I added a ShoutMix box on the sidebar. I know the individual posts have a comments option, but I like having the Shoutbox always on the main page. I’m considering disabling the regular WordPress comments option on all pages so any comments will go to the Shoutbox. If anyone thinks that’s a stupid idea just give me a…well…you know. A shout.

Another change that will eventually come is an ad banner at the top. As soon as I get enough posts up to qualify for a Project Wonderful banner I’m getting one. That was a goal from the first day. The logo will change to one that I actually like a lot better (pictured below). The current logo is cool, but I just dig the badassedness of this one and it should fit nicely to the left of any banner ad that graces the top of the page.

Page views are on the rise. I guess that means some of you are reading the comic. Allow me to take this opportunity to say thank you. I think most artists will agree when I say that feedback is like a boost of energy. When we don’t get any, we begin to wonder if what we’re doing is even worth it. When we get feedback we feel like what we’re doing is worth it. And that feels pretty godsbedamned good.

Well, I’m totally focused on doing this comic. It’s a blast and I’m holding that schedule like a starving weasel holds a pizza cheese Combo.

I do have some plans for the site other than just maintaining the Mon/Fri update schedule. Since it’s late and I’m sleepy I’ll share a bit.

First, I want to throw up some kind of character profile thingie. Probably very simple, just some headshots of all the named characters that have appeared so far and a few words about them. I won’t reveal much in the descriptions because I’ve decided I like letting things come out naturally in the story. Maybe I’ll pepper it with a few tidbits here and there (like the fact that Rin Rin Volar grew up dirt poor and learned a sort of rural, cheap form of magic).

Eventually I want to create a more immersive “world” page. But even though I have extensive notes on the setting I feel like it would be more prudent and satisfying to wait until the setting has been fleshed out in the context of the unfolding story. So a world overview page might be a while coming.

RPG. Yes indeed. This comic is inspired a great deal by classic fantasy roleplaying games such as good ole D&D, so I would be terribly remiss if I didn’t create a Zyn Dweomer RPG. I do actually dabble in RPG design, you know. But, as with the world page, an RPG will be a while in the making. Let’s see if I can get to page 100 first, then I’ll talk dice and character classes.

Contest: Page eighteen has a quote from a famous movie (as best as I can remember the quote). First person to post the name of the movie on the Shoutbox gets a free sketch of any character of their choice (not just related to my comics). Rock on.

Well, things are going great. In the past I’ve lost steam before this point, usually because I dive into epic projects without really knowing them. Kind of like jumping into long term relationships with people you don’t know that well. I’ve been married for @ 18 years, so I got that part covered. Just the comics I’ve had trouble with.

But no more. We’re tooling along at a brisk 2-pages-per-week pace and I’m not looking back. The comic is only growing in my mind, maturing into a real world full of real people. I hope to reveal that page-by-page and week-by-week.

One big challenge coming up is the impending birth of my daughter. I’m incredibly excited about this event in my life. From a comics perspective, it will be daunting to keep the update schedule unchanged while changing diapers and working a full time job. But from the outset of Zyn Dweomer I said the schedule might change at that point. I will try to avoid it, though.

Times are tough, they say. And they are right.

Due to some problems at home I need to free up some time to make a little extra cash. So, as bad as I hate to do it, I have to reduce my posting frequency to weekly. From now on Zyn Dweomer will update on Monday’s.

And it will rock.

I’m changing the update day to Wednesdays due to certain home life logistical concerns.

This Wednesday…what happens to the clientele of Bojo’s when they fight and throw bombs in the house?

Just thought I’d share a bit of my process. Sometime I’d like to put together a more in-depth post but this is just to show basically what the sucker looks like before being finished.

You’ll note that I don’t name my layers, usually. A page of ZD ends up with between 15 and 40 layers…the only ones that get named are balloons and borders. When I did the first handful of pages I was naming them “panel 1 inks” and so on, but eventually it just seemed pointless to me.

In a nutshell: I draw a blue layer (not sure why blue…guess its a carryover from paper art) where all the very rough sketching goes. If I need to refine a sketch I do it on this layer. If not, I create a new layer and start inking. I tend to ink each panel on a different layer. When I go to colors each panel ends up with the following layers: Inks, background color/art, basic flat colors, multiplied colors for shadows, and a layer on top of it all for highlights. Very meat-and-potatoes.