imaginarium

INSPIRATION EXPLODING INTO THE SUN!

[kaixju]

Another character from a different side story~ (*ﾟ∀ﾟ*) Still playing with color- digital vs traditional copic markers.

[kaixju]

It’s Gustav Holst’s Birthday today (Sept 21st, 1874)  and what better way to celebrate than talk about the music that inspired our comic.

“The Planets” were originally composed for two pianos while Holst was teaching at St.Paul’s Girls School, so naturally many of his students were the first to hear and play the suite. This was the initial inspiration for the story but as we set out to do our research, we discovered many other interesting facts about the suite.  Many were composed during WW1, and the main theme for “Jupiter” was even given patriotic lyrics to encourage Great Britain in the war that killed a generation of men.  

In “The Ring of Saturn” we decided to explore these themes and how they related to the music. We decided to focus on the perspective of Miriam Frayne, a fictional student of Holst who is very talented and patriotic but lacks sensitivity to the music she plays.  Holst always preferred music played with feeling rather than accuracy, so he offers her gentle advice true to his accounts as a teacher.  The emotive suite takes a very personal meaning with each of the characters that is revealed throughout the story, and in the case of Miriam, shows her growth as a character and her understanding of war.

Holst resented The Planets popularity for the attention it took away from his other work, but his favorite piece from the suite was “Saturn: The bringer of old age”. Saturn may not be as catchy or thrilling as “Jupiter” but it is clear that it holds great weight and meaning.

The Ring of Saturn 

The Paperback Version

Another interesting tidbit we found while researching was that along with astrology Holst was very interesting in Hinduism and almost named his daughter Imogen, Sita.   

The lyrical version of Jupiter is called “I Vow to the my Country” and can be heard here.

[kaixju]

How two lost stars locked gravity. A love story between a necromancer and an astronomer.

What is Novae?

Novae is an historical M/M romance webcomic coming in early 2016.

The story begins in 17th century France, the age of discovery and enlightenment. Sulvain, a necromancer and traveler, journeys to Paris to immerse himself in the new academic scene. Discoveries by one of the period’s greatest minds, Christiaan Huygens, expand Sulvain’s mind, but it is Huygen’s apprentice, Raziol Qamar, that expands Sulvain’s world.

Novae will be rated OT (16 and up)

You can join our monthly news letter here to keep updated on the latest news, get a glance at preproduction, and a have a chance to win a free chibi commission every month!

We are excited about launching this project and we and hope you enjoy Novae’s journey to fruition!

~KaiJu

[kaixju]

We’ll be in the artist alley at NDK this weekend!! (´｡✪ω✪｡｀) 

Come by and say hi! ✧⁺⸜(●′▾‵●)⸝⁺✧

[sparklermonthly]

Go say hi to KaixJu this weekend if you’re in the area! Doesn’t everybody want an acrylic legendary birb charm? I know I do. :-) 

[kaixju]

Planet themed Geisha - Saturn. (Maiko)

To continue the series

[kaixju]

Saturn from my Planet landscapes. To go with Planet themed Geisha.

[kaixju]

Planet Themed Geisha: Jupiter

Will be a series to go with planet landscapes. Saturn is next.

[kaixju]

Raz and Neptune 

The Ring of Saturn

Raz’s favorite piece from Holst’s “The planets” is Neptune.  But Neptune is so lonely…

[kaixju]

Mahou Josei Chimaka

[sparklermonthly]

Sparkler Update: Friday, June 4th

Lettera : http://sparklermonthly.com/lt/lettera-chapter-03-page-088/

“Mahou Josei Chimaka”: http://sparklermonthly.com/mjc/mahou-josei-chimaka-chapter-03-page-109/

Gatesmith: http://sparklermonthly.com/gs/comic/gatesmith-chapter-06-page-140/

Orange Junk: http://sparklermonthly.com/oj/orange-junk-chapter-09-page-271/

Off*Beat: https://sparklermonthly.com/ob/offbeat-bonus-chapter-15a-page-004/

(*The End*!)

[sparklermonthly]

Sparkler Update: Wednesday, June 3rd

Lettera : http://sparklermonthly.com/lt/lettera-chapter-03-page-086/

“Mahou Josei Chimaka”: http://sparklermonthly.com/mjc/mahou-josei-chimaka-chapter-03-page-111/

Gatesmith: http://sparklermonthly.com/gs/comic/gatesmith-chapter-06-page-139/

Orange Junk: http://sparklermonthly.com/oj/orange-junk-chapter-09-page-272/

[sparklermonthly]

Sparkler Update: Monday, June 1st

Lettera : http://sparklermonthly.com/lt/lettera-chapter-03-page-084/

“Mahou Josei Chimaka”: http://sparklermonthly.com/mjc/mahou-josei-chimaka-chapter-03-page-109/

Gatesmith: http://sparklermonthly.com/gs/comic/gatesmith-chapter-06-page-138/

Orange Junk: http://sparklermonthly.com/oj/orange-junk-chapter-09-page-271/

(Our June issue launches later this evening, but in the meantime, go read some comics!! :-D )

[sparklermonthly]

Sparkler Update: Friday, May 29th

Lettera : http://sparklermonthly.com/lt/lettera-chapter-03-page-082/

“Mahou Josei Chimaka”: http://sparklermonthly.com/mjc/mahou-josei-chimaka-chapter-03-page-107/

Gatesmith: http://sparklermonthly.com/gs/comic/gatesmith-chapter-06-page-137/

Orange Junk: http://sparklermonthly.com/oj/orange-junk-chapter-09-page-270/

(Happy Friday!! :-D  Go read some comics!)

[sparklermonthly]

Sparkler Update: Wenesday, May 27th

Lettera : http://sparklermonthly.com/lt/lettera-chapter-03-page-080/

“Mahou Josei Chimaka”: http://sparklermonthly.com/mjc/mahou-josei-chimaka-chapter-03-page-105/

Gatesmith: http://sparklermonthly.com/gs/comic/gatesmith-chapter-06-page-136/

Orange Junk: http://sparklermonthly.com/oj/orange-junk-chapter-09-page-269/

[batssassin]

Pigtail Studio @ #coloradocomicon come see us and KaixJu we have tons of stuff from Chibi keychains to prints to the awesome short comic Ring of Saturn! #comiccon #prints #chibis #charms #comic #artistalley

[sparklermonthly]

Today’s new batch of free comics pages are up!

Lettera : http://sparklermonthly.com/lt/lettera-chapter-03-page-058/

(Yay! It’s the start of chapter 3!)

“Mahou Josei Chimaka”: http://sparklermonthly.com/mjc/mahou-josei-chimaka-chapter-03-page-082/

Gatesmith: http://sparklermonthly.com/gs/comic/gatesmith-chapter-06-page-124/

Orange Junk: http://sparklermonthly.com/oj/orange-junk-chapter-08-page-258/

[hotara]

Mahou Josei Chimaka +_+

[kaixju]

As we tone the last pages of the last chapter of “Mahou Josei Chimaka” we recall that It’s been almost exactly 1 year since we made our tumblr and started working on pages for “The Ring of Saturn”. In that time we’ve done 195 pages of comics! That’s more than all the comics we did before “Saturn” combined! We still can’t believe it! 

Before we started doing these “shorts”, the longest comic we did was 25 pages, so naturally we were a little nervous when we started a monthly schedule.  But we were determined, if comic artists in japan could pump out 20-40 pages a month, so could we! It was definitely a challenge at first, but we managed to settled into a schedule and didn’t loose too much sleep! 20-something pages a month was difficult at first but the more we did it the faster we got. This month we managed to do 36 pages! (When we started the most we could do was 12!)

This journey has been extremely rewarding and while we did have to pull a few all-nighters during the year we didn’t suffer that much under the schedule we made for ourselves. It’s been a huge confidence boost for both of us and we are extremely grateful to Sparkler Monthly for giving us a chance to tell our stories!

If you like our stories please consider contributing to the Sparkler Monthly membership drive! A huge reason we were able to complete these stories was because Sparkler believed in us and did not shut us down because we drew in an “anime style”. (in fact they love it!) Sparkler has to get 1000 Members before July in order to have a year 3. Thats another year of excellent content and support to creators who have so long struggled to find a place for their work. This is a great thing, let us make sure it survives! :)

We are also extremely grateful to everyone who reads our comic and anyone who has ever left a comment. Your words are like fuel for to our comic spirits and keep us going though the tough times. We are so happy our stories have been enjoyable for so many and are ready to make many many more! Onward and upward!

Thank you <3