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So we are back after a short break. Over the past three weeks we have been attending to events around Curitiba and we couldn’t be happier with everything that is going on.
In the beginning of June this year we decided to apply to Bienal dos Quadrinhos de Curitiba, that is a major comics event in the country. Along with that decision Hugo got in touch with me and we set up a launch date for High Fantasy volume #4, that would be no more than a week before Bienal dos Quadrinhos!
But keep in mind that I hadn’t published none of the High Fantasy volumes in portuguese yet! Very well. I started digging through my work and noticed that, as High Fantasy was first drawn in 2012, when I was just starting my comics career, the style hadn’t settled yet and there were some artistic mistakes that I just couldn’t let it go. VERY WELL. I decided to redo the entire volume.
So I started the most intense batch of work I have ever done in my whole life. I put up calendars on the wall and established little deadlines for the storyboards, pages/day, etc to try to keep it together with my english teacher work and with my other freelance jobs.
I figured that by spreading the sketches on the wall I would keep a constant visual of the work and I could think about the layout and adjustments every time I looked ahead. It helped me keep track of the dialogues and the characters movement as well. I feel like storyboard is still my nemesis, but looking at High Fantasy number 1, there is a great progress there.
I worked circa 7 to 12 hours everyday since then, including Saturdays and Sundays (where I would work less hours but would still be on the computer), taking three days off to do my new tattoos because could barely move my arms and one weekend for visits. I stopped swimming and going to the gym and completely abandoned my healthy eating habits so I could stay in and only stop for snacks. Fed mostly on crisps, cookies and delivery pizza. (Purely for lack of time and not coping mechanism you guys). I wouldn’t advise doing this tho, cause it totally screwed my health and I am still dealing with the backlash of that.
Anyway. Two months later I managed to pull of two new issues for the new High Fantasy and one Exploding Comics. And they look badass as nothing I’ve done before! Take a look at this page:
Exploding Comics was mostly putting together the strips in high quality, but I wrote a couple of strips that work as a prelude that will eventually be published here. I am going to change the story a little trying to make both the storyline and the single strips work together. Which they did very well on the printed edition. This issue tells the story from the moment where me and Frank decided to come back to brazil on strip number 40.
Frank helped me SO MUCH with putting together the mock ups.
Anyway. Everything went to the printer in time for the events!
Geek City was a major event where I manage to meet a couple of the best Brazilian artists and make loads of contacts. It also got me prepared for the event the weekend next, as I noticed I got rid of most of the Con things that I had in Ireland. So I produced two new banners and got a couple of stands for my table. And a cute cactus tablecloth.
Bienal dos Quadrinhos was a major thing.
The event itself is impressive for its size and organization. Entrance was free so there was a massive amount of people that couldn’t attend the other events that managed to enjoy Bienal dos Quadrinhos over the weekend of 06 of september, which coincides with Brazilian Independence holiday, which means the city was packed and full of people looking for something to do.
The space was huge and well organized and there were hundreds of amazing artists exhibiting their work side by side. I managed to meet new artists and get in touch with the brazilian comics production. I am very impressed by the quality and professionalism that the indie comics in Brazil achieved. Several indie artists managed to produce their material in hard-cover, varnish-finishing etc. I learned a lot and plan to apply soon to my own material and honestly felt like my couche cover books were so behind what the other guys had to offer.
High Fantasy was well embraced and a lot of RPG fans took it home. Now are already planning the second one in portuguese. I will try to catch up to the english version and try to be launching the two volumes together, in Ireland and in Brazil simultaneously. We set up a Facebook shop to sell the portuguese versions, but if you want to acquire an english copy, get in touch with us by email!
And the coolest thing: we made the papers. Jornal Perfil from Rio Negrinho published a note on the Bienal last week and a full page interview with a cover ad with me today!
VERY WELL. I guess that was a little bit of what I had to say. I plan to tell more about my routine and work methods here on the website along with the posts. Thank you all for the lovely visits and for all the love I’ve received over social media. <3
