Yesterday’s Bauxy sequence was the last one I did back in 2024. I posted it to Instagram back then, because I still had my Instagram account. That has since changed.
I never liked posting to Instagram. I only created my account there so I could click “Like” on my wife’s posts. But it was easy to post there, and I was trying out the daily comic thing, so there it went.
I don’t mind posting free stuff (that will likely never be seen/read) on the Web at large (e.g., this blog), but I loathe doing so for the benefit of some billionaire who thinks I should accept exposure and thumbs as payment. I’m not grist for their fucking algorithmic mill.
But I wanted to draw and post more Bauxys. I’ve had a sequence I’ve been sketching for over a year, but hadn’t really tried to finish for a couple of reasons–including not being sure where I would post them. Now that I’ve restarted my Guns & Magic blog, tho, I have a place where I can post at my leisure without an algorithm breathing down my neck.
BUT…I had been using ClipStudio before, and that’s not currently available. For some of the same reasons I didn’t elucidate before. So I’m learning how to use Procreate, and get it set up in a way I can work with it. On top of being damn rusty with my Apple Pencil and line work.
My process, such as it is, begins in GoodNotes, where I sketch the panel.
Then I pull it into the *real* art proggy, in this case Procreate, set it as a background layer and start “inking.”
I was really struggling last night. The final result didn’t come out *too* bad, but I will be inking it from scratch before it gets posted for reals.
Last night also reminded me that I need to create a template in Procreate, with the borders and text boxes–and notes about the brush and sizes I want. So I got a first draft of that done.
Since the sequence I’m working on (the panel of Bauxy sleeping above is #1 out of … 13?) it could be a while before I have finished panels to post. But they’re coming!
I’m happy to be drawing again.
-David