Audio journals on making and teaching comics.
Recently Sara Turner reminded me of the virtue of keeping things simple in your storytelling. I share a few thoughts on why I think a lot of us tend to overcomplicate our stories with unnecessary data or overcomplicated research. I also refer to an interesting episode of the Radiolab podcast I was pointed to by Jon David Guerra.
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Thunder Punch Daily 55 – Overcomplicating Things Read More »
Today I try out something new. Instead of covering a mini-topic for 10-15 minutes, I handle this episode more like a journal microcast, highlighting several micro topics that have been kicking around in my brain this week. I go from self-promotion thoughts to the role of negative space when tabling at a convention.
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Thunder Punch Daily 54 – Journalin’ It Read More »
Today I share some thoughts on the role of candor in the new media world in which we’re all participating. I share some thoughts that occurred to me after reading a New York Times article on the subject, then break down some pros and cons of being candid as an author, teacher, and entertainer.
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Thunder Punch Daily 53 – On Candor Read More »
It’s a bit of a quieter, mellower TPD as I ruminate about the dangers of cannibalizing one’s audience, using my own direction, projects, and fears about them as a basis for meditation. When dealing with the constant stream of ideas that come with a creative life, is the danger of spreading one’s self too thin is equal to the danger of giving your audience too many choices?
Thunder Punch Daily 52 – Cannibalizing Your Audience Read More »
Today I share some thoughts about a character commonly known as “The Lovable Loser”, and deconstruct it a bit using the heroes from the Transformers: Animated series as my guide. Don’t forget to check out Rob Stenzinger’s awesome tutorial on how to sync these microcasts with podcatchers like iTunes!
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Thunder Punch Daily 51 – The Lovable Loser Read More »
Today I share some thoughts on what might make a good interface for comics delivered on “smartphones” (iPhone, Android, etc). I look at what Rene van Belzen has been up to, as well as a new pro version of the WPtouch WordPress plugin, as some food for thought as I come up with a delivery method and design for a smartphone comic I’ve been working on.
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Thunder Punch Daily 50 – Smartphone Comics Read More »
Today I share some thoughts on the dark places we can find ourselves when we overly define our missions or take our works too seriously. In true Bob Newhart fashion I use a personal anecdote to demonstrate my point. I once honestly thought there was no such thing as a good story with ninjas in it. In learning about the value of ninjas, we can become more fully rounded artists who can better spot those moments where we’re taking ourselves too seriously.
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Thunder Punch Daily 49 – No Ninjas! Read More »
Today I explain and build on some thoughts I’ve recently expressed in the forums on relaunching Art & Story Alive! I tie this into some general thoughts I’ve been having on community building and networking (more of which will be explored in this week’s Art & Story proper).
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Thunder Punch Daily 48 – Community Building Read More »
Inspired by a recent post in the forum, I throw around a few thoughts that have been percolating in my mind about naming comics projects. Should we fire from the hip on this, or are there other concerns we should consider when naming a comics project? And what’s all this got to do with comics in libraries?
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Thunder Punch Daily 47 – Naming Your Comic Read More »
Following up on thoughts I began sharing in Thunder Punch Daily 43, I expand a bit on what I’m discovering about writing good redemption characters. I do wind up talking a bit about Dinobot, but this time I focus mainly on Prince Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender as my basis of meditation. In a flash of inspiration, I constructed a chart to describe my thoughts on this kind of character, but as usual, Sara Turner sums it up even better.
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Thunder Punch Daily 46 – Redemption Characters II Read More »