A Happy Accident
The last time I published a page was on June 21st, 2014 - The Summer Solstice. Now I’m posting another and it’s September 21st, 2014 - The Fall Equinox. Well actually that’s next Tuesday, but whatever.
I had no intention of it being this way, it just sort of happened. Generally speaking, I try to make one new page per month. Now, usually in the industry an entire comic book issue is completed and ready to go in one month. But this is with a writer, a pencil artist, a line artist, and a letterer - and they’re going at it like it’s their full time job, because... it is.
This isn’t my full time job. Not yet anyways.
Actually, “jobs” are why it’s taken three months - a whole season don’t you know - to make a new page.
I just changed career paths. I went from being what’s called a Visual Information Specialist to a Systems Administrator at a different company. It’s a pretty drastic change inspired by a desire for something new, financial concerns, and, well, boredom.
The only degree I have is in art. Then I have a really intensive education in computer animation. I thought, given my understanding of things, I should probably try to pair my love of technology and art into a career. Surely someone needs some digital artwork full time, right?
Turns out that it’s not exactly in high demand. You can do it, as I have, but something strange happens when you take a job making artwork for someone else:
You no longer make much art for yourself.
And this will not do.
So, I had an opportunity to join a bunch of crazy people in a completely different city and do a completely different job. It isn't making art all day - but neither was my old job. Instead it relies on my more technical abilities to keep a network, and the office that works on it, up and running. These technical abilities I've acquired quite accidentally. My computer graphics background and utter fascination with technology since early childhood always made embracing the more technical tidbits of things pretty necessary.
It’s different, and perhaps a bit too personal and uninteresting to even devote a full blog post to, but the end game is that it leads me into a position of more financial flexibility (aka not being poor) and I’ll learn a lot in general - which is always good..
I think it’s a good move. And now, I have more time to make FLOLAS. I captured some of my process below. It starts with some shadow work and it’s sped up 8x.
Enjoy.
Here’s to Happy Accidents.
