The Strange One: Odd Thomas

Odd Thomas: Long time no update – I’ve been real overworked. For the record, I’m still working on the single-volume “Odd Thomas” graphic novel (just finished chapters 4 out of 7), which now has a name – “In Odd We Trust”. Dean Koontz came up with that name, and he’s also writing a fourth “Odd Thomas” novel, to come out just before this graphic novel I’m working on. Yes, Dean Koontz’s most successful trilogy of books is no longer a trilogy.

I promised long ago to write a lengthy description of the whole Dean Koontz-deal I’m working on, but I haven’t done it yet. It’s because up until the end of October, Dean was busy working on his novel(s) and didn’t have time to approve the last chapter script. Now that the entire script has been approved, I can finally tell you who did what part of the work. But I’ll save that for the big “Odd Thomas” post, which unfortunately is only coming out after volume 3 of “The Dreaming” in December.

 

The Dreaming: Yes, volume 3 is now coming out in December and not November. There’s a very good reason for the 1 month delay – the folks at TOKYOPOP had something to insert in the back and it needed time to get approved. As for what’s being inserted in the back of “The Dreaming” volume 3 – it’s a SECRET (though lord knows, I’ve blabbed it to enough people already. Whoops). Anyway, I haven’t yet posted up the chapter breaks, so here they are.

 

The Dreaming - Chapter 15

 

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The Dreaming - Chapter 16

 

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The Dreaming - Chapter 17

 

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The Dreaming - Chapter 18

 

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The Dreaming - Chapter 19

 

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The Dreaming - Chapter 20

 

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The Dreaming - Chapter 21

The Dreaming: Long Time No Update

The Dreaming v3: Is finished. It’s 182 pages. It is OVER. The “The Dreaming” series has concluded.

It will be out in November 2007. I actually finished nearly all of book3 a while ago, but couldn’t be bothered to post it up since I was also working on “Odd Thomas”. It’s hell working on 2 books at the same time – now that the bulk of “The Dreaming” v3 is done, I’ve got a bunch of minor stuff I need to finish on it, namely the chapter illustrations and odds and ends (like part 3 of the Haunted Linen Cupboard series). Yeah, I’m dragging my feet on this, though luckily the due date is August the 23rd, so there’s plenty of time. It even took me a whole month to finish the cover, which is down below.

 

The Dreaming 3 - cover

After 2 covers, I finally figured out how to do a glowing window properly.

 

Odd Thomas: After that blabber about the last book in “The Dreaming” series, I get to talk about “Odd Thomas”. I totally forgot to post this up, but Allen Klingelhoets did an interview with me here which has some “Odd Thomas” information in it (Thankyou, Allen). I’ll be posting up a longer description of my work on “Odd Thomas” and how I came onto this project in August.

So far, I can’t show any art that’s not been approved, but there’s no hurry, because the book is scheduled to be launched mid-2008. So far, the first 2 chapters (of 7) is close to being finished, and the script is complete, currently being copy-editted. That’s about it for this chunk of news.

 

The Legend of Zelda: An 8-page doujinshi that is part of Life Meter 2, a video-gaming comics anthology. If you’ve ever wanted to see videogame characters in comic form, this is your anthology. This doujinshi was drawn specifically for this book, so this is the only chance you’ll have to see this “Princess Zelda” story in print. I’ll put it online later on… though only perhaps MUCH later on, when the anthology is sold out.

 
Princess Zelda

The Dreaming: It’s been a bad month…

The Dreaming: Is getting a German edition, yay! Apart from that, it’s been a pretty bad month for me. Was sick with the flu for 2 weeks, and fell behind some other work I had to do, which includes a one-volume graphic novel for something else. At least there’s only 2 more chapters of “The Dreaming” to tone. I’m also working on the cover, finally.

 

Free Comics Day: At Kinokuniya this Saturday (5th May), there’s a Free Comics Day where I’d be speaking on a panel. The panel is called “Brave New World” and it’s on at 3:00pm. Come along for some fun. Here’s the rest of the program:

At Kinokuniya Sydney, located at Level 2, The Galeries Victoria (500 George Street, Sydney 2000). Telephone: (02)9262-7996.

 

Time: 12.30pm
Panel: Up, Up and Away
Discover the secrets of storytelling in comics with two of Australia’s rising stars!
Artists: Nicola Scott: Comic Book Artist ( BIRDS OF PREY, ANGEL), David Yardin (WHAT IF? X-MEN DEADLY GENESIS, BLACK PANTHER/X-MEN, STAN WINSTON’S REALM OF THE CLAW)

 

Time: 2.00pm
Panel: Panel: Power Of One or Strength In Numbers?
Exploring the difference in Storytelling between the single image (Book Covers) and a sequence of pictures (Storyboards)
Artists: Mark Sexton: Production Designer/Storyboard Artist (HAPPY FEET, STAR WARS EPS II ATTACK OF THE CLONES, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE II, BABE: PIG IN THE CITY ), Craig Phillips: Cover Artist/Illustrator (TOM SWIFT, GHOST SQUAD ), W. Chew Chan: Storyboard Artist (SUPERMAN RETURNS, HAPPY FEET )

 

Time: 3.00pm
Panel: Brave New World
Explore the explosive new storytelling form that’s taken the world by storm – MANGA!
Artists: Queenie Chan: Australia’s own Manga-ka (THE DREAMING )

Zelda Manga Dump!!

The Dreaming v3: I am making great headway. The whole book is inked, and Chapters 1, 2, 3, and 7 are completely toned and finished. Only 3 more chapters to tone!! Volume 2 is still here on Amazon.com.

 

Zelda Fan Manga: Massive Zelda fan manga dump. I haven’t been lazy with the drawing, but I’ve been lazy with posting ’em up here. The previous 4 pages is here, while the whole thing started here. Easier that way. About the previous poll (no poll for a long time), option (b) won out again, so here it is.

 

Zelda - Page 10

 

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Zelda - Page 11

 

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Zelda - Page 12

 

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Zelda - Page 13

 

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Zelda - Page 14

 

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Zelda - Page 15

 

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Zelda - Page 16

 

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Zelda - Page 17

 

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Zelda - Page 18

 

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Zelda - Page 19

 

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Zelda - Page 20

 

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Zelda - Page 21

 

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Zelda - Page 22

 

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Zelda - Page 23

 

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Zelda - Page 24

 

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Zelda - Page 25

 

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Zelda - Page 26

 

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Zelda - Page 27

 

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Zelda - Page 28

 

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Zelda - Page 29

 

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Zelda - Page 30

 

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Zelda - Page 31

 

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Zelda - Page 32

 

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Zelda - Page 33

 

The winner for the last poll was again (b). The options and votes for that last poll of “Right now, Link is thinking:” are as follows:

 

  • She asked for my arm, so I should give her my arm. (22 Votes – 33.8%)
  • I shall sweep her up in my arms and carry her up the stairs! After all, she IS injured (so I have a GOOD excuse). (28 Votes – 43.1%)
  • If she needs fresh air and sunshine, she probably needs exercise too. I shall escort her up the stairs, but she is to climb them alone. (9 Votes – 13.8%)
  • She should stay here, as Princess Ruto asked. This is Ruto’s domain, after all. (6 Votes – 9.2%)

 

Once again, the last voting round determined something of substance. It was to determine how Link felt towards Princess Zelda. For the curious, I have made a list of the voting options, including what would have happened if that option had won out.

 

Option A: She asked for my arm, so I should give her my arm. (22 Votes – 33.8%)
Result: Link gives Zelda his arm, and helps her up the stairs.
Attitude: This Link does what he’s asked to. He believes in a kind of civil formality between himself and the princess (and royalty in general), and if someone else tried to overstep that boundary, he would protest on Zelda’s behalf. This Link sees Zelda as his equal in every way, and trusts her sound judgement on everything she does. His slight deference to her means that he (a) still considers himself to be in her service, and (b) will put her judgement ahead of his own. He may or may not be romantically interested in Zelda, but at this point in time, he considers them good friends.

 

Option B: I shall sweep her up in my arms and carry her up the stairs! After all, she IS injured (so I have a GOOD excuse). (28 Votes – 43.1%)
Result: You’re looking at it.
Attitude: This Link will do what the princess asks him, but he’s constantly look for ways to do a bit more. His motivations are primarily romantic – he’s definately interested in Princess Zelda, but then he’s just as likely to be a flirt in the first place. He knows what the boundaries are, and knows how to break them, though he also knows that he can’t go too far without getting a backlash. Despite not always following the princess’ orders, this Link regards Zelda as his equal in every way, and respects her judgement. He also respects the fact that as the ruler of Hyrule, she has to stand alone on alot of issues, but at the same time, he can’t help but hope she will be willing to lean on him a bit more. He definately does not consider himself to still be in Zelda’s service. In fact, he doesn’t consider himself to be in any kind of service to anybody besides himself. He’s a free man!!

 

Option C: If she needs fresh air and sunshine, she probably needs exercise too. I shall escort her up the stairs, but she is to climb them alone. (9 Votes – 13.8%)
Result: Link explains why he believes Princess Zelda would benefit from walking up the stairs on her own, and so she has to struggle up the stairs by herself. Needless to say, she gets pretty pissed off at the end of the climb.
Attitude: This Link believes in tough love, and above all, believes that a strong leader makes a strong country. He considers Zelda a friend, and is protective of her, but thinks that the best thing to do is to toughen her up at any time she shows weakness. He does NOT consider Zelda an equal – he believes he’s better at some things, and she at others, but in some cases his judgement ought to override hers (like now). He knows he’s no longer in service to the Hyrulean royal family, but he thinks in this case, it’s completely irrelevant. If Zelda is naive about anything, then he should be there to make sure she knows that a ruler has no room to be naive.

 

Option D: She should stay here, as Princess Ruto asked. This is Ruto’s domain, after all. (6 Votes – 9.2%)
Result: Link can say this, but he just comes off as lazy. This is because while this IS Ruto’s domain, Zelda’s authority out-ranks Ruto, so if Ruto were here, she WILL have to let Zelda go whereever she wants. Link will still have to help an annoyed Zelda up the stairs.
Attitude: This Link feels Zelda is a friend, but not a close one, and in some ways, even thinks of her as somewhat childish and naive. He doesn’t quite know why he feels that way, but it could be because she’s a princess who spends the majority of her time in Hyrule Castle. He definately does NOT see Zelda as an equal, and believes not only himself to have better judgement on some things, but other people too. He still considers himself to be in Zelda’s service though, and because of that, ought to give what he believes to be the best possible advice to her. If this results in absolutely no risk-taking, then so be it.