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Chapter 2, page 13 (?) - Xylia

Barbibgton - WOW!! This page is amazing! I adore the colours here. It feels so very ethereal and bewitching. The sculpture with Xylia`s form looks so grave and solemn, especially with the dry branches entwining itself around it. Can`t wait for more updates!
That landing looks very painful though.

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Permalink Reply by lisabond on May 15, 2008 at 6:30am: Yep, poor Claude. *ouch*. Ya think he could have floated down ;o) Another very well done page. The illumination in Claude's eyes as he's looking at Xylia...it really draws you in. :o)

I like how you drew Xylia's wings in stone.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barb Jacobs on May 15, 2008 at 5:56pm: Thank you Lisa! Those wings were tricky...Lots of technical trial and error stuff on these pages. Rather challenging!

~B; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barb Jacobs on May 15, 2008 at 6:49am: Heh, I gotta admit here in the haven of Xyliacia that after looking at it again, it turns out I'm not so happy with it. -.- It seems like the ones that I actually like are the ones I dislike the most later. (I actually wish I hadn't committed to saying 'I like this' in the news. Now I really feel silleh.)

Anyway, the image of Claude going splat was supposed to be funny- proving the guy is a clutz even when he's not alive! But I took out a bunch of dialogue and went more for the - 'oh-my-gosh-it's-Xyila' impact which changed the overall feel of the page. CT is my proofreader/editor, and alerted me to the fact that Claude falling face down 'really isn't funny, it simply looks painful'. And that was okay too actually, because the real point is that Claude still sees himself as someone with a body who is governed by universal laws of gravity, which he really isn't.

All that said, I WANT TO DO THE WHOLE THING OVER, but that's how I feel about every single page, panel, or line I have ever drawn, so I just gotta switch myself onto "let's move on" mode and move ahead.

It's the only way I would ever get anything done!

LOL! Thank you guys for the nice comments. I'm glad you like the branches and statueness...and the page really! It was so much cooler in my mind. Wish you could have seen THAT page.^_^

~B; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by lisabond on May 15, 2008 at 7:59am: Anyway, the image of Claude going splat was supposed to be funny- proving the guy is a clutz even when he's not alive!

Yeah, I could see Claudius stand up, look down on himself and declare,"Oh, dear. I appear to be naked."

I'm starting to understand the process or drawing, of creating hearing you talk about your process. It would infuriate me to no end when my daughter would draw something, and I would be going, "Wow, Rachel, that is really good!!!" and all she could do was pick it apart. Maybe, too, she is seeing it in her head, and can't make her hands draw exactly what she *sees*, and here I am who can't even draw a straight line looking at her drawing in total awe.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barb Jacobs on May 15, 2008 at 5:48pm: I have said many times that when an artist is actually satisfied with his/her work, is when the artist is done. If you have nothing to try to improve, you move on. It's the hope that the 'next one' will be good that keeps me going anyway. ^_^
~B; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Strange Ian on May 15, 2008 at 1:30pm: Actually, I thought the splat-panel was kinda funny, with his sprawling legs and arms, and the complete face-first-into-the-groundness of it... I can sort of hear him going "aaaarghaaarghaaargh-THUD" in his mind, and you can't help but laughing at that. Also, I like it when things go splat...

This is just one terrific update, has all the trademarks of a pice of Barb-art (great light, clours, faces, panels, all that stuff I allways drool over...) I just keep coming back to it! I like the light in the second panel with Xylia in it, it's like that glow is coming from above and will be bursting out of her chest...; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barb Jacobs on May 15, 2008 at 5:49pm: Aw, thank you SI. He was saying something like that in those panels, but I took them out. I have always been a fan of wordless pages, probably because I'm an artist first a writer second. It just seemed to have more impact with just that one word. The title of the series!

~B; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Mark on May 15, 2008 at 7:39am: Claude's eyes are AMAZING!
...and the landing ...so very remeniscent of various drunken friends of mine at the lake ...attempting to jump off a dock. Some of them even managed to hit the water!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barb Jacobs on May 15, 2008 at 5:50pm: LOL!! Wham! Ive seen that plenty a time myself standing on stage in bars. And much worse.

Glad you like the eyes- I thought they were right creepy. ^_^

~B; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Adam Salken on May 15, 2008 at 12:56pm: I kinda feel like Claudius does in this page, I have little idea exactly what is happening! The next page should reveal more..; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barb Jacobs on May 15, 2008 at 5:51pm: Or not. BWHA!

I like to tell stories about confused people who can't figure things out.

Rather autobiographical in a way. -.-

It may be a bit before everything is clearly revealed.

~B; ▶ Reply to This