DA Shadow Phantom Animation - (The Second Research and Refinement Stage)

Life has been quite hectic for me lately, so I haven't spent much time online in the past few weeks. First, my brother's wedding, then getting my brother and sister into college. Now that things have died down a little bit, I have had time to resume some of my projects. I am still writing on DA Shadow Phantom. Also, the burning desire has hit me to do a short animation with some of the characters and some music that has inspired me, sort of like a theme song/sequence.

Currently, I am perfecting the run cycle for Dalan, my main character. I think I finally came up with something that I like, and I have been testing it in After Effects as well. It's a handy animation program from Adobe. The first step for me to refine this run cycle, however, was research. I looked up numerous run cycles that other people had done. Still unsatisfied with what I was finding for this particular character, however, I kept looking. It wasn't until I was watching Black Cat, an action anime, that I at last found what I was looking for.

Train Heartnet and gang from Black Cat (Kuro Neko) -

not my artwork, I found this on Tumblr.com

Train Heartnet basic run cycle -

a series of screen shots from Black Cat, Episode 10 - not my artwork

Screen captures weren't fast enough to get me what I needed as a reference, however. What I needed was a frame-by-frame reference. Generally, since the most common frame rate used in animation nowadays is 24 fps (frames per second), the human eye cannot pick up every single one if played in real time. We see it as continuous motion. So what I had to do was open the episode that had the run cycle I wanted in After Effects and pull it apart frame by frame, taking my screen shots there with individual images as opposed to footage, which is what an animation is when we see a movie or show. Anyway, with this run cycle now available to me as a reference, I was able to experiment and adapt a working one that suited my character, Dalan much better.

 Dalan Raymer basic run cycle, by me

Just from being able to compare general run cycles with a faster run cycle, I learned a lot about what makes them faster or slower looking. Most normal run cycles are, on average, about nine frames long, not including whatever in-betweens the animators decide to add to smooth them out and slow them down. What I wanted was a fast, sort of choppy run cycle that denotes someone who is very fast, faster than the average human athlete, as Dalan has a few un-human abilities.

The effect I learned towards that end is to clip the average nine frame run cycle down to six or seven frames, seven if you make it a full cycle, repeating the first frame as the seventh one. Even if I add extra frames in between, or keep each frame up for the length of two frames to slow it down enough to make it visible to the average human eye, I discovered that it still gives the impression of the runner moving very fast. Part of that illusion are the sharp diagonal angles the body and limbs are put at in each frame. If the figure was more upright, for instance, it would appear that he is moving at a slower, more leisurely pace.

To see the above run cycle tested as an actual animation clip, visit my FaceBook Shadow Phantom page.

Main page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328

Dalan Raymer run cycle, frames 1 and 2,

basic color version with swatches - art by me 

Little by little I'm seeing it come together, and it's exciting. Besides other random art projects for people, this project has me sucked in most of the time. Sometimes, it's days before I surface for air.

For those of my readers who do not yet know, DA Shadow Phantom is an action/fantasy story where Dalan, a shapeshifter, has to come to terms with what he is, the last of his kind living in a society of humans that have all but forgotten the old ways of life. He acts as a sort of protector as he learns to master his abilities, running to the aid of the weak that are oppressed by the strong and violent. Will he have to give up his own desires, even his life to protect people who will never understand him? Or can he somehow manage to find what he wants in the process?

Gridded City - The Hand of Destiny - artwork by me

 

The above image is one of the key frames (images) in my short theme song animation. Time and space have merged as Dalan's destiny begins to be revealed, and his own life seems to be unraveling at the same time.

 A close up of Dalan in the odd grid room

To find out more about the DA Shadow Phantom series and/or purchase the first book, follow these links:

Amazon
Smashwords

I hope to see you there!



For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

 

 

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The 3D Figure in Motion

To get a feel for how my character, Dalan, moves, I began experimenting with run cycles. The first thing I did was a lot of research into various run cycles for different characters, as well as observing how people of different body types, stamina, and personalities run in real life. Some of the references I found are really interesting and well done. Here are a few I found that helped me out a lot:

Run Cycle for Kiandra, by Animative@deviantart.com

 

Run Cycle for taller characters with more fluid motion, from http://nightmarefuelart.wordpress.com/2012/10/09/entertainment-design-run-cycle/

Stick figure run cycle that only shows the main flow of movement, no details,
though I can't remember where I found this

Movements of the Two Legged Figure, by Preston Blair,
from http://www.darlingdimples.com/?page_id=79

a general chart of changes in motion

 

Below is the basic run cycle I came up with for Dalan Raymer, the Shadow Phantom in my series, DA Shadow phantom. He is the type of character to dash straight into battle or danger without much thought on the matter. That, coupled with his slightly smaller body type, led me to explore a slightly more chaotic run style for him. He's fast, outstripping most opponents with ease, and impulsive.

Basic Run Cycle for Dalan (art by me)

I started with the concept, i.e., the stick figures. These provided the initial idea for the run cycle, the flow of motion. After that, with each consecutive step, more and more details are added. Also, I test these as an actual animation. Photoshop has an Animation feature (under the Window tab) where you can set each image/layer as a separate frame. You can place these frames and time them whenever they are supposed to come up, one after the other. If you want them to flash quickly, have each image/layer stay be visible for one frame only. To slow it down, either add more images as in-betweens, or have each one stay visible for two or three frames. It's a handy feature. That way, you can test the movement of the animation and perfect it a bit before importing it into an animation program such as Flash or After Effects.

I also found references for four legged creatures running, as well as flight cycles of birds and bats. This could be very useful, considering what my main character changes into, as a shapeshifter.

by rillani@deviantart.com

The process I've been going through to create a run cycle has been a lot of fun. For one, it has reminded me of a very important concept in character design: when drawing characters, even in a two dimensional medium, always treat them as if they are three dimensional. That will make doing different angles of them easier and more believable. Even in a basic run cycle, it isn't just the legs and arms that are moving. People's bodies naturally twist and turn while running or doing anything, for that matter. So it would make sense to visualize characters as being three dimensional to begin with.

As always, everything I learn about art, animation, and storytelling is always a journey, never really about some final end destination. There are various things to accomplish along the way and levels to reach, but I'm afraid that if I finally did get to the top of some great height with nothing else to go for, I wouldn't know what to do or where to go. I need to keep learning.

So, to all the people out there who, like me, thrive on learning of some sort and the experiences that go with it,

Happy Traveling!

A chibby of me done by a friend of mine

The Music Behind the Scenes

I have found out that Celtic music is very commonly used for and associated with fantasy movies and shows. I guess it's because of the mood and feeling much of the music gives off, like a perfect fantasy world is actually real and, not only that, is a very reachable community that the audience can join right in with. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Hobbit have a lot of Celtic style music in the soundtracks. That is part of what gives the mystical, magical effect of the story.

From The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring

 

Recently, I've been listening to a lot of Irish music done by modern bands. One song I love in particular is called "Nil Se'n La" by Celtic woman. Part of the song is in the old Irish language, and the rest is in English. It starts off with part of a folk song:

Chuaigh mé isteach i dteach aréir
Is d'iarr mé cairde ar mhnaoi an leanna
Is é dúirt sí liom “Ní bhfaighidh tú deor
Buail an bóthar is gabh abhaile.”

Roughly translated, this verse means:

I went into a (public) house last night
and I asked the barwoman for credit
She said to me "You won't get a drop
Hit the road and go home."





The setting of this song is in a bar or ale house on a cold winter's night. After making his case to the bartender (the woman in the intro) that he will be staying because he is the main source of entertainment, the speaker of the song then instigates the festivities. The song is about an all night party that no one ever wants to leave because of how lively and inviting the environment is. The night is magical, with instruments playing and a golden fire as drinks abound, never seeming to run out.


Celtic Woman Album art
The chorus goes:

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá,
níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin,
níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill,
solas ard atá sa ghealaigh.

Translated:

It's not yet day, it's not my love,
it's not yet day and it won't be 'till morning,
it's not yet day and it won't be yet,
A high light is in the moon.

And while the listeners are never told if this party is actually real or all a wistful fantasy in the speaker's mind, the tone and voice of the music brings them into the scene so completely that they are somewhat sad when the song ends at last and the last note of this bright magical world in the middle of winter drifts away.

From the Lord of the Rings, Pippin and Merry eating.

Music really does have a much bigger on the tone and even the theme of a movie than people seem to think. Even if you don't normally notice the music, you would certainly notice if there was no music at all or if it had a happy tone when a certain scene was supposed to be sad. The carefully created mood would be ruined. When I was in high school, one of my teachers proved this to my class. He played a scene on a big projector screen that was supposed to be suspenseful and even a bit scary, such as a villain playing a cat and mouse game with either the hero or someone close to the hero in a dark setting. Instead of playing it with the normal suspense music, however, my teacher had a very cheerful carnival-type song on.

The effect that combination had on my classmates and I varied. Some of us just couldn't take the scene seriously anymore. It just wasn't scary. To other people, the cheerful music with this setting just made the scene ironically creepy. Either way, the mood of the entire scene was warped a great deal. And it was all because of the music being played in the background, the aspect of a movie that many people don't even notice. That is why theme songs for television shows are so important, even if you do skip them half the time. For one, the theme song is supposed to portray the overall attitude and tone for the show, as a whole. It could be a comedy, or dark drama. The theme song should suggest what elements might go into it.

Even while I'm writing or drawing, I often listen to the type of music that corresponds with the mood I want for a particular mood or theme. This helps to put me in the right mood instantly and also can give me inspiration from time to time. When I first started writing DA Shadow Phantom, a song that I have considered to be the theme song for this story is called "The Bird and the Worm" by the Used.

 

The song starts:

He wears his heart
safety pinned to his backpack
His backpack is all that he knows
Shot down by strangers
whose glances can cripple
the heart and devour the soul

Then it moves on to the chorus:

All alone he turns to stone
while holding his breath half to death

Terrified of whats inside
to save his life he crawls
like a worm from a bird
crawls like a worm from a bird

 

 Beast Within, artwork by me, inspired by the image above this one

A big theme in DA Shadow Phantom is Dalan struggling with his inner beast. Should he resist it? Shun it give into it? Or should he try to understand its nature and work with it, allow it to truly become part of him? Whatever he chooses, this process is lonely and scary, even painful at times. Having even a single ally, like Dalan's friend Heather Dennison, is a huge relief, though it does not remove the burden, not by a long shot.

The song above portrays the overall mood and attitude I was picturing for this story. Maybe if I get around to creating more images for this story, maybe even an animation, I will play with setting them to music like this.

Stories are all about a journey, either internal or physical. The main characters grow and develop, their motives often driving the plot of the entire story. This process enables the readers/viewers to get into the story more and even root for the main character(s). Music is also a journey. It incites the listeners' emotions a certain way so that they feel like they are on a journey as well.

So how do movies make people cry, or fill them with excitement, euphoria, or even rage? Some images can be quite compelling, true, and sometimes famous movie lines can get stuck in your head for days, but one aspect that most people forget about is music. According to a Scientific American article, "Why Does Music Make us Feel?", "speech sounds don’t give us the chills, and they don’t make us cry [....] But music does emanate from our alarm clocks in the morning, and fill our cars, and give us chills, and make us cry." It is a big part of the lives of many people worldwide (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-does-music-make-us-fe).

In a recent study covered by a recent paper by Nidhya Logeswaran and Joydeep Bhattacharya from the University of London, 30 participants were given pictures of human faces and were told to rate them from 1 to 7 in terms of emotion, with 1 being extremely sad and 7 being extremely happy. The researchers found that, if music was playing, it actually influenced the ratings. Sad music made the frowns seem that much more melancholy, while lively, happy music made the happy faces seem all the more ecstatic. One explanation the article gives "is that the emotions of music are 'cross-modal,' and can easily spread from sensory system to another." Since images and colors are also powerful in getting a response from people, putting these together with music the correct way into the plot of a story can have an even more powerful and even magical effect, pulling the audience more fully into the world of the story, as more of their senses are engaged and even interacting with the story.

Try noticing the way music and images/colors are used together the next time you watch a movie or anime, and you'll see what I mean.

Happy travels!

Dalan's aging process, from 5 to about 20

If anyone has any questions or comments, or if you just want to start a discussion with me, leave a comment after this blog. To see the fantasy kindle books I have on Amazon, visit these links:

1.) North Country, Book One: The Riders of Redrog
2.) DA Shadow Phantom, Volume 1: Transformation

Feel free to stop by and browse, and maybe leave a review.

 

For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

 

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Facebook North Country Series

 

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The Art of Taboo

My dad has a 1960’s version of Romeo and Juliet that he wants to show his high school English class when they read the ever famous Shakespearean play. It’s a British film though, and the funny thing about British films, even in the 1960’s, is how not shy they are about nudity. While American actors of that era and before could hardly even be shown sleeping in the same bed, British producers did not even try to strategically hide anything. You might see a nude guy mostly from behind, but everything is showing, and the girl is not shy about flashing her breasts for the camera.

The acting is superb. You would almost never think it was a film done in the ‘60’s. The actors dive into their roles completely, making the old Shakespeare text come to life so completely that you can’t help but enjoy it, even if you’re not into reading Shakespeare-style language (which, by the way, is not Old English, but actually Late Middle English). Anyway, because of one questionable scene with flashing breasts and buttocks, my dad hasn’t been able to get the film approved. So I got to open it in my film editing program and make it kosher for American high school students. That was fun, getting flashed a few times while trying to figure out exactly where to cut it, all the while trying to keep all the of the dialogue and background music consistent enough so that it’s not obvious a scene, or a few bits of a scene, have been cut.

Romeo and Juliet, a Paramount picture and Bhe Film,

Franco Zeffirelli’s production of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”

Anyway, my progress with editing this film for my dad made me think about something I’d learned about in art school, a method that drives me nuts if it isn’t used properly in movies, television shows, and even comedy routines. It is called The Art of Taboo. If you look at the definition of the word taboo, that word explains a lot what this method in filmmaking and storytelling might entail.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a taboo is "a social or religious custom prohibiting or forbidding discussion of a particular practice or forbidding association with a particular person, place, or thing." As an adjective or verb, taboo is something "prohibited or restricted by social custom," or something that is "place[d] under prohibition." The word came into the English language in the late 18th century, "from Tongan tabu 'set apart, forbidden'; introduced into English by Captain Cook." (http://oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/taboo?q=taboo)

 

Basically, the Art of Taboo is the ability to hint at certain topics, which may or may not be touchy with a lot of people, without actually explicitly mentioning them or showing them. This may seem like an old-fashioned cop-out, but if this method is used artfully and tastefully, some of those awkward situation and/or topics suddenly become ten times funnier. Once someone actually comes out and says it, the joke is dead, the mood brutally killed. If actors on stage or even comedians just started blurting certain things out all over the place, not only is it not really funny, but the show cannot be taken seriously, especially if the audience begins to feel perverted just by continuing to watch. In this way, using the Art of Taboo in strategic places, i.e. leaning more towards the morality of issues, doesn’t have to be boring or spoil the fun at all. Stories can have those funny moments, but then they can get serious again as well, as both the characters and the audience can move along on their journey.
 

Posted in "5 hour epic" on YouTube by The Prime Ares

 

Think of it like having an invisible window between your audience and the taboo. You can look, but don't touch. The question is knowing where that line - or window pane - is, knowing what to leave in and what to cut out or simply allude to. If too much is cut out, then you, as the storyteller, will come across to the audience as being too timid. If that happens, you will have dragged your audience out of the story forcefully in the direction opposite what the lack of the Art of Taboo would do. Dragging your audience out of the story for any reason is bad because you may lose them altogether.

One example of the use of the Art of Taboo can be seen in many movies and television shows PG 13 or lower that involve romance. For instance, take Smallville. It is a highly passionate show with passionate characters. Yet, even when you have scenes when various characters are lip-locked, or even when they are in bed together, notice that only enough of the scene is actually shown to give the viewers the idea of what is going on, or what is about to happen. That little hint is all the viewers need. After that, people’s imaginations can run as wild as they want to, as they have been given plenty of material to work with.

Ollie and Lois, a screenshot from Smallville, Season 6

 

 Posted in "5 hour epic" on YouTube by The Prime Ares

 

Having a middling to low rating for movies and television shows, instead of aiming for a really high rating just because you don’t want to be restricted in what you show, actually attracts more viewers that include many different types of people. Just because people are adults that don’t have movie restrictions that apply to them anymore doesn’t mean that everyone wants to watch rated R movies. But if the ratings are kept more in check, more people find that they can enjoy the story, and they still get the gist of the more touchy and violent scenes without being shown everything. By using the art of taboo, some of these scenes can become a mystical or mysterious experience for the viewers and/or readers.

 

 As a writer myself, I find myself struggling sometimes to find the proper balance. Part of that balance is knowing who your audience is. Even though I want a broad range of people to read my series, DA Shadow Phantom, I am aiming it primarily at teenagers. Sometimes the hardest challenge is working with other people on a single project, getting them all to work towards the same goal. Everyone has different preferences and ideas. Even working with one other person can be a challenge, as I am collaborating on this series with a close friend of mine. We both are going on our own journeys with this project, just as our characters are.

When you have two people working on the same story with wildly different ideas of how scenes should go, knowing where that fine line is as far as The Art of Taboo goes can be quite tricky. Especially if you have some characters that are highly passionate by nature. As the main editor as well as a writer of DA Shadow Phantom, I’m constantly trying to figure out how much to leave to give the readers accurate information about the characters, let take out enough so that a wider range of readers can enjoy the story. Despite the different ideas my friend and I have, our journeys still have to coincide enough to make the experience of reading the story a magical cohesive flow instead of a bunch of jumbled ideas. That way, the readers don't get ripped viciously out of the euphoric flow of the story; they won't have to miss out on the special moments, even if some of them are merely hinted at, like some exotic dream seen from a distance.

 

Happy travels!

 

 Posted in "5 hour epic" on YouTube by The Prime Ares

 

 

 

 

If anyone has any questions or comments, or if you just want to start a discussion with me, leave a comment after this blog.

To see the fantasy kindle books I have on Amazon, visit these links:

1.) North Country, Book One: The Riders of Redrog
2.) DA Shadow Phantom, Volume 1: Transformation

Feel free to stop by and browse, and maybe leave a review.

 

For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

 

Facebook profile

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom

Facebook North Country Series

Deviant Art profile

Tumblr profile

 

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We just had my brother's wedding, so everything has been crazy around my house. That's why I didn't get a blog out last week--sorry guys.

Not only have there been a lot of people around, so I've been going crazy, but since I'm the resident artist, I've been commissioned to do the wedding cake topper. My brother and his fiancé wanted a custom one that matched them better than the ones advertised. So what I ended up doing was a rather spunky one with my brother's fiancé, who is much shorter than he is, holding him up as they try to kiss in that position. Using a simple anime-ish style, I think I pulled it off quite well, besides the fact that my brother's hand fell off and I had to super glue it back on. Oops ^_^

This project was fun, but I'm glad it's over with now.

The happy couple (art by me) - cake topper made of super sculpey and acrylic paint

They're off on their honeymoon now, so maybe I'll finally get a little peace. This weekend was still fun though, as exhausted as I am.

Anyway, besides all the craziness of the wedding, I am at a shifting point in my story, DA Shadow Phantom. It's a place where the plot could take any turn or twist. There could be a major turning point, where the characters' motives shift tracks. It's certainly an interesting place to be, though sometimes frustrating.

Part of what goes into the plot is the character development. Currently, my main character, Dalan, is going through a lot of changes. He's torn between being the Shadow Phantom, protecting the innocent from those that would hurt and exploit them, and just being a normal teenager. For quite a long time, he's been flip-flopping back and forth. Now he's faced with shutting out one identity completely to embrace the other. At the same time, he's also learning about his roots, why he is the way he is, and what his destiny might be.

One song that has been inspiring me recently to that effect is "My Immortal," by Evanescence. I first heard the song in season three or four of Smallville, in the episode where Clark has his first memories of his birth parents. It is a really touching but sad scene, so I thought the song matched it pretty well.

"My Immortal" by Evanescence, a wallpaper

from http://www.layoutsparks.com/pictures/my-immortal-1-t5-0



Jor-El and Lara-El, Clark Kent's biological parents

The reason this song has inspired me is because it reminded me of a perfect, beautiful past that couldn't last or was too good to be true being drudged up. The person is forced to relive this, all the while knowing this life can never be, yet is wishing for it anyway.

Dalan is doing the same thing by wishing away his destiny. He's trying to look back to a time that at was more normal for him, though a time that may never have existed at all. Dalan has always had to watch from the sidelines while everyone else was just being normal. Later on, for a time, he even tries to forget his own identity to be normal himself.

The other central characters are struggling with their own demons. Heather and Matt, Dalan's closest friends, are having trouble with their friend's role as well. Neither of them are sure where they fit into the picture at all, as Dalan's destiny seems too great and alien for them. Heather isn't completely sure of her feelings regarding Dalan either, just as he's unsure of his. It seems the more complicated the plot gets, the more characters seem to grow. I am amazed at how much Dalan's character has grown and changed since I did his first character sketches, both in art and as a character bio when I was first getting the idea for this story. I still have a long way to go.

Anyway, I haven't yet done full character sketch pages for my character yet, as I've been off and on designing them, but I've gathered ideas from various artists who's character design pages and artwork have inspired me in the process of creating my own character pages. Once I have some done, I'll post them so that everyone can finally see what I've been up to.



+Contest design 5 out of 10- Seki+ by goku-no-baka@deviantart.com



By the way, in the image above, I love the expression in the middle :3

This design includes the character from various angles and even with a few expressions that define his personality, and all the viewers have seen so far is a brief glimpse. That speaks to me as artwork that is very well done; it's alluring and accomplishes its task well.

+Expression Meme - Astir+ by goku-no-baka@deviantart.com

Astir from Beast Hunt

An expression sheet is also useful to do for a character. If the character is an original character (OC), the artist may want to go on to do a comic or graphic novel, or even have it animated. Having references of things you've already figured out is very handy and keeps the character's reactions to various situations consistent.

Also, sometimes it's just fun to play around with styles and characters, whether they are styles and characters that already exist or not. I know I've drawn my share of anime characters in order to get a style I like with the characters for my own stories. I tend to make use of whatever interests and inspires me.

The bottom line: whatever you do, have fun with your journey through art. Art and storytelling are about the journey, not some end result. It's great to be able t o sit back and admire your own work. Trust me, I've been there. But once you hit some grand end-of-the-line destination, what then? Where do you go from there? What have you gained from the experience? If it's a journey, there's always more to explore and learn.

Happy travels!

 

Eat the Fish! by sharpie91@deviantart.com

If anyone has any questions or comments, or if you just want to start a discussion with me, leave a comment after this blog.


To see the fantasy kindle books I have on Amazon, visit these links:

1.) North Country, Book One: The Riders of Redrog
2.) DA Shadow Phantom, Volume 1: Transformation

Feel free to stop by and browse, and maybe leave a review.

For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

Facebook profile

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom

Facebook North Country Series

Deviant Art profile

Tumblr profile

 

Twitter profile

 

Flickr profile

 

The Readers' Roleplay

Recently, I've been playing a game called Words of Wonder, an interesting take on the whole word search idea, but interactive and with a different, crazier set of rules. Besides killing time, it's been exercising the left side of my brain. I am primarily right-brained, meaning that I have an easier time with creative things rather than more technical ones. Anyway, the setup is rather fun and I've found that it can get a bit addicting, especially if you try to beat your own high scores.

You get different amounts of points, depending on which letters you use in a word, but you have only a certain amount of moves to clear your objective.

Words of Wonder on Facebook, Level 32

 

 

I have also just finished reading book two of the Wheel of Time series: The Great Hunt. I'm ready to move on to book three, but unfortunately, I don't have it. I have books four and five, but not three. So I'll have to save some money for it. Anyway, something interesting I found out about myself as I read is that I'm not just an observer, I throw myself fully into the story. For instance, with the Wheel of Time series so far, I find myself relating to Rand the most. As the story unfolds, I'm not jut watching what happens to the characters, at times I become the characters. That is my world, at least while I'm reading, before I have to world hop again.

 

Maybe that's why I'm so good at writing various characters. It's actually easy for me to jump into various points of view, so I can write even multiple characters accurately. They don't just end up being talking heads. Each one has a motive, personality, and goals, as well as their own personal obstacles, villains and heroes alike.

 

Rand has just found out that he's the dragon reborn, but he's also wary of the Aes Sedai trying to control him. He's tried to stay away from this supposed destiny for as long as possible, but he can't hide from it any longer. I've gotten into his character so much that I feel what he does in the story, and I even know how he'd react to things before he actually does, as opposed to the way I'd react to things. Unfortunately, since I am so introverted, I'd never make a good actor or roleplayer, especially not around people. I barely survived one session of the Dungeons and Dragons game, and I haven't really had the courage to try it again since.

 

The third book of the Wheel of Time series

I love this series.

 

This is a little bit random, but I came across this great artwork that combined an episode of Fullmetal Alchemist with My Neighbor Totoro, a Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. It certainly is an interesting mix of feelings and themes, the more innocent feel of My Neighbor Totoro darkened here by the sinister nature of the suggested event in Fullmetal Alchemist. When I saw it, I thought it was a brilliant piece that inspired me. I guess it reminds me of the pure creative mind of the artist. It's incredible how, if even already existing stories and elements are mixed and matched, something totally new can emerge. As an artist myself, I applaud this.

Since I love Fullmetal Alchemist, I just couldn't help but share this :)

My Neighbor Nina, by SamuraiWARRIOR7@deviantart.com

 

On the note of creativity and art, I've been working on my character line up for my story, DA Shadow Phantom. For the basic characters, I've finished the line art and am now experimenting with colors. A line up not only helps me know which characters to design first, it helps me to gage the characters in regard to one another. I get to visualize the characters and their possible relationships; they start to come alive for me. That is important for a storyteller because, if your characters aren't alive to you, if you can't become them at least in some small way, you could very well end up with talking heads.

The story itself is also progressing well. I'm entering the second arc of the plot. Dalan has been fighting for the weak and innocent of Athallia who could not protect themselves. First, he fought against himself, against his own nature. Then he had begun fighting thugs and even entire organizations hiding in the darkest depths of the city workings that were fighting corrupt government control by creating panic and chaos in as much of Athallia as possible. He's even had to face off against the government officials themselves. Now, he's wrestling with a very heavy question. Who is he, and where did he come from? As he learns more about his heritage, he may discover in the process more clues as to what his destiny and purpose are.

Anyway, now that arc one is in full swing and the plot nailed down, I'll gradually begin to put up more volumes and maybe even get a solid start on the graphic novel, especially once the characters are designed. Keep an eye out for these updates!

DA Shadow Phantom: Dalan Aiden Raymer, with the mark of his curse on his back

 

 

 

If anyone has any questions or comments, or if you just want to start a discussion with me, leave a comment after this blog.

 

 

For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:
Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.hubbard.50

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328?notif_t=page_new_likes
Facebook North Country Series: https://www.facebook.com/NorthCountrySeries?fref=ts

Deviant Art profile: http://nykol-haebrd.deviantart.com/
Tumblr profile: http://nyko-shad.tumblr.com/

Internal Struggle of the Dark Hero - Repentence versus Self Loathing

I've finally made serious progress on developing the overall plot for DA Shadow Phantom! I've been so excited since last night I've been almost giddy. It's that kind of excitement that has made me jump to writing a future scene that won't even come up in the story fro quite a long time, but I must write it for fear of losing the insight. Anyway, more on that a bit later.

Recently, I've been listening to a song by Linkin Park called "What I've Done." This has given me a ton of inspiration as far as the main plot in DA Shadow phantom goes. Dalan spends a good portion of the story struggling with himself, with the monster he thinks he's become. The hardest task for him isn't using his abilities to help protect the weak, it's in forgiving himself for his own wrongs and for the times when he failed to protect people. The song really inspired me in this part of the story, as it's about repentance versus self-loathing.

Linkin Park, "What I've Done," from Minutes to Midnight
a poster by ~ngrubor@deviantart.com

The lyrics that stand out to me the most, especially in terms of Dalan's character are the ones in this verse near the end of the song:

For what I've done
I start again
And whatever pain may come
Today this ends

I'm forgiving what I've done

It then kicks off into the chorus.

The chorus finishes:

I'll face myself
To cross out what I've become
Erase myself
And let go of what I've done

Dalan's choices are to die in attempted atonement for his shortcomings and the wrongs he's done, of which, later in the story, there are a lot, especially when the creature inside him gets out of control. His other choice, the harder one to make, is to live for the people he is trying to protect, and actually be able to let go of the past so that he can help to create a new future. He needs to forgive himself, as well as those people who have betrayed him, whom he thought where close.

The question boils down to whether or not the hero can find balance within himself before he crosses the line that turns him into a tragic hero, or even a villain.

From the Black Cat anime, Train Heartnet

Train Heartnet as an assassin

An anime I recently watched that has a similar theme I am currently wrestling with for my characters is Black Cat. Black Cat is the code name for a deadly assassin also known as XIII (13), the bringer of bad luck. He is called the "pet cat" of the organization Chronos, one of their top assassins sent to eliminate corrupt people in power. Even though it is an organization that claims to uphold peace for normal people, Black Cat, or Train Heartnet, finds himself trapped in a world where there is always blood on his hands. It is a world in which he feels he has no redemption and no way out.

Once my main character, Dalan, gets fully into the world of fighting the crime in the street of his home city, Athallia, he finds himself in a similar situation. He must fight to protect the innocent people of the city, but can he do that without pronouncing himself judge, jury, and executioner? This is a battle he must face within himself he must face. The question is whether he can truly protect Athallia without getting blood on his hands, or if getting blood on his hands is inevitable. Then the next question is where that fine line is between hero and tragic hero, and hero and villain. Will Dalan have to give up himself and his own sense of honor, justice, and morality in order to protect the people he cares for?

These are questions I am asking myself as I continue in the DA Shadow Phantom series, as I explore the many possible paths the plot can take. Sometimes I find the plot twists exciting. Other times, they are heart-wrenching, even for the writer, since the story come to life can surprise even me.

The journey though art can be the same way. I am currently in the middle of designing a few characters that pop up in the story quite a bit. I am trying to incorporate their personalities right into the designs, which can be fun as well as eluding.

Dalan (right) with his best friend, Matt (left)
Matt has a usually easy-going and mischievous personality, and Dalan often needs to escape from school to deal with the changes happening inside of him, so he ad Matt are a perfect match, even though Matt doesn't know Dalan's secret, why his friend is odd an stand-offish.

Heather (left) an her twin sister (Jinae)

Even though thy are twins, these two could not be more different. Heather is a tomboy and into physical activities such as sports and karate, as well as being a junior lifeguard at a public pol in the summer. Jinae, on the other hand, is into cheerleading, fashion, and flirting with boys. She also as a crush on Dalan, who is friends with her sister. Heather is actually the only other person to find out Dalan's secret for the longest time, as she followed him  few times fleeing school.

Heather, a progress sketch when I first started developing her

Nolin Dyer, another progress sketch

This is a really smart kid, only twelve years old and in high school. Dalan is very protective of him.

 

After I do rough sketches for characters, I then have to redraw them as clean line art. Using Photoshop, this task is easier, since I can work in layers. After I have clean line art, I can then start experimenting with color. Every color I use or that I think I might want to use, I create swatches for so that I can always get that same color again if I ever have to fix anything.

Jost Trevors, a leader of a secret group at Dalan's high school that focuses on helping the citizens of Athallia that the government has tossed aside. This is the preliminary colored version with swatches.

I start out with flat colors, which I will then later add shading and highlighting layers on top of to provide the necessary lighting and shadow contrast. Just fleshing these characters out artistically helps me to do so in the written version, as I can begin seeing them as real people that have their own struggles. Also, as can be seen from above, I get inspiration for characters and themes from other stories, whether they be songs, movies, television shows, or books. Just taking in many kinds of other stories spurs my imagination.

As a storyteller, they make me feel like I am not alone, that there is one big worldwide conversation I am part of. Thus, I like stories. All kinds of stories. Indulge in stories.

Black Cat: Train Heartnet and Eve

Next time you read a book or see a movie, remember that worldwide conversation.
Have fun on your journey!



For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:
Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.hubbard.50

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328?notif_t=page_new_likes
Facebook North Country Series: https://www.facebook.com/NorthCountrySeries?fref=ts

Deviant Art profile: http://nykol-haebrd.deviantart.com/
Tumblr profile: http://nyko-shad.tumblr.com/