The Day After Christmas

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Creating a Character, Finny and Wood

Today’s doodle is about Finny and Wood’s favorite part of Christmas – the short span of time after all the gifts are opened, but before the cleanup.

The Real Gifts of the Season

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Creating a Character, Daily doodle, Finny and Wood

I didn’t buy many Christmas gifts this year. This image is an exaggeration!

I’m trying to focus more on those truly important things – the real gifts of the season.

When I started to add color to this image, I realized I hadn’t settled on what colors Finny and Wood should be! So I cheated and gave color only to the gifts. (That’s supposed to be a bow on the end of Finny’s tail, but it just reads as a blob).

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it!

Late-Night Burgers and Fries

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Creating a Character, Finny and Wood, Journal

Last night was a fun evening, but I’m dragging myself this morning!

Last night I went to an open mic session at Club 99 in Nashua New Hampshire. It was lots of fun, and I got to see my best buddy perform in front of people for the first time in a very long time. There were some really excellent performers there, and everyone had a great time!

It’s good to get out of the routine, occasionally – but I don’t think I would end an evening with a burger and fries again. Next time, I plan to eat before I go!

The Big Blunder

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blog, Blogging, Creating a Character, Finny and Wood, Journal

I made a big blunder on the blog yesterday. I was in such a hurry to get my Finny and Wood drawing uploaded that I mistakenly called Wood Finny! So, I decided to use that mistake as an opportunity to reveal something about the human character in Finny and Wood. It turns out he’s a bit of a scatterbrain.

So Close, Yet So Far!

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Art, Creating a Character, Finny and Wood, Journal, Writing

Here is another post in my Finny and Wood series. For those of you who want to Follow Finny and Wood’s adventures, you can find them in the category called Finny and Wood in the side panel. You can also find them in the Creating a Character category, where I discuss my whole thought process for inventing these characters from day one.

I’m getting close to finishing my big deadline in the studio. I can see that golden egg, but there’s still a lot of work to do before I arrive.

Blogging Can Be a Wild Ride!

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Art, Creating a Character, Daily doodle, Finny and Wood

Today, my head was spinning – I had so many ideas that all I could think to create was an image showing how my head was spinning with ideas.

So many things have happened since I started blogging – I sold a piece of original art, four of my art prints were chosen to be on the set of the television show The Lying Game, and a few people in the blogging community have passed on some blog awards to my blog, just to name a few astonishing things. As soon as I finish my big deadline, I’m planning to spend some time fulfilling the lists of requirements that are a part of those blog awards. I’m really looking forward to that.

It’s been a wild ride since I started blogging!

Pressing the Restart Button

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Art, blog, Blogging, Creating a Character, Finny and Wood

 

Have you ever had the experience where you’ve made a great effort in a task, you’re about half way through it, and you realize you need to press the restart button? Today’s post is about that experience.

You’ve climbed the beanstalk only to realize you need to climb back down again and start over, because there’s something you missed the first time.

This is exactly where I am with my novel for kids. I thought I’d finished it, but I learned I need to press the restart button. This time, I hope to get it right.

One Month Blogging – Am I on the Right Track?

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Art, Creating a Character, Daily doodle, Journal, Writing

It’s been a whole a month since I started this blog, and I believe it’s beginning to develop an identity. I’m questioning whether I want to continue to develop yesterday’s cat into a full fledged character with story lines, similar to a comic strip. This would be a major challenge and a very long term project. I’m not sure if this blog is the right venue to explore that concept, so if anyone out there wants to see more of the cat, please leave a comment and let me know! I know yesterday’s image makes him look a little psychotic, but working through showing emotions and creating conflict are part of storytelling. Maybe I could post once a week with progress on the cat if anyone is interested, so that it doesn’t dominate the blog. If there’s anything else you’d like to see, please tell me. I see this blog as a conversation, so I’d like to know what keeps you coming back, or what you would like to see here.

It’s raining today, and it’s been gloomy outside for several days now. I felt the need to respond to that with a drawing today.

Creating a Character Step 2

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Art, Creating a Character, Daily doodle, Instant Gratification, Rough Sketch, Writing

Telling a story with a character usually involves at least two characters. It is the interactions between them that reveal their personalities. So I am beginning to define the cat. What are his traits? How does he interact with his human? Rather than answer everything at once, I’d like for those questions to be answered over time in a series of situations. I’m sure there will be inconsistencies as I go along, but every character has the potential for self-contradiction.

This is a first rough sketch. I’m beginning to define the cat’s personality, but I don’t have a strong sense of his human yet. I’m not quite sure what type of clothing she should be wearing, hairstyle, facial features. She’s going to need to go through some transformations, because all of these things give clues to her character. I need to begin making some decisions. This could be a very long process, so I’ll try not to bore with too much detail.

Since this will be a long term project, I felt like I needed some instant gratification today, and I made a quick drawing of dogwood. I’m not sure why I drew dogwood. Maybe it’s because I’m thinking of adding a dog to the cast of characters. Maybe his name will be Wood.

Creating a Character – Step 1

Tags

Art, Creating a Character, Daily doodle, Writing

I have to admit, I’m feeling a little lethargic after taking yesterday off. I went to see the movie The Help with a few friends yesterday. I’m not going to review it here, because I’m sure there are plenty of reviews across the internet, but I will say it was an excellent movie and well worth seeing.

I decided I wanted to add some humor into my posts occasionally. I thought of creating a character or cast of characters that I could return to again and again, sort of like creating a comic strip. I don’t have any solid ideas yet, but maybe it’s something that could evolve over time, and I could show my process in developing a long term project that involves telling a story. How is it possible to breathe life into a a character when starting from nothing more than a random scribble of a cat? The way I work in developing a project like that is to go step by step, building a little at a time and making corrections in the process. Developing an original character that behaves naturally and looks consistent over the course of a series of drawings is a huge challenge. But it appears the process has begun. Yesterday’s resting cat has woken up, and he’s thinking about where his imagination will take him.