Monkey Biz and Original Oz Art

Who liked DOROTHY OF OZ: PREQUEL #1? Who likes original art? Who wants to own part of that?

For those who have been following my art for a bit, you'll know I'm mostly digital nowadays. My creator-owned comic, THE RAPTOR, when completed, will be entirely digital.

However, on DOROTHY OF OZ, I did what I did with my 2010 run on DOCTOR WHO - I kept specific pages partially traditional.

Lemme explain; as I work almost entirely digitally, most of my comic pages are never on paper (save for my layout roughs, which I always do on paper - but they serve mostly to let my editor know the plan for my page).

So while most pages are never drawn traditionally, and none are traditionally inked, I do pencil certain splash pages on BlueLine comic pages. They're just pencil, which I then scan, then digitally ink atop of (sometimes filling in missing info, or making corrections as I go - kinda like when I traditionally ink my own pencils).

I did this with three and a half pages on DOROTHY OF OZ: PREQUEL #1. The example above sold today (cropped to shield y'all from spoilers).

While I won't reveal what the remaining two-and-a-half pages depict, in a week or two, I'll start listing them on eBay for sale. Each is pencil on 11"x17" BlueLine comic book art board.

If you are interested in purchasing a page before they're listed on eBay for public sale, email me at info [at] oneGemini.com, and I can give you a list of what's available and the price.

There won't necessarily be four pages available every issue. For instance, issue #2 only has two traditionally penciled pages (and one of those pages already may be spoken for).

So... buy early, buy often?

Maybe not.

Anyway, there will be original art for sale. Help a freelancer out. We don't get health insurance... so buy me groceries instead. ;)

Cheers!

~B

DOCTOR Q

As those who follow my blog (or Twitter, or FB, or deviantArt, etc) know, I was an invited guest to this year's Gallifrey One Doctor Who convention in Los Angeles. I went in 2011 as well, and like that year, my wife, Sarah, came with me (though this year, our then-three-month-old son Xander came along as well).

My wife is a Star Trek the Next Generation geek from way back (as am I) so when we heard that one of the guests in attendance would be John de Lancie ("Q" from STTNG, "Agent Shapiro" from Torchwood: Miracle Day, "Discord" from My Little Pony... oh, just go Google him. Shame on you for not knowing!), we knew just HAD to meet him.

In anticipation of the meeting, and with IDW's Doctor Who/STTNG crossover comic in the back of my mind (which I really have no idea if Q is in or not) I quickly did up a sketch on a half-sheet of cardstock with pencil and ink before we met him. The only time I have ever drawn Q. I think it came out okay.

It waited until the last day of the con, but we got to meet the man, shake his hand, and get a picture with him (gosh... he's tall). He seemed to appreciate the sketch, so that made me happy.

So... there. I'm pretty happy with all of that.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

Well, are you listening to me, You? Tomorrow, you won't be in Kansas anymore!

(Which is good, especially if you live next door to the Phelps clan.)

DOROTHY OF OZ: PREQUEL #1 (of 4) hits comic book shelves everywhere!

AND HERE'S THE PREVIEW --> [CLICKY!]

Dorothy of Oz: Prequel (1 of 4)

"(Writer) Denton J. Tipton (Artist) Blair Shedd (Colors) Joana Lafuente (Cover Artist) Eric Shanower
Based on the upcoming animated film Dorothy of Oz! Building on the world created in the celebrated children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum, Dorothy of Oz will tell the tale of the titular hero's return to the Land of Oz. But first read here about what events transpired to necessitate Dorothy's return, and witness the rise of the Jester!"

I hope you grab this book. Were you worried about handing my Doctor Who comics to your younger kids? Certainly you weren't going to give them a copy of Zombiebomb!

But DOROTHY OF OZ: PREQUEL is 100% kid-safe, and comic-fun!

Check it out, and let me know what you think. Comment here. Comment on Twitter or Facebook (see the links on the right).

Pick this book up, and give props to Denton, Joana, Eric, and (letterer) Neil Uyetake. Great work all-around.

Have a heart - buy this book!

(I'll stop with the Oz-cliché jokes... for now.)

Cheers!

Holding Lines Live - The Tenth Doctor Colors

This was last night's coloring of the previous day's drawing, via Livestream.

I tried something different with the show last night, keeping the mic switch handy so I could turn it off and on at will, replying over the feed if someone had a question, and to keep people better abreast of what I was doing to the piece at any given time.

Many thanks to those who stopped by.

No show planned for tonight, unless there's a demand for one (snort - yeah right), so sometime next week p'raps.

Cheers!

Holding Lines Live - The Tenth Doctor

It had been a while since I drew the Tenth Doctor, so he became the subject of last night's Holding Lines Live show. Drawn in front of an audience of countless people (well, six), I had planned to do a simple bust, then color.

If you'd like to watch me draw this piece, the recording is here --> [CLICKY] <-- Be warned, it's an hour and forty-five minutes long - cos it's done live, and I pause every time I type, or get up and go in the other room.

But... it got away from me.

So tonight, that is, Thursday night, March 22, 2012, between 8 pm and 8:30 pm EST, I will color this piece on Livestream.

Anyway, join up tonight at www.livestream.com/holdinglineslive - [CLICKY].

Check my Twitter and/or Facebook for up-to-date info (links in the right column of the blog).

Holding Lines Live - Raven

If you didn't already know, I have a Livestream streaming show, and I occasionally draw for all to see.

The subject of this drawing was DC Comics' Raven. It's not based on any particular version (old, new, toon, etc.), but a borrowing of bits from all over.

If you'd like to watch me draw this piece, the recording is here --> [CLICKY] <-- Be warned, it's two-hours long - cos it's done live, and I pause every time I type, or get up and go in the other room.

Anyway, join up sometime at www.livestream.com/holdinglineslive - [CLICKY].

Check my Twitter and/or Facebook for more info (links on the right there).

May even be broadcasting tonight. Dunno what I'll be drawing yet, though.

Cheers!

Artist or Reptile?

Well, this one ain't gonna sculpt Saint Mark for the linen weavers' guild!

...

...no one? Anyone? Bueller?

Screw it.

Anyway, this page was done on a whim for some portfolios I sent out over the weekend. This was sent to one editor in particular, but I already got a reply, so I don't think I'll be doing anything soon with these childhood heroes.

Not never, just not this year probably.

Anyway, fun page for me to throw together.

Double Midnight Sketch Club - Adventure Strode!

Double Midnight Comics is an awesome comic book store in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Sadly, they're about two hours away from me, so I really only see the guys when I attend the comic convention they put on, Granite State ComiCon (aka, GraniteCon).

This is truly a bummer, now that they've started a once-a-week sketch night called Sketch Club. I never have time to attend.

However, as of last night, I got my Livestream working again (by DOWNGRADING the software - ugh), so I thought I'd tele-participate via the web, and sketch along with those in physical attendance at Double Midnight (even if I couldn't see what they were working on until they were done.

So, last night's subject was officially Adventure Time... but one of the club members, Jim Valliere, really wanted to draw The Strange Talent of Luther Strode. He proposed a crossover.

So that's what I did;



If you'd like to see me draw the piece above (in Manga Studio EX 4), click here --> [CLICKY]. The stream is about an hour and forty-seven minutes long, but more than a half hour of that, interspersed within, is me stepping away from the keyboard, or using another program off-screen for a moment.

Anyway, I had a lot of fun drawing this piece, so I shared it with the group on Facebook, with Double Midnight, and on Twitter. And as of now, I've gotten many a thumbs up, including cheers from Justin Jordan, Tradd Moore, and Felipe Sobreiro, the writer, artist, and colorist (respectively) on Luther Strode!

So that's pretty nifty.

I look forward to participating in more Double Midnight Comics Sketch Club shenanigans as my schedule allows!

Cheers!

~Blair

PS - Did I mention I got a proof of the back cover of the upcoming The Guild, Volume 2 TPB in my inbox today? The back cover featuring my artwork? The back cover partially covering the awesome The Guild comics written/co-written by the awesome Felicia Day? I didn't mention that? Well, that happened too.

DOROTHY OF OZ Sneak Peek 2!

Here's another approved sneak peek at DOROTHY OF OZ: PREQUEL #1 (of 4), written by Denton Tipton, line work by me, and colors by the super-talented Joana Lafuente.



Something's been stolen from the Wizard's Tower which, as you can tell, has the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion a bit worried.

If you want to know what has gone missing, you'll have to grab a copy of the comic on March 21st (estimated street date), brought to you by us and the folks at IDW Publishing!

Enjoy!

All Cut Open

I still owe a Gallifrey One 2012 wrap-up - but that'll hold off to tell you what's been going on the past week or so...

I've been out of the loop since last Wednesday. Why? Well a minor medical problem I had since last summer, originally thought to be a lipoma (I'll let you Google that) got worse/more painful in the past two months. I had an ultrasound. Then I had an MRI.

On Tuesday my doctor finally came up with a diagnosis - I had an abdominal hernia (once again, Google that). Specifically, my omentum was coming up between my abs just above my umbilicus.

Not life threatening, but would eventually need surgery.

Except I woke up on Wednesday in increased pain, and with a 102° fever. I worked at my desk for a few hours, but the pain was pretty significant. So I called my doctor's office. I was told to come in.

Long and the short, the hernia was incarcerated (once again, Google), and while I could go home, I wouldn't get any better, and in fact, would start to feel worse.

So they kept me, and 11 AM on Thursday, they operated.

I've been home since Friday, and it's been a hairy few days. The original pain is of course gone, but it's been replaced by weakness, pain from the incision (I have 14 staples!) and drain hole next to it, and brain scrambling from the oxycodone I've been prescribed for the pain.

Right now is the first time I've felt right enough to sit at my desk since I left on Wednesday.

So I'll be fine, I get my staples out on Friday, but have a few weeks of taking it easier than I'd normally like to ahead.

But I've had an experience... so... there's that?