Tuesday
30Dec2008
The Big Head
Tuesday, December 30, 2008 at 01:04PM 
Holidays. I have felt no love this year. Last year, much love. This year... none.
I have had a huge lack of updates in the last few months and I'm going to do my best to remedy that in the coming year. For now, check out the cover to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz #5
You can see here that I made a few changes along the way. I always do a thumbnail for approval. Most people will do 4 or more sketches for 1 cover. I don't really like to do that. It tends to split my attention and I'll just do 4 weak drawings, usually the weakest getting picked to be the cover. So I take a little extra time and try to nail one really good idea and go in with a little color to show where I plan to take it.
You'll notice here that I made a little change at every stage. When I started penciling (which is done digitally on the Cintiq), I decided to add more black to Oz's face. This helps give a more ominous feel and that he really is coming out of the darkness. After inking it (brush and ink), I decided that the smoke that swirled above his head looked a bit off and just brushed over. Once I started coloring it, I realized that the smoke felt out of place and felt like it was a bit of a different style. I just just couldn't make it look right so I just erased all the smoke. I tried to make the effects a bit more magical and I think it helps take the image to another world.
There you go, a little info into creating a cover. Thanks to all those who went out bought the first issue! Thanks for your great comments. (Except the guy that wanted his money back... haha, sorry brother)
Reader Comments (23)
Beautiful Cover! Much love to yah' this holiday season! Keep up the awesome work!
Beyond COOL cover! Can´t wait to see it in print! Someone asked for his money back?? Hey Skottie, will you have more sketchbooks on sale on ebay anytime soon?
Best wishes for this new year to you and your love ones! Hugs!
waou , very nice cover . i would like to find it for my soon
Beaut Cover!
Your link is in my favorites!
Congratulations and happy new year!
Looks great. There can be a lot of power in a symmetrical design when one can make it work. And you definitely make it work.
Thats the way Oz, is supposed to look . Larger than life, and make you crap your pants, poor Dorthy. Your the man,awesome job. Happy New Year...Steve
Again, incredible work Skottie! Amazing - hope the holiday's have been treating you well!
Just picked up Issue 1 today. Looking pretty damn nice man.
Happy new year, man!
I bought first issue-great job, dude!
Wish you luck and love, man.
Be happy-be skottie!
Awesome cover. Totally on the mark. I brought and loved issue 1 and am eager for more. Well done this was a tough job to make your own but you have nailed it.
holy shit skottie, that cover looks incredible! how did u do it?!
Skottie
Cover looks amazing. I like the changes, gives it more of a mystical feel. Can't wait for issue two. Last year I got B-sides for Christmas, nothing compared to it this year. Can't wait for another sketch book. Keep it up.
Great work my friend! Happy New Year!!!
Wow, taking a second look at it I could hear the voice of the Wizard from the movie in that moment.
Don't waste your money on this book. If you want to read a GOOD comic of the Wizard of OZ pick up " The Wonderful Wizard of OZ" by David Chauvel and Enrique Fernandez.
Why are you taking down negative comments about your work?? Don't you want to hear real feedback?
Thank to everyone for the comments. I'm glad most of you enjoyed it, and sorry for those who didn't.
Katie- Thank you for the question. I don't ever delete negative comments, you'll notice in the previous post that one of the frist ones is negative. If you could see the last few years of comments, i've always welcomed and thank everyone for any comment, good or bad. When I redesigned the New X-Men, I had a fair amount of both.
But I do try to keep my blog a productive place. So when Anonymous posters leave comments like "You Suck". (that was one entire commment) and "You suck, you're a D-Bag" then we're entering into a childish area that I prefer to keep away from here. Name calling and petty slang doesn't do anybody any good.
If there are constructive comments to be written and read then they will stay on here. This means explaining an opinion on why you may like or dislike it. This way, I as an artist may actually learn something about peoples view of my art and how I may grow as an artist.
At the end of the day, this isn't a message board or forum. This is a place for me to explain the process of my work and get REAL feedback on the work. Personal attacks and schoolyard shouting isn't going to be allowed here. I'm a grown up with a job to do a family to support. I won't ever waste my time on the internet debating the merits of whether or not "I SUCK"... haha. Nor will I apologize for it.
Thanks again to everyone for the posts!
Agree 100% Skottie
Well said Skottie! Don't worry most of us love your stuff. Keep up the good work, and keep the posts coming. Take care, good luck.
You still tried to charge a 10 yr old for a sketch and a signature and your work was much btter before you went digital..
While I do charge for sketches, I 9 times out of 10 always do a quick one for any kid... for free. And I've never in my life charged any person of any age for a signature. EVER.
Convention sketches are a funny thing. We're expected to do them, and we most of the time enjoy doing them. But some people don't realize how many people want them. I get a list of about 100 people over a 3 day period. Those are the people that are willing to pay the $10-$20 for a penciled and inked sketch. Now add that to the number of people that aren't willing to pay... around 50-75 more. I can't actually do that many sketches. Some people may be super human enough to do that, but not me. It's too much. Not to mention that the convention, or the comic companies don't fly us to conventions. We pay for these trips on our own dime. So, when I spent 4 years in a row, doing convention a month (12 a years), the bills start to stack up. I'm promoting books and my art on my dime. $300 or more per plane ticket, $300 or more for the hotel that weekend, $100 plus on the overpriced food for the weekend, $200-$500 (we're talking $1000's for SDCC) for a table to sit at for the weekend. Add the lowest end of that all up and you've got a $1000 a month out of pocket. $12,000 a year for 4 straight years. And like most people, when you go away on a trip you are missing work. You know, the work you do to earn your money. So, while I spend $1000 plus for the 3 days, I loose about as much by not working. If you are a business person you'll see that as going into the red.
Charging money. It's not the greatest thing in the world but it's the thing that helps me to be able to do the shows, and sign the books and meet the people that I appreciate and love for buying all my books . That's the only way to make things fair and make sure I'm doing sketches for the people who want one from me, not just because there is a sign that says "free drawings". I'm not that interested in drawing for the Ebay junkies, and charging for sketches keeps it fair and even. I know this sounds odd, and it's not cool that other kids have to get the brunt, but some people actually use they're kids to get free sketches. I'm not kidding. I had a 8 year old girl come up to me and ask for a sketch of Omega Red. She had no idea what she wanted, but her dad stood 10 feet away with a list marking the names off that he needed. It's not cool. But I've got to keep things fair across the board. I charge everyone the same amount for sketches. If I have time, I'll do quicker, looser sketches for free.
It's strange to me what people think they're entitled to. I love the look on someone's face when they get the sketch they've bee waiting for. I'm flattered that they want it that bad. But when a 10 hour day is up and someone comes to the table mad that I won't do them something for free i have to scratch my head. If you went to a signing of your favorite band, would you expect them to write you a little verse while you're in line. Probably not. But not only do people at conventions expect us to give them free drawings, you'd be shocked at the amount that get mad when we don't.
So, please, keep the name calling to yourself. This is my job and I do the best I can at it. I'll never be the greatest guy to everyone who wants me to be, but I always mean well and try my best to give as much of myself as I can. If you want to take my daily work load and the extra traveling and time away from family and wrap it up in the term "douche bag" then that's all you. I know better, and I find it childish and silly.
As for liking my work before it went digital, I feel ya. I don't actually see it as digital as there is still a physical page for every page that i ink with brush and ink. But I know I've changed my style and approach and they doesn't work for everyone. I'm glad you shared your thoughts on that.
whoa! way to unload. Just know there are people out there that get it. Unfortunatley you can't make everybody happy. So just keep doing your thing.
I work full time with travel and have two kids. I'm trying to get a book going during my very limeted free time. So, know that some of us are appreciative of what you do.
Trust me I wish I had at least as much talent that's in your pinky. You have a unique style that no one has brought to the comic scene before. Keep it up. And for those that don't like your stuff, well, I guess that's one less sketch you have to worry about.
Super cool :))