Atlantech

This blog will be moving and other important news!

2011-03-06T13:02:00.001-08:00

I will be moving this blog to www.tumblr.com here real soon, and then all posts regarding anything Atlantech related will continue there. However, that is not the big news, that is only a little heads up on what to expect from me.

The big news is that Publish America is going to publish the Atlantech series, and the first novel manuscript must be sent in by May 1st. Yes, that's right there is now an official deadline, and so there is much work to be done. Can I do that? I believe so, my heart is very much into this project and my dedication will be sure to show with the final product. This also means that the first book of Atlantech 4000 will be available sooner than I had originally planned, which is great news.

Once I sign the contract, I'm afraid I won't be able to put up anymore teasers or samples from the story. I will continue the artwork, and web comic but anything having to do with the novel won't be released for obvious reasons. Maybe proposed sketches for the next book covers (front & back) but nothing more after that.

Speaking of artwork for book covers, I realize the style I chose for the first one takes a very long time to do and so I'd probably have to go with a less detailed style for the future books. I've already got the front cover half way finished, needs some texturing and more painting, but it will be finished soon. I've also come up with a nice image for the back cover, it features Brian. I've decided to feature a different character on the back of each book. It sounds like a promising design too, so I'll play around with it and see what goes.

So that's the big news regarding Atlantech...............soon to be official, and soon to be public.

Also, with tumblr users can bombard me with questions regarding the book or series in general. Yes, you now have that privilege, but beware I'll only answer the questions I'm allowed to =P
meaning NO SPOILERS!

My brain is working!

2011-01-08T22:56:00.001-08:00

Okay silly title, I realize that, but anyways what it means are the wheels are turning inside that noggin of mine and I've been thinking of some new ideas for material. What I am thinking of right now is I know I'm working on the web comic, but those updates do take a long time, so I'm thinking about doing mini-comics. One's that follow the story, but more along the lines of origin. Since the zyrians don't make their appearance till many pages later in the original story, I was thinking it would be wise to have mini comics featuring them, also the rest of the cast as well. The idea came to me while I was looking through the content I currently have on the website, and I said to myself. Y'know, there's a lot missing.....time to fill in those gaps. Origin wise any ways, also just for fun cause there are times I feel like expanding on certain things and well, this would give me a nice excuse to do so. I still plan on working on other things I have set aside in the past, mainly because personal issues came up or I just wasn't feeling that inspiration. I've got profiles to complete, another section of the gallery to work on. (A section with regular art not your average paintings that take forever)

Just a lot on my plate and of course the novel. Like I said in my last post, I plan to have that finished and published by this fall, if not sooner. It will be exciting completing the first book, even though I am still not sure how much of the story will fit in it, I imagine not a whole lot since every chapter is being re-written, extended and what not. I am also going over and over it, fixing any errors I see, cause when I write sometimes, I do it really fast and can easily miss an error. I blame those energy drinks..........they sure like to mess with my head. So yeah got the novel on my plate, the web comic, more artwork (Still planning to do that art book, just need to put together enough material to fill it) Atlantech is a huge project for me to work on alone, but you know something? I'm glad I chose that path, because only I know how everything falls into place, how certain characters act. Besides, working on something this big all by myself is a challenge, and I like my challenges.

I'm feeling rather generous

2011-01-07T00:41:00.000-08:00

Yes, the title says it all, and I am feeling generous, heck, generous enough I am going to share something with all of you that you probably weren't expecting! And what could that possibly be? Well, I'm going to share a sample from the current novel project, that's what =]
What better way to start off the new year of 2011 than with a nice teaser. So here you go
this is taken from about chapter 4 of the novel, and it is vital to the story of Atlantech 4000
enjoy!

--AMF Intelligence Headquarters--
5:00 AM

The AMF's intelligence division were notified by Admiral Grant and were quick to investigate. They had requested for print-outs of the signal's readings and even the diagrams of the location it was coming from. They were planning to do some serious research and see what they could come up with. The head scientist of the division took his time with the information and finally came to some sort of conclusion. "It appears to be coming from some type of device", he explained to the others including Admiral Grant and commander Williams. "A device underground?" Lynne questioned him. He nodded in response and proceeded with his theory. "It is probable that the device is something that was accidentally buried, or buried for good reason". Everyone in the conference room seemed to look very puzzled. "Or it is possible it could even be a foreign object". Lynne suddenly had to speak. "Foreign?" "Yes", the man nodded. "Do you mean, foreign as in alien?" She asked him, hoping he would say no. "Yes", he answered. "It is possible, but as of now we still don't know".

Lynne looked over at admiral Grant who was sitting right across from her. He just sat there with his arms crossed. He didn't seem very intrigued by the news either, but he did notice the look of concern on her face and looked back at her. "The signal's origin seems to be coming from not under Atlantis, but outside of it", the head scientist explained. -"One of our airbase officers said that the signal seemed to be transmitting to another location, what do you make of that?" Lynne asked the man. He picked up one of the print-outs and looked it over carefully. "Ah yes, it does seem to be transmitting itself elsewhere", he commented. "Transmitting the signal where?" Lynne asked. "Where could such a signal be going? Do you suppose that if it is indeed a device of alien origin, that it could also be transmitting itself to another device of alien origin? The man was silent for a brief moment. "Yes" he replied abruptly. "That is very possible". Lynne didn't like this news, and was hoping that whatever it was underground, was nothing more than some man-made object that was lost and forgotten.

"You say that the object's signal reading is coming from outside Atlantis", another scientist suddenly spoke up. "Would it be possible to excavate it and find out what it is?" -"That is the plan", the head scientist replied. "We're going to assemble a team and go out there and dig it up". Lynne felt the need to speak up again. "If the object is foreign or alien as you announced as probable, don't you think that signal could lead some unwanted visitors here?" The conference room was silent. Everyone looked at her, including admiral Grant. "Well, if that were to happen, the AMF would know what to do". Lynne decided not to say anything more. She had heard enough about this and got up from her seat and left. After the meeting had ended, admiral Grant met up with her in the lobby and began to question what was wrong with her. "You got up and left so suddenly", he said. "It worried me, are you alright?" She didn't know what to say, but she nodded back. "I'm fine", she answered. "But this whole thing does worry me". "I could tell", Grant replied as he looked over at her.

"Well, fill me in on what I missed", she told him. -"They're gathering a team and planning to set up the dig site next week", he explained. She let out a sigh as she walked along side of him down the hall and towards the elevator which lead to the control deck. "You know something", Grant said all of a sudden. "Perhaps you should join the team, it would be something new for you".
Lynne just shook her head at him. "My place is here", she told him. "I'm not a scientist, you should probably ask corporal Church instead." Grant suddenly stopped and gave her a scornful look. "Don't you ever doubt your abilities", he scolded. "I know very well, you've always wanted to be a part of something big, and I may not be your father, but I do know it would be good for you". She didn't know how to respond to that. She had never heard him this upset with her before. "I'll think about it", she told him as they both stepped into the elevator and began heading up.

All right, that's it for the samples, I might do more later on, in the mean time, be on the look out for new comic pages and more artwork!
2011 is going to be a busy year for Atlantech.th

Something Special

2010-12-01T15:45:00.000-08:00

Looking back on the days I realize something very special. Atlantech has been around, (well in my head) for well over 6 years. That's a long time, and next year it will mark seven years. So before that time, I'm going to do the honors of producing something to celebrate the six year anniversary. It is something I need to do a little brainstorming for, perhaps maybe a little tonight. It's not that I don't have inspiration, it's just that I need to have the right concept to work with. So that should be something fun to look forward to. Granted I promise myself it is NOT going to end up like the massive book cover that is taking forever to finish. Yes, but that is also a good thing that the first novel is not yet complete. Another fork in the road though over what to title the first book. That will come to me too, eventually. Could go with "Atlantech 4000 Part 1" or something, but I just want it to work. I want it to sound I guess professional is the word? It needs to be a catchy title, one that draws you in, besides the artwork of course.

Speaking of art, I am still debating on whether to include a few illustrations for each book. Character portraits or a kind of likeness which illustrates them. Just so the readers can get a nice visual of what these characters look like, and then from there they can read the story with a more clearer picture. I'm thinking about it, but I still haven't thought of what they would look like. OR how many per book. There's a lot of characters, so I'd have to do one for each that I would include in the first book. I'd definitely include artwork of the main characters, such as Brian, William, Stan, and Justin. Just brainstorming at this point, but hopefully as I mess around with sketches or designs, something will come to mind. I am currently working with illustrative portraits of the Zyrian trio. Well one of them did end up getting scrapped and I started a brand new WIP. Still thinking about scrapping a few others, unless I can work my magic hands and make it look up to par with the others. Can this be achieved? Yes? No? Maybe so? I can't pull an all nighter tonight but I do think I can work in some sketches before my bedtime. Yes I have a bedtime, isn't that silly? I didn't used to, but I do now!

Again, the novel is coming along nicely. I'm right at about 48 pages now. Within those 48 pages contains the prologue, the usual introduction and history, and the re-written/revamped chapters of one and two. So at this point I have no idea how long it will take or better yet, how many pages will end up in the first book. It's all speculation, but I'd guess maybe five or six? Just a wild guess on my part. Still a lot to go, but it's fun and so worth it.

Keeping up with the Updates

2010-11-10T19:45:00.000-08:00

So here I am again, hoping to stay committed to updating this blog, the site, and the facebook page as often as I can. Right now the manuscript for the first novel is still in production. As I've mentioned before, its uncertain as to how many chapters will be included in the first book. I'd like to get as many as possible, but with a lot of the additional detail, that could be a problem. Also the current chapters will have to be broken down, which is something else I am fumbling with. Break off points aren't easy to place, and of course you don't want to leave the audience in suspense at the end of each one, but neither do you want to end a chapter on a strange note. I guess I could go for both suspenseful breaks and those dealing with dialogue, but there's always a chance those two could intermingle in the process.

It is work, and hard work it is, but it is work I enjoy. Atlantech isn't a job to me, it's a passion and that is the way it should and will always be. Even if for some reason in the future, it becomes a success and I end up making a career out of it? Will it still be a job? Nah, it will still be a passion, and one that will never die. Success is nice, but I would still prefer to live the simple life, just use the money to buy things I need and want, and still work a regular job as a middle class American. Fancy homes and fancy items really don't mean much to me. Sure there are expensive things that I'd like to have, but I'd never want a mansion or anything. Living in an apartment is good enough for me.

Anyways, I need to get back into the groove of things, and I've got a lot of updates to catch up on. Personal life became a major problem when it came to doing anything with Atlantech, and because these issues, I was unable to focus, thus lack of updates, lack of anything, but that's changed now. I got away from the problems and now I am free to continue as I was.
Lessons are always learned the hard way, but giving up is not an option, no matter how bad things get, we should always strive for the best and work hard to reach our goals. Life may get you down, but dreams will lift you right back up.

Where to Begin?

2010-10-28T13:36:00.001-07:00

Ah yes, a lot has been going on as of lately, and much of it has been me dealing with personal issues. Those aside, I have been thinking a lot lately, about the best way to finish my book and get it published. At first, I was insisted on doing self publishing, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized, it would probably be much easier to find a publishing company that would do it and also distribute it to local book stores. Well I had searched and came across a company called Publish America, and I did my research and found that they would be the perfect company to do the job.

For now it is just the first book I am working on getting out, and as of right now I haven't a clue how many of the already written chapters are going to fit into it. The reason for this is because of all the re-writing and revising I have done, with just the first half of the story. As I described in earlier posts, the chapters used to read like short episodes which were only six or 10 pages long. What I've done is add more back story, more detail, and even some of the extra scenes and ideas that I had either discarded, or had planned, but never included them. Does the novel adaption still follow the in progress web comic? In some ways, yes. Some of the dialogue and scenes from the web comic are also in the novel.

I decided not to make them exactly the same, that way readers won't feel like it "oh it's just the same thing but in literature form". I realize reading the same thing can get boring, so I've taken the liberty of enhancing those scenes, adding extra quotes, anything to keep it separated. Once I figure out exactly how many current chapters will fit into the first book, then I will go from there and figure out how many will fit into the second. Atlantech was meant to be a series in the first place, and even one saga can't be told in just one book, it takes quite a few. Originally, before I even decided to transfer it to novel format, I had estimated a total of 50 chapters it would take to finish Altantech 4000. And now, it could end up being 100 chapters, just by all the revisions, extensions ,and changes I've made.

I can definitely see this series as being a long one, and this is just Atlantech 4000. I have no clue how many chapters Atlantech Exodus, and Ancient Dynasty will end up having, but I can assume I am in for a surprise lol.
I still have the Art book planned, and I will also do this through Publish America. Maybe that will be ready to go after the first two novels are out. The art books could also end up being more than one volume, just because there are so many characters, so many settings ,and of course the machines.

Anyways, because of the decision to publish the novels with a company, this means the chapters will not be posted on the website. The current host I use wouldn't be able to host the whole thing, so that takes care of that issue right there. Instead of worrying about that, I will still finish up the character bios and update the gallery, and of course the web comic will continue as planned. I really hate it when I have to put it to the side, but things come up and my inspiration isn't always there. Well, since I am getting over the hurdles in my personal life, I am getting it back and I have been working on the novel, inspiring myself.

I have always kept the promise to myself that I would never give up this series, because I love it too much. The characters, the story, just everything about it has grown on me ,and now holds a special place in my heart. I will openly admit, that getting it published will be a dream come true, and I will dedicate it in Carl's memory. I never got to meet the man, or tell him how much influence he had on me, but I will always be grateful, and keep his memory alive with my own work.

Getting back into the Rythem

2010-08-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

Still working on the novel version but aside from that have been working on the latest comic pages. Page 11 will be completed and posted real soon and then later on in the week 12 will be posted!

Still working on the website updates as well, actually had time to think about some ideas that would not only look good, but work for the current layout.

Will start posting more on my forum, and an Atlantech facebook page is in the works as well.

Some Thoughts

2010-05-12T17:51:00.000-07:00

When I first decided to start the novel adaption of my story, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The previous story had been written as if it were a bunch of tv episodes, but now that I've come up with brilliant idea of converting it to novel format, I realize it's not as easy as I had anticipated. Not only am I having to add more onto certain scenes or even extend some dialogue, but actually having to tell a whole new story. Sure the plot is the same, but the background history surrounding it is not. I've made Atlantech original in its own right, and it does have its own origins and what not now.

This is a real challenge for me and I know I have the skills to pull it off, it just requires a lot of patience, and yes a lot of dedication. Believe me when I say that I am fully dedicated to this series I've created. I love my characters, I love the story and everything about it. When I first started out, I didn't want to show anyone my creation, just wanted to keep it to myself because I was afraid no one would like it, because of its significant differences. Yes it first started out as a future sequel to Robotech to fill that void of not seeing anything new or worthy from that franchise, but since I decided I want to do something serious with it and really make it my own, the feeling is different. I've also learned to enjoy sharing my work with others, and I have received a lot of positive feedback regarding the series. Also some not-so positive for those who hate my guts, but that's another story =P

Atlantech may have been inspired by Robotech, but its a lot different. It's a series that doesnt even take itself that seriously. Some of these examples won't be hard to notice later on, but the thing about Atlantech is, it makes fun of itself. I've got dialogue of the characters dissing the title. Using their own creative nicknames for it heh. There's situations where the characters even acknowledge the bizarreness of their world, and that's a given. Granted there are emotional and serious issues in the story itself, but not the universe as a whole. The characters are realistic in terms of story-telling. They are believable as they have flaws just like you and me, but not a single one is perfect in anyway, even if they appear to be. Perfection just doesn't exist in the real world, and thus it does not in Atlantech's universe.

Those who appear to be perfect? They are trying to be perfect, even though they know deep down, it's something they will never accomplish. Are the characters perfect to one another? Yes of course, but that's only normal. Friends and significant others always see a hint of perfection in the ones they love or admire.

Well enough of that crud... moving on I will take the challenge this novel version is tossing my way, and I will finish it. There's already font cover artwork in progress for it, which can be viewed in the gallery under the WIP's and sketches section. Also available for view under the updates on the main page. Among other things page 11 of the comic is coming along nicely and should be posted soon. There's a lot of other changes and updates I am going through with the site, so just bear with me ;) I also hope to be more active on my forum despite the smattering of the members on it, and in time there will be an Atlantech fan page on facebook. It's something else I plan on doing but would like to finish other important updates first.

Kinda Behind on the updates....

2010-04-05T18:27:00.001-07:00

Yes I know when it comes to updating blogs I am pretty slow, anyways there's a lot to talk about as far as new stuff. I had already mentioned that Atlantech was going in its own direction right? Well I was serious and now the titles of three different sagas which make up Atlantech as whole are visible on the websites front page. There's the Ancient Dynasty, Exodus, & 4000. 4000 is the one that started out as another chapter to the saga of Robotech, but I decided I really want to take this serious and make it my own so I've cut those ties and right now the story itself is undergoing a lot of editing, but not because of all the RT references I have to remove, which by the way isn't many at all, but because I am going to publish the story on cafepress in the form of a paperback novel. Depending on how many pages I plan on publishing for the first book because there is a total of 18 chapters already, and most of them are at least six to seven pages long, others are 10 to 12 so I'll have to mess with my least favorite subject.... math.... just to figure out how much of it can go into the first novel. And then of course I've got to do some cover artwork, still planning that out even got a template saved.

I expect to have the first paperback novel finished before the art book, or maybe two it just depends. Well that is of course because with the paperback most of the work is finished hahaha.. or so... still a lot of work too just have to set the correct margins and all and then convert it to PDF and of course work on the cover artwork.

Well besides that news (which will be announced on the site) I am also working on individual synopsis or finishing I should say for the different sagas. Dynasty is pretty much finished. Exodus is being written and 4000 is in the works. Also finishing up with the profile revamp. I swear when I first started it, it seemed like such a good idea now its just getting tiresome haha well still fun but damn I'm always making too much for myself to do.

Slow Week

2010-02-28T05:03:00.000-08:00

Things have been pretty slow for me... especially since I've been sick with a nasty sinus infection ugh... anyways what I'm doing right now is trying to finish up the profile page revamp I started I dunno a few months ago? I hate the fact that I'm such a damn perfectionist to the point I take forever... I don't post or release anything until it passes my damn approval. Well it's an artist thing I guess.. we just don't want others seeing us produce shit or so to speak.

Anyways, right now I am working with the individual character pages, and pretty much testing them. (The ones I've got done) So far one is a go, and the others... meh only time will tell. But I will make a BIG announcement when the entire thing is done and over with. Or I might even just publish whatever is there, and then just add the ones I complete over time I don't know it just depends.

just another update

2010-02-19T20:06:00.000-08:00

Well I finally finished chapter 18 and I will admit that it took me a long time. Each chapter does because I'm constantly working with it, taking breaks then going back over it to see what I like and what I don't. Sometimes I'll change some of the dialogue, other times I'll rewrite entire scenes. Well chapter 18 also took long because of the other things I was working on, on the side. Such as finishing up some paintings or working on new website content. Work and sleep are the only interferences I swear! I haven't played any video games in over three months now.

Anyway, now on to some bigger news.
I've been working with Atlantech's original story as of late and I am thinking of publishing that. Which means a few re-writes of some of the older chapters, but hell I'm game! Atlantech is an original project after all so there you have it. The version which fits into the robotech universe will be left up on FF.net for nostalgic reasons. And I will always claim that RT was the sole inspiration for the project in the first place, but its time to move on and leave the RT tie-ins behind and make this something original and just as great as RT was and still is to me.

I'll make the official announcement when the time is right, and this will not interfere with the proposed art book I'm still putting together. I'm still going to work on that as well, in fact it's my main priority.

Trying to finish everything up

2010-02-07T08:11:00.000-08:00

I am currently trying to finish up with chapter 18, so I can get that posted and out of the way. I'm also still finishing up with the content for the newly improved character profile page of the website. Each character gets their own page now and so I'm trying to make it as interesting as I can. I'm also working on page 11 of the comic as I promised myself there wouldn't be anymore two month gaps between updates.

I'll be honest, this week has been a drag.. we've gotten more snow and I've been feeling sick and tired. Even worse after a long day at work *busy* at that, because snow here drives people bonkers. But I've still made time for my project, and will continue to do so ;)

Plugging Away

2010-01-30T12:49:00.000-08:00

I've had a lot of time to work on my to-do list
and so I've been getting as much done with the profile pictures as I can, along with writing chapter 18 on the side. (I love this chapter so much so far)
any ways, here's the newest profile images I've completed over the last few days.

New profile Pictures Ahoy!

2010-01-27T04:12:00.000-08:00

Have not finished all of them, but this is the majority I have so far...

Hopefully if you're familiar with the characters by now it's not hard to discern whose who. That's all I have so far, and I've got a lot more to go, and a lot of writing as well.

But that's not all... for I have finished a new painting
"Self Importance"

A J.C. Leyendecker-ish style portrait of Maxwell (same from previous update)
Though you can see I've made a lot of changes.. That usually happens before I finish something. There's never a guarantee that a sketch or WIP will remain the same when I get finished with it, cause I'm always making changes and so I've done a lot with this one. I decided to get creative with the appearance and presentation. It's supposed to look like a slightly crooked painting of him against an art deco style wall er background. I also added a color fading effect because I thought it was a nice final touch.
Also the pattern on his vest was a doozy and normally it's just plain but I felt like adding it for style

What I've got in store for the website

2010-01-19T08:40:00.000-08:00

I had been doing some deep thinking, trying to come up with some really good ideas for the presentation of the website, and well it's finally hit me.

The character profiles section is getting a huge makeover and I've got everything sorted out. This time it's not going to be a TL;DR page with all the characters and descriptions... nooo this time I am going make it so that every single character has their own page. I pay for the extra storage so why not? Anyways... as far as the appearance goes I am remaking/re-doing all the human portraits in sepia to look like this. Mipsy is my first Guinea pig for the experiment

I'm going to have the human half section set up like an album, no names under them as the users will click the portraits which will bring up the individual profile pages. And those profiles will have the same photos only they will be tinted with color like so.. (me and my obsession with old portraits I know)
I hope to include a lot more information for each and possible a small gallery on the bottom of the bio.

As for the Zyrians? I'm still debating that in my head, but so far I've come up with the idea of presenting them as Egyptian works of art, with their actual portrait on the profile page.

Updating the entire section is going to be a lot of work and will require a lot of re-writes and much added material.. but I think it will be worth it. Atlantech is my pride and joy, so why not?

anyways that's it for that section.. now I'm still working on new material for the Hoopla page. I've got a few interesting sections up but I need to work on more.
one interesting tidbit I added is the Advertisement page. Now it's not what you think it is.. the page is going to be full of all the ads and posters seen throughout the comic, as those are individual pictures themselves and are pasted and blended into the backgrounds.. damn you know my secret now! Nah.. it's not much of a secret anyway. Some of them are pretty witty, so I guess that's another reason I created that page.

Still working out chapter 18.. damn I keep wanting to say 17 I get so lost when I havent worked on the writing portion for a while. Page 11 of the comic is in the works, and yes I'm working on several paintings on the side.
speaking of paintings here's a recent WIP

A J.C. Leyendecker-ish type portrait of Maxwell Graham.. looking like the ignorant asshole he is. Maybe I can make him look even more asshole-ish in his brand new sepia portrait!! It's kind of funny to me because Maxwell always looks like a jerk and Stan always has that "serious don't fuck with me", kinda stare heh...
Same with the Zyrians.. I don't think they ever smile.. well not a smile of happiness anyway, just your average wicked smirk.
Okay since I'm obviously rambling on here, I'm going to wrap up this post.
Tomorrow is my Birthday, and I'm turning 25.. dear god I'm getting old
it seems just yesterday I was 21
oh how time flies...

Well

2010-01-09T22:47:00.000-08:00

This update isn't going to be as long and detailed as the previous, in fact this is just a current update of whats going on in the Atlantech Universe.

Comic pages 9 & 10 are complete and posted on the website. I added a new section to the gallery for sketches, but might go ahead and make it sketches & WIPs
that way I'm not just posting sketches, but actual progress of the recent paintings.
I'm still thinking of some new and fun ideas for the website's appearance. Still brainstorming for that while doing some re-writes of the comic diologue for page 11
yes I am getting right on it, not going to have another two month gap between updates. That was brutal!

I also working on the same paintings from the last update, as those were just WIPs, along with some new ideas. I've got one, but I hope I would feel up to going through with it. The title would be "flyboys" and it would have all of the AMF pilots together in one shot, maybe MAYBE with one of the AF fighters in the background for eye candy.

Chapter 18 is it? is still in the works, I havent been able to get to it since I was focused on getting the new comic pages done and so maybe I'll start on that.

Also I will be getting interviewed by JT of the Protoculture times about my fan project. No audio though, it will be a written interview. I will also admit that hes a good friend of mine and so he asked if I would be up for the interview. I love talking about Atlantech so I couldn't pass it up.

Updates and whatnots

2009-12-30T22:57:00.000-08:00

Well it's about time I updated this blog. I mean I went to all the trouble of abandoning the old for this one. (I'm picky)

Well what's new and exciting? I've been enjoying the hell out of my wacom cintiq. I swear I'm in art heaven with this damn thing it's just so addicting and awesome.
And after a long day of work, coming home to this baby to work on Atlantech just makes life sweeter. As far as current updates go I finished chapter 17 a few weeks ago, and have been working on new artwork and comic pages. I hate to admit that I am pretty backwards when it comes to working on the comic adaption. I am currently working on a two page update and I went ahead and finished page 10 before 9! I don't know why I do it like that, but I get what I can done. So now that 10 is finished just gotta work on 9 =P

I haven't had as much time as I would have liked but I'm off from work on Friday and Saturday so I'll really be pushing myself to finish it. I know how anxious my fandom is! (purely sarcasm lol) But yes there are those who probably look forward to my sweet updates.
anyways before I start rambling away like a nitwit here's one of latest illustrations I've done.

It's an art nouveau slash Art Deco illustration of miss Victoria Thompson. I decided not too long ago that I was going to do full color illustrations of the characters for the book project I am putting together. I am also what you'd call a digital addict and so I have to get my fill of digital painting every now and then.
Anywho with this one particular picture I spent 40 some hours on it, most of those hours wasted away painting the never ending strokes of fur with a size 1 px brush.
thank god for music or my sanity would have gone right out the window.

I also spent a lot of time tweaking it even after it was classified as "finished" I just get obsessive with detail or if something looks off I will sit and mess with it until I get the results I want. yes 40 some hours indeed, but in a time span of two weeks. I'd work on it on the side especially since I was also busy with the comic ( I still am) Though when given the chance I'll spend 8 hours a day on a painting just to get as much done as I can with it.

anyways I'm rambling again, so on with the updates!
Here's a preview and current WIP I am working on too

Titled "Royal Flush" it's an illustration of the wonderful devious Justin Church. He's a poker addict and so the poker theme I plan on doing with this one will work out just fine. I am still fiddling with ideas here and there because I want it to look a certain way. I am always faced with new challenges every time I work on a new painting. It's a big learning experience for sure. Now with this one I've been tackling it on and off and this is just a recent WIP because there is a lot more detail and progress right now. I may post another WIP it just depends on my schedule. This one has been a lot of fun (all of them are) but music is the soul of my artistic inspiration. I just can't paint the same without it and believe me I've tried.

ready for another WIP? sure you are! This next one is something I'm quite satisfied with at the moment. (it's even my current cell phone wallpaper)
There really is no title other than "Doris Thompson" as it is Victoria's mother. The one she admires and tries to be like. Only Victoria doesn't know as much about her mother as she would like to. spoiler yes but her mother died when she was just a little girl maybe five years old at best, and this portrait is one she treasures and keeps on a table beside her bed. (she even talks to it when she's alone)
any who this is just a WIP and it's about finished really. black and white portraits are just a lot easier to do because the shading is basic unlike color where you find yourself using tons of different color variations and tones. And of course the portrait has that vintage look to it, after all Atlantech's theme is pretty much vintage and everything 1920's & 30's in the year 4000 of course.
the sketches for these can be found in the website gallery. I've got a new one added right now and it's good ol Bhor. Long knarly fingernails and all. Just a messy sketch for something I might be working with for a profile illustration. I might fix it up a bit before actually starting the painting process, but for now my main focus is page 9 of the comic. Though if anyone is desperate enough to see 10 I might let you sneak a peek. I'd have to be in a generous mood of course!

This is the new Atlantech Blog

2009-12-09T10:31:00.000-08:00

Quick post yes.. but since Blog.com had a makeover and things are now, much more complicating to work with, I've decided to leave that blog behind and start a new one.
Hopefully I can have this one look the way I want without any problems.

*edit*

The old hunk of junk will still remain online
here
See all that atrocious blinding white?
Yeah.. that is exactly why I made the choice to
move here.

anyways...

here's the updated to-do list

Chapter 17 - Complete
Page 9& 10 of the comic - in progress
Chapter 18- in progress
Update Gallery - working on it
Finish Profile images and updated character descriptions - I had to take a break but I'm back at it!
New blog - complete

Well that's just the gist of what I've got to finish... I recently got my wacom cintiq (early Christmas present I got for myself) and I'm actually breaking it in, working on some older images. Giving them a remake or so to speak. So far I'm working on two, and I hope to have them done soon and the gallery and print shop updated as well.

anyways.. yay! It's great to have a new blog that doesn't frustrate me to no end!