...Johnny, I hardly knew ya...

Or perhaps hardly used you.

I'm referring to this blog, which has been a fun little experiment, but one I've done very little with with.  In an effort to consolidate my online activities (and random ramblings) I'm closing this down and moving all future posts to my Google+ profile and my DeviantArt page.  You can check those sites if, for some strange reason, you are at all interested in my future activities.  I will likely be updating both of them a bit more regularly than I have this poor, neglected blog.

Thanks for reading.

Commissions Closed

Lots of work, sorry folks.

Commissions Open

8.25" x 12" Black & white single character or scene - $50
11" x 17" Black & white single character or scene - $75
Colour - add $25
Prices, sizes and details negotiable, payment by PayPal or check.

Daddy's got bills to pay and mouths to feed. If anyone wants a cool piece of art just let me know. I'll take any and all that I can get right now as funds are slim.

A Quick Paint

Still not a digital painter.  A little bit of practice helps tho.

Some Sketchy

Something Old, Something New

It's been awhile since I've tried to put one of these guys on paper.  Welcome back old friend.

More Practice

Practice

Bullseye

Prints, mugs, postcards, hell, even puzzles from my work are all available for sale here at my Deviant Art Store. I don't make much off these (it all goes to DA), so be sure to buy in bulk.

A Little Bit of the Past

I thought This might be of interest to some of you who follow my work. This is a flyer from a London games shop where I purchased one of my first sets of Citadel miniatures. I'm pretty sure this was in 1986, the copyright date on the flyer, though the Orc's Nest website (yes, they're still around) says they opened in 1987. Either way, it was awhile ago. This thing has been taped to walls and refrigerators, and eventually stuffed into a old folder where I found it after the recent move. When I was a teenager, my grandparents would make a trip to England every year, and they would always return to the Orc's Nest to pick me up a random collection of GW goodies from the original source.

Here's a link to their webstore. I'm glad to see they're still in business.

Slowly Catching Up

I haven't been active here in quite a while, but I think it's time to change that. Let's dust off the old blog and make something happen.

More to come.

Total Eclipse

And on my birthday of all days. There's a total eclipse of the moon tonight, something I'm told won't happen again for several years. I'd like to think that means something, perhaps an omen of some kind, though I'm not sure whether for good or ill. Somehow it's very fitting. It's been one of those odd reflective days. Neither good nor bad, up nor down. One of those days that just can't decide what it wants to be. I feel like there's something that needs to be done, or some decision that needs to be made, or some conclusion that needs to be reached and I just can't figure out what it is.

Funny how that goes. A birthday is a good day to reflect. Clear out the head and try to put everything into perspective. A lot's happened in the past year and I've barely had a chance to stop and think about it. For one thing, I'm drawing for a living. I'm actually drawing for a living. People are giving me money for my little doodles, putting those doodles in books or on television, and selling them to other people. It feels good, but I think there's still a ways to go before I'll feel like I've "made it". I don't know if I'll ever feel like that. There's always more to do.

And so it goes. It's been a good year with Violet and Samantha, and a whole lot of work. And it looks like it's not ready to stop. I've two new projects I'm working now. More on that another time. And a very sincere apology to all the family and old friends who've tried to get in touch or send holiday greetings over the past few months. I've had my nose to the grindstone but I do mean to get back to all of you soon.

And if I can get this post up in the next ten minutes I'll have just made it before the end of my birthday (at least in this time zone).

Take care,

Daniel

Another First...

My first signing, thanks to the generous folks at Muse Comics & Games. And issue #2 of Blood and Thunder hit stores today.

All The News That's Fit To Print...

Well, It's going to be a busy month as I'm penciling the final issue of Blood & Thunder trying to finish it off by the 31st. It's been a great series to work on and I hope to do another for Boom! when it's done.

The exciting news of the day is that I've been interviewed by a local newspaper, the Missoula Independent. It's the first time I've been interviewed for anything so it's a bit of a milestone for me. Hopefully it turns out ok. I think I blathered and rambled on a bit more than I should have. I'll post some more info when I have it.

Another milestone is coming up as well. When issue #2 of Blood & Thunder hits stores I'll be doing my very first signing at Muse Comics and Games. The folks at Muse have been great and very supportive of the book. I don't have any details yet but I'll post them when I do.

That's all for now. I'm off to bed.

Grammy DeWick

Ups and downs, highs and lows. The circle of life goes on I suppose. My Grandmother, Marge DeWick, passed away this weekend. Grammy DeWick (as I will always remember her) played an important and prominent role in my childhood and I will always remember her. She and my late Grandfather helped to make me the person I am today and I will be forever grateful to them.

And Grammy made the best damned Corn Chowder you’ve ever had. It’s funny how the little things like food are so strongly linked to the most powerful memories. Thinking about Grammy’s corn chowder opens up the flood gates for me. There’s a smell that goes with it, a mix of milk, salt, potato and of course corn. I can see the spoon she’d always stirred it with, slightly tarnished, worn and uneven on the tip. I used to love to taste from that spoon. And then I’m in the kitchen in that old New England farmhouse in Maine, with its tall windows, stone sink and hardwood floor. Real hardwood too, not that fake 2mm thick crap that they paste down and call hardwood now. Everything in that house was real, most of it old, a little worn, but very well taken care of, a bit like my grandparents themselves. I spent a lot of time in that house as kid. It had an unmistakable calm and serenity, the like of which I’m never experienced any place else. The time I spent with Grammy and Grampy DeWick was magical. I miss them both. I suppose I could ramble on a bit more but I don’t know what else to say right now. I hope that’s enough.

If you can make it to Bath, Maine (sadly I cannot, though I’ll be there in spirit) there will be visiting hours on Thursday night, December 7th at the David E. Desmond Funeral Home, 638 High Street, Bath, Maine and a funeral the following day, Friday, December 8th. Sadly, I don't know the times of the services buf you follow the link there's a phone number on the funeral home's website.

Blood & Thunder Update

At long last!

Blood and Thunder #1 is officially in stores and on sale from Boom! Studios. I've finished the line art for issue 2 and am awaiting the script for issue 3. You can find a preview of 11 pages of issue 1 here on Comic Book Resources. You can also see the pencil line art for those pages in my Deviant art gallery. And the book has been reviewed here, here, and here.

Also, the previous Boom! Warhammer 40,000 series, Damnation Crusade, which I made a very small contribution to has been collected in trade paperback and hardback formats.

It's been a wonderful experience working for Boom! and I hope they keep me on for a while longer. I can't say enough good things about my editor, Joe Abraham, who's also a talented artist and penciller on Boom!'s Hero Squared. I think his experience as an artist had made him far more qualified for the job than many editors I've encountered. Issue 2 was a really rough one to get through. It seemed like every time I turned around something else was going wrong. Poor little Violet had a fever which we had to take her to the ER for, and which kept her restless and upset for nearly a week. On top of that my computer died about half way through the issue, leaving me incapable of delivering any artwork to Boom! until it could be replaced. Luckily the paycheck for issue 1 showed up at the same time and I was able to put in a emergency call to Dell. Somehow I got through it, though I know I went a little crazy before the end. I've now had nearly a week to relax since finishing issue 2, which I think I've badly needed. Nonetheless, I feel myself getting antsy and impatient. I'm very eager to get back to work and I hope the new script shows up soon.

That's all for now.

Take care,

Daniel

Beyond the Big Bang

Tuesday, September 4th on the History Channel, 8pm Eastern

"The universe began with a massive expansion, billions and billions of years ago, and it continues to expand with every passing second. The idea that the universe, and man's very existence, began with a "Big Bang" is no longer a topic of debate among most scientists--it is essentially taken as fact. How has man come to this conclusion, and how has our knowledge evolved so that we can recreate the very first seconds of our universe and all that has developed since? Interviews with theworld's leading physicists and historians are woven together with animated recreations and first-person accounts to explain concepts such as the formation of galaxies, the creation of elements and the formation of Earth itself."

My sideshow paintings of Albert Einstein and the human brain appear in one of the segments. Be sure to tune in if you're in the States. It will probably air a few time in case you miss it.

Thanks,
Daniel

A Small Side Note...

The best metaphor for the comic book marketplace that I've read in a long time:

"I wonder how much would change if Diamond initiated a first-phase toward making its product returnable? A first step toward growing up and actually being a responsible, professional book distributor? It would take a lot of unnecessary risk off of comics retailers, and it would force Diamond to take ownership of its own place in the grand scheme of things. The current, dying system obviously allows Diamond to possess all the power and virtually none of the risk -- so much so that operating a comic book store with Diamond as your only source of product is clearly a sucker's game -- if not the ethical equivalent of being the black-eyed wife in an abusive marriage, shrieking at the cops "But I LOVE HIM!" as the cops haul him into the back of the squad car once again, certain he'll be back at home with all forgiven within 24 hours. Wednesday's always just around the corner, after all."

Many thanks to Mr. Alan David Doane for putting things so succinctly.

Damnation Crusade #6

My contibution to the issue was very small (a handful of panel revisions and a few fill-in pages), but my work is in there and the book should be in stores soon. I'll post when the issue is released, but in the meantime you can find more info here and here on the Boom! webpage. Also, a trade collection of the entire series is available for pre-order from Amazon.

Blood & Thunder Day 14

Or thereabouts. I'm not quite sure how accurate that count is at this point, but it's pretty close.

Layouts have officially been approved, and though I've got just a few character details to sort out, I'm free to move ahead into penciling. There's a small crunch as things are a few days behind schedule, but it should all be fine if I can get up to a good pace. The only delays have been due to the time it takes to get everything to all the right people so the material can be cleared to move ahead. Such is the nature of licensed properties. It means things are probably going to continue at a somewhat frantic pace for the entire project, but so be it. There's really no way around that. The gratifying part was that my layouts were approved without any real requests for changes. I've got a pretty clear vision of how I'm going to move ahead and I'm glad that powers that be trust me enough to let me do so.

OK, that's it for now. I'm going to rule out a few more panel borders and then I'm off to bed. More to come...