And Presenting [Name Withheld]...!

Fourteen already? Why, ten more to go and still 27 days left in the month (and my deadline)? Things are kind of going okay then.

A lot of times I have to decide what panel to post. This one was simple, though, as every other panel features the winner of the Who Wants To Create a Hero contest. I don't want to reveal that character or the winner yet, and this is the only panel that the winning character doesn't appear in. So there really was only one choice.

I'll talk more about who won and why at some later date. But the winner created a character who inspired the first joke of the page, and I certainly appreciated being served a hanging curve to nail out of the park.

Speaking of baseball, the Cleveland Indians start the playoffs against the soulless New York Yankees. Go Tribe!

Come Fly With Me

Finally past halfway!

This is from an extended flying sequence between Crusader and Amazonia. You can't see it here, since I chose this panel because it was a cool image and not the dialogue, but I worked hard to show the passage of time without any of those much-hated "as you knows". For instance, Amazonia calls Crusader "Mark", showing that they've been together long enough for him to reveal his secret identity. There's also reference to her being a member of the Liberty League, too, another change since the first flashback.

I'm pretty happy with how this sequence turned out, especially with how well the clouds worked. There's nothing like the interweb for doing a little photo reference to get these things right.

Where's the Call Box?

Here's the first page since my writer's block, which is probably more accurately described as "writer's drought."

I almost cut this scene out completely, but realized it served a function so it put back in. I wanted to show Amazonia actually doing the signing, and that merged well with my idea to have Amazonia try to win Charlotte over. Or maybe she's just being nice. You can never tell with Zoe.

I also felt inspired to put another TV show duo in the background. Often I need to have a character or two in the background, just to fill. Rather than design a completely new character, I'll base them on someone I know, or someone on TV. It keeps me from defaulting to a generic character who looks like the same generic character that appeared somewhere else. It's a shorthand, but it's also kind of fun.

So, for some reason, Martha Jones and the Doctor, from Doctor Who have crosssed the pond, and the space-time continuum, to get their book signed by Amazonia. Or maybe there's some other reason they're in Deco City. You never know with those two.

Sometimes I Forget

Last night, I was getting ready to do a caricature gig at a wedding. It was a long one, five hours of work and a one hour break. And I had to wear a tie. Most events I can get away with cross-trainers and my Nightmare Before Christmas baseball jersey, but at a wedding, a certain amount of decorum is expected. So, between the time and the dressing-up and all, I was fighting a little malaise about working last night. I just wasn't looking forward to it.

And then I did the reception. Man, it was one of the best events that I've ever done.

Everyone was delightful to talk to. That's why I've always thought I'd never give up live caricatures, even if other aspects of my career take off to the point where I don't need to do caricature events at all. For a guy who spends a huge chunk of his life in a 20x8 studio alone, getting to talk the craic with people is pretty nice.

Heck, a lot of the people were firefighters or EMTs and a fair amount of them said that they admired what I did. To which I'd respond: "What? You run into burning buildings and save lives. I do a little monkey trick where I make you look like a cartoon."

Both the groom and the bride's father came up to thank me for being there. I always feel weird about that, since I'm not doing it out of the kindness of my heart, but because my checking account got a little boost for showing up. But still, the appreciation is nice.

Heck, the groom invited me to the after party, stressing the open bar and the block of hotel rooms that were available. I declined, but it's always nice to be invited.

Going home, it just hit me, as it does every once in a while, that I have one of the best jobs in the world. I made a fine amount of money to have a free good dinner, make some tips, look at pretty girls (not that I don't look at the guys when I draw them, of course, it's just not as much of a perk), talk to some intersting people, and just flamin' draw for an evening.

I get paid to pursue my passion, and every once in a while I forget how fortunate I am to be able to do that.

Writers and Blocks

My good friend Jesse Jackson (no, not that one) just wrote a TV review column about "My Name Is Earl", or, if you saw it, "My Name Is Prisoner #28301-01." It's pretty good, and I think you should check it out here. As for me, I've been suffering a bit of writer's block on Love and Capes, hence the Week of No New Pages. I just made a breakthrough today, so I should be back on the horse soon.

Almost Halfway There

I'm one page away from reaching the magical Halfway Point in Love and Capes #6.

We're out of flashback and Amazonia is teleporting into the bookstore. The Liberty League has teleporters, but for a bunch of reasons I made them point-to-point teleporters. So, there's a portable teleporter pad in the back room, which Abby is at the controls of. If you look at LNC #4, you'll notice that when Mark teleports into Box Canyon, he arrives on the same portable pad.

I also had to redesign the back room of the bookstore. It's been seen before, but usually it's just a wall. I wanted to make it a little more storage/break room like, so I tweaked the design. At various points, you'll be able to see a ladder, some boxes, and even a time clock, although I'm pretty sure that came with the building. I don't think Abby or Charlotte use it. There's even an overhead storage area, too, in case I need it down the road.

And don't forget, you can order Love and Capes #6 in this month's Previews catalog. Order code SEP073844.

Second Cup of Weirdness

As long as we've had one cup of weird...

I went to Starbucks today, as I do most Saturdays. I usually go up there and cash whatever checks came in over the last couple of days at the next door Sky Bank now Huntington, and the grab some coffee. I got there a minute before the bank opened and when they let me in…everyone in the bank was looking at me. Then there was some clapping.

Did you notice that I said in the previous paragraph "Sky Bank now Huntington?" That's because my old bank merged with Huntington, and today was their first official day as the new bank. And I was their first customer. Everyone congratulated me, and I got a lovely electric screwdriver set. Personally, I prefer my screwdrivers served in a glass with Grey Goose vodka, but it was still a nice touch.

Heavy is the Head That Wears the Crown

Our Mayor, John Roskos, is currently on vacation. I'm Council President which makes me the equivalent of Will Riker without the beard and inability to stave of a Ferengi attack. I'm the second in command.

Now, normally I'd crack a bunch of jokes about my secret service detail and how I wish that the Village Hall had longer corridors so I could do that West Wing walk-and-talk. And, if you catch me in person, I'll probably tell you some. But really, I'm taking it seriously.

I don't think anything will happen during my brief stint at the helm of the Village. I doubt Canada will invade or the Mole Man will burst through our sewers or anything huge. But still, there's the little extra bit of weight to knowing that I'm occupying the center seat.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to rename my street to Thom Zahler Lane.

So You May Have Noticed

While I was trying to upgrade the blog today, so that I'd be able to put some nifty widgets on here, maybe pimp my Amazon available stuff (like Star Trek: Sky's the Limit) and in upgrading, managed to crash the blog hard. It's a big issue, first of all because of the amount of work that the blog represents, but also because, through RSS feeds, I manage pages on the Thomz.com site and the LoveandCapes.com site.

It took a bit of time, a bit of research, and a little help to get it back up. When I did, I had that computer-stare-buzz in my head. The one where you swear you were thinking so hard that all the blood hasd rushed to your head, and when you're done, you just don't want to tackle any other huge projects. So, I decided to work on something I wanted to work on to get me over that hump. And, fortunately, Love and Capes #6 page 10 was already inked.

The page isn't the funniest in the book, but it's one of the most important. It shows that Crusader and Amazonia had chemistry. That they were a good couple, at least for a while. And, since these eight panels involve stopping an alien invasion and watching a volcano, they serve to highlight the things Abby can't be for Mark. That should cause some conflict over the next fourteen pages.

99 Word Balloons

It's another fascinating moment of superheroes having wine, featuring the best dialogue I've ever written.

The nights working on Love and Capes are getting longer. I was up until 2:00am working on the art for the page, and then scripted and lettered it this morning. It's a good sign that it's the late nights are getting more frequent, too. It means I'm in the zone, and ready to churn out and finish the book.

Here, Amazonia and the Crusader go to Las Vegas for their first date. Why Vegas? Because they needed some privacy, and like they say, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. It's the kind of place with private dining rooms available to superstars, and Amazonia's definitely that.

I had to design Vegas-style buildings for the window. Two of them are new artwork. The other is the Eiffel Tower, which I drew for the splash page at the end of #3. It was nice to be able to reuse that and get that extra Vegasiness without having to spend them time to draw the Tower again.

See? Pretty sneaky, sis!