Entry 295: PAKLIS #1

I'm finally entering into the world of creator-owned-comics. This MAY you'll be able to get the first issue of PAKLIS. Here's the description:

Do you accept the life you've been handed, or do you step into the unknown, even as it leads you into the shadows?

Image Comics is pleased to introduce PAKLIS—a new anthology series from writer/artist Dustin Weaver—where the characters in three mind-bending stories find themselves faced with dark, existential questions that will haunt readers.

 "My influences on this series range from Kafka to Miyazaki. The Twilight Zone, Aeon Flux cartoons, and the comics of Moebius and Otomo are all major touchstones," said Weaver.

In “MUSHROOM BODIES,” Greg struggles with knowing what’s real and fears becoming complacent in a world of human insects.
In the first installment of “SAGITTARIUS A*,” war hero Linus Rad is on a mission to the center of the galaxy to learn the dark secrets of his dead father’s scientific experiments.
In the first chapter of “AMNIA CYCLE,” Tara, a young Jet-Wing pilot, goes AWOL in the war against the Nuriel in order to help Amnia, a mysterious alien with no memory of where she came from and a desperate need to stop a terrible disaster! When Amnia disappears, it sends Tara on an adventure into the Shadow Zone.

 Step into the unknown. Journey into the shadows. There you’ll find PAKLIS.

PAKLIS #1 (Diamond Code MAR170691) hits stores on Wednesday, May 31st. The final order cutoff deadline for comics retailers is Monday, May 8th.

Entry 283: The rise and fall of Studio Paklis

Back in Entry 269 I told you about my studio. It started with me, Ben Bates, and Jeremy Barlow. Then Jeremy left and it was just me and Ben. That was cool for like 4 months. Then Ben moved to L.A. as his animation career took off. Since then, it's been just me.

I worked on my own for many years. When I joined Periscope studio in 2009, it took me a while to get used to so many people. (I'm not sure I ever got used to it.) With just 3 people, the much smaller Studio Paklis was a great fit for me. But returning to being all alone was not so bad. Sure it get's lonely and weird, but I also enjoy the uninhibited feeling when it comes to singing to music, acting stuff out, talking to myself, and just generally being odd.

See those two pictures above. The first one is how the studio looked with just me in it, but for the past 3 weeks it's looked like the second image. I'm in the gradual process of moving my studio back home.

My home is small. I originally joined Periscope Studio when my wife moved in with me. There just wasn't the space in this apartment for her and me and my studio. We've staid in this small apartment as our daughter, Lucy, has gotten older. We like it here that much. But she's almost 7 now. So we've been thinking that we should be looking for a bigger place.

Given that we need to get a bigger space so that Lucy can have her own room and that I'm moving my studio back into the home, you might assume that we've found a new place with all the space we need but you'd be wrong. We're staying right where we're at and we're also taking the apartment next door! Two apartments! It's really exciting.

The second apartment needs some work. I've been over there cleaning and prepping for paint. Soon my new studio space will be up and running.

As far as Paklis. I'm not abandoning that name. Though the studio is no more, the name will live on as a comic.

Here is a little peek.

It's too soon for me to be officially announcing anything about this comic. Just know that I am working on a comic called Paklis... and you're going to love it without reservation. It'll be your new favorite thing in the world and it'll make you totally forget who Captain America (your current favorite thing, I assume) even is.

Entry 276: Amnia Cycle Chapter 4 COVER

Here it finally is, the cover to Amnia Cycle Chapter 4. I'm so excited to be posting an Amnia Cycle thing again! It's been too long. It's been since before Infinity Gauntlet.

Speaking of Infinity Gauntlet, THANKS to everyone who picked up issue 5 and to everyone who picked up the series. And to everyone who has sent me feedback and written reviews. As it was my first big writing gig and a story that was coming from me, I was pretty anxious the whole time about how people would like it. I'm grateful to everyone who checked it out.

I'm currently working on a couple projects. Most of them are personal, like Amnia Cycle. I am working on one thing for a publisher, but mostly, I'm taking time for my own projects. I'll talk more about these things soon.

So um . . . how are you?

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Entry 264: Amnia Cycle pages 87,88,&89

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

This is the end of Chapter 4.

I like the idea that Tara's space adventure has basically led her to such a pedestrian scene.

I think the next two chapters are going to get pretty strange. I know what chapters 5 and 6 need to be. I'm excited about them and I'm not totally sure how I'm going to pull them off. 

In Chapter 5 we'll learn all about Shana Tyson... I think. Their will be some ambiguity that won't become clear till the end of this whole story. I'll also be checking in with Captain Zoltan. Haven't seen him in a while.

In Chapter 6 it's going to be all about Byzner and Amnia. This will be a fun one.

The next thing I'll be doing for Amnia Cycle will be the cover for Chapter 4. Check back for that. I'm also working on some extra content for a print release. 

Till then, I'll hopefully have some news about S.H.I.E.L.D. and Infinity Gauntlet soon.

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Entry 262: Amnia Cycle pages 85 & 86

I think page 86 is the most detailed page of Amnia so far.

I probably wont have new Amnia pages next week. We'll see.

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Entry 259: Amnia Cycle pages 83 &84

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Welcome to another installment of Amnia Cycle.

Five pages left of chapter 4. I'm working on the next page right now. Then I'll create a chapter 4 cover. I'm not sure what I want to do for that cover yet. We'll see.

While I work on Amnia pages I've been listening to music. Lately my go-to "working on Amnia music" has been Mort Garson.

Here is his album Black Mass Lucifer (1971)

There are other albums and tracks of his on youtube. I recommend checking them all out.

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Entry 258: Low-fi comics

I've titled this entry "Low-fi comics". This entry is about my process for creating a page of Amnia Cycle. I often think of Amnia as being "low-fi." The term implies something raw, unpolished, and flawed. I find thinking of Amnia in this way frees me from becoming to self conscious about it. It keeps me from putting to much pressure on myself to do a good job. The pressure to do a good job can often become debilitating. Of course, I do want to do a good job, but telling myself that this can be flawed-- I find it helpful.

Entry 257: Amnia Cycle pages 81 & 82

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

That was a long time to wait for a "but." 

More and more I find myself wanting to transition scenes on a single page. The conventional wisdom is that it is best to change scenes on a page break. Though I do think there are times when changing scenes on a page break IS the best way, I find myself more often trying to change scenes mid-page. It just feels like you are already changing scenes, it is already a little jarring, putting the scene change mid-page joins things together better. You can create smoother transitions. You can have some fun with it, like I'm trying to do here.

Soon I'll be putting up a process post about how I create a page of Amnia Cycle. If you would like to make a comic that looks like this, well I'll show you how.

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Entry 256: Amnia Cycle pages 79 & 80

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Talking. Don't you just love talking scenes.

I'll see you next week for some more talking.

Till then

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Entry 255: Amnia Cycle page 78

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

SMUGATS!

Just one page this week?

That's right. This makes up for one of the times I've posted three pages.

So, Crutch is a nice fellow. I think we'll see him again much later down the road. But honestly, if this were a movie, you could probably take this scene out. Although, I've discovered in making this story up as I go, little scenes like these, that may seem inconsequential, can contain in them seeds of things that grow into important story elements.... So, you never know. Plus, I like this scene.

Notes

-The name "Crutch" comes from a Guided by Voices song "Crutch Came Slinking".

-"Smugats" is something my daughter, Lucy, started saying recently. From what I can tell, it means "Shit" or "Damn".

-The name "Bloodnut" could be a reference to a number of different things, but for me, it's in reference to hematospermia. I've always found the term Bloodnut to be funny and when I needed a name for a gang I used it.

Most of this stuff is off the top of my head, as you can see. 

-The bit about the Humans "creating" the Nuriel was inspired by a joke Brandon Graham told me about Marvel and D.C.

Anyway, till next week.

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Entry 254: Amnia Cycle pages 76-77

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

New Amnia pages!

What can I say about this? 

This scene and the next couple scenes have been the hardest scenes in the story so far. I think because I'm having to address some plot threads, pull some story elements together, and begin moving the story into some new directions. 

Tara is going to meet Shanna Tyson, one of the names in the mysterious transmission. What will that be like? And next week, get ready to spend some time with Zigzag.

Till then

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Entry 250: Amnia Cycle pages 74-75

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

What can I say about this weeks pages?... The Library is owls. 

I suppose I can mention that I'm actually putting together some extra Amnia material for a printed version of Amnia Cycle that will happen when I feel like I'm ready to take things to that level. 

I might not have new pages next week because I'm almost done with S.H.I.E.L.D. and I'm focusing on that right now. So I might show you guys a panel from the Amnia print bonus material.

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Entry 249: Amnia Cycle pages 72 & 73

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Zoohurst!

For a long time this scene looked different in my mind. It looked and felt like things I've seen before in other comics. It looked and felt like a kind of Moebius version of a person travailing across an alien world to an alien city. The images start creating themselves in my mind so easily. It would have been so easy to do it that way. But the idea of it made me bored…. This couldn't be boring. 

One day my daughter was making a giraffe out of blocks. I asked her what she was building. She told me it was a building. I said, "It looks like a giraffe." And she told me "No. It's a building." And I realized, holy shit, she's right! What am I? An idiot. It's a building! It was an amazing building. A pretty lame giraffe, but an amazing building. Thus, Zoohurst was born.

Another thing I wanted to capture here was not the feeling of an alien world, but instead a familiar world. To me, it's super exciting to arrive in a city. When you are driving on the highway and the traffic starts getting thick. You know that you are getting close to a center of activity. Then you go around a bend in the road or you come over a hill and suddenly you see the buildings off in the distance. I get excited every time… I wanted that. 

I hope you are ready to explore Zoohurst with me!

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Entry 248: Amnia Cycle pages 70,71

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Does that thing look familiar? (hint: the end of chapter 2)

In time, this will all make perfect sense… I hope.

Also, in chapter 3, I knew I drew that hood on that first officer for a reason. He's a Nuriel! (Comic making tip: If you are making your comic up as you go, put a hood on someone. You never know who they could end up being.)

Join me next week for more Amnia Cycle

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Entry 246: Amnia Cycle pages 67,68,69

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

 

And so begins Chapter 4 of Amnia Cycle.

It feels really good to be getting Amnia pages out again. In this chapter we'll be exploring this new setting and learning about what's going on in the Shadow Zone. Turns out they've got  their own conflict happening. We'll learn something about that strange energy ball that Byzner fell into, and things will get even more strange when Tara tracks down one of the names on her list. 

In other news-- Edge of Spider-Verse #3 is out this week (9/24) I wrote, drew, and colored the whole issue myself. Please check it out. 

Also, for everyone wondering about S.H.I.E.L.D.-- I'm back to working on it now. The last issue is being drawn. As I type this page 14 is on my desk. So, we're close! I've seen colors for the second to last issue. Sonia Oback is back and it's looking great. I'll put together a post with some preview images soon. So check back for that.

New Amnia Cycle pages next Monday.

Thanks!

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Entry 237: AMNIA CYCLE Chapter 3 Cover

Behold!

AMNIA CYCLE   CHAPTER 3    COVVVVEEEERRRRR!!!!!

My readers, you may have noticed that I've been taking an extra long break between chapters 3 and 4 of Amnia cycle. I've taken a break between the previous chapters but this one is a little longer. The biggest reason this break has been longer is because I've moved out of Periscope studio and into a whole new studio space.

Me, Jeremy Barlow, and Ben Bates have settled into our new studio, for the most part. It's been tricky adjusting to the new set up and I don't think I'm up to %100 productivity. But you know what enough excuses.

Let's see, what's going on with me?

Final issue of S.H.I.E.L.D. is only half done at this point. Colors on issue 5 are underway. We got Sonia Oback back. I haven't seen any of it yet, but we're trying to make these last two issues as good as we can.
I've started simultaneously writing and sketching Amnia chapter 4. Once I get a big chunk of it done I'll start rolling out those pages.
I've got a big "Blast from the Past" post in the works. I love doing these posts. I think this one will be a good one. Lot's of never before seen art.
Then there is a secret project that I've begun working on. It involves me writing, me drawing, and Marvel. It'll only be an issue and you'll never guess what it is, but I'm excited about it.

Maybe in my next post I'll show you guys some SHIELD 6 art.

Till then
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Entry 235: AMNIA CYCLE pages 65,66

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

And that, my friends, is the end of Chapter 3. 

So, Amnia is back! And she's got some hair! We haven't seen Amnia since page 10, which was about 3-3.5 days ago in the time frame of the story... It actually could have been 4.5 days ago... Whatever. It's in space, what's a "day" anyway in space. So, what does seeing Amnia here mean? Was she not taken by the Nurial as Tara believes? What is this planet Amnia is on? ... Honestly, none of this will be addressed in the next chapter, at leased not directly. No, you'll have to wait till Chapter 5 for the answers to those questions. But Chapter 4 is going to be a lot of fun! We'll get to know Zigzag and Braeburn a bit better. Oh yeah! What about Braeburn being a Nurial? That's strange right?

Just like I've done between the previous chapter's, I'll be taking a little break from posting. This time the break might be a little longer so that I can focus on finishing S.H.I.E.L.D. The next Amnia post I do will be the cover for Chapter 3. 

Thanks for reading!

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Entry 234: AMNIA CYCLE pages 63 & 64

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Words. Who needs them? Am I right?

I wondered about that with this one. I worried that people wouldn't understand what was happening on that first page. I thought I could add some dialogue to help the reader through it a little, but I decided against it. I guess I just figure if it's strange and confusing that that is okay, good even. This whole section of the story is supposed to be a little strange and dreamy. 

What about the computer thing Braeburn is making off with? Is it clear what that is?

Anyway. Only two more pages in this chapter. Then I'll be taking a little break. I might take a little longer with this break than I did with the other chapter breaks so that I can focus purely on S.H.I.E.L.D, which is getting done right now. I'll have an update soon.

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Entry 233: AMNIA CYCLE pages 61-62

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

How many of you knew that that guy was going to Byzner? 

Obviously, reading the pages one right after the other, it isn't like I'm trying to build that mystery. A guy falls from the sky and you find out it's Byzner. I don't let you wonder for to long who this guy is. But with how the entries broke it up it adds perhaps a little more build up.

It's fun thinking about how these entries read each week. I'll be honest, I don't think I'm making a story that reads well two pages at a time spaced out over weeks. 

Anyway, these to pages make more references to the first scenes of the story. Go back and check it out.

Till next week.

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Entry 231: AMNIA CYCLE pages 59-60

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Does this sequence look familiar?

This might be a good time to go back and read the beginning scenes of Amnia again. For the next six pages, up to the end of chapter 3, I'll be making several references to the beginning scenes. 

I'm really excited for the final scenes of this chapter. At this point, I have a pretty good idea of where this all is going, and it's so fun to unfold it. 

Thanks for reading.

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