Sketch #13, for Thi

Thank you so much, Thi <3

Sketch for Margit

Thanks for supporting In Absentia, Margit!

Sketch for Rebekah

Thanks for supporting In Absentia, Rebekah!

Waiting for page 18...

A proposito dei kindle.

L'altro giorno stavo parlando con un'amica su facebook della prossima uscita de Les Misérables (il film tratto dal musical), e mi sono detta: "Magari, con la scusa del film, a Natale mi posso mettere finalmente a leggere I Miserabili". Così sono andata a vedere le copie che abbiamo in libreria (abbiamo almeno due copie: una in un tomone unico della Newton & Compton e l'altra in due tomi della Einaudi.) Ho soppesato il primo tomo di quella Einaudi e ho pensato se fosse il caso di portarselo appresso in cumana. Allora mi sono detta "Magari me lo scarico in francese sul kindle, così prendo due piccioni con una fava: 1. leggo in francese e 2. non mi porto un chilo appresso tutte le mattine."

Questo breve aneddoto mi ha condotto, subito dopo, a fare altre considerazioni. Ho un kindle da più di un anno e lo adoro. Mi ha risparmiato di leggere le fanfictions direttamente allo schermo del computer, mi ha spinto a leggere in francese La Chartreuse de Parme e Les liaisons dangereuses che altrimenti avrei letto in traduzione, mi permette di non stampare pdf et similia se non quando è necessario, è buono & benedetto per le mie spalle già segnate dalla borsa pesante... Insomma, tanti aspetti positivi. Fa risparmiare carta, peso e soldi (dato che gli e-book in genere costano meno della versione stampata), è dolce con gli occhi, è piacevole da utilizzare e mi permette di avere una serie di testi (tra cui dizionari) sempre appresso. A parte i fumetti (per cui continuo a preferire la carta), non vedo nulla di demoniaco nelle edizioni digitali...

... Ma sto iniziando a rendermi conto di alcune cose che mi preoccupano, sia nell'immediato che per il futuro. Innanzitutto, è più scomodo scambiarsi un kindle che un libro di carta, non solo per la preoccupazione di quello che potrebbe succedere al delicato strumento, ma anche perché dentro al kindle ci sono testi che magari uno non vuol far vedere, oppure perché vorrebbe continuare a leggere altro (e non lo può fare dal suo kindle se l'ha prestato a qualcuno.) Inoltre, se per esempio uno compra un e-book dal kindle store di amazon, quel file vale solo per il kindle per cui l'ha comprato e non può essere copiato su un altro kindle. Capisco la necessità da parte di amazon di salvaguardarsi dalla pirateria, ma mettiamo il caso di casa mia, dove sia io che mia madre abbiamo un kindle: non potremmo passarci il file almeno tra i nostri due kindle? Un libro cartaceo può girare tra centinaia di persone (e le biblioteche servono apposta), e io sono solita scambiarmi fumetti da anni con le mie amiche: non posso comprare tutto. L'impossibilità di scambiare (in modo legale) un file di amazon non limiterà questa opportunità e, alla fine, la possibilità di leggere gli stessi libri tra amici?

Secondo punto. Cosa succederà a questi testi una volta che i nostri kindle diventeranno obsoleti, il che accadrà già, temo, nel giro di qualche anno? E se si guastano irreparabilmente? Un libro cartaceo può durare secoli. Quanto potranno durare i file digitali con gli attuali tempi di ricambio tecnologico? Quanti libri verranno persi con l'innovazione dei supporti digitali? A casa ho centinaia di videocassette che già non servono più a niente, da quando procediamo soprattutto per DVD. Migliaia di film registrati e adesso quasi invisibili, perché il nostro videoregistratore ormai ha i suoi annetti e non sono neppure sicura che funzioni ancora. Succederà lo stesso con i vecchi kindle?  
 

In Absentia pp 10-11 + sketches

So late with everything! I came back from Lucca last Monday, full of ideas and things to do, and I barely had time to update all my various blogs/social networks etc. I went home to find a big surprise, namely that page 5 of In Absentia had received a Daily Deviation on deviantArt (<3) and so many new readers have found it! Thank you so much!

I managed to add the lettering to pages 10 and 11 just in time to upload them on dA last Monday, and I have finished NOW to colour page 12, which will be uploaded in the evening.

I was also able to colour three more sketches for funders on Indiegogo, who had selected the 25$ perk. Adele, Eva, Patrizia: thank you so much!

Finally, I finally posted the Italian version of the first nine pages on Verticalismi, so that also the Italian readers can understand it (it was originally written in Italian, after all.)

GRAZIE - stay tuned!

In Absentia sketch #7

For Carmela! Thanks for supporting In Absentia on Indiegogo!

Tomorrow morning, I'll leave for our Lucca comic-con. Spent the last weeks preparing a leaflet with my projects, with a few test pages and various character designs. Wish me luck ;)

More In Absentia!

Page 9/24

And sketch #6, for Simona! Thank you so much for supporting In Absentia on Indiegogo.

In Absentia pages 5-8

Four pages instead of two today ;)

There have already been some extremely generous people who have already contributed to the Indiegogo campaign to support me while I draw this, so this message is for the rest: please visit the page, share it on your social network(s) if you have one, and contribute if you have the possibility. Now, we are talking with my studio mates about the possibility of going to the Kapow Comic Convention in London next May, so I'm beginning to think about printing some copies of the comic (it will be completed by then, I hope) and to sell them at the convention (if we go, we'll probably book a table at the Artists' Alley). In such case, your contribution would also go into printing the comic. Thank you!

Waiting for pages 5 and 6...

Sketch n. 5, for Paolo and Italo. Thank you so much, guys!

Paolo and Italo have supported In Absentia on Indiegogo.

In Absentia p. 4

Page 4. Pages 5-6 will be online next Monday.

Please support the Indiegogo Fundraising campaign

And finally...

The first three pages of In Absentia are online!

You can read them on deviantart and on smackjeeves as well.

If you like it, please show your support here!

A lot of updates!

First, a big THANK YOU to all the people who are supporting In Absentia on Indiegogo! After two weeks, the campaign has already reached the 51% of funds, and there are still two months to go!

I've had a temperature for the last two days, but before that, I had reached page 11 (with inks) and page 7 (with colours). Page 7 was the one that took me the longest, so far - and I still have to letter it.

Per quelli di voi che leggono l'italiano, c'è una mia intervista su In Absentia sul blog di Cristina Zagaria. Grazie, Cristina!

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Justin Heggs, the writer of Daddy, which I illustrated last summer, published all the short comic (5 pages) on his blog. 

Here is just the first page. Please visit Justin's blog for the rest! :D

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As a second news, also the website for another comic I worked on last winter is now fully online. I only drew and inked Hexed (written by Matt O'Keefe) and haven't read the rest so far, but I'm eager to do so!

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I know some people may hate me for this (yes, you, Amerigo), but on Wednesday I sold my copy of Epileptic by David B. Since one of the first posts in this blog was about it, I thought I should write it here. In two years, I was never able to re-read it (and I re-read comics MANY times - I mean, I've read Spent by Joe Matt some four times in the first month after I bought it) and I considered it as bringing a bad omen to my bookshelf. Weird, I know. You can despise me if you wish. But I could not force myself to appreciate or enjoy that graphic novel.

In Absketch 4: For Debbie!

Thanks for supporting In Absentia on Indiegogo, Debbie! Here's Giacomo the cleric for you.

In Absketch 3: for Justin!

Lady Dionea for Justin Heggs, the writer of Daddy! Thank you so much for supporting In Absentia on Indiegogo, Justin.

In AbSketch 2: for Patrizia!

Thank you, Patrizia, for funding In Absentia on Indiegogo! :D

In AbSketch 1: for Fabio!

While waiting for the disclosure of the first pages of In Absentia, I present you the first sketch for one of my funders on Indiegogo! Thank you so much for supporting In Absentia, Fabio! :D

In Absentia: cover and video!

Cover is here.

 

Video is here!

The first three pages will be online on October 1st!

Now all I need is you!

Spread the word. Join the Indiegogo campaign. Be ready to read it! And, especially, enjoy it!

Indiegogo Foundraising campaign

See this widget? It's for my new foundraising campaign on indiegogo. I still have to add a video, but the campaign is on. Here. 

IN ABSENTIA is a 24-pages comic written, drawn and coloured by me, set in an imaginary XIII century Italy. I've written this story one year ago and now I'm finally ready to go. I've drawn the first three pages (out of 24) and pencilled the cover. All I need is time, and your help. Can I count on you? Your support would be so precious for me.

By founding this campaign, you will support me while I draw these pages and help all the oher readers to be able to read it, as it will be released FOR FREE on the net (on my blog, my dA page, and on smackjeeves.) IN ABSENTIA to be a story about silence and incommunicability. The two main characters live together in a relatively small place, yet never come to a deeper understanding. I wish IN ABSENTIA to be a comic of feelings and atmosphere, enjoyable by everybody who loves comics, the Middle Ages, and unspoken sentiments.

Thank you so very much for any help you could give me, and spread the word.

Commission: Austen blog

A new header for the blog My Jane Austen Book Club. Thanks Maria Grazia!

Watercolours on Clairefontaine Etival, plus a few textures and brushes. Full credits are on deviantArt (click on the image.)

Dr Muscles cover

Look how shiny it looks! Cover by James Brunner. Dr. Muscles Journal One will be available on September 15th on http://www.boguspublishing.com/. It features the first 5 issues of Dr Muscles (Issues 1 and 2 were already available), including issue 4 (which I've coloured) and issue 5 (which I have drawn, inked & coloured.) Can't wait!

Ezio

Flavius Aetius, I mean, not Ezio Auditore of Assassin's Creed.

I have this Aetius' biography in mind (to do I don't know when), and I used him to do a bit of inking practice. I read Klaus Janson's DC Guide to Inking, recently, and I tried a few tips described in the book.

 

This was inked starting with the fine lines inside and then adding the black outside. Finer lines were inked with a Leonardt nib (not my usual one), while outer borders were done with a brush. Not my usual method, of course. 

This was inked entirely with a brush.
 

 

The figure on the right (which should represent a normal soldier of the late empire, if I got my references right) was inked starting with the outer border, inked with a brush, and then the inside was inked with my usual Hunt 108 nib. The Hun on the left was inked entirely with #108 except for the fur.

Again, inked entirely with a Hunt 108.

Colouring Dr. Muscles #4

A couple of days ago, I finished colouring Dr. Muscles #4 (drawn by António Brandão and written, as usual, by Austin Tinius.) To colour it, I adopted a method used and described by Alison Bechdel to colour Fun Home.

I printed the inked pages in double copy on a normal sheet and used one copy as background layer. On it I stuck a Fabriano 4 rough sheet, and coloured with watercolours on it with a light box. In previous situations, if I coloured directly on inks printed on a rought sheet, I had found out that watercolours often were repelled by the printed inks (as if there was a slight film on the ink that prevented them to be touched directly by colour.) So I decided to colour without any kind of immediate ink, keeping them as a background lightened by the light box.

This process lasted some two hours. When the watercolours were dry, I scanned the page and edited it with Photoshop. This time I added the inks on the colours as a layer set in Multiply. I adjusted contrast and layers settings, adjusted the colours, and everything else that was needed before reaching a result I was pleased with.

The Photoshop process lasted another two hours, more or less, including cleaning the spaces between the borders and so on. 

Dr. Muscles should go in print next week. Stay tuned!

Burial

Another little sci-fi doodle.

doodle

The Legend of Bael the Bard

Above, a fanart I managed to squeeze into yesterday's routine - Brandon Stark finds that Bael the Bard has stolen his daughter, for the Legends of ASOIAF monthly theme on valyrian-forged.

Apart from that, daily routine means that I'm colouring the 4th issue of Dr. Muscles, which should be ready by the beginning of September. Haven't had much time to work on other projects, unfortunately - but In Absentia and other pages are still on my check list.

In Absentia - sketch 3

A new sketch for In Absentia - right to left inked with 1. my usual Hunt 108; 2. a Staedtler 0.1; 3. a Copic Multiliner; and 4. my smallest fountain pen. My first idea was to ink it with a very thin line (as the 0.1), but I also like the idea of drawing it all with the tablet, as in the sketches you’ve already seen. What do you think?

First sketches for In Absentia

The very first sketches for my new projects, In Absentia, a short Medieval comic.

Tullia

A little exercise in lighting.

Sketches

Sketches from the borders of the rough pencils for Dr. Muscles 5.

Dr. Muscles #5 sent!

I've just sent the last three pages of Dr. Muscles #5 to his creator, Austin Tinius. I will now take a little vacation, this week. ;) See you soon!

Swimming pool

Swimming pool by *cabepfir on deviantART

After colouring the pages of my comic, I felt the need to do a looser, messier watercolour, and here it is. A scene which I witnessed last week, at the swimming pool. Watercolours on a Hahnemühle Bamboo.

Dr. Muscles preview

Page 4 of the comic I'm working on, Dr. Muscles #5 by Austin Tinius/Bogus Publishing. I should finish this issue in a couple of weeks, hopefully.

Fanart Friday: Liberty Meadows

An homage to Frank Cho's fabulous Liberty Meadows, which I've recently read.

My project wasn't unfortunately selected for the Reality Draws contest. Oh well. I'm going on with Dr. Muscles #5 - 10 out of 22 pages have been coloured, and I pencilled 5 more pages during the last week.