today will be turnarounds for my main character. I'll post stuff for the remaining cast as the week progresses and eventually I'll start uploading layouts and pages for everyone to preview. Thanks for looking, and I can't wait to see what everyone else brings to the table.

Snowcrash

So recently I started reading the novel Snowcrash, and thus far I love it. The impetus for this (other than it having been on my read list for awhile) is that I've taken on a side project doing conceptual work for a 3-D project that uses the book as a base. Therefore, here's a little of what's gone into that project.

Your skies aren't falling, they're just changing color...

This is going to be a long post. If you're not into reading, skip. I won't mind.

So, everyone has heard about Disney and Marvel. It's the hot news. It also seems to be the hot new thing to start panicking over. There's been a lot of this in recent months over this or that.. the encroachment of manga into the mainstream, the encroachment of comics into the mainstream, the trend from Hollywood to comics and vice versa, the changing demographics, the Diamond order minimums, motion comics, the death of print, the decline of the local comic shop, on and on.

I work in comics. That's my job. It's the best job in the world.

Every day I wake up and draw for 8-12 hours and then go to sleep. Every couple of weeks I get a cool paycheck for that drawing. I make a living from comics.

Why can't I manage to get scared or panicked or freaked over any of this news while so many others are losing their shit?

I think it's because honestly, sincerely, truly, I believe comics are going through an amazing time right now, and that not only are guys like me and fans like you all going to be fine, but in the long run this medium we love will actually look back at this time as a rennaisance. No, really. I actually think that. No shit.

I know; change is scary. It's really, really scary. As I get older, as I work more in this field, as I recall my time as a fan for the past 20 years though, I can't be as worried about those changes today as I could five years ago. I've talked to too many people, made too many friends in this industry, and made too much headway myself to think that pessimistically anymore.

I look at the Marvel/Disney merge and you know what I see? I see potential. I look at Disney, a company who has been successful and known for putting out quality products aquiring and supporting another entity that does the same. I remember that 15 years ago Disney bought Miramax and because of this films like Clerks 2, Kill Bill, The Crow, Pulp Fiction, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Trainspotting and more made it into my theater. I remember nearly the same time when Disney introduced us all to a little company called Pixar, formerly known for tech demos at computer shows, as a creative and imaginitive force on par with the original Walt Disney himself with their movie Toy Story. I look back and see that this quality hasn't diminished. I see that Pixar can still build a movie so resonant that it has me next to tears within the first five minutes (literally, with UP), I see that even this year Miramax is putting out films I still want to see (Doubt).

I look at Marvel and think "wow, what awesome things could I see with the added support of Disney?" Could I get a Pixar version of Hpward the Duck or Pet Avengers? How about a low budget Miramax of some 3rd tier Marvel characters like Luke Cage and Iron Fist that would normally never see the light of day, much like an offbeat little movie I love called Lookout? How about some decent Marvel toys for once? Wouldn't all that be awesome? That's what I see, what I hope for. And if I don't get it, I'm not blaming the company who historically plays hands off with it's holdings, I'll blame the guys in charge of those holdings, the same guys that already give me both good and bad comics.

Yeah, I said it, Marvel already produces some great, and some bad books. Overall, I never see that changing. Never. There will always be a stinker in the pile for every gem.

So what about comics moving into the mainstream, the manga invasion, the "fangirl invasion", the Hollywood crossovers and such. What about those? I should surely be worried, right? No, still good news to me.

All those say to me are that comics are finally the "it" thing. they're accepted.. by everybody, and that's awesome. After years of wishing I could be a geek in public, I finally can be and everyone's out there with me. It also tells me that comics are changing, growing, gaining new readers, young and old, and that they are being forced to deal with new stories, new perspectives from the foreign market, new ideas. Y'know what? That's all really cool. Maybe in ten years time I can pick up a book produced in America about chess and the growing up of a kid like I can in Japan. Maybe it'll be on the best seller rack. Maybe it will actually be really fucking good. Maybe it'll give me a new perspective on life the way the best comics and books from my childhood did. Maybe it'll only get the chance because of how the market is changing today.

New ideas, new people, new perspectives are only scary until you sit down and spend some time with them. then you realize they aren't always so scary. Sometimes they're actually pretty neat and enlightening.

People are worried about the death of print, the advance of motion comics and the digital age, the cost of print comics rising. Man, nothing but blue skies, I'm telling you now. You know what new tecnology does? It provides innovative opportunity. I hate to lift from a fellow comic philosopher, but when Scott McCloud talks about the "infinite canvas" that digital provides he's talking about some compelling stuff. There's a whole new twist to our medium. It's like the shift from the Gutenberg press to the modern digital and four color printers. Who knows where it'll go, what it will add to our art? Who knows what kinds of new stories people will manage to tell? And you know what will happen to the papaer books? They'll become valued artifacts. They will become like prized personal possessions that cannot be replaced. By their very nature more solid, more concrete, more real than the digital media that immitate them. Put it this way, if vinyl were dead, then why do several of my friends own new turntables? Why do new bands still put out music in that format? If film is dead, why would any director/photographer still be using it? If photoshop is around, why does anybody still bother usign oil?

So maybe all we have left to worry about is the Diamond orders and the shrinking number of independant comic shops, and the growing comic isle in places like Borders. Y'know what? Still a lot of good news to be had. The local comic shop is changing, and what once was an outlet for the mainstream books is now more and more becoming a haven for the independant creator. I know this because my local shop (Titan in case anyone is asking) supports me in ways that are invaluable and I've never touched a sheet of Marvel blue line in my life. In ten years time the comic shop might very well be the equivalent to the local music scene, a place where you go to see what will be the talk of the town in five years time. Borders brings the mainstream books to the masses, and the local shops can bring the indy scene to the fans. Pretty wicked.

And those Diamond order hikes and the skipped week in distribution? Good times, my friends. It means even the best of us need to step up our games, become even better, to get where we want to go. What a great motivator to get involved and do some self improvement in your art, eh? And you know what? Now that the monopoly on distribution isn't looking as iron clad other distributors might step in and start making plays. Maybe some book publishers will make larger strides into the market opening up new opportunities. Maybe some on demand publishers will start bundling distribution to get local indy work out to a larger audience. The possibilities are staggering.

I know, no change is 100% good or 100% bad, but I feel we as fans, as humans, tend to fear more than hope in a lot of cases, particularly when change is made to something we already like. We fear that the thing will get worse, never considering that change provides equal chance of a good thing getting better. Maybe I'll get labeled a starry eyed idealist, a dreamer and a naive little such and such, but it wouldn't be the first time, and my starry eyed idealism got me this far...

...did I mention I work in comics? It's my job. It's the best job in the world.

And it just keeps getting better.

Chimpy, colored at long last...

So I just got myself a Cintiq this week and tonight finally set it up with some assist from a friend. Decided to give the thing a whirl and see just how fast I could color something in my typical style (medium level, not super simple, not stupid detailed). Time clocked: 45mins flat from B&W to full color.

Hot-damn. I love this thing.

Indy Comic Book Week

Reposted from my man Luan

The other week Diamond Comic Distributors announced to comic shops that Diamond will not be shipping comics on the last week of December. That means on Wednesday, December 30th, there will not be any new comics on the shelf of your local comic shop. There has been some talk about Diamond's firm hold on the comic distribution industry, but I want to look past that and look at the opportunity this creates for small publishers and local comic book creators. This is a perfect storm that opens up those new release shelves for the independent community. We don't have to be set aside to the small publisher shelf for once and can stand tall in the spots that the big, national publishers usually take. Not only is this an opportunity for creators, it's a great opportunity for the reader as well. Instead of picking up their usual books, they can check out something new, different, and most likely something local.

So, I'm putting forth this idea to the comic book community. Let's turn "No Comic Book Week" into "Indy Comic Book Week". Creators, let's step up and put those books together. This is our chance to show the world that our books and creations can stand strong on those shelves as well as any major publication. It doesn't have to be a 22-page full color affair; it can be a small black-and-white ashcan. But it has to be new, it has to be a product of your own creation, and it has to be awesome. Then talk to your local comic shops about putting your book on those shelves for the week of December 30th. Comic book readers, go to your local comic shops and tell them you want to see "Indy Comic Book Week" on the new release shelves. Tell them you want to see something new and different on those shelves. Comic book retailers, show some support for your local creators by filling those new release shelves with great indy books and hopefully open up your patrons to something new that they would not have read otherwise.

Let's get the news out there guys. For you twitters out there, use the hashtag #indycomicbookweek to show your comics, your progress shots, and your support for creators and comic shops. This is a great opportunity so let's step up and get it done!

DCC Sketch

So at this past Dallas Comiccon I was finally able to make a contribution to Josh's mad science sketchbook. Really happy to have laid this one down.

Los Rapidos y El Dia de los Muertos

And the colors.

Spaghetti

So my Lady Fair and I were talking about westerns the other day, in particular the Quick and the Dead by Sam Raimi. This lovely piece was the result. Didn't get any shots of the pencils, but colors will be coming soon.

Atlanta Trip

The Space-Gun kru and I (minus our man Warlick, due to him being a pro badass) spent the last 6 days or so in the Atlanta area visiting the fellas at Gaijin Studios and bumming around town. While there we also ran into a number of other artists, friends and cool folks, all of whom made the trip psitively awesome.

While there we also took in some of the sights. The local comic store, Oxford, is pretty sweet, and conjures images of a larger BCS Books and Comics from College Station. We also checked out Binders, an art store that is truly mind blowing. I found everything I could want there, including some stuff I didn't know existed. Truly, I wasn't jealous of the Atlanta folks until I saw that art store. In addition to that we had a run of good eats, everything from wings at Wild Wing Cafe to burgers (lossely speaking, they were more like mountains of awesome than burgers) at the Vortex.

In addition to all that, the guys and I got to have an up close look at three different studios in the Atlanta area: Gaijin, Revolver, and Radical Axis. It's not often you get to have such unfettered access to great inspiration, and I feel turly privlaged that the folks from these studios let us poke around. Particular thanks go to Tom, Casey, and Sam, who showed us around even on short notice and tight scheduling. As for the folks over at Gaijin, I can't say enough. That place felt like home while we were there. We got to draw at the figure class (a real treat) and bum around with some of best people in comics.

For a week long visit I think we managed to fit in a year's worth of good times and I really hope we can get to do it again sooner rather than later. In the meantime though, Thanks again to everyone at Gaijin, the aforementioned Revolver and Radical Axis fellows, Dwight and Swain, Tony and Sarena, and anybody I missed or don't have the time to list (we sure saw a lot of people didn't we?). Thank you all for making us feel welcome.

In summation, the Space-Gun trip to Atlanta: wicked!

All work and no play...

I've been working most of the day and since I'm on a break I decided I should maybe update my journal since it's been a couple of weeks. I hate updating without art so I figured a small sample of what I've been doing should suffice.

Man, I've done more pages in the past month and a half than I did all last YEAR. Since May 1st (minus two weeks of sickness) I've penciled, inked and colored somewhere in the neighborhood of 34-38 pages. That's about two pages a day for four weeks straight. Suffice to say, I'm really exhausted. And I still have about 30 pages yet to be finished (though thankfully a third of that is drawn).

Y'might notice from that sample that these pages are handled a little... differently than my Legendary pages. That's mainly because the deadline I'm under is stupid tight. It's a deadline I fought against to get more time but that's another story. Suffice to say I'd like to live off my art and occasionally you've got to take a process or creative hit to keep the paychecks coming. Contrary to what many starving artists like to tell themselves it's the only way not to starve until you gain enough of a following. The company supports you before the fans I should say.

ANyway, take all that as a brief cautionary warning about overcommiting yourself. If you need time to do something, fight for it. Always fight for it. You might not always win, and that can hurt, but if you're not fighting for what you need you'll never get it. The good news is that my next deadline should be much more lax allowing me to either put a lot more time into the pages, or crunch equally hard to get to my own book sooner. Decisions decisions. Anyway, my break is up so I'll leave you with this little diddy inspired by the late Douglas Adams: time is an illusion, bedtime doubly so.

Later cats and kittens. I'm out.

Legendary Colors

And finally the colors are done. Hope you guys like!

Legendary Inks

So a little while back this cat named Matt Schuler (aka Cosmic Pencil on the Drawing Board forums) contacted me and the SG kru asking if we'd like to contribute to his proposed anthology Legendary. The idea sounded quite groovy and so I of course agreed. I ended up writing a story for Evan and then writing and drawing my own story as well. I should say I wrote my story and then started drawing, very very slowly. What with the recent full time work I've taken far too long to get these pages to Matt but I didn't want to give him lousy work and the story meant something to me so I ended up fittingit in whenever I knew I could spend some time on it. I'm putting the finishing touches on the colors now, but in the meantime I figured I'd upload the inks. Go check out the link to the Legendary blog. Matt's got some great guys working on the book and he deserves everybody's support.