Lyda Morehouse's Blog, page 60
August 28, 2012
The Lake
It's Tuesday already, and I leave for WorldCON on Thursday. I can feel the panic-mode beginning to rev up. At least we had a lovely, relaxing weekend up at our friends' cabin.
You can't tell from this picture, but the water was actually very cold. Even so, we braved it nearly every day, except Saturday when it was so cloudy that the entire family (including Mason!) crashed out for a long afternoon nap. We stayed Monday, an extra day, which was nice, as it was very sunny. In fact, I managed to get a bit of a sunburn on my face.
We chased some leopard frogs around, but never caught any.
Mason and I went kiyaking twice, both times he insisted on bringing along a book:
I don't care what you say, I think this means we're raising him RIGHT. :-)
Okay, now I'm off to the kitty food store because my poor babies gobbled up everything in sight and Mother Hubbard's cupboards are bare. I think if I don't go soon, my toes will be omnommed. (Hmm, never considered if nom verbized would have two "m"s or just one. Is there a standard out there?)
You can't tell from this picture, but the water was actually very cold. Even so, we braved it nearly every day, except Saturday when it was so cloudy that the entire family (including Mason!) crashed out for a long afternoon nap. We stayed Monday, an extra day, which was nice, as it was very sunny. In fact, I managed to get a bit of a sunburn on my face.
We chased some leopard frogs around, but never caught any.
Mason and I went kiyaking twice, both times he insisted on bringing along a book:
I don't care what you say, I think this means we're raising him RIGHT. :-)
Okay, now I'm off to the kitty food store because my poor babies gobbled up everything in sight and Mother Hubbard's cupboards are bare. I think if I don't go soon, my toes will be omnommed. (Hmm, never considered if nom verbized would have two "m"s or just one. Is there a standard out there?)
August 24, 2012
Spam and Carelessness
I think I may have actually deleted a thoughtful response to my "Fan Fiction Addiction" post. I've been getting super-spammed here at LJ, and I think I may have hit "delete" out of habit. I reprinted what the commenter said and my response to it in the comments of the previous post. I hope she or he isn't offended that it seemed to go away.... anyway, I'm still thinking about that subject, honestly. Because I'm hitting a kind of crisis point with my writing career.
It's officially been a year since I was under contract.
I've been having a really hard time bouncing back from this one, and I've been trying to figure out how to break out of the cycle I've gotten into emotionally. I've written a ton in that time period, nearly 200,000 words, all of it fan fic. I've also drawn more art than I have since my last year in high school. It's been a wickedly creative period for me, but there hasn't been a whole lot officially original that whole time.
I've been reminded how much FUN writing can be, but I've had trouble translating that fun to other projects. One of the things I've been thinking about to help motivate myself is that I'm seriously thinking about starting a new writers group... or maybe just cultivate a wider range of writer friends. What I'd love is to surround myself with creative, HUNGRY types -- sort of the me I used to be a decade ago when I had all the enthusiasm and drive of the BAKUMAN characters (I'm up to graphic novel collection #7, btw. Still an amazingly inspirational story.)
I've been terrible about keeping up with my idea-a-day project, but I have gotten several really interesting things started, including an idea for a superhero novellette/novella that I may or may not submit to the anthology that inspired it. The deadline for that is early November and I work well under deadline, so I may shoot to have something finished for that, regardless.
I'm thinking about doing the Novel in a Month thingy, with an eye to producing an e-book of Garnet Lacey or one of my other former series as Tate.
But, I'm working on lighting a fire under myself.
Fingers crossed.
It's officially been a year since I was under contract.
I've been having a really hard time bouncing back from this one, and I've been trying to figure out how to break out of the cycle I've gotten into emotionally. I've written a ton in that time period, nearly 200,000 words, all of it fan fic. I've also drawn more art than I have since my last year in high school. It's been a wickedly creative period for me, but there hasn't been a whole lot officially original that whole time.
I've been reminded how much FUN writing can be, but I've had trouble translating that fun to other projects. One of the things I've been thinking about to help motivate myself is that I'm seriously thinking about starting a new writers group... or maybe just cultivate a wider range of writer friends. What I'd love is to surround myself with creative, HUNGRY types -- sort of the me I used to be a decade ago when I had all the enthusiasm and drive of the BAKUMAN characters (I'm up to graphic novel collection #7, btw. Still an amazingly inspirational story.)
I've been terrible about keeping up with my idea-a-day project, but I have gotten several really interesting things started, including an idea for a superhero novellette/novella that I may or may not submit to the anthology that inspired it. The deadline for that is early November and I work well under deadline, so I may shoot to have something finished for that, regardless.
I'm thinking about doing the Novel in a Month thingy, with an eye to producing an e-book of Garnet Lacey or one of my other former series as Tate.
But, I'm working on lighting a fire under myself.
Fingers crossed.
August 22, 2012
Fan Fiction Addiction
At some point, I need to really seriously consider whether or not writing fan fiction feeds some kind of emotional need/addictive personality trait of mine. One of the things I've discovered now that I've been at this for a while is that there are real emotional ups and downs. I know for a fact that writing fan fic gives me the kind of rush I used to experience role-playing. It's sometimes a real adrenaline high, because it's really just THAT FUN for me to play pretend (in my head in this case) and be the characters I enjoy so much (on paper). Another high comes once I've posted. Watching "hits" and "kudos" and "coments" roll in can be really exhilerating when a story hits the presses as it were. And, given that I write short peices, no more than 5,000 words at most (usually around 2,000), I can get this kind of thrill once every other day, or more if I'm on a roll.
Who doesn't love being loved? And I seem to have a fairly steady fan base of about 60 readers, depending on the series. Considering that all my fic series are open-ended and Bleach isn't as hugely popular now as it was several years ago, I think that's actually pretty good. Especially when you add in my personal obsession -- I write almost exculsively from the point of view of one character, so I'm already cutting out a ton of Bleach people for whom Renji isn't a favorite. As a comparison, when I post my Harry Potter crossover stuff, I'll get to a 100 hits really quickly (which is also kind of impressive given the fact that Ichigo is the pov character there, and I suspect most Potter fans could care less.)
I guess what I'm saying is... I feel like I get so much more out of fan fic writing, because of this instant response/instant gratification. One of the reasons I started a writers' group was because I love hearing from people along the way. Writing alone doesn't do it for me. Writing in a vacuum even less.
I also experience weird lows. When my usual commenters don't respond right away... right after the inital excitment dies down... it's very much a cycles of highs and lows.
Hmmmm.
However, I'm still working to try to come up with original story ideas for each day. Today it involved a ghost message from a Hamm radio.
Speaking of my writing career, though, I'm pleased to say that my dance card at WorldCON is quickly filling up. Turns out, I can attend both the SUPER-SEEKRIT pro shingdig as well as the Harry Potter party, because I didn't realize that they actually were scheduled on different days after all. So I RSVPed to both today. Plus, a few professionals who are local to Chicago are doing things at their houses or organizing outings, so I'll have friends around me to keep me from feeling like a fraud.
August 21, 2012
Floating Lanterns and Dinosaurs
My family and I did some fun things over the last coupe of days. Some friends of mine turned me on to the Japanese Lantern Lighting Festival at Como. I'd never been before, and considering what a hardcore Anime/Manga fan I've turned into, it seemed right up my alley. Mason LOVED the idea of being anywhere after dark. (Shawn, unfortunately, has been gearing up for an interview at work, wherein she has to apply for the job she already has. Long story.) At any rate, we set off some time after supper. We actually found a pretty good parking and admission was cheap, $8 for the both of us ($5 for adults, $3 for children.)
There wasn't a lot TO DO, per se, at the festival, but there were things to see, admire, and demonstrations to enjoy. We watched a bit of music and fan dances, admired all the kimono and cosplayers, and tried some kakigori. I was particularly excited to try kakigori, since I had written about it in my fanfic based only on wikipedia entries. I can safely say now that it is exactly as advertised -- sort of weird, yet yummy (my description of a lot of Japanese food, honestly.) We tried "ichigo" flavor because Mason was utterly enchanted that he got to say the name of the hero of BLEACH and end up with something strawberry flavored. Kakigori, btw, is shaved ice with flavoring and sweetened condensed milk poured over the top of it. It is also sometimes served with a bit of mochi and/or red bean paste. Not unlike my favorite character, I'm a HUGE fan of red bean paste, so we went with both.
We wandered around and looked at other booths. Mason got his name writen in katakana, and we checked out the Japanese language versions of Shonen Jump (though we didn't buy any, since they all contained spoilers for where Mason is in the Manga/Anime.)
Probably Mason's favorite part of the festival was watching the folks from the kaishin dojo do a kenjutsu demonstration. These were serious fan boys playing with live blades. If I were twenty, I'd have joined the dojo on the spot. But, one thing I noticed right away is how few women were in the demonstration team. In fact, there was one. Her job? To hold the ribbons on a stick while the boys cut them.
Seriously.
In fact, after the demo was over, I asked one of the boys handing out fliers for the dojo's open house where all the women were. "We have some," he insisted defensively. "I see one," I pointed out. "Without a sword." He had no response, so I asked, "If I signed up to your dojo, would I feel welcome?" He sniffed, "We have a women's changing room." To which I said, "That's like saying you have a women's bathroom. What I want to know is if any women are IN IT."
He walked away.
Yep. Seriously.
This is why I'm once again profoundly pleased that I found Kuk Sool Wan. They might not be perfect, but they have never made me feel weird being a woman who wants to hit stuff and kill people with swords. Oh, yeah, speaking of that, I sensed this gender divide might be a problem when, in a demonstration of ki, the kenjustsu head instructor was looking for volunteers from the audience and only chose big men. I piped up with, "Does it have to be dudes?" He, at least, looked at me and said, "No, honestly, attitude is more important than physical strength," and he let me join the guys trying to pull his arms apart. For the record, while we didn't pull sensei's arms apart, my side totally broke the grip of the other ALL MALE side of the tug-a-war.
Grrl power, bro. That's what I'm talking about.
The lantern lighting part of the festival was quite lovely. I sat on the grass and listened to the Anime fans next to me talking about their favorite shows, while Mason snuck up along the path for a better view of the actual ceremony. Mason was really kind of bummed when it was time to go home because he's at that age where darkness is both spooky but also REALLY COOL.
Yesterday, Shawn took the day off work to celebrate our break from quarantine to go to the Minnesota Zoo (aka "the big zoo.") We wanted to try to catch the dinosaur exhibit before it closes on September 2. What we discovered is that you have to pay EXTRA to get into see the dinos. This sort of sucks because that's no clear in any of the literature and by the time you get to the far side of the zoo where the entrance is... you've come pretty much through the whole thing and a long way. But, we coughed up the extra bucks (almost twice what it cost to do the entire Lantern Lighting Festival), and walked through. Mason, at least, found it amazingly awesome, so in that regard it was worth it.
The zoo itself was much the same as always, but Shawn hadn't been in a zillion years so a lot of it was new to her. And it's always fun to show off some of the more interesting new exibits to someone who's never experienced them. Plus, we sat through a lot of shows -- we watched the penguins getting fed, the aquarium feeding, and the bird show. Probably the favorite was the bird show because it's full of bad puns that Mason found hillarious and the flying birds really are rather spectacular.
A good time was had by all.
Today, I'm hoping to finally get back to Kuk Sool, speaking of, and promote up to my blue stripe. Did I mention I passed my test? Yep. I'm excited, but you know I always resist promotion. I don't know what's wrong with staying a yellow belt forever, but... whatever. :-)
There wasn't a lot TO DO, per se, at the festival, but there were things to see, admire, and demonstrations to enjoy. We watched a bit of music and fan dances, admired all the kimono and cosplayers, and tried some kakigori. I was particularly excited to try kakigori, since I had written about it in my fanfic based only on wikipedia entries. I can safely say now that it is exactly as advertised -- sort of weird, yet yummy (my description of a lot of Japanese food, honestly.) We tried "ichigo" flavor because Mason was utterly enchanted that he got to say the name of the hero of BLEACH and end up with something strawberry flavored. Kakigori, btw, is shaved ice with flavoring and sweetened condensed milk poured over the top of it. It is also sometimes served with a bit of mochi and/or red bean paste. Not unlike my favorite character, I'm a HUGE fan of red bean paste, so we went with both.
We wandered around and looked at other booths. Mason got his name writen in katakana, and we checked out the Japanese language versions of Shonen Jump (though we didn't buy any, since they all contained spoilers for where Mason is in the Manga/Anime.)
Probably Mason's favorite part of the festival was watching the folks from the kaishin dojo do a kenjutsu demonstration. These were serious fan boys playing with live blades. If I were twenty, I'd have joined the dojo on the spot. But, one thing I noticed right away is how few women were in the demonstration team. In fact, there was one. Her job? To hold the ribbons on a stick while the boys cut them.
Seriously.
In fact, after the demo was over, I asked one of the boys handing out fliers for the dojo's open house where all the women were. "We have some," he insisted defensively. "I see one," I pointed out. "Without a sword." He had no response, so I asked, "If I signed up to your dojo, would I feel welcome?" He sniffed, "We have a women's changing room." To which I said, "That's like saying you have a women's bathroom. What I want to know is if any women are IN IT."
He walked away.
Yep. Seriously.
This is why I'm once again profoundly pleased that I found Kuk Sool Wan. They might not be perfect, but they have never made me feel weird being a woman who wants to hit stuff and kill people with swords. Oh, yeah, speaking of that, I sensed this gender divide might be a problem when, in a demonstration of ki, the kenjustsu head instructor was looking for volunteers from the audience and only chose big men. I piped up with, "Does it have to be dudes?" He, at least, looked at me and said, "No, honestly, attitude is more important than physical strength," and he let me join the guys trying to pull his arms apart. For the record, while we didn't pull sensei's arms apart, my side totally broke the grip of the other ALL MALE side of the tug-a-war.
Grrl power, bro. That's what I'm talking about.
The lantern lighting part of the festival was quite lovely. I sat on the grass and listened to the Anime fans next to me talking about their favorite shows, while Mason snuck up along the path for a better view of the actual ceremony. Mason was really kind of bummed when it was time to go home because he's at that age where darkness is both spooky but also REALLY COOL.
Yesterday, Shawn took the day off work to celebrate our break from quarantine to go to the Minnesota Zoo (aka "the big zoo.") We wanted to try to catch the dinosaur exhibit before it closes on September 2. What we discovered is that you have to pay EXTRA to get into see the dinos. This sort of sucks because that's no clear in any of the literature and by the time you get to the far side of the zoo where the entrance is... you've come pretty much through the whole thing and a long way. But, we coughed up the extra bucks (almost twice what it cost to do the entire Lantern Lighting Festival), and walked through. Mason, at least, found it amazingly awesome, so in that regard it was worth it.
The zoo itself was much the same as always, but Shawn hadn't been in a zillion years so a lot of it was new to her. And it's always fun to show off some of the more interesting new exibits to someone who's never experienced them. Plus, we sat through a lot of shows -- we watched the penguins getting fed, the aquarium feeding, and the bird show. Probably the favorite was the bird show because it's full of bad puns that Mason found hillarious and the flying birds really are rather spectacular.
A good time was had by all.
Today, I'm hoping to finally get back to Kuk Sool, speaking of, and promote up to my blue stripe. Did I mention I passed my test? Yep. I'm excited, but you know I always resist promotion. I don't know what's wrong with staying a yellow belt forever, but... whatever. :-)
August 18, 2012
Whooping Cough, Typhoid Mason
I thought I should write a quick update about my actual life (as opposed to the lives of my/Kubo-sensei's fictional characters.)
First of all, I want to say that I will be at WorldCON this year, in Chicago. My schedule is pretty open, but I'm really pleased how many panels I did get, considering the odds:
FRIDAY - 3:00 - 4:30pm --Broad Universe Rapid-Fire Reading
SATURDAY - 10:30am - Noon --Autograph Session
SATURDAY - 16:00 - 17:30 (4:00pm-5:30pm?) --Series: Why Do We Love Them, Why Do we Hate Them? (ooh, I'll have tell Shawn. Jack McDevitt is on the panel with me!)
SATURDAY - 10:30 - 11:00pm (for some reason they switched out of military time) -- Reading: Lyda Morehouse (perhaps Tate wasn't invited? Too bad, I intend to read from Precinct 13.)
SUNDAY - 1:30-3:00pm --Grimm from a Portland Perspective. (A panel I'm probably on because I have Grimm opinions in general, given I don't live in Portland and have no Portland perpectives.)
I'm headed down by Amtrack on Thursday night. I had intended to go down on Friday, but the Empire Builder is having delay problems so I switched my reservations. As a bonus, it was a cheaper rate, so I got a bit of a refund.
On an unrelated note, my family got hit, despite vaccination, with Whooping Cough. Mason was coninuing to cough after what we THOUGHT was a mild cold, so we took him and he tested positive. The bummer about this is that we were all quarantined, even adults with no symptoms, because there's such a raging epidemic in Minnesota. We'll ALL on antibiotics, as well. Shawn went back to work after only a day or so, because there are no specific guidelines for when the adults with no symptom can return to work, but Mason was stuck away from people during the course of the antibiotics.
Apparently, some friends of ours came to Mason's birthday party as carriers. They weren't told to stay away from people.
*sigh*
It's also extremely dangerous for people with asthma... so, I'm glad I seem to be showing no symptoms. Unfortunately, I was probably shedding the virus at my signing at Uncles last Saturday. Apparently vaccinated adults often don't realize they have it and are spreding it. Hello, Typhoid Lyda! AND I'm going to have to miss my promotion ceremony for my blue stripe because today is Mason's last day of antibiotics. (I could go without him, but that's just SAD.)
So I officially hate WHOOPING COUGH and anyone who decided not to vaccinate against it (and I'm likewise mildly irritated with parents whose kids are sick, but they don't let people know!)
Back to WorldCON, I have a bit of a conundrum. I got a super-secret, SUPER pro invite from a publishing house (not mine!) to a boat party on Lake Michigan on Saturday night. Saturday night I had been planning to help Cecilia Tan host her Hogwart's Reunion party. My first impulse was,"OMG, I'm a pro!" and my second, much more serious consideration was, "Yeah, but who am I going to know, really?" I have _been_ to what I imagine this boat party is going to be like, and IT'S AWFUL. There's a lot of standing around sipping alcohol I can't really drink (and certainly don't enjoy), feeling underdressed no matter what I end up wearing, and staring desperately at all the cool people who all already know each other feeling like a dope (or worse, like I'm back at my high school prom without a date). It's miserable, and I usually end up feeling worse for it. On the flip side, I've been to the party it's SUPPOSED to be too. The last WorldCon I went to, in Boston, I got to go to the super-secret Penguin party where I met up with my then-editor John Morgan and my current editor, Anne Sowards. We had a BLAST, and I f*cking hung out with Charaline Harris.
I have about ten days to reply to the super-secret invite publishing house. I haven't yet, because my heart belongs at Hogwarts. First of all, I have never met Cecilia Tan for more than five minutes (I do know, however, what she can do with her tongue and a cherry stem. Oh my!) and I'd not only like to get to know her better, I also went out of my way to invite myself to this hostessing gig and leaving her for a bunch of annoying published authors and their editors seems RUDE. For the record, Ms. Tan is also an editor and a writer whose work I've long admired. More importantly, I think the Hogwarts Reunion will be a f*cking BLAST. I will know some people who wuill be there for sure and there will be butter beer and fan grrliness of epic proportions. Plus I don't have to wear anything more formal than Hogwarts robes, which I already own. (Oh, must sew on my Slytherin patch and find tie!!) I will NOT feel stupid among Harry Potter fans, and, honestly, will probably have a lot more in common with the strangers in that room than I will with anyone on a stupid boat upon which I will be STUCK until they let us debark.
Okay, I think I actually know which party I prefer. I'm just having a bit of trouble shaking the idea that I SHOULD go to the publishing house's party.
First of all, I want to say that I will be at WorldCON this year, in Chicago. My schedule is pretty open, but I'm really pleased how many panels I did get, considering the odds:
FRIDAY - 3:00 - 4:30pm --Broad Universe Rapid-Fire Reading
SATURDAY - 10:30am - Noon --Autograph Session
SATURDAY - 16:00 - 17:30 (4:00pm-5:30pm?) --Series: Why Do We Love Them, Why Do we Hate Them? (ooh, I'll have tell Shawn. Jack McDevitt is on the panel with me!)
SATURDAY - 10:30 - 11:00pm (for some reason they switched out of military time) -- Reading: Lyda Morehouse (perhaps Tate wasn't invited? Too bad, I intend to read from Precinct 13.)
SUNDAY - 1:30-3:00pm --Grimm from a Portland Perspective. (A panel I'm probably on because I have Grimm opinions in general, given I don't live in Portland and have no Portland perpectives.)
I'm headed down by Amtrack on Thursday night. I had intended to go down on Friday, but the Empire Builder is having delay problems so I switched my reservations. As a bonus, it was a cheaper rate, so I got a bit of a refund.
On an unrelated note, my family got hit, despite vaccination, with Whooping Cough. Mason was coninuing to cough after what we THOUGHT was a mild cold, so we took him and he tested positive. The bummer about this is that we were all quarantined, even adults with no symptoms, because there's such a raging epidemic in Minnesota. We'll ALL on antibiotics, as well. Shawn went back to work after only a day or so, because there are no specific guidelines for when the adults with no symptom can return to work, but Mason was stuck away from people during the course of the antibiotics.
Apparently, some friends of ours came to Mason's birthday party as carriers. They weren't told to stay away from people.
*sigh*
It's also extremely dangerous for people with asthma... so, I'm glad I seem to be showing no symptoms. Unfortunately, I was probably shedding the virus at my signing at Uncles last Saturday. Apparently vaccinated adults often don't realize they have it and are spreding it. Hello, Typhoid Lyda! AND I'm going to have to miss my promotion ceremony for my blue stripe because today is Mason's last day of antibiotics. (I could go without him, but that's just SAD.)
So I officially hate WHOOPING COUGH and anyone who decided not to vaccinate against it (and I'm likewise mildly irritated with parents whose kids are sick, but they don't let people know!)
Back to WorldCON, I have a bit of a conundrum. I got a super-secret, SUPER pro invite from a publishing house (not mine!) to a boat party on Lake Michigan on Saturday night. Saturday night I had been planning to help Cecilia Tan host her Hogwart's Reunion party. My first impulse was,"OMG, I'm a pro!" and my second, much more serious consideration was, "Yeah, but who am I going to know, really?" I have _been_ to what I imagine this boat party is going to be like, and IT'S AWFUL. There's a lot of standing around sipping alcohol I can't really drink (and certainly don't enjoy), feeling underdressed no matter what I end up wearing, and staring desperately at all the cool people who all already know each other feeling like a dope (or worse, like I'm back at my high school prom without a date). It's miserable, and I usually end up feeling worse for it. On the flip side, I've been to the party it's SUPPOSED to be too. The last WorldCon I went to, in Boston, I got to go to the super-secret Penguin party where I met up with my then-editor John Morgan and my current editor, Anne Sowards. We had a BLAST, and I f*cking hung out with Charaline Harris.
I have about ten days to reply to the super-secret invite publishing house. I haven't yet, because my heart belongs at Hogwarts. First of all, I have never met Cecilia Tan for more than five minutes (I do know, however, what she can do with her tongue and a cherry stem. Oh my!) and I'd not only like to get to know her better, I also went out of my way to invite myself to this hostessing gig and leaving her for a bunch of annoying published authors and their editors seems RUDE. For the record, Ms. Tan is also an editor and a writer whose work I've long admired. More importantly, I think the Hogwarts Reunion will be a f*cking BLAST. I will know some people who wuill be there for sure and there will be butter beer and fan grrliness of epic proportions. Plus I don't have to wear anything more formal than Hogwarts robes, which I already own. (Oh, must sew on my Slytherin patch and find tie!!) I will NOT feel stupid among Harry Potter fans, and, honestly, will probably have a lot more in common with the strangers in that room than I will with anyone on a stupid boat upon which I will be STUCK until they let us debark.
Okay, I think I actually know which party I prefer. I'm just having a bit of trouble shaking the idea that I SHOULD go to the publishing house's party.
August 16, 2012
Sexy Fan Art
I have two versions of this newest bit of fan art. First, the sketch, and then the colored piece. I like them both for different reasons. I also have to note that this is one of the fist times I drew a picture of Renji based SOLELY on the image in my head. I didn't even borrow the body from someone else. This is kind of a big step for me, and I'm ridiculously proud of the results (so if my perspective is off, don't tell me. I want to bask in the glory for a while.)
So here's the sketch. This is my boy Renji and the externalization of his zanpaktou, Zabimaru. Zabimaru is a nue demon, which is described on Wikipedia as a demon who has the arms and legs of a tiger, the body of a tanuki, the head of a monkey and the tail of a snake. Kubo-sensei, however, has always drawn Zabimaru as looking mostly like an albino gorrilla with a snake-head tail. Renji, interestingly, has chosen to tattoo his arms with tiger stripes (he also has them on his legs), and he's from a district in the Soul Society called "Hang Dog," Inuzuri, and always gets harrassed for being a dog (which seems to be the same sort of insult to the Japanese as it would be in English to an American)--of course, the ony NATIVE dog to Japan is the tanuki.
Now for the colored version of the same:
This image was inspired by my own fan fiction again, I have to admit. This time from a scene in which our hero is contemplating his relationship with his captain and getting some advice from his zanpaktou. If you're curious, you can check out: http://archiveofourown.org/works/487390
I hope you enjoy!
So here's the sketch. This is my boy Renji and the externalization of his zanpaktou, Zabimaru. Zabimaru is a nue demon, which is described on Wikipedia as a demon who has the arms and legs of a tiger, the body of a tanuki, the head of a monkey and the tail of a snake. Kubo-sensei, however, has always drawn Zabimaru as looking mostly like an albino gorrilla with a snake-head tail. Renji, interestingly, has chosen to tattoo his arms with tiger stripes (he also has them on his legs), and he's from a district in the Soul Society called "Hang Dog," Inuzuri, and always gets harrassed for being a dog (which seems to be the same sort of insult to the Japanese as it would be in English to an American)--of course, the ony NATIVE dog to Japan is the tanuki.
Now for the colored version of the same:
This image was inspired by my own fan fiction again, I have to admit. This time from a scene in which our hero is contemplating his relationship with his captain and getting some advice from his zanpaktou. If you're curious, you can check out: http://archiveofourown.org/works/487390
I hope you enjoy!
August 8, 2012
Inspiration from Unlikely Sources
After reading BAKUMAN, I've decide that I am going to try to come up with a story idea a day, just like one of the characters in the Manga. This has been a real challenge, actually, but first I want to talk about the inspiration behind this new project of mine.
I was telling my friend Eleanor about this Manga and why I like it. I usually hate meta-ficitonal stuff. Yet I came across BAKUMAN in Shonen Jump, when the storyline involved the two main characters (a writer and and artist of Manga) trying to get serialized in Shonen Jump. Normally, this sort of thing irritates the crap out of me. But, the art is phenomenonal (the artist who draws it is the same one who illustrated HIKARU NO GO,) and I find, like HIKARU NO GO, I'm enjoying the story line even though I feel like I really shouldn't, because it's ultimately just about a couple of guys sitting around writing and/or drawing. There's a romance and rivals and all that stuff, but really the story is about how difficult it is to make it as a writer/artist in the cut-throat business that is Manga in Japan (though there's a super-strong analog to New York publishing)
What I like about the manga is that it doesn't really assume an answer. The rival is a highly talented kid about the same age as our heroes who has made a success by talent and a weirdly disproportionate amount of dumb luck. Sort of like that guy who published his novel on his website and a NY publishing house contacted him to publish it commerically (I'm looking at you, Scazli.) The two heroes, however, clearly represent the model I followed: bang your head until the damn door opens. They have a very Japanese attitude of indominable spirit coupled with the fantasy that if you go after your dream with everything you've got, you will succeed.
The last bit is a fantasy, IMHO, but in BAKUMAN they address that head-on. There's a lot of talk about luck and how publishing is a gambler's game, and how, even after you break in, you can still fail. AND, more to the point, I'm at the moment in the story when it's clear that they're actually serious -- our artist hero decides to take an internship under their rival, because he's actually willing to learn anything he can ANY WAY HE CAN. That attitude served me well throughout my career.
So, I've been inspired by these very determined fictional characters to try to write down a story idea a day. I've been looking through anthology calls for submissions to help me find a focus-point. Otherwise the universe of ideas is awfully wide-open. But, so far, I've had some fun with it. I'm not sure any of the ideas will turn into stories, but it's a good excercise to keep me focused on origianl work.
Speaking of my fandom, OMG. BLEACH is ending this year, and it seems Kubo-sensei has decided that the best way to finish things off is with a humongerous bloodbath of epic proportions. All I can say is that THANK FATE he has the deus ex machina of Orihime to turn back time, if necessary. Fingers crossed that dead isn't dead for Manga any more than it is for Marvel.
I was telling my friend Eleanor about this Manga and why I like it. I usually hate meta-ficitonal stuff. Yet I came across BAKUMAN in Shonen Jump, when the storyline involved the two main characters (a writer and and artist of Manga) trying to get serialized in Shonen Jump. Normally, this sort of thing irritates the crap out of me. But, the art is phenomenonal (the artist who draws it is the same one who illustrated HIKARU NO GO,) and I find, like HIKARU NO GO, I'm enjoying the story line even though I feel like I really shouldn't, because it's ultimately just about a couple of guys sitting around writing and/or drawing. There's a romance and rivals and all that stuff, but really the story is about how difficult it is to make it as a writer/artist in the cut-throat business that is Manga in Japan (though there's a super-strong analog to New York publishing)
What I like about the manga is that it doesn't really assume an answer. The rival is a highly talented kid about the same age as our heroes who has made a success by talent and a weirdly disproportionate amount of dumb luck. Sort of like that guy who published his novel on his website and a NY publishing house contacted him to publish it commerically (I'm looking at you, Scazli.) The two heroes, however, clearly represent the model I followed: bang your head until the damn door opens. They have a very Japanese attitude of indominable spirit coupled with the fantasy that if you go after your dream with everything you've got, you will succeed.
The last bit is a fantasy, IMHO, but in BAKUMAN they address that head-on. There's a lot of talk about luck and how publishing is a gambler's game, and how, even after you break in, you can still fail. AND, more to the point, I'm at the moment in the story when it's clear that they're actually serious -- our artist hero decides to take an internship under their rival, because he's actually willing to learn anything he can ANY WAY HE CAN. That attitude served me well throughout my career.
So, I've been inspired by these very determined fictional characters to try to write down a story idea a day. I've been looking through anthology calls for submissions to help me find a focus-point. Otherwise the universe of ideas is awfully wide-open. But, so far, I've had some fun with it. I'm not sure any of the ideas will turn into stories, but it's a good excercise to keep me focused on origianl work.
Speaking of my fandom, OMG. BLEACH is ending this year, and it seems Kubo-sensei has decided that the best way to finish things off is with a humongerous bloodbath of epic proportions. All I can say is that THANK FATE he has the deus ex machina of Orihime to turn back time, if necessary. Fingers crossed that dead isn't dead for Manga any more than it is for Marvel.
August 7, 2012
Even More Girls
Okay, apparently, I had about three more pictures of Renji-as-grrl in me. So here they are. If you are super-senstive about things that are Not Safe For Work, I will warn you know that there is a minty-fresh kiss at the very end of this set. Don't look if it will get you in trouble, but it's very PG-13.
Here's Renji-grrl bankai:
Now, the one I wan't entirely pleased with, but I will post because there are things I still like about it. For one, I wanted to show the difference in the height between Renji and her lover-captain, Byakuya.
Okay, so close your eye if you're not up for this...
Here's Renji-grrl bankai:
Now, the one I wan't entirely pleased with, but I will post because there are things I still like about it. For one, I wanted to show the difference in the height between Renji and her lover-captain, Byakuya.
Okay, so close your eye if you're not up for this...
Fan Art with a Twist
Oh my goodness, I really have been terrible about keeping up over here, haven't I? Well, to be fair, Mason's summer vacation has started and that means I've been spending a lot of my time at the beach. I can take my laptop a lot of places, but not there. Although I really should post the picture of what I did to my last laptop. I...er, broke it. With a frozen turkey.
I'd say "long story," but it really is that simple. I had it outside of its usual backpack, sitting in the footwell of the backseat of our car, when, after grocery shopping, I dropped a 13 pound frozen turkey on it and cracked the screen. It still works, but the screen is completely busted. You can't see to type. BUT, I was able to quickly pull everything off the laptop and transfer it to a USB drive, so even though we were out the cost of a new computer, I didn't lose anything was working on.
Because, you know, it's important to have stuff like this:
So, what this is, is that my friend Kate and I were emailing back and forth about my Anime obsession and she basically asked the question: What if your favorite character were a girl instead of a boy? Suddenly, I had to draw it. The above is actually my second piece, because I wanted to see what 'she' looked like with her tattoos showing. Below, was the first attempt.
I found, to my surprise, that drawing Renji-as-a-grrl was actually easier on my brain in a way. She's a scary lady (dude's a scary guy,) but I'm pleased how sexy she looks, how her determinaton shows through, in a way that I struggle to show on him. If she's JUST like him, she's also six foot two. It would be interesting to show her "in situ" with Byakuya (who is 5'11") still as a guy. It would be fun to draw the both of them with Renji-as-grrl because Byakuya is SO PRETTY, and while Renji is sexy in either gender, s/he's never supposed to be pretty, per se.
I also may draw her in bankai, because I think she'd rock the fur collar in a way Renji-boy never quite does. :-)
I'd say "long story," but it really is that simple. I had it outside of its usual backpack, sitting in the footwell of the backseat of our car, when, after grocery shopping, I dropped a 13 pound frozen turkey on it and cracked the screen. It still works, but the screen is completely busted. You can't see to type. BUT, I was able to quickly pull everything off the laptop and transfer it to a USB drive, so even though we were out the cost of a new computer, I didn't lose anything was working on.
Because, you know, it's important to have stuff like this:
So, what this is, is that my friend Kate and I were emailing back and forth about my Anime obsession and she basically asked the question: What if your favorite character were a girl instead of a boy? Suddenly, I had to draw it. The above is actually my second piece, because I wanted to see what 'she' looked like with her tattoos showing. Below, was the first attempt.
I found, to my surprise, that drawing Renji-as-a-grrl was actually easier on my brain in a way. She's a scary lady (dude's a scary guy,) but I'm pleased how sexy she looks, how her determinaton shows through, in a way that I struggle to show on him. If she's JUST like him, she's also six foot two. It would be interesting to show her "in situ" with Byakuya (who is 5'11") still as a guy. It would be fun to draw the both of them with Renji-as-grrl because Byakuya is SO PRETTY, and while Renji is sexy in either gender, s/he's never supposed to be pretty, per se.
I also may draw her in bankai, because I think she'd rock the fur collar in a way Renji-boy never quite does. :-)
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