Reluctant Designer

Log #8

2008.08.19 「Akihabara LUV.」

 

I got theeeese from Animate Akihabara <333. Yes, and the Sakura Addiction music box, too. Please don't beat me up? ='D Animate is really fun to browse with all the (mostly) useless merchandise~ The chibi keyrings are from the Devi Reborn! set and despite the weird designs (Hibari wears white LOL) I really like them. I ended up buying the whole box set consisting of 12 (which means I received doubles - the collection has 8 characters) since I didn't want to NOT get Chrome, Hibari or Mukuro. Even the Tsuna is very, very adorable~ I gave one to Ferrum and it's simply too bad Xanxus isn't in the set XD. I mean, we could definitely hang these up at our booth in the next comic event and people would tell straight away what pairings we're selling. Though, you see, I saw one circle did just that and even more - they used VOLKS Super Dollfies to represent Mukuro and Hibari OTL.......

After seeing a certain one-off art by Punch!! I don't think we're doing gen 8027 anymore..... I think I'm in love with a weird slash pairing now ;______;.

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2008.08.16 「...I freaking wobble everytime I walk.」

BUT LOOK WHAT I GOT AT NATSUCOMI <3333. The 10069, 8059 and X27 are Ferrum's; mine's just the Amatou and ZIZZ. Just. But afahfjhagwhjh Amatou sat just a row away from our table. And when they were putting up a huge poster of TYL!Mukuro there I was starstruck.... *____* I don't know which between that and seeing Kaya in her TYL!Mukuro cosplay coolly passing by our table received the most starstruck moment from me, b-but! (And she stopped by a table kept by a Hibari cosplayer and they flailed as they saw each other LOLOL - cute)

Comiket is freaking HUGE, no? I thought 50,000 was a large enough number when I told Suki the event was going to be packed. But nooo. Apparently it was 500,000 instead. So packed with people, you practically feel their crystallised salt on you x__x. Also freaky was the news I heard from Youko as we got off our train at Odaiba about the Comiket committee upping the security level after getting a 'high-alert' threat from an anon wanting to make the event the next Akihabara stabbing rampage site. That effectively put my mind off printing worries for a while... Printing worries: while I'm not exactly happy about the quality of my lines at B5 (WOW you can see the strokes - not cool) it's a start for every newbie. And the cover... it's more green than sepia OTL. Why, Eikou?

Anyway, sales went considerably well for a project that had no marketing save for a mini banner on Ferrum's top page, not to mention the subject matter XDD. I was surprised to see 30-40 year old ladies and, er, guys being interested/curious enough to pay for it. I guess seeing the writing '1896' made them go "whut" a bit LOLOL. Speaking of which, I've seen Nana/Lambo, DinoxIpin, HibarixHaru and bloody LevixChrome. What is up with you people? XDDD

Recharging today and so, am missing Day Two of Natsucomi x___x. Seriously, yesterday took a lot out of me and my friends. If I had a shopping list for today, I probably would've forced my blistered feet and aching muscles to take me there, but since I don't, I figured it wouldn't be worth getting hospitalised for. We're aiming to put the collab back on the table for Real Mafia 3 (and two of Ferrum's X27... wow, they're gorgeous) and starting another collab for Fuyucomi. We haven't decided what it would be, but I'm kind of wanting to do the gen 8027 I wrote way back when... Yeah. I think I am officially addicted to this business. It's fun to test the waters~ And there's no better way to do it.

Otsukaresama, everyone~

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2008.08.12 「...I seem to have forgotten something.」

Project title: 雲雀さんと私と、時々、骸様 (Hibari-san and I and, Sometimes, Mukuro-sama)
Circle: En-Syn (Dog's HQ + Reluctant Designer collab)
Length: 36p
Event date/space: 15 Aug 2008/夏コミ（東1-E32a)
Note: More 6918 than intended despite the appearance OTL.

Don't be alarmed by the cover XD. This is supposed to be TYL AU anyway~ I try to keep everything IC enough with this setting nonetheless. Anyway, left is mine and right is Ferrum's. Now to see how the printing comes out!

I'm leaving for Tokyo first thing tomorrow morning. I'm... nursing a mild headache as we speak x___x. I hope I won't pass out during transit or something. Anyway, I'M MEETING FERRUM IN PERSON IN 22 HOURS *_________*. Even though I'm so darn pessimistic about how this Comiket business would work out, the fact that I'll finally see Ferrum is enough to override this headache/pessimism. Thing is, she doesn't know what I look like and I only have a vague picture in my mind as to what she looks like. Which ushered in this conversation:

Ferrum: I'll wear a gaudy hot pink top. You won't miss it.

Rune: ...How about you save that top for another occasion (in which I won't be present XDDD)? I'll bring my teddy bear. It's maccha in colour - you won't miss it.

Ferrum: Hahaha... So I'll be looking for a girl with a maccha-coloured teddy bear? Anyway, why be embarrassed? You have your teddy bear and I have my gaudy top 8D.

Rune: My teddy bear ain't large. But you, my friend, are large.

Ferrum: *gives chase*

To put an end to this last entry in a while: I'm proud to say that, yes, a 1896 doujinshi exists in the market. My aim is to introduce the idea to this pairing, not to gain popularity. I figured that someone has to come forth and lead the parade; and since no one was willing to do that after nearly a year, I thought, well... might give it a try? x___x Granted, I'm armed with a very modest amount of printing, no marketing tactic to speak of, and am a n00b to boot.......... But heeeey.

Be back in two weeks. Ugh... headache...

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2008.08.11 「Happy Birthday, Miyun AKA Pandarosi!」

No questions. Please don't ask any question. She's the birthday girl and I only try to please x____x. Anyway, I tried to create a plausible femme!Hibari... deriving enough traits from the original design as to make her recognisable as Hibari but with enough tweaking so that she's not Hibari. Urk. I've been able to stomach and even LIKE Omega 2-D's genderswap because my mind sees her as a separate entity from Hibari. And she draws nice curves. Damn.

Anyway <33333. Miyun did a cosplay session as my TYL!Chrome *_____* I must've squealed when she said her group was going to do one of TYL!guardians because afagfgesgshh they set such a high standard on what they do. And I think... I think she and Michy are doing the above piece in the future. *drops dead* The cosplaying world is so fascinating and fun to watch.

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2008.08.09 「I MISSED THE OPENING CEREMONY DDDD8.」

TWICE. Augh. Auuuuuugh. Three-and-a-half hours. Damnit damnit damnit. And I was at home, too, doing NOTHING. Augh.

Er, anyway. Doujin work is done, and hence, new Log post. I'll start with the game that's been taking up most of my productive time and sleeping hours. I've always wanted to play Persona 3 for a year and finally took some time out to do so. And damn, if it isn't ADDICTIVE D8. The battling grounds... simple as they may be (same backdrops and enemies every time OTL)... I can't get enough of the battles to gain EXP points. To get the Personae I want! Oberon seems so far away ;_____;. I've only just gotten Forneus (giant stingray with a crown whut). Last but not least, of course, the socialising opportunities~ Though the one I fell in love with just happened to be off-limits! Sanada! Oh, why is Arisato a guy? OTL Actually, why doesn't this game let me have Sanada WHILE being a guy?

Anyway, Arisato-kun is so pretty *______*. I dig the music he listens to, but I wish I could buy him new CDs....

Also, Happy Birthday, my dear Twitch! She requested 5927 in my style, and when something is in my style it's bound to be, augh, gen. I'm sorry, Twitch! First time drawing young Tsuna and second time drawing young Gokudera... because I'm a TYL dork~ x______X But now with the reappearance of young Hibari as of Target 205, I think I'm slowly changing my fanarting habits. I didn't realise just how much I've missed the stout nose, the levitating jacket and the armband...

Log WIP

2008.07.31 「Thanks for the opportunity...」

...Ferrum and everyone else who helped/prodded/shoved >___<. En-Syn's first collab is finally done and sent to the printers. Ahhh... My heart raced when I saw the project title on the cover and Ferrum laying down the final touches. Not to mention her cover side XDDD. Oh, man~ <3. Now to pray reallll hard that the printing would come out just fine when we see it for the first time at the event (or I will cry and scramble for the exit faster than you can say 'wao NO' - for serious). I hear things seldom go as planned when you're a newb XD.

So have the above cover art teaser <3. I'm proud of this collab, I really am. Now I'm doing other things like going back to normal life (LOL) and doing actual work at work, and missing those hectic, hermit days and sleepless nights already. Has this long, grueling process ruined me? Hahaha, yep, definitely. But I came away with many kind words and support plus a few constructive criticisms along the way. Not to mention back pains, bleary eyes and a crying liver XD. The end of Log WIP? Not yet. Not until I've covered one last thing.

*dances to Caramelldansen for the first time in months XDDDD*

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2008.07.29 「I don't know the appropriate emoticon for this...」

As we speak, I'm drawing my side of the cover art with.... with Ferrum's finished pages all downloaded in a hidden window. I'm trying my darnest not to peek at them.

*draws roses*

*stops drawing roses, cursor hovering over hidden window*

*meditates for 10 minutes on top of window*

*sighs and drags feet rose-ward*

I told her I wouldn't look at them until I'm done with my current task. Because I'll be too distracted to do anything else afterwards. Damn you, Ferrum! Although. afawgahgarhgrargarhrh. Just looking at the top of the first page......... Wait. No. NO. Self-control, Rune!

So I'm 98% certain I'll go back to the dang roses after I'm done writing up this entry. In other news. We finally have a project title, courtesy of Ferrum's wittiness <3. I love it. I love it. And I love HER for having done a bleedin' brilliant job putting everything together (I only draw T_____T, I want to be useful). I... I can't wait to see my dialogs in Japanese. It would be a surreal experience.

And now I need chocolate. *saunters outside to find a konbini*

Edit: And now I'm back with (too much) chocolate
Because my resolve is weak and I've looked at Ferrum's part of the doujin. I'm going to be looking at it for the 15th time after I'm done here~. Also, I've seen my translated script and it WAS surreal. Like. I actually tried to guess what the script I'd written myself actually said x___x. One thing I regret is not being able to provide drawn/written sound effects, because I can't do them in Japanese. English sound effects are, well, reminiscent of pop art to me. TO ME.

Randomly, someone's taken an initiative (finally) to set up a 1896 LJ comm. It still feels all kinds of funny to be reading Hibakuro-related talks in one designated place where the public can access them. Before, I always had to look for them in the shrubs XD. Cute posts so far. However. Seeing the very Youtube videos that compiled Japanese fanart (and even some of my friends') wasn't very pleasant OTL.

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2008.07.24 「And I am done here.」

I AM TOTALLY DONE HERE <3.

I can finally have my normal life back! 20 pages, finally!! XD Didn't think I'd actually get there. I mean, a year ago I wouldn't have had this much discipline (not saying a lot about my so-called discipline, mind). Your average doujinka would only take 6-7 days of solid work to do this, I think. Oh, well, everyone starts somewhere, hmm?

Now all that's left is the cover art <3 at a comfortable 300dpi. My Macbook and my liver can finally enjoy a bit of a break. I believe it's going to look like a bit like fashion photography (revisiting old habit - how nostalgic). I can't wait to see how Ferrum will execute her side of the cover, fufufu... Now to hunt for a pretty wedding dress design- er, or not. Might as well try my hand at fashion design like I've always wanted but was never confident enough to do. That Nitta Youka case? Unpretty.

Before I go on to do the cover, much fixing and touching-up are needed on these pages before I can send them off to Ferrum tomorrow for translating/typesetting/editing. I'm sorry to trouble her so much x___x. If possible at all, I'd have liked to keep the English dialogs, but I can just imagine the trouble it'll bring at the event. Anyway. For now, I'll celebrate a little by going to a nice al fresco cafe by Kuta Beach XDD.

And Because I Just Refreshed My F-List

Target 203. Hibari hates Mist users XDDD. I wonder why? LOLOL But that makes him an expert at handling these... these funky-haired sketchy rascals! Also, apparently Miss Amano STILL hasn't decided what she wants TYL!Hibari to look like. Now he kind of looks like Yamamoto with narrower eyes. OTL Amano, your fans draw him more consistently than you do. Now I gotta change the way I draw him, whut? D8

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2008.07.23 「Between amused and put off.」

I thought by laying low I had protected myself from unwanted attention. To a certain extent, it's proven true and so far I've only had a handful of cases (that I know of) in which other people repost or borrow my art/concepts without my consent. I even found one blogger who put up pictures of two characters I drew, one pic each, as an accompaniment to her pairing fic (actually a squick pairing of mine of the highest order - no thanks, Miss). The similarity between the two cases? As long as credit is there, I'm generally quite lenient about these things and don't make it a habit to unleash an army of friends on a culprit at the first hint of 'borrowed art'.

Nonetheless, there are a few things people are encouraged NOT to do. Like... manipulating the original art and giving credit after a couple of people point out that the piece of art looks familiar, for one. If the artwork is retraced over, modified and/or added on - EVEN if credit is given - it remains unacceptable. My friends were livid on my behalf while I, strangely enough, was just a little overwhelmed. Not due to this single incident, mind, but over the thought that this would only be the first of many. Yes, I am a newcomer in this and, yes, I expect more in the future. Other crazily popular artists have suffered worse and most of them no longer care, but I - this obscure being - have my own ways of handling things.

 

Throwing a fit over it wouldn't be productive of my time, so this is what I would do from now on: For every case of reinterpreted art/concepts I find, I will repost the end product on my blog and comment on the things I like and the nearly-there-but-not-quite bits. But I probably wouldn't link the sources to protect the re-interpreters from possible grilling since it's aaaall in the name of good-natured fun (on my part) and skill-building (on their part). Call it my Constructive Criticism Corner (CCC) if you like. Especially when the juxtaposition was made "with permission" - that gives me the right to proudly showcase our "collab" no? Oh, no, no. No malice intent, I can assure you. Kufufu...

In a case where art has simply passed ownerships without a single modification, you know where those links go. We have more than one set of eyes on the interwebs, after all.

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2008.07.17 「Pfft... Hahahahaaa.」

"How is Kyou-san doing, I wonder?" -> just wrote this a day ago. And.

Target 202: OUR KYOU-SAN HAS APPEARED, LADIES (AND GENTS)!!!!!! AFTER HALF A YEAR OF WAITING!!! <3 <3 <3 <3 OMG OMG OMG But, ahhh, the opportunity to cry had been wasted on Kusakabe and Chrome XDD. So right now I can only anticipate the cool action chapter ahead. Genkishi vs Hibari Kyouya. Slanted Eyes vs Slanted Eyes. Whoa now. What are we expecting to happen in this chappie besides the obligatory "LOLOL my powah. Let me sho u eet" (quoth Paul)? "Kyouya. I am your brother?" Ack. But Genkishi seems Italian (you can never tell with this kind of art style).

What I love the most is that he comes straight to Yamamoto's rescue after battling an entire army XDD. Without a tear in his immaculate Zegna suit. Which means there'll be no rescuing Hibari, be it by TYL!Dino, by TYL!Xanxus, or by anyone else for that matter. This is the Hibari we're talking around, people. Of course, I am also sad that it means we've missed a character development opportunity, but hey... I have Kyou-san back in my fandom. I am not complaining XD. So Chrome is off to face Iris, probably. Girl-to-girl. Cools. *grabs popcorn in preparation for 202*

Also, just because I couldn't keep my promise to keep stand-alone art out of this Log. Have some 20YL heads...

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2008.07.16 「Chrome-san!」

A bit more on Target 201 since I only got the chance to read the scanlations today...

F-fangirled.

Kusakabe calls her 'Chrome-san'. Not 'Dokuro-san'. Not 'Chrome Dokuro'. Chrome-san. He calls the others by their surnames without a suffix, but. Chrome-san. Chrome-suaaaaaan.

AFHAKFHKJHAKJF!!!!!

That's, like, the address I made him use on her in my doujin!!! afgagghhkjrj The 'Chrome-san' address is frigging canon! He really IS accompanying his mistress XDDD. This isn't helping the crack at all, 201, but I love you dearly for it <3. Considering my OTP have never exchanged a single word with each other, you'd have to forgive me for fangirling like crazy over such bread crumbs of an 'evidence'. Now. How is Kyou-san doing, I wonder? =) I'm sure our cloud man is allright since that worrying report on him turned out to be Chrome's doing, after all. Chrome-san <3.

In other news, I'm 2.5 pages away from the finish line now ;____;. Sans the cover art. But that job is shared between Ferrum and I so I'm confident that I can finally relax in 5 days at least. And. I felt apprehensive about posting up that Chrome-centric story but apparently it was more well-received than I expected *sighs in relief*. Most didn't comment on the pairing-y moment, but I'm glad to be of service to the Hibakuro fans in the audience, which is not many at all =D.

Ferrum: o___o I've never seen you do Reborn! in a romantic context before.

I... know. And it was hard not to headdesk while typsetting the pages.

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2008.07.11 「...Yet I am tired.」

*pathetically grabs for land*

Four more pages... to go... In thirteen days. I can do it, I can do it *repeats mantra to self*.

In a last-minute bid to shift the spotlight from Mukuhiba (at least I want to be able to pass this off as even remotely Hibakuro) I've dedicated five pages of this thing to my dear Chrome <3. And it's like.. the only non-crack one of the entire lot. I am expecting some of my usual commenters to flee after this segment (I tried to make plausible romance between two relatively apathetic characters work, believe me XD). What's bad is, I'm at this story's last page and am now uncertain about Chrome's characterisation towards the end. Which, in turn, makes me uncertain about what to draw in the remaining panels. Which means I'm stuck at page seventeen. Argh. Why now, brain? ;_____;

Another thing that I found interesting/bothersome: Gabriela brought forth the question of whether Hibari's family name (which is, um, Hibari) would be incorporated into her name in the paperwork. Wh-What would that name be, we wonder? It's not like Chrome Dokuro is a proper name, and she only went by 'Nagi'. The only possibilities we could think of sound darn ugly x___x.

Enough About Doujin! TARGET 201!!! OMG FINALLY we get a new TYL!Gokudera art *____*. E-even though he has his butt to the audience. BEST OF ALL, CHROME <3 <3 <3. AND KUSAKABE COMING WITH HER. I don't know WHY she took him along but it's amusing to me that the butler follows his madam instead of his master *dodges bricks*. I'm sorry, doujin work has devoured my mind. All in all, it is so AWESOME that I almost cried *sob sob*. Actually, I will cry for real when Amano brings Mukuro back. Oh, the agonising wait....

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2008.07.06 「No one wants to hear you're tired.」

So I guess... just keep going, eh? Can't wait for that long, luxurious break (quoth Twitch) after this is all done. 7 more pages and only 19 days to go OTL... I hope I won't have to rush for the cover illustration. In any case, gawd, I'm such a fan of Ferrum's sexy TYL!Hibari, she has no idea XD. I'm very excited for her parts <3 <3 <3. She's a multitasker from hell (just finished a doujin, is working on another 42-pager and will be drawing her part for our collab afterwards) but she always delivers. How I envy people who work quickly and effectively! Whereas I... I work my arse off just to finish a page in a day. Different people, different paces x__x.

After marathoning 13 pages, I do find it slightly more manageable to draw quickly and to my satisfaction now. And I didn't expect drawing backgrounds to be so enjoyable =DDD. Loving my research (I always have a stack of magazines and Flickr/GettyImages nearby) and finding application of details a suprisingly Zen exercise. All in all, despite my growing fatigue, I'm pretty much enjoying this process. Just several issues I need to tackle regarding my doujin:

How on earth is my subtle western humour going to translate to Japanese? OTL The other thing I'm worried about is that in my attempt to retain IC-ness I've inadvertently made Mukuhiba the main pairing OTL OTL. I feel like I've sabotaged my own goal to be "the first and probably last Hibakuro circle - YEAH" OTL OTL OTL. I hope Ferrum would fix that whenever she gets around to doing it because this so isn't helping the cover art; as in, is it going to be Hibari and Chrome OR Hibari and Mukuro? Both options would be misleading x__x. 

 

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2008.07.04 「Oh my gawd!」

Target 200! THAT IS THE BACK OF CHROME YES. Er, teen version, mind. But OMGGGG after, what, FOUR? FIVE MONTHS? You better not get our hopes up and crush them, Ms. Amano!! And the trident! Is intact! Not that Amano's managed to fool us with Mukuro's purported 'death', but... I'm just happy to see it confirmed. Also, pfft... the (fangirl foddery) possibility of Dino coming to Hibari's rescue x__x. Have Xanxus come instead! If that happened, the birth of a new pairing would be inevitable but it would be weird and awesome XDDD. Regardless, I'm pretty sure the Millefiore troops have been hoodwinked into believing that Hibari's losing. My inner fangirl hopes it's a very convincing illusion cooked up by Mukuro (ohyes) to make way for Chrome/Mukuro (ohyesss) to infiltrate the enemy's HQ and... do whatever it is they need to do there.

Are we finally seeing the end of this arc? This arc that smacks of X-Men and Pokemon? Bring in some mafia like you hinted on in the beginning, missus, and I'll be the happiest KHR fan in, urrrr, my city XDDD.

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2008.06.27 「I am optimistic, optimistic, optimistic, op...」

As the title says, this Log is going to consist of doujin process talk and possibly no stand-alone art like the past Logs. Does this sound boring? I apologise in advance. Because these days I can't even find half an hour to catch up on R2. 12 pages to go within less than a month. I must be crazy.

I must say, this has been a good exercise for both the mind and the hand (especially when you're on a supertight deadline). For one, I can now ignore little mistakes that only the artist itself (most likely) can pick out. Also, I no longer zoom in at 50% to smooth out my lines -> very unnecessary. I also learn to draw faster and more efficiently -> will come in handy at Natsucomi, Ferrum says. I've gotten comments on odd-looking facial proportions in my WIPs, but then everyone is used to seeing my illustrations x__x. It's a bit of a tall demand to want every panel looking perfect in manga. That's also something I've only begun to understand in this learning curve.

And to answer a few questions posed by one Mitsu-san:

- Yes, it's 1896 with 69>18 on the side <3
- Yes, it's going to be sold, unfortunately LOL. But we're currently aiming for a low print since, um, I'm a beginner and I'm not that confident -___-. I guess I'll do a quick preorder post on LJ at the end of the month and see if reprinting would be necessary.
- No, you don't need to be in the city you mentioned to buy it since I'll be doing this in another country and online anyway.

Also, for those who actually wondered:

- No, I don't have a DA account.

*****

Back to the factory now *dragging my feet*.

Log #7

2008.06.20 「And I'm onto the next chapter.」

I'm glad my bizarre setting was pleasantly received by my friends m(_ _)m. Now I feel confident to go on without worrying about overt self-indulgence. I'm constantly worried about not being able to meet the 20-page goal by the time I need to send out the files for print, seeing how I work at the speed of one page per 3 days (at best!) OTL.... I suppose my main goal now is to make it into a book and be satisfied with it; doesn't matter how thin it might end up being...

Oh, and. Last night I designed En-Syn's promotional flyer in 5 minutes XD. And am (unexpectedly) quite happy with how it turned out. I figured my mochi chibis inverted against stark black would pique visitors' curiosity. Go, go, black <3. Now to wait and see if people would actually take it at R3.

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2008.06.17 「And I'm done.」

 

...with the first 5 pages, hahaha... Oh my, I work so slowly TxT. As I haven't got much to show this time around without spoiling the content (does that matter? LOL) I'm just going to show my work process. The chart below describes your typical diligent doujinka's process (correct me if I'm wrong) and the one below it is mine on a predictable day:

[systematic] Name -> Panel -> Sketch ->  Ink -> Tone

[ whatever ] Name+Panel+Sketch+Ink -> Tone -> Sketch+Ink

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2008.06.14 「OMG plot finally?」

I've been enjoying the last 2-3 chapters in the manga <3. FINALLY we have a semblance of plot... albeit one that isn't connected to the main cast (I'm drumming my fingers forever waiiiiiting for just ONE amongst my favourite trio to show up). But it's nice to get a mafia-ish backstory all the same. Who knew Uni was  brainwashed? XD And who knew Gamma was this amiable? I suppose in this series no good-looking villain is villainous, but it still stands to be clarified just where Hibari actually stands in this XD. Thoroughly enjoying this pleasant turn of events in canon, and Yamamoto and Lal's return onscreen... before Genkishi (I see a sign that says "Five chapters of snarking and fighting - JUMP style! *niko*" on his forehead) showed up with apparently a maiming intent.

OTL.

All that "Best swordsman of this era" talk and we all know Yamamoto is going to breeze through this or, at worst, gain one conspicuous scar on a conspicuous part of his face.

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2008.06.12 「Paneling woe.」

There you go. Just listen to the Jyuudaime. In times like this, I wish I had Suzaku's inexhaustible stamina. Paneling makes me grieve; looking at my pages, anyone can tell that I still draw manga as I draw illustrations. Although, as I progress, I find I'm getting messier, more practical and therefore faster, which is really what needs to be kept in mind when you have a deadline. Randomly, this project is so impossible (not as impossible as Omega-2D's female Hibari, mind) that I feel guilty of self-indulgence sometimes, tee-hee.

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2008.06.10 「...Getting over the initial shock of you-know.」

I'm onto it, I'm onto it. Although I'm moving very slowly due to too much unnecessary pondering over things like "...does this paneling make sense? Does this character's head have the right number of hair strands?" *headpalm* That's why it's called amateur, self-published work, silly. Thankfully, my fear of technical and political errors (?) have kept me plodding onwards. Thanks to my fear of deadlines, also, now I can even overlook not-too-fine strokes and slightly wonky proportions- er, wonky-er than usual.

...Not sure if I'd be able to sit and wait at that table twiddling my thumbs as visitors flick through my stuff. Good gawd, what could be running through their minds? I'm sure I'll chicken out eventually and run the hell out of there, leaving a flabbergasted Ferrum on standby XDDD. Oh, man, if only I could communicate in that... that language, which reminds me that while I CAN escape my tablesitting responsibilities, I would have nowhere to go OTL... Guess I have no choice but to stick to Ferrum like a fly on a veryvery sticky, gluey surface.

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2008.06.07 「...東地区 "Ｅ" ブロック 32a.」

A... Apparently Ferrum managed to get us a space at Summer Comiket.

I... I....

OH MY GOD, THERE'S A GIANT BIRD BEHIND YOU.

*runs the hell away from responsibilities*

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2008.06.06 「Why, yes, it is an actually grown-up Tsuna... Why?」

So I was bored at work yada yada yada... which spawned this low-res doodle. When I drew TYL!Tsuna for UdO, I didn't have to know how I wanted him to look like since you don't really see his face, but I kind of had to decide on a fanon design for doujin, haha. Paul and I agree that, since he seems to take after mum, he would (hopefully) inherit dad's stature. Not the burly aspect of his stature, o gawd XD. Giotto is so not an adult... look at that face. If anything, only his hair grew taller *ducks freshly picked tomatoes*. Bet that's the reason he's covered in pinstripes *ducks a cow*.

In a fit of inspiration (whut) I drew a TYL!Tsuna with considerably much shorter hair and thicker built. Though I had to be careful NOT to make him come across as too confident like his hyper-mode version. I'm sure he remains sweet and peace-loving (and awkward) even as Vongola Decimo to a certain extent. Only to a certain believable extent, Ms. Amano. Don't give me a pedobait 24-year-old whenever you decide you've kept him long enough to yourself.

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2008.06.05 「Uomini d'Onore News #6 - OMG OMG I'M DONE!!!」

I'm freaking, effing done <3333. Now that I've got UdO out of the way (finally), I can (fiiiinally) focus on Hibari Household and, uh, probably some work at internship XD.
Have this miniscule preview  <3. Which... I wasn't supposed to put up at all. But the group doesn't need to know that. I think I'll collapse on my bed first thing when I get home tonight.

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2008.06.04 「Uomini d'Onore News #5」

One more figure and I'm done. Above are two characters whose future selves haven't been revealed in canon. Considering I have a deadline, waiting for Ms. Amano to FINALLY do so is a no-go. Cooking up a fanon TYL!Tsuna was hard-er than I'd anticipated. What look should I go for? Less crazy hair, authoritative body language, snazzy outfit... No long hair on my Vongola Decimo, please, Ms. Amano. Also, he better not look like a shota pedobait - TYL!Haru and TYL!Kyoko's reactions to Tsuna sounded ominous already ("You seem... different." DURRR LOLOL).

One more complaint from me while I'm at it. The other day, Ruka and I had the following exchange:

Ruka: Realms said FuutaxHibari would piss Hibari off.

Rune: Haha, no kidding.

Ruka: Eh, actually, I DID find a FuutaxHibari doujin on Tora no Ana. The young Fuuta. This fandom does have everything o__o.

Rune: No - no, it doesn't. It doesn't have MY pairing.

Ruka: I don't think I've seen a single doujin on that. I wonder why.

I wondered, too. Considering that this is a fandom that pairs off two people just for rubbing shoulders while passing by each other, you'd expect it to at least acknowledge the way canon makes Hibari seem kind of OOC in 169. I mean, it's something, isn't it? Of course, you could argue that it is Mukuro he's talking to and not Chrome (because, seriously, why would anyone give a fig about Chrome when you can have Mukuro? Pfft). Still, I have the suspicion that, had it been a BL moment, it would've spawned a shedload of fanworks within an hour of the chapter's release like it did with 3827. Rawr, you disappoint me, J-fandom *shakes head*.

...Or I could stop complaining about J-fandom's wanting treatment of Hibakuro and use that time to make my own. There's that option, but... Argh. Sometimes it's more fun to look at other people's works.

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2008.05.31 「Uomini d'Onore News #4」

A WIP screenshot to prove that I AM working on my bag illustration. I promised the group to put it out by next week orz.... I wonder if they'd remember to ask for it when the time comes. Also, as we've FAILED to predict, three (four?) months into the project and we're still not seeing TYL!Tsuna or TYL!Chrome, so I guess canon won't kill my designs as of yet. With my luck, Ms. Amano would reveal them promptly after everything is decidedly good to go, being the evil, evil lady that she is.

The hardest part of this job was trying to work out a good angle and, later, the placement of eight people in so limited a space at that angle. Orrie managed to (and beautifully) give everyone equal spotlight, but in my case, three people are hogging the best spaces. Dhieta took a jab at my Hibari-bias and it's true if you look at the positioning~ I asked around and nobody had any qualms. After all, he's still number one in the chara ranking poll, tralala...

Irrelevant piece of info: My head is full of Perfume's SEVENTH HEAVEN and Perfect Star Perfect Style right now even though I shouldn't be listening to cutesy while doing this illustration (yes, it will show).  Also, Janet Jackson's Luv, which is... well, love. Can't seem to stop putting them on repeat ;_____;.

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2008.05.30 「Happy Birthday, Yami-sua~n」

Let's just say that I'm glad I don't have as many friends as, say, Ruka. May has been near-killer XDDD; too many close friends having their birthdays. I was going to give Yami 6918 at first, but then she commented once that she'd like to see this Hibakuro. Based on her lovely ficlet, actually, although in that one Hibari isn't nearly so... posey.

And, yes, TYL!Hibari is TALL, isn't he? Half a head taller than teen Yamamoto. I don't think the height difference I gave Hibakuro is that exaggerated considering canon hints. Even this TYL!Chrome is as big as teen Yama so she really should've been tinier than this o___o. Amano and her heights...

...........

I... I'm sorry. Chrome is DEFINITELY TOO TINY in that picture. It's scary to even contemplate R-18 involving those two being the sizes they are *cowers*.

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2008.05.27 「Uomini d'Onore News #3」

I... forgot what number News it is for UdO, but putting that aside - I have previews for my calendar spread (with handwritten watermark because Painter doesn't offer type application)!:

My friends all know that no colouring process is ever unaccompanied by bitching and whining where I'm concerned. I've put my best efforts at imitating marker-colouring on Photoshop for this job and am hoping like whoa that my group mates would at least appreciate my efforts even if the end product turned out mediocre =(. I feel sorry for my Ipin who IMHO is underdone (naturally I would get lazy once I got to her since she came last), and I prefer the monochromatic Bianchi much more (colours killed her expression) but I suppose the calendar needs full-colour spreads. I have to say, though, that I'm quite content with my Haru and Kyoko.

As of now, Rue (Suki) our project leader is running in circles trying to get every spread in order for printing as per scheduled. I've asked for a one-week extension where my bag illustration is concerned (Orrie has done hers and OMFG it is brilliant~) and thankfully Rue gave it to me. Hopefully we'll get the bookmark and calendar previews out by next week and get them to the printer by the next. Honestly? I'm not sure how this thing would look like once it comes out. I admit to feeling quite... overwhelmed (nervous?). I've never had anything of mine reproduced before o___o.

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2008.05.20 「Happy Birthday, Ruka!!!」

No, I know - too many May babies XDDD. Since I wouldn't do Ruka's favourite D18 or 1827 (I'm picky picky picky, and that's why I don't take requests) I settled for TYL1818 after she dropped a few hints on having taken a shine to it (plus, a chance to draw the two Hibaris side-by-side? I would be silly to refuse <3). In other news, I think I'll get my first break in a long time starting June, as in I'll only have my doujin work to worry about. I thought I was going to have my hands full with that AND calendar work, but it turns out that everything for Uomini d'Onore is due in at the end of this month *FALLSDEADFALLSDEAD*. I'll... I'll try my best to finish the monstrous bag illustration and my monthly portion in ten days T_______T.

Also, Seki and I talked about this last night before we posted our gifts to Ruka:

Is this thief-proof enough a watermark for you? LOLOL I was thinking that, since sigs most likely wouldn't be effective against thefts (heck, I saw my birthday art from Kurot up on YouTube STILL bearing my name - some people just can't be bothered), we can most definitely do this XDDD. Then Seki told me the whole pic ended up looking like some sort of an ad ("You have now started your new brand: RUNE!").

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2008.05.19 「Welcome Home, Hope」

Collaborated again with Realms, but this time it's on a Sound File-formatted Code Geass with transcript and all. Again, the pictures came first and Realms wrote around them beautifully. All this for an amazing ficcer of a friend who's just come back from a three-month study in Russia (says she wants to get into our new fandom soonish - yes, we were still Code Geass maniacs when she left ^^"). Anyway, the above picture is my attempt at a "Geass in my own style" if I had one, that is.

I'm sure our next collab will be KHR-related again. Realms isn't getting out of anything once I'm art-bunnied XD.

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2008.05.07 「Hibari Household News #3」

Not family in the Famiglia sense. Family as in unlikely breadwinner, equally unlikely homemaker, annoying in-laws, neurotic butlers, nosey boss... XDDDD. It's been ages, but I AM still working on this doujin project, which is a collab between Ferrum and myself. Finally I can fully concentrate on Hibari Household (project title undecided) after the hell that was Vongola Editorials *shudder*.

If all goes to plan, we'll be putting this project out for print. Otherwise, this would remain a secret amongst my flist LOL. We'll see, I guess. I mean, with Ferrum's workload I'm somewhat pessimistic about pulling this off, but Ferrum is a superhuman when it comes to multitasking, so we'll see...

Ruka commented on the above promo looking like a chibified family portrait. Cute XD.

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2008.05.04 「Happy birthday, Kurot!」

Ghahaha... That girl received so many Yamamotos on her birthday. I knew her OTP was 8018 but my mind simply failed to wrap around the pairing somehow. So I went for what I thought she MIGHT also like x___x (I find TYL8059 very appealing orz - this is why I no longer take requests). Done during a time of great fatigue. I hadn't been so exhausted since I submitted my graduation thesis, to the extent that I couldn't even judge my lines (which would explain Goku's weird hand... hopefully). There are too many May babies, yargh. Now the thing I made for Hibari's birthday on May 5th would have to wait...

Also, despite all my portrayals of smoking KHR characters, I don't endorse smoking. No no no. It's only cool in art.

Vongola Editorials

...in which Rune pretends to be a fashion illustration expert and has a go at Hitman Reborn slash fashion photography. Also, I am sucky at taglines which is why no one will catch me doing copywriting for a living.

Note:

- The spreads are not 100% accurate renditions of the existing fashion due to many factors such as a) teeny tiny reference pictures in low resolutions b) details that would require an ungodly amount of hours to pull off, or c) details that are obscured by some object/body part in reference pictures.

- I like to play favourites and it will show.

 

- The screentoning for all screentoned spreads except the first two are by Ferrum <3.

*****

Chrome Dokuro wears Armani Collezioni jacket and skirt.

Her pose was referenced from Richard Warren's photography. And my friends all know that Chrome is my muse <3 and naturally I would also think of her as a model. Despite being slightly petite in stature (read: short) at least she has the right cup-size? Hahaha. I love her dollish image, by which I mean she doesn't look like a full-fledged woman but not quite a child, either. I really like Gemma Ward for the same reason, I suppose.

Kyoya Hibari wears Issey Miyake jacket and shirt, KENZO belt and Levi's jeans.

The original Issey Miyake jacket lining has a gradation that goes from white (top) to gray (bottom) with pink and blue Chinoise flowers... IF I saw it correctly. The reference picture was smaaaaall. But for Hibari I applied a Japanese kimono pattern of cranes =D. Hibari feels like a crane rather than a skylark in my head.

Fuuta del Stella wears Bottega Veneta.

I wasn't going to include him in my shortlist of models but Ferrum's sexy DinoxFuuta webcomic persuaded me to do so XDDD. In any case, instead of Italian he looks more British, no? The prep schoolboy type. I can imagine him doing Burberry or the like. And the rainy season image definitely suits him.

Bianchi wears Bottega Veneta (except belt).

Victoria Beckham wore this same ensemble and that is where the belt comes from. I would be embarrassed to come across a woman in that low a bodice in real life... which is why I thought Amano's modestly-breasted women would do allright in it.

Mukuro wears DSQUARED2.

What I'd give to be able to see Mukuro pick up a book and actually read it in canon <3. But so far Gokudera is the only mafioso I've seen with a book. Much too bad. Also, his pose here was referenced from a stylish Zegna ad except for the hand with the book. The tagline was given to me by Dhieta and I was surprised to see how it kind of fit with the image.

I could've called it Etro and no one would tell the difference x__x. I noticed that fashion photography doesn't have to provide clear shots of the clothes given the theme. Ahh, "pairing x" for "fashion house x" sounds like a joke, doesn't it? XDD But I like it. This wasn't going to be the only pairingy spread in the set; in fact, I had a Dino/Bianchi spread which failed to make it to the final cut. I got tired...

Hibakuro's pose was inspired (not referenced from) by an Aquascutum ad starring Giselle Bundchen, which is why it may seem familiar but with modifications. The first version looked all sorts of wrong what with Chrome straddling Hibari and hence looking like something else. Luckily, Ferrum pointed it out before I published it *was horrified*.

As it says. Also, the cardigan is supposed to be print but there was no way to find a similar-looking screentone and I wasn't going to do it all by hand. The jacket and slacks are supposed to be dark brown. And I don't know why so many of my friends put it down as their favourite since I got pretty lazy doing this. TYL!Dino has only one expression in canon and I find that uninteresting x___x.

Hibari e Mukuro per Ermenegildo Zegna

...I'm kind of proud of the tagline; shush you. Also, the bride is someone else's, not Hibari's or Mukuro's. I've had... people asking me if Chrome is the bride and if Hibari happens to tolerate Mukuro just for the day since he's the bride's father and all *ducks from tomatoes*. I must be the only loud Hibakuro shipper in their flists @__@.

*****

So there you have it. It was just something to relieve my fashion obsession by. Now that I've got this out of the way, I can focus on my doujin...

Log #6

2008.04.23 「Can I have that back please?」

When Ferrum spoiled me on that scene (she couldn't resist telling, which I understand) I imagined it'd be a little on the moe side like the above. But the actual scene turned out to be far more grave, serving as a huge character point. So much is revealed about Rollocakes in Turn 3, most of which made my maternal alarms go off like crazy  @___@. The boy only wants his nii-san T^T.

"You gave it to me so it's mine!"

"Are birthdays that important?"

"Family?"

"Where's my nii-san!?"

Rollo.... Rollo......

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2008.04.20 「Somehow, I feel like...」

...looking through the English Tegaki board and Deviantart, I seem to be finding more and more long-haired Chrome with hair parted on the side where her good eye is like my fanon TYL!Chrome =DDDD. Now, I'm not saying that people have been getting ideas from my fanart (really, who does? Well, okay, some LOL) but it's nothing short of amusing that every 1896 fan seems to share the same foresight regarding TYL!Chrome's hairstyle. And then I was told by Ruka that, in fact, Nagi never wanted Mukuro's pineapple topknot but instead was forced to adopt it by Ken who couldn't stand the fact that she's a girl. This is according to the second novel. So it's very possible that TYL!Chrome would've done away with the topknot. And considering that she appears in the manga wearing a scarf over her head, what else could it be but sans pineapple?

 

 

I'm WAITING, Amano.

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2008.04.16 「What do you mean I'm protecting my right eye?」

Because, apparently, I never learn when to stop embarking on new minor projects and going back to my old major ones. CG-ing is hell on Photoshop, is it not? *is met with silence*. Honey wanted me to do lineart tutorial for which I'd made Rollo my model. I figured I'd have a go at colouring it since I need to learn how to lend colours onto my art anyway. My friends don't believe me when I say I'm a terrible, mediocre at best, colourist *points to the above and below examples*. Cel-shading isn't exactly colouring in my book x__x. You don't get creative with your colours in cel-shading.

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2008.04.14 「And I tried colouring」

Crediting Gabriela Gosden for the idea of making Mukuro cosplay George Koizumi, Chrome into Hayakawa Yukari and Hibari an antagonistic Tokumori Hiroyuki. I have sinned by doing this piece of art but since Gabriela has told me not to lock it, I unlocked it *fidgets*. Although the troublesome post on LJ definitely needs to stay locked.

With this, I might stick with monochromatic art a little bit longer. Yes?