tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52970940612024231962024-03-19T08:05:16.357-04:00Sore Thumb PressA blog which will feature behind-the-scenes artwork and musings about comic book concepts I aim to publish someday soon.Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-53389818143505657852015-05-06T16:24:00.001-04:002015-05-06T16:24:24.710-04:00Jo Nemo Kickstarter launched!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After the success of <i>Lil' Ninja</i> on <b>Kickstarter</b>, I decided to focus my energies on <i>Jo Nemo</i> (formerly Pike Armstrong). Over time, I've had Joe Badon coloring Grant Perkin's pencils, and with a lot of reworking and reformatting on my part, I've ended up with 20 beautiful pages of story.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Next comes scripting, followed by printing at 9 x 7 landscape. I'm incredibly excited by the possible reception the online world might give my hero, hopefully folk will like Jo as much as I do!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1413636382/the-adventures-of-jo-nemo-childrens-book" target="_blank">Here's the KS link</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Updates to come, including Lil Ninja updates. 2015 is shaping up to be a busy one for <b>Sore Thumb Press</b>!</span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-36251743915054370012015-02-27T10:56:00.003-05:002015-02-27T10:56:57.264-05:00The neglected audience<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I discovered comic books (many moons ago), I was immediately taken with the format: interesting, dynamic pictures combined with text that told fantastic stories. Rereading some of the comics I first bought back then (now snug in mylar and hidden away in dusty longboxes) I'm struck at the deft skill of creators who were able to create all-ages material.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">'All-ages' doesn't mean juvenile, or aimed squarely at kids. What I'm talking about is a story that a younger reader can enjoy at face value; older readers in turn can appreciate subtle nuances crafted into the text and/or art (of a more sophisticated nature). For example, buying Wolfman and Perez's New Teen Titans from a spinner rack, I had a blast with the adventure and cool characters; now, I admire the deft character interplay, and 'mature' themes hinted at in the script and lush art.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This ultimately makes the comic reading experience a deep and rewarding one. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I find that comics today have lost this simple skill. Most books on the stand are targeted squarely at an older demographic, with graphic portrayals of violence and 'reality' (the supreme irony is that super-heroes are grounded in pure fantasy, and desperately applying the 'real world' to them usually results in an awkward mess). I can't find many books I'd introduce to my kids; even the ones specifically maketed to younger readers are usually lisenced material with uninspired, cookie-cutter stories and artwork seeming traced from episode storyboards.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I grew up from super-hero comics, I wondered about creating my own. Over the years, many concepts popped into my head, inspired by my fond memories of the bombastic comics I enjoyed as a kid. One of my favorites is <b>Lil' Ninja</b>, my current Kickstarter project.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Inspired by the antics of my own daughter as a toddler, Lily defends her crib against wacky villains using her mysterious ninja skills. The concept is fun, vibrant with color and joy, 'counter-programming' to the dour, depressing fare comic book readers are given monthly. My hope is that my idea sparks enough interest to allow me to continue Lily's adventures; my desire to create comics springs from a well of genuine love of this unique medium, and it saddens me to see the sad state of the industry today. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Please take a moment to check out my Kickstarter, and if you like it, please spread the word. I think there's plenty of room for all-ages books on todays cluttered stands, and I'm extremely proud of the quality of mine.</span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-57407417849370727532015-02-23T08:19:00.002-05:002015-02-23T08:19:15.729-05:00<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Starting the second week of <b>Lil' Ninja</b> on Kickstarter, I'm humbled by the generosity of all backers so far. It's awkward asking folk to pledge funds, but I think the end product is appealing and I believe in my lil' superheroine. It's exciting to realize that with a few more pledges, I'll be on my way to producing physical copies of a comic I've been working on for years, with a possibility of follow-up issues.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">No rest for the weary! Completing colors on issue 1 remains my goal, as well as deciding which concept to focus on next. Getting <i>Sore Thumb Press</i> books into the 'light' is a challenging but ultimately rewarding 'job'! </span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-29486352482178748892015-02-16T10:14:00.004-05:002015-02-16T10:14:43.891-05:00Lil' Ninja Kickstarter launch<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The latter half of 2014 was dominated by distractions that kept me apart from my self-publishing ventures. I've finally gotten my head screwed properly into place in order to focus on <b>Sore Thumb Press</b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To that end, <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1413636382/lil-ninja-debut-issue-comic-book?ref=email" target="_blank">I decided to relaunch a Kickstarter for <b>Lil' Ninja</b></a>, one of my most developed concepts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have high hopes that I can attain my funding goal, and complete a first issue of a title I'm extremely proud of. Once I actually have a physical copy of the debut issue in my hands, I'll feel like things are finally 'real'.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZFw5PT625UmmRhc5dQ26hdDZzKWXRW1ZHat2mEtF5Yf5ZfVRPxpC7sT0N8VvkUsjgbJWQK27FfRj6nFxbA_8J2b3AJhugXQtYWt_8S6wW9x5piQChmmfqxsjc6RgouWZv-7lww-ocSfs/s1600/Lil_ninja_poster_c2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZFw5PT625UmmRhc5dQ26hdDZzKWXRW1ZHat2mEtF5Yf5ZfVRPxpC7sT0N8VvkUsjgbJWQK27FfRj6nFxbA_8J2b3AJhugXQtYWt_8S6wW9x5piQChmmfqxsjc6RgouWZv-7lww-ocSfs/s1600/Lil_ninja_poster_c2.jpg" height="320" width="232" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Update next week!</span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-62874563630296349522014-06-13T12:07:00.002-04:002014-06-13T12:07:42.937-04:00Busy, busy, busy!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The past weeks I've been swamped with a huge inking assignment; unfortunately, I've had to put STP aside in the meantime. Although I haven't had much free time, things are still happening behind the scenes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We have a colorist working on completing our second <i><b>Lil' Ninja</b></i> story. Joe Badon is coloring a fresh page of a <i><b>Jo Nemo</b></i> story that was drawn years ago; I'll be revisiting the colored pages I posted here a couple years ago, and combining them with Joe's story to release a first issue. Looking over my work, I've decided to tweak it and rely a lot less on captions. Visual cues will now tell the story, which will help its appeal to much younger readers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Finally, I've found a talented character designer to flesh out my <i><b>Grandma Vs</b></i> concept. Jean is knocking the assignment out of the park, I really dig his bande dessine vibe on my characters. With luck, I'll start seriously working on the debut issue of that title as well. Oh, and I want to repitch <i><b>Slam McCracken</b></i> on Kickstarter asap.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Not enough hours in a day! </span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-63958335051515847332014-04-25T12:13:00.001-04:002014-04-25T12:13:25.750-04:00Keep on keepin' on<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The jury is still out on our new colorist. Although inexperienced in colors, we're extremely curious how he'll approach the pages. Thinking outside of the box is one of the hallmarks of <i>Sore Thumb Press</i>, so my hopes are high.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm approached an artist to try a page of <b>Grammy Vs</b>, but haven't heard back as of yet. That concept has a lot of potential, and the right art will make it sing. Finding talent is a challenge, but perseverance (or luck) will win out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I often see work that's incredibly polished; folk spend enormous amounts of time filling panels with meticulous detail, and/or inking every single miniscule line flawlessly. One of the things that I adore about comics is how forgiving the medium is. As a matter of fact, loose lines that properly tell the story are much more effective than lusciously rendered pages that feel 'lifeless'. I've always believed Less is More, and comics can become victims of over-think, like a lot of media.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I've decided to spend free time outside of my 'day job' to tinker with STP projects. I have a feeling once the ball starts rolling, the momentum will be difficult to halt!</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-17557160744386667632014-04-18T09:20:00.004-04:002014-04-18T09:20:40.290-04:00Changes<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We've been anxious to get things moving forward. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dustin, our previous colorist, seems unavailable, so we've sought new talent. We've contacted a potential replacement (more details next week) and have high hopes to finally complete our first <b>Lil' Ninja</b> book. Creative team changes can be a challenge, but it's awesome when a nice fit comes along.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We continue to feel that having finished books will jumpstart us in sales, and getting STP off the ground.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm also reworking <b>Slam McCracken</b> as a comic strip pdf; I think the format works extremely well, and I'll probably retry Kickstarter to gather funds for that concept. At the same time, I'd like to get moving on other concepts (not enough hours in a day!).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The name of the game is being focused, and finding the steps to get things done!</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-66564622903968392332014-04-04T10:30:00.001-04:002014-04-04T10:30:10.757-04:00<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The past couple weeks have been continued fun. I've reformatted<i> Slam McCracken</i> as a strip, and really like the results. It ties in with my great love for classic comic strips like <i>Calvin and Hobbes</i>, and I discovered that syndicated strips were collected in 40s comic books as loose anthologies. I now realize that having the right concept presented in the right format is key, although nothing stops us from expanding to other media once one takes off.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My wonderful partner continues to move forward on <i>Lil' Ninja</i>. At the same time, we're dusting off <i>The Temp</i>, but with an entirely new spin. Once again, I'm excited by the potential of the concept, it fits in with our goal of producing comics that aren't easily pigeon-holed. Later, I'm working on character designs for the next <i>Lil' Ninja</i> book, and we should have Dustin finishing colors on the Victoria tale asap.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Busy indeed! </span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-60181395558603380442014-03-21T10:15:00.000-04:002014-03-21T10:15:48.571-04:00Animation gets it right<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Like a lot of folk, I've been binging on Netflix (thanks to my lovely wife); in particular, I've been watching a couple cartoons: <b>Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes</b> and <b>Batman Brave and the Bold</b>. I find both showcase the coolness of their comic book roots, but in a format that is more appealing than its source material.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Animation demands consistency. Characters always look on model, and stories tend to be self-contained (the Avengers is an exception with subplots spread throughout a season, but the effect isn't as confusing as a typical modern comic book). On account of time limits, plots must be concise and to the point, as well as breezy and entertaining. Characters are distilled to easy-to-understand versions, with dialogue serving to move the story forward while defining said characters.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Today's comic books are quite the opposite; plots drag on sluggishly, and individual issues act as story 'beats', part of a massive 'epic' (while ultimately could have been told better with less issues). Characters spend pages chatting, with witty, precious, hard-boiled dialogue that rarely advances the plot. I understand that by forcing readers to buy a series of issues in order to get the whole story the Big Two are trying to prop up stumbling sales. It does seem crass to me, and I miss the days when a typical issue had stories with a definite end (although sub-plots percolating behind the main tale were effectively left to be resolved at a future date).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I also wish comic books featured clearly defined, heroic characters who look roughly the same from issue to issue, like their animated counter-parts. On any given run, art teams constantly redesign characters (usually for <i>no</i> good reason, and mostly straying too far from clean, iconic designs) and writers peel back 'layers' in their characters with 'never-before-revealed' past events, leading to complex 'motivations'. The result is an inaccessible, pretentious mess, with new readers the casualty.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I realize that comic books are a fluid and creative field, unlike animation which requires tight 'regulation' to achieve the final product. Still, I can only observe that I have a lot more enjoyment watching a typical episode of the above mentioned series than trying to wade thru any recent comic book. Hopefully, comics will learn from their mistakes before the medium is damaged beyond repair.</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-56417433206616868422014-03-14T10:59:00.000-04:002014-03-14T10:59:35.047-04:00Numbers<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Our recent failure with Kickstarter gives us much to consider. There are flaws with the site as a fund-raising tool, but perhaps it could be helpful as a promotional source. We'll mull how best to use the site and return with solid strategy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The factor that was most troubling was the tiny number of pledges (20 something). In order to succeed, our publishing endeavor would need a solid group of core readers; I'd always envisioned 1000 as a good place to start. Considering the wealth of folk out there who read comics and/or graphic novels (including our target demographic of young readers), that number should be easily attainable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The challenge is to find these readers. With clever promotion and a gradual grassroots build up of a fan base/readership, I can see us achieving those numbers, and hopefully a lot more.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Kickstarter was a good experience so far. I'd assumed it would facilitate our dream, but the truth is hard work and perseverence are what's required.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And we've got that in spades, True Believers! (sorry Stan!)</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-17953258057401728862014-02-28T10:02:00.001-05:002014-02-28T10:02:15.251-05:00Almost over <form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We're winding down to the end of our campaign, and it doesn't look good for success. Folk would argue that I haven't harassed every single person I could have, nor taken advantage of services for promotion; my answer would be that for the amount Kickstarter takes from each successful project, it doesn't make much sense to do all the work myself. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the end, I was curious about it, and am glad to have tried it. Like everything, the system has its flaws and it's difficult for a small fish to compete against whales. Regardless, I don't regret our efforts, and look forward to <i>Plan B</i> (which we're still mulling).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I never assumed self-publishing would be easy, and nothing good is ever achieved without sweat!</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-67575608912378201062014-02-21T10:26:00.002-05:002014-02-21T10:26:34.620-05:00Finding an audience<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Kickstarter continues to be a humbling experience. I honestly thought that the all-ages appeal of <b>Lil' Ninja</b> would easily attract pledges, but there isn't much interest thus far in our 'baby'. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It seems I misjudged KS on several levels: with a limited pool of members, there are so many comics fighting for attention that mine has gotten lost. At the same time, harassing folk to pledge is unpleasant for all involved, and usually results in indifference.Thousands have been exposed to the link to my project, with no results. It's rather frustrating, but strangely enough, only strengthens my resolve.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">How do I explain this paradox? I'm too old to give up quite so easily on my self-publishing goals; also, my ego has been worn over the decades to withstand a lot worse than this! I'm using Kickstarter as a learning experience, I've been given much to consider.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the end, my challenge is to <i>find an audience</i>. I need to have the folk who'd be genuinely interested in supporting <b>Lil' Ninja</b> aware of her existence; this seems incredibly daunting, but I've always felt that a grassroots approach (word-of-mouth) coupled with a great product will ultimately find success. It's just a question of time and determination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There are still days left, and we'll see how things turn out.</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-26488077975561072932014-02-14T08:28:00.003-05:002014-02-14T08:28:37.709-05:00Rollercoaster!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's been a busy week, with downs and ups.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Working on our <b>Lil' Ninja</b> pitch made me realize that funding for Slam was trickling in at a glacial pace. Compared to other projects, it didn't look good about reaching our goals within the time allotted, so I decided (after a lot of soul searching) to pull the plug.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A depressing decision indeed, and yet with a positive upside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's clear to me that my cross-hatched graphic novel featuring an egg detective is a hard sell, compared to generic super-hero fare. In order to find an audience, I'd need longer exposure, and a much smaller (and attainable) monetary goal; rather than shooting for a 100 page book, I may reformat the concept as a daily strip, eventually to be collected. As a huge fan of <b>Calvin and Hobbes</b>, the idea is certainly appealing, and I'm looking forward to this phoenix rising from the ashes of my Kickstarter defeat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Once Slam was out of the picture, I was able to replace it with <b>Lil' Ninja</b>, which I believe has much more market appeal and a smaller dollar goal. Later, I'll ask folk to check out the new pitch, and have high hopes that the first issue of our pint-sized heroine <i>will </i>be completed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">All in all, I'm discovering the ins and outs of crowd-funding; it's not what I (naively) expected, but the reality is that I either adapt or find alternatives. The learning process has been a roller-coaster, but well worth the experience.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Onwards!</span></i></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-91252297545624292792014-02-07T08:14:00.005-05:002014-02-07T08:14:54.821-05:00Kickstarter: week one!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My Kickstarter experience has been pretty great, so far. I'd been intimidated to actually launch my project, but the process was relatively straight-forward. It's a thrill when new backers pop up, although the raising-money aspect has been slower than expected.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Considering this is my first experience with crowd-funding, I'm sure to learn a lot; even if we don't meet our goal, my hopes are to establish a list of interested potential buyers of our wares. At the same time, just getting one concept 'out there' is a cool feeling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My next step is promotion; I have a list of sites to approach, and will do so as the deadline gradually rears its head.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mulling the success or failure of this pitch only strengthens my resolve; no matter what, I<i> will</i> find a way to get my concepts moving forward, I have that much faith in them. The key is finding our market, which is the biggest challenge at this point.</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-26389487430370277382014-01-31T10:48:00.001-05:002014-01-31T10:48:15.064-05:00January goal accomplished; next stop, Kickstarter!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The last week has been quite productive. With the assistance of my lovely partner (as well as Sarah, my computer-literate daughter), we have completed<i> two</i> video 'trailers' that will be used in our <b>Kickstarter</b> project pitches.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I should be listing one (hopefully both) later today. This blog will be updated with links.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In case there are new folk to this blog, please feel free to look thru the archives; I'd discussed my concepts in detail over the years, as well as including lots of artwork and interesting stuff.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Onwards! </span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-32709639531150945802014-01-24T10:21:00.001-05:002014-01-24T10:21:35.866-05:00Lil' Ninja jumping forward (literally!)<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Things are indeed moving forward.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Last week, I knocked out a snipet of animation with <b>Lil' Ninja</b> (the new name for our Ninja Baby concept). It felt good to flex some old creative muscles, and the results were quite fun. With luck, we'll finish her Kickstarter video this weekend.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the same time, I'll be working on the <b>Slam McCracken</b> video later today. I have a solid vision of what I hope to accomplish, looking forward to the finished work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I've really enjoyed focusing more on my many concepts; my partner and I just can't shake the feeling that big things are in store in 2014!</span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-45445623704551609582014-01-17T10:29:00.001-05:002014-01-17T10:29:28.930-05:00A slowly rolling snowball....<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My first Friday focused on STP was a good one; I worked out a quick storyboard for my <b>Slam McCracken </b>Kickstarter pitch video, sketched out a quick animation which will be part of my <b>Ninja Baby</b> pitch video, and went thru all of my concepts with fine tooth comb.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To that end, I've decided which were more developed than others; it's tricky, I'm fond of all of my 'babies', but have to admit some are less 'half-baked' than others. What excites me is eventually having different creative folk help flesh some of these out; fresh perspectives can only improve what I've already come up with.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's tough sometimes to maintain my enthusiasm. When weary physically, a future in self-publishing seems quite the impossible task. These moments always pass, and I know in my heart (as constantly mentioned to my lovely partner) that success <i>will</i> come!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hopefully, I'll have videos and pitches ready by the end of January (fingers crossed). </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi69z_qWcvJg0QjUm6kH3FJ7kjQo5-26saPF8qoixH7N9TPa4eMtD2zq683uaFcqOfHylmw0ZJpU9S-8xIbbpXRN3WeXxcIHAAZ6URX5SQxudiPMbpI_lJ3Hzd00zYNofE1BfM9Eq508CKA/s1600/y202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi69z_qWcvJg0QjUm6kH3FJ7kjQo5-26saPF8qoixH7N9TPa4eMtD2zq683uaFcqOfHylmw0ZJpU9S-8xIbbpXRN3WeXxcIHAAZ6URX5SQxudiPMbpI_lJ3Hzd00zYNofE1BfM9Eq508CKA/s1600/y202.jpg" height="320" width="310" /></a></div>
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-53205744453672854882014-01-10T10:47:00.001-05:002014-01-10T10:47:10.153-05:00Ring in 2014!!!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And a New Year is upon us!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">December has been particularly hectic with artwork commissions and the like; it's been impossible finding time to focus on Sore Thumb Press, but I've resolve to commit Fridays solely to STP from now on to get things moving.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I figure that having a day where I'm not distracted with other work will allow me to devote the proper energy to my concepts. Step one is keeping this blog fresh, after that, the sky's the limit for what I hope to achieve every week.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My wife suggested I pick <b>Slam McCracken</b> for a Kickstarter pitch, and I tend to agree; at the same time, pitching <b>Ninja Baby</b> simultaneously should work just fine, since the concepts are wildly different. To that end, I'm planning my Slam video today, looking thru some old artwork, and creating a rough storyboard.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm pretty excited about 2014; it seems my passion and drive keeps growing, and I figure success is inevitable! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Pictured: a Joe Nemo cover/pin-up I aim to have colored in the near future. </i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEcxr1FJendYCyfIDCdSiysc8eDCMWWZlWK44bIDlmnr2rLdAqcrNI63vg_BmFi2DpxS0MyrhHyJnKykMiqcIGG9k4QVSEJub5nOSC3DejG9Z-b4REIvEVAL9oBGN3jR9kP8p2GlLbVQU5/s1600/y045.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEcxr1FJendYCyfIDCdSiysc8eDCMWWZlWK44bIDlmnr2rLdAqcrNI63vg_BmFi2DpxS0MyrhHyJnKykMiqcIGG9k4QVSEJub5nOSC3DejG9Z-b4REIvEVAL9oBGN3jR9kP8p2GlLbVQU5/s1600/y045.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-74778673475608895202013-11-29T14:36:00.002-05:002013-11-29T14:36:12.069-05:00It's been awhile....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpqEVBKTWQVkKNl8CWj5zT2wmQDlCQXvwA1rurlvnzsS9rBFDh0ptOQKz_BmEYCS_4pJO_NYjQqvrXsOt5MTo5VSztZ5F4OQE9goaOH0DfYhHRF-WN3HMFlY7geJfyspSVeQg1xi9xLLHV/s1600/y038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpqEVBKTWQVkKNl8CWj5zT2wmQDlCQXvwA1rurlvnzsS9rBFDh0ptOQKz_BmEYCS_4pJO_NYjQqvrXsOt5MTo5VSztZ5F4OQE9goaOH0DfYhHRF-WN3HMFlY7geJfyspSVeQg1xi9xLLHV/s320/y038.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The past year has been an interesting one. I've been blessed to be busy with a variety of comic assignments and commissions; the flip side is that I haven't had much time to devote to <i><b>Sore Thumb Press</b></i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">That should change in the near future.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">With the reality that Kickstarter is now available to Canada, I can seriously consider acquiring financing to complete one or more of my concepts. My wife and I feel that <b>Ninja Baby </b>is very close, and would be a great book to finally complete; I'm also mulling a <b>Jo Nemo</b> 80 page giant, a homage to the comic books I loved as a kid.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The thought of finally publishing comic books that have bounced around my noggin for decades is incredibly appealing and exciting. Considering how The Big Two have strayed from all-ages material in their main super-hero lines (catering to a dwindling, cynical, aging fan base of which I was once a part of) encourages me to push forward with mine.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The main challenge is time management and organization; once my pitch is ready, I'll keep my fingers crossed that we get attention. I should spend December preparing my video and making concrete decisions on my publishing goals short term as well as long.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I hope you will all join me for the ride!</span></i><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-55579023437683714312013-02-27T10:46:00.002-05:002013-02-27T10:46:55.212-05:00Colorist found!<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Right after our last post, we found our perfect colorist: <b>Dustin Evans</b>. He did an amazing job on the sample pages we gave him, following our directions while adding an individual twist. It feels wonderful to have a certain amount of the graphic novel inked and colored; the finish line is slightly nearer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The next step will be securing funding in order to complete the book. As well, I have another story to plot and draw, to fill out the page number we've decided to go with. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Not enough hours in a day! </span><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-4254880727429667992013-02-07T13:36:00.001-05:002013-02-07T13:36:46.214-05:00Colorist search results<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Our recent attempt at finding a colorist for <b>Ninja Baby</b> has been an eye-opening experience. It's very cool to see all of the talented folk around the world interested in working for us. Some digital painters showed absolutely incredible samples; that being said, despite carefully scrutinizing all emails/portfolios, the perfect 'fit' for our project just wasn't there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's difficult to quantify exactly what we were hoping to see; we just know that the right candidate would've jumped out at us.<b>Ninja Baby</b> (and all STP properties) are our 'babies' of sorts, and handing them off to someone new is a daunting challenge that requires much deliberation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We've decided to take a temporary step back; our goal remains to have a certain number pf pages colored so that the images might spruce up an IndieGoGo pitch. Once that step is accomplished and funding is in hand, we're tremendously excited to move our concepts forward toward publication.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Please check back often for news about <b>Sore Thumb Press</b>!</span></i><br />
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-84424718693222490262013-01-23T16:05:00.002-05:002013-01-23T16:05:16.342-05:00<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Revising the format of the older artwork has allowed me to tweak the storytelling. I didn't notice as much when inking the first time how much information was crammed into a given page. By allowing panels to 'breathe', the story actually flows better. Having reformatted the very first Ninja Baby story, we arrive at 16 pages. I'll be reformatting the second story as time permits.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm5-3IMjcY_8Unr9xj56lh-eR4wuEbM97Bc63fPQ62vvQYBGJzisNfMsS6bMKCKngGjWIajcBcyc7bcxM1Xu5cVFGn50lpeZTuQuxALY-x_HRRY3BsvZs4ddEjYnF79XIpPTaayvzUd8hJ/s1600/nb_5x7_p14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm5-3IMjcY_8Unr9xj56lh-eR4wuEbM97Bc63fPQ62vvQYBGJzisNfMsS6bMKCKngGjWIajcBcyc7bcxM1Xu5cVFGn50lpeZTuQuxALY-x_HRRY3BsvZs4ddEjYnF79XIpPTaayvzUd8hJ/s320/nb_5x7_p14.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Looking forward to this book being completed! We've plotted the third story that will be in the book, I'm excited by what's in store....</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span>
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-26471276952111027052013-01-11T10:24:00.005-05:002013-01-11T10:24:54.117-05:00Incremental forward progress<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My wife's input has been invaluable; her comments have allowed us to steer our publishing venture in exciting directions, and I'm grateful for that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We've discussed the format for our first book, based on printing cost; she also brought up the point that a certain book size is popular, and it got us rethinking the pages I'd already inked. With rescanning and reformatting, we can package <b>Ninja Baby</b> as a 'manga digest', which will allow the artwork to breathe better, and appeal to our target demographic.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm thrilled by this direction, and will start tweaking the finished artwork. As a bonus, it'll be easier to achieve a certain number of pages, without necessarily creating much new artwork. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm looking forward to having our first book ready to sell!</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-64036096673257488692013-01-02T09:51:00.003-05:002013-01-02T09:51:37.520-05:00A New Year, ripe with promise<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It depresses me a bit how I haven't spent much time on our small press endeavor over the last few months. Focusing on paying work remains a priority, and I look forward to the day when I can place all my attention on our 'baby'.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Discussing things with my partner in crime, it seems that a decent sized 'graphic novel' is the way to go. That would be easier to sell than a comic book, especially considering that the market for kid's comics seems so dead (which is itself depressing considering how comic books were a powerful entertainment phenomenon in the past). Deciding to target young readers hungry for graphic novels just makes sense.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The trick is figuring out the size of the book. 100 pages seems daunting; even 80 pages (a size which appeals to me on account of the Silver Age 80 page giants I love to collect) is a lot of pages to fill. I think 64 pages might be the answer, a decent amount of material for the print format we're looking at.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Currently I have 24 inked pages of <b>Ninja Baby</b>; expanding the book as described above will involve some work, but the end result should be exciting and inspiring. Just gotta get cracking on it, which fits in with my resolution to sharpen my focus in 2013. </span>
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Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297094061202423196.post-2135704528822639932012-10-19T14:30:00.001-04:002012-10-19T14:30:13.655-04:00Funding options<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
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<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="P5R3JRGHSPE22" /> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I first considered self-publishing, funding sources became a priority. I assumed (naively) that launching this blog with my online 'hand' held out hoping for a donation would generate some money. This didn't transpire. I realize that folk are bombarded daily with requests for charity or demands on their disposable income (as well as the fact that promotion of STP has been so far limited). I was never completely comfortable asking for money to fund my publishing dreams anyways, and when nothing trickled in, I prepared to do things out of my own pocket.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Last week, I noted that <b>IndieGoGo</b> is available for Canadian projects. I've eyed <b>Kickstarter </b>ever since it began, but they restrict projects to US citizens (as of this writing). I like the concept of rewarding folk willing to contribute to my dream with nifty 'gifts'; I have some neat ideas bouncing around my noggin if I ever had the opportunity to try either site. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I've discussed the matter with my co-publisher, and we have some mulling to do. Funding is a powerful tool; it could either help complete material that is at a fledgling stage, or allow us to print stuff that's almost finished. We'll have to go over out list of concepts, and decide A) if funding is worth pursuing, and B) which 'baby' should be our focus.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm confident that if people were properly introduced to my ideas, they'd become as passionate about them as I am. Once we've decided if/when to take that step, this blog will share the details.</span></form>
Greg Woronchakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16234872636242811966noreply@blogger.com0