Another Mer-Kat image for MerMay2019. Borrowed a fish image I did a few weeks back. Encountering the obnoxious BelchFish.
Jim Romer’s blog: character designs, writing picture books, and random thoughts!
Sunday, May 5, 2019
Friday, May 3, 2019
Arrrggghhh! It's Another Quick Sketch Video: Mer-Kat ( for #MerMay2019 )
So with work, moving to a new home, and many other things making May insanely busy, I still wanted to do a few #MerMay images for 2019. This little character popped into my head as a good mascot for the month-long drawing challenge. Not only do I like the character concept, but the name is a great little play on words: Mer-Kat. (I'm sure fans of actual meerkats won't find it as amusing.)
I decided to record the 35+ minutes it took to create this image and speed it up to a more Internet consumable 4-5 minutes. (I think I still need to edit out the boring fish segment of the video . . . just runs on too long with not much happening.) The YouTube link is embedded below.
First #MerMay image of #Mer-Kat for 2019 |
Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Character Design: Red Dragon
I have been struggling to create this character for some time. I needed a funny yet threatening Dragon for a picture book manuscript. I believe I finally found it in this character over the holiday weekend.
I borrowed from my own sketch from a couple of months ago, where I created an illustration of a dragon, knight, and mouse reading in a dungeon: Fantasy Reading Scene (for SCBWI). I took many features from that image's dragon that I liked, then exaggerated them to create a slightly more fierce appearance.
Color comp of the character |
Inked with a very soft brush pen |
Original pencil sketch |
Monday, April 15, 2019
Cap'n Manchot: supporting character of Pirate Dreams
Cap'n Manchot is another support character for my picture book story Pirate Dreams. The story is getting bigger and bigger so I may have to change it into a chapter book.
Pirate Dreams is greatly inspired by my childhood favorite book, The Phantom Tollbooth written by Norton Juster with illustrations by Jules Feiffer. I have always felt that The Phantom Tollbooth was a boy's alternative to The Wizard of Oz. From the very beginning of that story, I was hooked, putting myself in Milo's shoes, being cast into a strange world with incredibly weird characters.
The original artwork was created in pencil, white pen, and Copic gray markers on Strathmore Toned Tan paper.
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Digital touch up of Cap'n Manchot; line textured, repositioned, desaturated and text added. |
Pirate Dreams is also a voyage of discovery, filled with odd characters in a whimsical pirate world setting. With each rewrite, the story keeps changing and growing. The cast gets bigger and bigger as new ideas pop up. In a way, I'm in Milo's shoes again, discovering a whole new world.
Sunday, February 24, 2019
Pencil Sketch the character Felix from "Whazzit?"
I've written many picture book manuscripts over the years. Sometimes I'll write a story and I "see" the characters. Other times, I haven't a clue, or I'm not satisfied with a character or story; sometimes this goes on for years. When that happens, I put the story away and let it sit for some time.
But every once in a while, with no reason at all, a character "pops" clearly in my head and have to get it down on paper or it is soon forgotten. For example, after years of failing to envision Charli's baby brother, I doodled, and Felix appeared on my sheet of paper. (Even odder, was that I had struggled with a similar baby sister character for another story, and suddenly she was also created two days after Felix. It's like I had a sudden muse of toddler characters pour out of my head.)
Felix is an essential character for my mystical wintry picture book, "Whazzit?" (In fact, It's Felix who uses the title phrase "Whazzit" in the story.) I'm testing and rounding this character out, using a more pencil-sketch style and planning to do a character sheet to flesh out the role further.
Related link: I posted an ink sketch of Felix's older sister, Charli, some time ago. For her character, I used an ink brush, so she is drawn in a cleaner black line style than seen here. I think I'll try the pencil sketch style with her character next. Then, I'll sketch . . . Whazzit.
But every once in a while, with no reason at all, a character "pops" clearly in my head and have to get it down on paper or it is soon forgotten. For example, after years of failing to envision Charli's baby brother, I doodled, and Felix appeared on my sheet of paper. (Even odder, was that I had struggled with a similar baby sister character for another story, and suddenly she was also created two days after Felix. It's like I had a sudden muse of toddler characters pour out of my head.)
It seems Felix has fallen asleep again while standing - a pencil sketch touched up in Photoshop |
Related link: I posted an ink sketch of Felix's older sister, Charli, some time ago. For her character, I used an ink brush, so she is drawn in a cleaner black line style than seen here. I think I'll try the pencil sketch style with her character next. Then, I'll sketch . . . Whazzit.
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Giant Ham/Cheese Sandwich vs. Battle Ballerina!
This image was initially done sometime around Sept 2018.
I'm only getting around to posting it here on the blog today . . .
My sister-in-law called me on the phone while playing Giant Sandwich VS Princess Ballerina with my (then) 3-year-old niece, (who I assumed was the Princess Ballerina.) From what I could hear over the phone, my niece was using a "flying fist punch" to devastate the evil "Giant Sammich," (which was later described as ham and swiss on white with flimsy leaves of lettuce.)
After that call, I imagined what that fight looked like and put it down on paper.
I'm only getting around to posting it here on the blog today . . .
My sister-in-law called me on the phone while playing Giant Sandwich VS Princess Ballerina with my (then) 3-year-old niece, (who I assumed was the Princess Ballerina.) From what I could hear over the phone, my niece was using a "flying fist punch" to devastate the evil "Giant Sammich," (which was later described as ham and swiss on white with flimsy leaves of lettuce.)
After that call, I imagined what that fight looked like and put it down on paper.
Final color image, which I toned to an overall warmer pink-purple hue |
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The original pencil sketch |
The inked image with text; adding details to the foreground, mid, and background. |
Grayscale version - testing out the tone values of the image |
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Happy Batman Valentine!
Sunday, February 10, 2019
Arrrggghhh! It's Another Quick Sketch Video: Inking Moon-Boy
A video of inking a new character in real time I call Moon-Boy. This is a new character I'm developing for an original picture book story. Several people requested seeing actual inking without speeding up the video, so here you go. Hopefully, this is not too long. (I believe most people prefer 1-minute or less when it comes to watching illustrating videos.)
NOTE: Sometimes the video here won't play in the blog, (typical Google issues with Blogger.) You can always click the YouTube logo in the lower right corner of the video to open a direct link to the YouTube page.
NOTE: Sometimes the video here won't play in the blog, (typical Google issues with Blogger.) You can always click the YouTube logo in the lower right corner of the video to open a direct link to the YouTube page.
Saturday, February 9, 2019
Slingblade Banjo Pig! 🐖
This image was inspired by a blog by two of my favorite online illustrators, Guy Francis and Stacy Curtis. Their blog is called: Dueling Banjo Pigs! Check it out. Anyone can join in on the fun! 🐖
Grumpy ol' Slingblade pig -- uhh' hmmmm. |
See the other banjo pig I sent years ago here.
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Happy Chinese New Year! 2019: The Year of the Pig!
I created this image based on my New Year Baby image from last month. This one goes out to all my friends and co-workers on the other side of the world. Happy Chinese New Year! 🎉🐖
Thursday, January 24, 2019
Lady Bug: Gnat Skiing
Sunday, January 20, 2019
Inking Alien Bully (and little Meep-Moop)
A poor little Meep-Moop is being picked on by one of those alien-bully Skarggs.
Someone should do something about this . . .
Someone should do something about this . . .
These aliens were developed for the sequel to my picture book, Bobby's Biggest Bubble.
The sequel answers what happened to that meteor, as Bobby's deals with 1,000,000 pounds of Jolly Belly Jelly. Here's to hoping I'll get to reprint the original book with a real publisher and finally get to tell the entire trilogy written so long ago.
The sequel answers what happened to that meteor, as Bobby's deals with 1,000,000 pounds of Jolly Belly Jelly. Here's to hoping I'll get to reprint the original book with a real publisher and finally get to tell the entire trilogy written so long ago.
Inked with a Pilot brush pen on Canson marker paper |
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