New illustrations posted

I've finished a couple more pages of the graphic novel, The T Rex and the Hare, which is set to be included somewhere in the new book. Both pages are available for viewing on the illustration page of the Hairy Eyeballs site.

I'm planning on finishing all of the images in the book with powdered graphite along with artist's graphite pencils so the illustrations stay unified. By using powdered graphite, I'm able to put down something similar to a watercolor wash before I go in with pencil on the details. I can cover a large space quickly without pencil lines or variations from the paper tooth. Also, by using the powder I'm able to paint a thick coat of super heavy blacks in places where I need them.

This also means I have to go back to a couple of the early, early illustrations I had finished and redraw them with the graphite. I'll post the graphite drawings on the site when I'm finished with them, and I'll post the before and after versions here on the blog.

Graphic novelette available for preview

I've uploaded the short graphic novel Dead Line to the "Extras" page of the Hairy Eyeballs site. But to make it easier for you, I'm also embedding the whole thing below (yep, I understand laziness). Just click on the middle of the book to see it biggie-sized.

The short originally printed in Seton Hill University's art and literary magazine, Eye Contact, but with a different ending (well, just a different last line, really). I used it for promotional purposes shortly after its publication in Eye Contact but, again, with the first ending.

So if you've seen it before, take another look. This version is closer to what I originally had in mind.

Sample short story now available

I've uploaded what might be considered the "title track" of the (as yet untitled) book on the official Hairy Eyeballs site. To make it simpler, I've also embedded it here so you don't even have to leave this page. Just click in the middle of the book to see it full screen.

Just a note: This is a very early rough draft, and will likely be edited much over the next few months. I just wanted to give an idea of what kinds of stories to expect so I can scare off the faint of heart well in advance of the really juicy stuff.

www.hairyeyeballs.com

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The Hairy Eyeballs site is up and live!

Right now it has a few pertinent pages: an about page, a link to this blog, and a link to an online store that currently has no merchandise (I've kind of been trying to spend my time putting the actual book together). I also have an extras page, and on it I put a link to a page of illustrations from the book. Shortly, I'll also add a page for one of the stories, but I'm still working on the logistics (you'll understand when you see it).

I've also added an email address devoted to the site: nora@hairyeyeballs.com.

And you may have noticed the official Hairy Eyeballs emoticon at the beginning of this post. An explanation lurks on the home page of the new site, so I guess you'll just have to go there to understand it.

Testophobia

One of the first shorts I finished for the book was "Testophobia." I wrote the piece originally for the Writing Fiction class I mentioned in the last post. The prompt went like this: "Write a scene taken straight from a science-fiction, fantasy, or horror story, where a character is experiencing test-taking anxiety of a very creative kind." (Again, I'll have to credit Dr. A with the prompt.)

The short was published once already in Seton Hill University's art and literary magazine, Eye Contact. The graphic designer laying out the page kind of had the right idea, but the final results weren't exactly what I had envisioned.

No problem.

The graphics I've created for the book version include a middle-grade exam I pieced together, some smeared and stretched typography (both digital and hand-drawn) and a photo I took of some dreamily threatening clouds.

This story became my favorite from all the shorts I had written through that semester, and I can't think of anything I would want to change to make it better.