Chapter 1, Page 5

This is hands-down my favorite page of the bunch, entirely because of that top panel. In fact, that one image is the culmination of my entire artistic career. Well, I'm sure that was an exaggeration, but I will not retract the statement. I also think that panel was the biggest challenge of that page. For instance, that was the first nude male I'd drawn in a long time, but I think I he turned out quite glorious. Plus the ":/" face. Sorry about all that. Anyway, I used pretty much the same brushes and inks for this page as the rest. I think I also started going kinda crazy with the white lines in the black areas at this point. Well, that's about it for this installment.

Chapter 1, Page 4

Well, I'm not sure what to say about this page. By this time I had pretty much decided how I was going to work on the comic-- mostly with a number 2 white sable brush, using a number 4 to fill in areas. And there's dialogue now, oh my! It feels like kind of a lot after the last three pages, but it'll be staying there. I actually am doing all the lettering by hand, God help me. I minimized the possibility for huge mistakes by writing the lettering on a separate sheet of paper (just regular computer paper), with my #2 white sable brush, then scanning the lettering and laying it on the page via photoshop. Everyone around me said I was crazy to do the lettering with a brush, but look at me now! Kehkehkehkehkeh!

Well look at that. I actually found something to say about the page.

Chapter 1, Page 3

This was when I finally started working with some larger brushes. And it looks so much better, too! However, I think I'm going to redraw this sequence when I get some time, maybe in the spring. It was pointed out to me that it feels too rushed and compact, and now I can't unsee it. Obviously the only solution is to replace it with something completely new.

Chapter 1, Page 2

Page dos! The hand lettering on this one was a lot of fun. (It always makes me think of the Snakes on a Plane theme song-- Come on brrriinng it!). In fact, the only part that was not a lot of fun was the second-to-last panel. That was torturous, it took me forever to get it looking decent. I was still painstakingly working with the 000 brush at this point, along with the size 4 and then a size 2 (I think) rigger. And I think I forgot to mention before that I used white acrylic ink to separate/add texture to the black areas. Also, if anyone's curious, the panels are done with a gigantic Faber-Castell brush pen and a very reliable T-square and ruler. Well, that's all for now.

Chapter 1, Page 1

Let's get started, shall we? I apologize in advance for my overwhelming desire to comment on my own work, but self-control has never been my strong point.

I think the unique challenge with page one was that I had close to no experience with doing line work with a brush beforehand. I'd done maybe five ink and brush (very sketchy) comic pages a couple of months before starting Bad Grammar, and then I just dove right in. Not a technique for the faint of heart, but I recommend it to those who have a difficult time picking up new things. It's pretty much the only way I learn anything about anything.

Anyway, I had zero control with the brush compared to nowadays (a mere four months later), so I started off small; literally. The line work on this entire page was done with a 000 red sable brush, and the black areas filled in with a 4 red sable brush. I would also like to take this opportunity to say that I absolutely adore Loew-Cornell brushes, both red and white sable.

I promise my commentary on future pages won't be quite so lengthy.

Chapter 1 Cover

Here's the cover to Chapter One. I painted it in acrylic, then did the text and the black bars in india ink, scanned it all, and assembled it in photoshop. Don't ask me why I decided to paint the cover like this. Sometimes my thought processes are a mystery even to me. Still, I like the color variation that happened in the yellow.

About

Bad Grammar is a personal project I've been writing and drawing for a while now, and one day I hope to get it published.

Michio, a mathematical genius with absolutely no social grace whatsoever, is thrust from his home in Saitama, Japan, to his mother's hometown on Long Island, New York. He is befriended by two outcasts, Ruby and Trevor, and from there the high school (and supernatural) drama begins.

For those who wonder about materials:

Bad Grammar is exclusively black and white (i.e. no gray tones) with white and red sable brushes ranging from size 000 to size 4 and india ink. The paper is 11" x 17" smooth bristol.

Bad Grammar is copyright Marie Condenzio 2008/2009 and beyond.