Johnny Images from 2 and 3

Updates for the latest of Black Box Comix. Well sports fans here ya go, the second issue of Johnny Vega - Man of the Future is on it’s way to the printer as we speak. The arrival of the burned disk is being waited on right but I have told that they are looking forward to seeing the book.
So I thought I would go ahead and post a few jpegs of the second issue and post a couple of the preliminary images being developed for the third issue. This is a very productive time for the Box. The third issue of Johnny Vega and the fifth issue of Pandora’s Garage as well could be a very good year.
My editor L. Rowan Watson has been pointing out that a small inexpensive web site availability is at hand and,I, for one will be looking at this new possibility for getting a presences up so people could take look and actually buy the books when they felt up to going on the web to buy.
So keep your fingers crossed for us!

New Images , new project

These are new images that are going to be printed up later this year in either another copy of Pandora's Garage or a seperate book. But my goal is to make something that is being used much these days because of the process which it takes to make. Scratchboard is one of those mediums that isn't used much these days, 'cept maybe in Europe. It has a feel like old wood block printing and is perfectly suited to a horror story.
The Misguided story originally printed in Pandora's Garage Volume 3 was done more as a traditional black and white story. However this time I wanted it to take on a much different look and feel for what I was telling as a story. Hopefully, I will have this ready by the time October roles around.
Alan

New Cover, new book

Well work on the second issue for johnny Vega is in final preparation for being sent off to Ka-Blam for printing. As with everything the internet is not a perfect thing and is not as intuitive as some tech heads might tell you. But regardless of this imperfect world as one of my heroes says, there it is. Johnny Vega makes the jump from drawn and digital to full digital. Oh yes there is still some of the actual hand drawn layouts being done for getting the feel of the story but everything else is digital.
The two covers here are some of the example of what I had to do "fix" issue two for the jump. Story wise the second issue cover in green was actually completed before the second issue was ever really done so there was mass amount of continuity errors in the illustration of Johnny and what is supposed to be a teaser for a reader to pick up the book. It'll never be a prefect process but it'll have to do until there can hardwire my brain to Photoshop CS whatever.

Images of the Independent's Day

Well, I managed to get the photo images of the Puyallup Comic Show posted today after a small phone call from a Hobby Show taking place here in Portland.
Business wasn't much in the way of selling today but of course business cards took off from the table that I was asked to man. I was approached by a couple different people about the work. Especially questions dealing with the scratchboard work that I had out. One person was looking for information about hiring someone to work on illustrating a Biblical story. But of course I have seen this kind of thing before and I wasn't going to get roped just by a verbal agreement.
I’ve been working in the field long enough to know when I see somebody wanting something for free. And under the auspice of religion. Ain’t gonna happen.
Even minor illustration like thumbnails have to be compensated for the time worked.
I have found in my experience that people would like to own a piece or a group of illustrations want to reproduce at anytime they want without thinking about the proper payment to the artist for the use of their artwork.
If ya wanta play with out any kind of hassle from me, you gotta pay.
We’ll see what happens.
I won’t hold my breath.

News

Hey there sports fans Al here with the latest!
Yesterday was a pretty successful day for Black Box Comix as a trip up to Washington state was nice and I got to met several new people in my kind of environment of creators some were interesting some were annoying or otherwise over sensitive as I have come to expect from other artists.
But all in all, it was a good day. Books that would have gone to other individuals most of whom are not returning customers at the comic shows made a major first move in getting the books out to people and places that I wouldn’t have thought having my books at.
Comic Evolution in Puyallup Washington was one of the most impressive comic shops I have ever been too. Well kept clean not at all cluttered like the shops that I have been going to down in Eugene. And on top of that Chuck Messinger the owner of the shop was one of the most gracious host I have had the chance to meet and get to know. I do believe that I will be going back to see him as long as he asks for me to come to his shop.
In other news:
Two new pages for issue number 2 of Johnny Vega. The digital work continues to keep going but at a slower pace than I had originally planned on. As it turns out it might be the end of July before I can get this book put to bed but it will be worth it I believe and on the horizon I see the continuation of The Misguided story line that I started in volume three of Pandora’s Garage in it’s own comic. Ultimately, I plan on having this story collected into a single large volume down the road but I have to have it edited first.
The last bit is a pic from the the Emerald City ComiCon. Yes it is true that I am looking a bit surprised in the pic by my friend Rizzo, but this show was a new experience for me. I don’t think that I am going to be heading back there until I am ready with more color comics in hand. Big main stream shows do better with color comics than black and whites and the opposite is true of independent comic shows like Stumptown. What I do see happening is that people like myself and others like Adam Watson of Darkslinger Comics, Jason Pott of NEOTrash Comix, and Travis Bundy of Thoughtbox Comics all are in a particular who all are dedicated creators who look at making comics as a lifestyle rather than a hobby which most people do for indy shows slapping kinko’s copies a few hours together and selling them.
But this topic opens up a can of worms that I am wanting to open up just yet.
Later, maybe.

Breaking Silence

Sorry for the delay, I am usually much more on top of blogging and posting than I have been of recent times but the Fourth of July is allowing to making my own personal independence known.
So with that being said there sports fans, Al is here with the latest:
I have been busting my hump to get my comics done before then end of the month. I have a better idea about how long it will take me to put together a entirely digital comic book from here on out and how to put the thing together without the pit falls of the problems that I had problems with in the past with the previous four issues of Pandora’s Garage and the first issue of Johnny Vega.
So I have posted a few new images of the completed pages of issue # 2. Take a look and tell me what you think?
Now as the Johnny comes closer to being finished I have begun looking at the continuing workings of my horror story, “The Misguided.”
Tentatively, I am looking at having a portion of this work done and completed by the time October but things are still up in the air on this as to when exactly but I would like to have working copy more or less by the time Halloween roles around.
On top of that I have up loaded some images of issue 2 of Johnny Vega . So at least you all knew that I didn’t die or the company of Black Box Comix has fallen off the Earth.
On top of that myself and a few others from around the Portland area will be heading up to Puyallup, Washington this July 12th at Comic Evolution for a small (and hopefully) yearly show.
And that is it.

new images for JV #2

This is right that i would have another image to post here since it's been a time since my last one. The page that you are looking at is that of page #11 of issue 2 of Johnny Vega- Man of the Future.
I felt that i should leave out a couple of images as I work on the book. I realized that if keep posting images all the time I would really have to make a comic book then would I?
After talking to Jason of NEO-Trash Comix, I realized that johnny might do better as a collected work than that of individual issues. Though I again I realized that if I do that I might have to re work the previous issue so it is along the same style as the last one I am currently working on.
This sounds a little George Lucas unfortunately but I think that in the case of Johnny, it might be a good idea.
Again consistency.