Archive for September, 2011»
Shameless plugging time! I’ve had the Button of Charisma +2 for over a year now, and some of you might be wanting an upgrade. So GnomeCo Publications proudly presents the Button of Charisma +4! Become 20% cooler in ten seconds flat! :D This lovely button looks snazzy, goes into the ‘body’ slot (sorcerers take note!) and is an untyped bonus, so it stacks! Click on the picture to buy, or come find me in the Furry Marketplace at Further Confusion 2012.
-The Gneech
Fictionlet
“He’s wearing fuchsia,” said Brigid.
Greg, looking up from his Franjipani sandwich, scanned the shop briefly before spotting the offender, a skinny guy in his early 20s with an electric-red stripe in his blonde hair, a fuchsia T-shirt with a random logo of a giant gear with wings that had been artificially weathered, and baggy white cargo shorts. “Oh, him,” said Greg, turning back to his sandwich. “Perhaps he just stepped out of an anime.”
“He’s wearing fuchsia!” said Brigid again.
“Are you referring to his shirt, his hair, or both?”
“Guys are not allowed to wear fuchsia,” Brigid asserted.
“Don’t care for fuchsia, eh?” said Greg.
“It’s bad enough that women wear it,” said Brigid. “We can’t have guys running around wearing it, too!”
“You tool of the patriarchy, you,” said Greg.
“Listen, Mr. Sartorial Agony, you should be right on the same page with me about this. The guy is a disaster! I should be having to restrain you from going over there and forcibly putting a Harris tweed on him.”
“No, that’s not how it works at all,” said Greg. “While it’s true that Bishounen Chic isn’t a combination I would choose for myself, it is, nevertheless, a cultivated look. That kid didn’t dress that way by accident. He has a style, and he’s expressing it. For all that fuchsia is a poke in the eye, sartorially speaking he is still on much higher moral ground than the guy who slobs around in a pocket tee and jeans because he can’t be bothered to pay attention to what he wears. Fashion A-plus? No. But definitely a passing grade.”
Brigid stared at Greg for a long second, one of her patented “What planet are you from?” looks. Then finally said, “…But he’s wearing fuchsia.”
“Yes,” said Greg. “I understand that, and I’m sorry it causes you such pain. But I’m afraid you’re just going to have to live with it.”
-The Gneech
The Post You Didn’t Read
I had a whole long post about the phrase “never complain, never explain,” but I ended up shelving it because I realized I was explaining and complaining. So instead, I will leave you with this quote, which honestly was the best thing about the whole post anyway:
I think the Internet (and the world) would be a much better place if we talked about what we liked more and what we disliked less.
@jakebe on Twitter
Keep on bein’ awesome, world. :)
-The Gneech
I’ve mentioned before, mostly in connection with Arclight Adventures, that I’m trying to “break out” of my established art style. My recent apparent obsession with drawing My Little Pony is the most visible part of this process, but I’ve been doing a lot of simply studying other styles and trying to break down in my mind how they work.
This morning, as I was waiting for a reboot from yet another Adobe update, I started doing some sketches of John Dunn’s redesign, and I’m trying to utilize some of the new stuff I’ve learned. I’ve never been real comfortable drawing human faces (one of the reasons I gravitated towards furry art), and honestly with a few exceptions I just don’t like them very much. :P But one of the things I’ve been studying is how to get past trying to realistically depict an exact human form and create a stylized form that “reads” human.
I haven’t quite gotten it yet, but I’m improving. :) In the case of John Dunn, tho, I’m still coming to grips with what he should look like both “realistically” and “stylistically,” which is making it a little harder. I might end up just finding pics of an actor online and using them as a springboard (but not a direct model), like I did with Verity. Character-wise he’s been revamped to something like Beast from the X-Men with just a dash of Isiah Mustafah’s “Old Spice Guy” thrown in (as opposed to the Woobie Frankenstein he was originally), so I need to find a model who’s physically imposing in a way that Isiah Mustafah isn’t, but still has a hint of wry humor about him. Maybe Michael Jai White? I’d love to hear any nominations folks might have.
Ah well, back to work for now. But come lunchtime, that sketchbook better LOOK OUT!
-The Gneech
PS: Oh yeah, I meant to mention! Arclight Adventures has a launch date now! January 9, 2012. A bit later than I anticipated, true, but given how rough my early 2011 was, I hope you’ll forgive it. :)
Fictionlet
Brigid stared at the back of Greg’s head for several moments, not something she was naturally inclined to do, and finally said, “Okay, spill. What’s wrong?”
“Do what now?” said Greg, looking back over his shoulder at her.
“You’ve been moping for days. What’s wrong?”
He blinked. “I wasn’t aware that I was moping,” he said. “As a matter of fact, I’m just fine at the moment.”
“Oh, please,” said Brigid. “You’re too damn quiet. I’ve never seen you go this long without expressing an opinion on something.”
Greg raised his eyebrows. “Um,” he said. Then he added, “Well, I just don’t have anything to say at the moment. The few opinions I’m currently nourishing are on topics that are either none of my business to talk about, or are so trivial as to not be worth mentioning.”
“Since when has that ever stopped you?” Brigid demanded. “Where’s the strangely-poetic rant about the lack of grape-filled pastries or that men’s collars are too tight? Where’s the lyrical outburst about the career of Henry Winkler or Andrew Harding? Something must be bothering you, if you aren’t babbling on about the utterly inconsequential!”
Greg scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Well, touched as I am by your concern for my welfare, I promise you, everything’s fine. I just don’t have anything to say.”
She crossed her arms. “So nothing’s bothering you.”
“Right.”
She narrowed his eyes at him. “Are you sure?”
He put his hands in the air helplessly. “Given the way you usually react to anything I say, I thought you’d appreciate the peace and quiet.”
“That’s right!” she said. “It’s about time you stopped jabbering on all the time.”
“Okay then,” said Greg. “I’ll just go back to my not-jabbering that you interrupted, shall I?”
“Yeah,” said Brigid. “You do that.”
“I will.”
“Okay.”
Greg turned back to his laptop and resumed typing. Brigid continued to look at the back of his head for a few moments, then said, “Why aren’t there any grape-filled pastries, anyway?” Greg raised his eyebrows again.
-The Gneech