The Art of Time Management

This is how far I've gotten on page 5:

I've realized this past week that I need to spend more time trying to find freelance work and less time making my comic.  I love creating AER HEAD and it's my true passion, so I'll definitely keep making progress on the comic and posting something each week, though.

I've been very good at dividing up my time between projects at various jobs in the past, but since this comic is my passion, I let myself be a perfectionist about it.  It obviously takes a lot more time and care to create than a typical stick figure web comic ;)  I have considered cutting corners by drawing at half the size.  That would cut half the work, and in this case that's better than doing a sloppier job faster.  Usually cartoonists draw at the big 11in x 17in scale and shrink it down so the art will be "super tight" when printed.  But I've heard more than a few cartoonists say what's the point of drawing so much detail if it almost disappears when shrunken down?

More plans for AER HEAD include merchandise like stickers, T-shirts, prints, and the comic book itself, that people can buy through PayPal right here on my blog!  But until then, I gotta pay the bills like everyone else.  Recently, I have managed to get a part time job at an art store :)  I'm very happy because it's art related, I work with super nice people, and I get an amazingly awesome discount!  If you must get a day job, try to get something related in some way to your passion.  It will be so much more rewarding than a daily grind because you'll still feel connected to your goals - more than just the money goal.  You could also meet more people in your field and even potential clients.  And I can't overstate the awesomeness of a great discount on supplies I already buy - it just makes sense.

But even so, part time won't cover all the rent, so would anyone like to hire me for any projects?  :)  I can work long distance too!

This is where the magic happens!

This week I give you a peek into the world of the mindy indy studio!

This is actually the other half of my bedroom.  I live 45 minutes away from the city in Brooklyn, so it's a fairly large room!  I salvaged that big table from my roomies (who were going to throw it out!) and it's perfect for spreading out all my supplies and having lots of room to work.  Tip to other artists:  SALVAGE!  Salvage EVERYTHING!  This past weekend I even salvaged a mini grill from someone in my apt complex = the ultimate delicious victory!  But I'm on a tangent...

I also got that tall standing lamp from my roomies - it's important for me to have lots of light to work under.  Um, almost everything in my room came from my roomies because they are awesome :)  Oh except the laptop - that's mine.  It's more than 4 years old and crashes regularly :\

All those little cards on the wall are my storyboards for the AER HEAD comic.  I'm going to do a whole post just about the storyboarding process, because there's TONS to say about it!  In the first picture, they were just words on index cards, but watch as they grow on my wall:

The storyboards have grown and have taken over my other wall!  Luckily I have lots of wall space, but I'm running out.  The full pages are drawn with pencil so that's why they don't show up as well, but that's ok - I wouldn't want to give away the story!

Of special note is the hanging teal colored thing on my closet - it's actually a travel make-up bag that I use to put all my art supplies in!  It organizes things SO effectively and I can SEE everything that's there instead of supplies being hidden in desk drawers.  Come to think of it, I can't imagine anyone needing THAT much make-up for TRAVEL... I don't even OWN enough make-up to fill one pocket!  Getting off that tangent, besides needing a new computer, I also need a new T-square because that one isn't square anymore!  I think it must have gotten warped somehow.

This is pretty much what my studio looks like now.  I was working on page 2 when I took this pic.  Here I have my watercolor supplies out.  It's important for me to clear my desk of most things before I begin working on a comic page because I don't work well with lots of clutter on my desk.  In particular, I clean between the inking and watercoloring stages of my comic, because both processes have tons of supplies and to have ALL of them on my desk at once is a disaster!

In retrospect, I'll take some pics with ME working in them in the future.

I've been creating page 3 this past week and will post that next week, and beyond that I'll explain more about those crazy storyboards all over my walls!  Lots to look forward to!