Updated Dejah Pen Drawing

DEJAH THORIS, PRINCESS OF MARS
Well, here she is again. I drew it much smaller then the last one, but refined her costume a little. Not as much detail or time on the face... and I need to work on drawing feet!

I'll update this post with what pen tools I used soon.

In anycase, I've mostly figured out her design. I have Dejah Thoris, now it's time to draw John Carter, Warlord of Mars!

COMICVINE
So, I decided that for the #100 contest should be OMEGA RED. He has been one of my favorite villains since Jim Lee drew him over 20 years ago. Omega Red is due March 12th.

I'm also attempting a cyborg contest on the forum- that one is due on March 8th. I'm still trying to think of something to do.

Quick Dejah Thoris pen sketch

I haven't drawn Dejah Thoris for nearly twenty years. I admit, this one is a little sloppy. Actually, I'm not happy with it at all. However, that's how you improve- you put the successes out there AND the failures, and you learn from them pushing yourself to get better next time.

It started out as a quick sketch, then I broke out the ink. I didn't really spend much of time on anatomy... it was simply experimenting with tools and having some fun. Her hair got away from me- I dried out my brush pen on her it. All in all, it turned out okay. I think I'll put her into an action pose next time, fix the anatomy, more detail on her costume and accessories... and not let the hair be so wild!

I was furious at the liberties taken with the story in last year's movie. I'm a book purist, and frankly I feel that they wrecked the feel of the story. I could go on and on, but in the end, the effects were amazing, even though the feeling of it was not. It didn't even come close the the vision I have had Barsoom in my head.

In other news, my Martian Manhunter entry for the Comicvine Artist Showoff has won! It was a close contest, but I made it! So what do I win? I get to chose the next subject for contestants to draw for the Artist Showoff #100- a milestone for the forum to boot! The only frustrating thing is that I forgot my forum pass word and the site is undergoing maintenance until the end of February- and their password recovery tool is disabled! Frustrating!

Martian Manhunter


Well, I'm trying to get back into the swing of things. It's been a while since I've finished a drawing, much less colorize it. So, at the suggestion of my good friend Robert Schaupp, I've been attempting to do the no-prize forum contests at Comicvine.  The last one was my ATOMA drawing, but here's the newest contest entry for a simple pinup- Martian Manhunter! It turned out okay- but it's all about creating a drawing with a deadline!

Loss brings me back to the Workshop

It's been a very hard winter. My dad passed away after a long fight with cancer and Parkinson's, and we laid him to rest with full military honors just a week ago. He is the one who got me into comic books, movies, and cars. He took me to my first air show, and he loved adventure stories.

So, this next project is very personal to me. It is a high adventure comic series that will have the classic feel of all the old serials, and will certainly be in the Milton Caniff school of cartooning- with a heavy dose of my other heroes: Al Williamson, Wally Wood, and Mark Schultz.

As you can see here, I'm preparing some reference material- the heroine's plane- a P-38. I haven't built a model since my dad gave me my last one when I was 13, so it's a mess. It certainly has been a journey of memories, though.

I will be formally announcing the title and character sketch soon, as I can finish them- probably on my birthday next month. And you may have noticed, I've taken more steps in consolidation of projects and efforts by even merging all my blogs into my longtime standing Lost Skies blog. It's time to simplify so I can focusa lesson I learned from my dad.

So, with all the renewed efforts with the upcoming web comic, all I can say is "This one's for you, Dad. I'll be seeing you again, one day."