Hey friends, it's been a while. Many thanks to @tragediegh, @artsyunderstudy and @monbons for their recent tags. Its always wonderful seeing what you've been working on (and getting to be feral about it in the hashtags). I'm excited to finally reciprocate with a Crowman update!
🪽Winged Wardrobe Wednesday🪽
There comes a time in every cursed Crowman's life where he must ask himself 'wtf do I wear now I have wings?' Unfortunately, being the artist who created this problem, I have to come up with the answers.
So for the last few weeks I've been giving my Crowman the paper doll treatment, and now it's time to share the results with you (under the cut).
The Hangover
When the Crowman (henceforth CM) is first cursed, he wakes in the tattered remains of his former party outfit. His once flouncy shirt is torn and stained, his stockings are rumpled and no longer stay up, and his shoes are completely missing. It marks his break with the society he grew up in. His wings have completely torn through his jacket and waistcoat, leaving him with little more than rags on his back.
Make do and mend
To preserve his dignity in the forest, CM has to fashion himself an outfit from what little he has to hand. He starts off with a thin blanket (I swear I came up with this long before Victor in Arcane made wearing blankets all the rage, but it's got a similar vibe I'm not mad about) which he uses to create this cheeky halterneck-toga emsemble, using his old silk scarf as a belt. I might have him wrap his feet in fabric strips from his old trousers, but he'll quickly realise its impractical and go barefoot. Later he'll also use the remains of his shirt for boiled bandages.
Bonus: In this sketch you also get to see me working out how on earth to draw wings. In all the other sketches in this post I focused solely on the costuming, so his wings and facial features are rough or non existant. I did this sketch last and realised I probably shouldn't put off drawing wings any longer since I'm literally basing an entire graphic novel on a guy with them. (Why did I do this to myself?)
Mysterious Horror
Arburgh meets CM in the introduction to the story, in the middle of the woods at night. This is what Arburgh first sees; a lumpy shadow in the trees, hardly distinguishable as man or beast. Arburgh immediaetly recalls all the horrifying tales he's heard about the cursed horror living in the forest. On seeing CM in full, Arburgh is terrified.
I wanted to reveal CM in stages, so the reader can take in different aspects of his curse gradually. Initially the focus is on his mystique, his links to the horrifying tales told about him. As he lifts his hood you'll see his beak and his hands (I gave him ombre black finger tips because why wouldn't I). Later, he'll reveal his massive wings across a double page spread I'm really looking forward to drawing.
Assassin vibes
Spoiler: CM is not an assassin. But the final evolution of his costune has that vibe. Why? Practicality! By the time Arbrugh meets him, CM has been living in the forest for at least a year. In that time he's worked out how to better garb himself while keeping himself warm, his wings free, and allowing full movement of all his limbs. Dark colours ensure an element of camoflage, while also infering his acceptance of being more crow-like in appearance. His sleeves are detachable, meaning he can go without in warm weather. The ends of his trousers are wound with leg wraps to keep them from flapping about when he's flying. He no longer uses his silk scarf as a belt. He has completely parted with humanity.
More coming soon!
I have a lot more to share re costumes, so stay tuned for more sketches and notes over the next few weeks. I'm aiming to give you a fashion show for Cygnus next week.
In the meantime, what would your blorbos wear if they had wings? (Simon Snow community I know you're well practiced with this.) Tell me in the comments XD
No pressure tagging as an invitation to share anything you're working on (but only if you'd like to) and to say a big 'hello I've missed you' to everyone, regardless of whether you share or not ✨
@rowynnellis @hattedhedgehog @eremeldanin I’m also adding you guys because I'm trying to be brave and share more with people I know IRL😬😬😬 Love you xx
Ps- I've updated my tags with some new moots. Hello new friends! If you'd rather not be tagged, or if you'd prefer to only be tagged on specific fandom/oc stuff stuff, lemme know (no judgement or offence taken at all I promise)
Happy WIP Wednesday, friends! Here’s what I’ve been working on recently.
Original character incoming...
This is Cygnus. Don't let him charm you, he's an arsehole. He's about to turn 21 and he's getting ready to propose to Constance, his sister Avery's best friend. He doesn't know anything about Constance, but she's the daughter of a lord which will impress his father and it'll massively piss off Avery, so its a win win. Doesn't even matter he has no feelings for her whatsoever, right? His love of science will keep him warm. What could go wrong?
Blinded by ambition, what Cygnus doesn't know is while he's trying to impress Constance and her father, he's about to make a massive faux pas that will anger the spirits of an ancient magical forest. (Who knew trying to steal magic from the fey was such a touchy subject?) And this time Cygnus won't be able to charm his way out of it.
Tags, hellos, and a small amount of context under the cut.
Cyg is the main character in The Crowman, a queer fairytale graphic novel I am working on and forcing myself to start sharing in the hopes it will hold me accountable to actually start drawing it seriously.
Many thanks to the lovely @iamamythologicalcreature and @leofrun for their encouragement as I worried about sharing this. And thank you for the recent tags @mooncello and @monbons its a joy seeing what you’ve been up to🥰
As always, please conisder this a no pressure invitation to share what you’re working on (original or fandom!) and a little hello from yours truly.
Helloo lovelies, welcome to another Wednesday where I waffle about my graphic novel wip, The Crowman.
Last week I introduced you to my travelling tinker, Arburgh. Thank you for all your lovely comments and tags. He’s thrilled to meet you all.
✨What's in his cart??🛒✨
I couldn't resist answering this question from @thewholelemon, since it aligns perfectly with a writing exercise I've been practicing recently where you build out a character based on what they have in their pockets/what they carry with them about their person. When your OC takes a cart with him everywhere, it's a long list! And I think it says something about the world I am building here.
Extensive list under the cut!
🏕️Some basic camping equpiment (for his life on the road): a bed roll; a very old patched canvas tent; a well used tinder box; a small sauce pan; a dented tea kettle; a mallet, and a wooden spoon.
🧣Personal items: a pen knife with unusual markings on the tiny blade; a handcarved mug with a pattern of acorns and oakleaves decorating it; a wonky hand knitted scarf of wool scraps in countless autumnal colours, with wooden beads and bells stitched into it.
🍓Popular food items procured from unusual or hard to reach places: dried teas and medicinal herbs; preserves, ferments and liqueurs made from rare fruits and vegetables.
📚Paper products: high quality parchment, quills, brushes, and ink made from regional fibres, feathers, fur and pigments (ethically sourced); a small selection of books on strangely niche topics, likely sourced with specific customers in mind (titles incluce 'An Unabridged History of Teaspoons from the Mountain Village of Went')
🧵Textiles: an enchanting collection of colourful silk pocket squares and ribbons; fine thread and fish bone needles, both strong enough to stitch clothing, yet fine enough to stitch a wound without leaving a scar; an assortment of handmade buttons and beads made from bone, wood, silver and pearl.
🧚♂️Etherial* items: traditional charms for protection, fertility tokens, talismans to be worn as jewellery or hung in a home; common/ more sort after fey stones including glowstones (used instead of candles or torches depending on the strength of their light) and hot stones (great for boiling water without need of a fire, or warming a cold bed at night); a few less common fey stones such as a darkstone (can suck the light out of a small space- these stones are illegal in a lot of regions); an exceptionally rare joystone, sometimes known as a luck stone (gives even the ill and dying a sense of elation and happiness, these stones are often associated with sudden good fortune. Technically under the same restrictions as darkstones, they are so rare very few people believe they ever existed at all. It's very likely Arburgh has completely forgotten he has one at the bottom of his cart.)
*Etherial is a word I’m using in place of/as well as ‘magical’. In this world Ether is a type of naturally occuring magic/energy that only the fey can harness. (I’ll talk more about this in a later post.)
Arburgh keeps quiet about where he sources his etherial items and most of his customers are too delighted with his wares to even think to ask. The people most familiar with the tinker's products often claim it's far more than just the feystones and charms in his cart that are magical. His silk pocket squares hold the scent of mountain flowers long after counless washes; his medicinal herbs seem more potent than others, with a tendency to cure far more than the specific ailment they are purchased for; his fishbone needles and fine threads seem to hold healing properties all of their own, knitting together flesh so flawlessly it appears as new and soft as a child's; his quills give even the most terrible of scribes immaculate spelling and handwriting.
🍂
I hope you enjoyed this list. I’m excited to share more and to answer other questions, so please please feel free to send me asks or add questions in the comments/tags. I love getting to share pieces of this world with you and your encouragement is keeping me going. If you have OCs you’d like to share, please tag me! (@monbons if you ever want some sketches of your ocs hmu :D)
Hugs to you all, and a no pressure invite to share your WIPs if you’d like you (: @youarenevertooold @iamamythologicalcreature @alexalexinii @cattocavo @that-disabled-princess @orange-peony @cutestkilla @rimeswithpurple @larkral @best—dress @scribble-tier @theimpossibledemon @artsyunderstudy @thewholelemon @raeny-day @nightimedreamersworld @itriednottothinkaboutit @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @angelsfalling16 @willowjh @the-beard-of-edward-teach @monbons @katatsumuli @fiend-for-culture @tragediegh @aristocratic-otter @argumentativeantitheticalg @lovelyladzzzz @nausikaaa @blackberrysummerblog @prettygoododds @mooncello @leofrun @jyae23 @kidspawn
Thank you for the tag @blackberrysummers 💜💜 You deserve ALL the nice things, and I’m looking forward to reading your new fic🥰
As my last wipsday post about Cygnus went down so well, I thought I'd share another character from The Crowman with you today.
Info and tags under the cut!
This is Arburgh (pronounced Ar-bur). He's my little bumbling tinker guy who finds himself in a bit of a pickle in the first few pages of The Crowman. (That’s what happens when you go pootling through a magical forest at night when there’s a rabid cryptid on the loose!!)
Arburgh's name is inspired by the rural village of Alburgh where I grew up. (I suspect the name Alburgh has links to the french 'arbre' meaning tree, since Alburgh is pronounced the same way… and has a lot of trees in it).
I wanted to draw/write about a tinker since I love the idea of this sort of medieval travelling sales guy who collects odd items and stories, meets all kinds of different folk, and probably gets into a lot of scrapes due to his curious nature and complusion to make friends with everyone.
I’m struggling to say more without giving spoilers, so I’ll hold off for now, but feel free to ask questions if you like (: It was so wonderful seeing all your comments and tags about Cygnus (I can’t tell him you all like him, he’ll get even more big-headed) and I’m looking forward to sharing more soon.
For now, happy Wednesday to you all. You’re wonderful and I appreciate you ✨ No pressure to share, but please tag me if you do!
@youarenevertooold @iamamythologicalcreature @alexalexinii @cattocavo @that-disabled-princess @orange-peony @cutestkilla @rimeswithpurple @larkral @best—dress @scribble-tier @theimpossibledemon @artsyunderstudy @thewholelemon @raeny-day @nightimedreamersworld @itriednottothinkaboutit @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @angelsfalling16 @willowjh @the-beard-of-edward-teach @monbons @katatsumuli @fiend-for-culture @tragediegh @aristocratic-otter @argumentativeantitheticalg @lovelyladzzzz @nausikaaa @blackberrysummerblog @prettygoododds @mooncello @leofrun @jyae23 @kidspawn
I see you Wednesday!! No sneaking up on me this week, I’m writing this in advance and saving to drafts.
Time for your regualr dose of The Crowman. One day I will come up with a fun title for Crowman Wipsday posts because my brain demands alliteration or some kind of whimsy— please send suggestions!
Scripts for Storyboarding
I’ve been working on script formatting this week, as up until now I’ve been printing out sections to annotate by hand. Last week I temporarily lost the first few pages and had to turn the whole house upside down looking for them, so now I am trying to work digitally instead. I thought you might like to see a sample, so here are the opening lines to the introduction with Arburgh.
(See alt text if you can’t read the text)
More thoughts under the cut…
The above image is a screencap from my drafts in Ellipsus. Here is the key to explain some of the colour coding:
Writing Tools and Software
I’m really enjoying using @ellipsus-writes instead of Google Docs since I can change up styles and page colour really easily, and the screen is really simple so fewer distractions. (Its also great knowing google isn’t scraping all my work to train AI too). As I finish off drafts I move them into Scrivener so I have backups of everything. So far I have used Scrivener so briefly that I am still on the 30 day free trial, but I love how it organises folders for research and plot outlines etc, so if I ever get to the end of the trial I will treat myself and buy it. But as a platform for actually writing in, I much prefer Ellipsus.
Old School Printouts
For comparison, here is the first page of my hard copy, before I started annotating digitally:
As you can see, I do a lot of doodling and add extra notes in the margins, and I really wish there was a way of doing this on Ellipsus, espeically on my iPad as I could use my Apple Pencil and it would feel like working on a printed document when I need it to. But for now, the cleaner digital editing and formatting is doing mostly what I need it to.
Bonus Info
If you can’t read my notes, some of the green scrawl talks about how I want to use narration in my graphic novel a bit like how it is utilised in Baldur’s Gate 3 (which I’ve been playing a lot of recently) and Hades Game. The narration is slow and calm, an unknown voice that adds an element of mystery, as well as forcing the reader (or gamer) to pace themselves, to stay with the scene or object a little longer. Since every page of a graphic novel takes approximately FOREVER to draw, it’s fun finding ways to encourage readers to linger in the images for a moment, rather than racing ahead to the next page.
Actual Storyboards!
This has been a very ‘looking under the hood of the car’ kind of post, so here is a bit of.. car bonnet? Like if the bonnet is still being shaped (hammered??)... I really don’t know enough about cars for this metaphor not to break down immediately. (Break down, geddit?)
Page 6 is a full bleed image that leads on from a map over the end papers, while page 7 is where we get into the first proper panels. You’ll see if you compare it to the script screen cap that the numbers match up to parts of the text. I will eventually clean up these sketches to make them more decipherable to people who aren’t me, but for now the aim is to help me figure out very rough layouts and colour palettes, as well as starting to establish a vague page count for how long this thing might be. Currently I’m averaging out 1 page per large paragraph of text, so that will make the introduction section alone about... (does some rough counting)... 38 pages long 😅
So yeah.. wish me luck?
I hope this has been of interest. As always, send me an ask or leave a comment if there’s anything in particular you’d like to know more about. I love sharing this world with you!
No pressure tags to share if you’d like to, and a reminder that you’re all wonderful and I am eternally grateful to have you cross my dash. Enjoy the rest of your week friends, and happy thanksgiving to those to celebrate!
Thank you @thewholelemon for tagging me today, I’m looking forward to reading your corb fic in January!
This has been sitting in my drafts since Monday, but today has been awful and all my confidence has gone out the window, so I was questioning whether to post anything at all, but seeing a lovely wipsday post from a moot has me saying ah fuck it. See some possibly ok writing under the cut. And here is Cygnus being studious. I haven’t drawn much in ages, and today I can’t draw faces at all, so this is all you get :/
WHAT'S IN HIS POCKETSES?!?
I had a great time sharing what Arburgh totes around with him in his cart, and Cygnus is deeply offended he's not getting the same attention, so today I am tipping him upside down and seeing what falls out (be careful what you wish for, Cyg).
Things Cygnus takes with him everywhere:
Pens and ink, scraps of paper covered in notes and sketches about his most recent hyperfixation. He has piles of notebooks and sketchbooks, but never seems to have one to hand when he needs one.
Hardback books that are intimidatingly thick (and only reluctantly opened for study) on law and economics. It's good to have one to hide behind when he's trying to look studious, get out of a conversation with his father, or needs to prop a door open.
By contrast, his pile of soft back scientific journals are so well read they're falling apart. Expect to find the latest issue slotted inside his boring law book.
Two silk handkerchiefs: one a beautifully monogrammed affair with meticulous laced edging; the other a rough attempt at the same, but stitched clumsily (and furiously) by Cygnus' sister. (To their father's deep shame, Avery cannot sew.) Cygnus keeps this sad little handkerchief in his pocket to occasionally infuriate his sister with (or is he secretly sentimental??).
A ridiculously fancy letter opener, adapted into a selfmade multi tool, often used for getting into things he shouldn't.
A silver pendant he wears around his neck on a long chain. It has an odd rune-like pattern on it. Where could it have come from?
A palm-sized children's book about the fey, possibly stolen from Avery, though he's had it for so long Cygnus is no longer entirely sure where it came from. Anything related to the fey (aside from the common commodity of feystones lighting and heating the house) is strictly forbidden in the Swann household. So Cygnus guards the little book carefully, secretly pouring over it late at night, wondering what all the symbols and pictures mean. Despite feeling guilt and shame over his taboo fascination, he can't help but wonder about the secrets of the fey.
[Edit: I forgot to actually say hi to you all before pasting in your tags! My bad. I was having quite a day (which is British for my mental health is in the toilet). Please take these tags as a gentle pressure free invitation to share or not share anything you’ve been working on. You have my kind thoughts and well wishes either way 🥰]
