Here is a taste of next week’s comic. Hope it whets your appetite! Preliminary inks of Mordred, getting busy. Clicky the thumb to see a big version:
Preview inks of Mordred from issue 50
Make sure you visit every weekday for awesome updates in the blog!
I’ve been on a bit of an King Arthur kick lately (thank you, Julie Andrews!), so I thought I’d pursue some books upon the subject. Join me on a literary journey, won’t you?
The books I intend to read are:
The Once and Future King, by T. H. White
Idylls of the King, by Alfred Tennyson
Le Morte d’Arthur, by Sir Thomas Malory
Now I’m sure these cover a lot of the same ground. But I’m eager to read the author’s different takes on the subject. “Idylls” particularly is a series of poems, so they should give a unique profundity to the work. I tried to find these as ebooks, but I might have to pick up a couple of old-fashion paper backs.
Don’t be surprise if some of this “leaks” into the Wizard of Quippley. Don’t be surprise at all…
The “Inside story” is series of narratives describing the back story of the comic. This week’s story is about the First Days.
The Continent is the oldest part of the World. Therein lies the six kingdoms of Humans–which continuously vie for control, the stalwart bastions of the Dwarves hewed in stone, and the shifting tribes of Elves–who silently plan their return to power. Before it was split into such factions, the Continent was a whole–a land of peace and knowledge.
The earliest age of the World was known as the First Days. Life was wild and untamed, free of the machinations that would subdue it in future times. The realms of nature and the supernatural had no distinction; the spiritual walked uncloaked across the planes of the earth. It was in this environment the first people dwelt. Immersed in such knowledge and wisdom they grew strong. Sickness and frailty were unknown to them, and so was warfare and greed. These were the First Born, neither Humans nor Elves; unlike any other people who would come after. They lived long lives and experienced a bliss that was lost to later ages.
But the World was not entirely pure. Malevolent forces, from beyond time, sought to corrupt the purity of this infantile realm. Fel beasts stalked the shadows of the woods. Whispering spirits lured the unwise and childish into darkness and ruin. Thus the First Born strove to quell such evil and spread their wisdom across the World.
They left the comfort of their native home and trekked across the Continent. At various times certain members would settle into clans. By their vast skill, these communities soon grew into cities–great beacons of light and justice. From these cities the First Born spread their influence.
The greatest of these was Qadorien, “The City of Eternity.” It was built in the Far North, where the cold of the Tundras crashed against the imposing Crown Mountains. The city was foremost in education and craft. Even the wise among the First Born traveled there to learn from Qadorien’s scholars. This was due largely to the skill and wisdom of its founder, Eliasar, chief among the First Born. He was heralded as the watchman and master of the city and would have been crowned king by his people, had he wished for such power.
Eliasar had a single son, Alastar. In the days of his youth, Qadorien was besiege by a great evil. Hordes of black wargs, imbued by the power of some evil spirit, ravaged the countryside about the city. No one left Qadorien for fear of attack. It was then that Alastar lead a troop of his companions in battle against the beasts. They quickly prevailed, their power and might far greater than the groveling spirit that possessed the wolves. Though they slew many of the creatures, they showed compassion when they repented–and the evil force was banished.
News of this victory spread to the other cities. Alastar and his champions traveled across the Continent, ridding the land of the evil which plagued it. At each city they trained new warriors, who vowed to defend their people. In a year’s time they freed much of the Continent of its enemies and a period of unheralded peace swept over the World. This halcyon time endured to the very end of the First Days, when impenetrable darkness corrupted the age and plunged all life into ruin.
This is a big deal folks. I’m giving ya a sneak peak at Al’s new duds for the 2nd year of the comic. The style is a bit more simplified than what it is normally in the comic–but you’ll get the idea. It goes without saying that big new things will be going on in the upcoming year (Observant readers will notice something very interesting in the picture!). Click on the thumbie for a full view of the changes:
Preview of Algerbane in Year 2
Also new for Year 2: he’s going to be speaking in a British accent. Up until now it was more Welsh. Now, this may not be the final design for his clothes–and it will be a while until we actually see them on him. Most likely, you’ll forget you’ve seen this by the time they show up in the comic, unless of course you bookmark this post. But why would you do that, weirdo?
Anyway… keep your browsers tuned for Tuesday. Year 1 is getting mind-numbingly intense. Just 3 more issues until the mighty finale!
P.S: a more finished version of Al, including background and color highlights, will be posted soon!
Another day, another social networking site! In a shameless effort to garner more readers, I have created a tumblr blog. It will mostly feature posts to my comic, but it will also feature various other bits of artwork I feel worthy to expose to the internet. Anything non-comic related content will go there.
I’m doing this mainly to take advantage of tumblr’s social network. If you’re on tumblr, be sure to follow!
http://adamcasalino.tumblr.com/
Check out a snippet of an upcoming issue of the Wizard of Quippley. Hopefully this will keep you quelled until next Tuesday! These are the inks of Mordred, in a contemplative mood:
Preview of Mordred from Issue 49
Be sure to check the blog every weekday for insightful articles and blog updates!
Just wanted to make an official announcement on the site. In addition to www.talesofmaora.com, you can also access The Wizard of Quippley via the (relatively) shorter address: www.quippley.com.
Now, to disabuse any confusion, the website has not moved. All the wonder that is my comic is at the same place. I simply created a redirect address so that when you tell others about the comic, you have a shorter URL to give out. It’s important to share what you like in life to your friends, collages, relatives, and strangers so they can enjoy it to.
So next time your out and about, tell people about the Wizard of Quippley, at quippley.com.
Also, I’ve made it easy to share a specific comic or blog post to your favorite sites. Just use the buttons below each post to share to Facebook, Twitter, reddit, Digg, etc.
Hey now! The About page has been updated. A page of Peter’s private diary have been found, and an excerpt where he describes his pal, Algerbane, has been revealed. Those of you new to the comic can learn a bit more about it there. If you’re already familiar with our antics, take a look anyway and been entertained.
Yeah I thought that was pretty catchy title. Here is another behind-the-scenes look at my creative process. Before I started developing my comic, I realized I needed certain tools. To fully harness the creative power of digital software, you need a graphics tablet.
Tablets are simply thin slate-like devices with a smooth writing surface that attaches to your computer. Combined with a special “pen,” you can manipulate the computer cursor the same way you would with a mouse, with this one difference: it’s extremely precise. Not only that, the familiar feel of pen-on-paper makes art related tasks on the computer infinitely simpler.
Tablets can also be extremely expensive, especially for someone just starting out. But I knew I needed one. The chore of coloring digital artwork would be near impossible without one. So I bit the bullet can purchased a Wacom Bamboo pen tablet, the best for starters.
Now I do the entire comic digitally
I soon fell in love with the power it gave me. So after a few months I upgraded to a Wacom Inuos tablet–the bamboo’s beefier cousin. It is somewhat larger (a plus for artists) and has more features (and great pressure sensitivity). I became so comfortable with using a tablet to color my artwork, I began to draw and ink the artwork entirely on the computer. This not only increases the rate at which I can complete a comic, but produces (in my opinion) cleaner, superior artwork.
What does the future hold for digital artwork? Well there are even more advanced tablet devices, such as pressure sensitive, touch screens. Those are a bit out of my price range at the moment (and would require me to work at only one computer), but maybe when I become a full time creator. In the meantime, I fluctuate between digital drawing and pinning over traditional mediums.
Who knows? I may throw my tablets away and resort to “old school” pencil and paper.
We all knew this one was coming. My first encounter with the works of Tolkien was, surprisingly, at a later point in my life than you’d think. It was 7th grade and in Literature class we read “The Hobbit.” The story was vaguely familiar to me: I had seen the series in paperback form scattered amongst my step-sister’s books and the image of slimy Gollum on the cover made an indelible impression on my mind.
When first examining the story, I was less than enthused. Throughout my childhood I had avoided stories where the main characters were humble, seemingly ‘weak’–namely children. So imagine my disdain for a story who’s hero was a small, whining child-like person. I wanted to see tall and proud knights, supermen or warriors. But Tolkien’s magic worked its way into my mind and by the time actual people were introduced at Esgaroth, they seemed foreign and distant to me. I wanted to stay with the dwarves and hobbits.
Soon after, I discovered my mother was a devout fan of his work (to this day I don’t know why it had never come up before). I picked up her copy of “Fellowship of the Ring” …and never made it passed the prologue.
It took the release of the movies to finally push me to read the trilogy. I quickly became a purist fan, being mildly upset at the editorializing of the films. I can honestly say there were scenes in the book that were far more thrilling than anything portrayed on screen (ie: Gandalf verses the Witch King before the gates of Minis Tirith).
Any true inspiration, however, didn’t come until I was exposed to “The Silmarillion.” I purchased a mass market paperback copy and tried to read it. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get past the strange and hard to pronounce names (of course I wasn’t reading it aloud, but even in my mind this posed a challenge). I found a copy of an old audio recording of the book, and took it with me during long walks.
The serene surroundings of an empty Florida subdivision, coupled with the powerful voice of Martin Shaw, seared the story into my psyche. The grand depth of the creation of Middle-earth and the epic struggle of the mighty Valar and the elves was far more exciting and provoking to my imagination than any other Tolkien work (I guess I’m still looking for heroes in my fiction). The beauty and sorrow of Beleriand was captivating and intriguing.
So how has this influenced my work? Look around 
. I think I will always be chasing Tolkien, whether in my comic or writing. I will always be looking for a city like Valmar, perfect and shining with the Sun. In my heart there lays an ancient anchor, pulling me to a world that is old and mystic, free of the shallow accoutrement of our age. So whether in real life or in my fiction I search for it. Perhaps I will never fully see it until I die.
“For the lesser even as for the greater, there is some deed that he may accomplish but once only and in that deed his heart shall rest.”
