Hey there! Wow, fancy you clicking on this tab! I just wanted to do a little post talking about the look/inspiration/whatever of DokiDoki CheckMate.
The Story:
The story is a Love Story. A boy love story. 2 Boys, 1 Love. There will be innuendo. Near things but you will never see anything more than PG-13. Seriously. Drawing anything more than shirtless kissing would revoke my Unicorn status so I really don't want to do that. Two of the characters are generously donated by my very good friend Kristen Wong. That's Marcus and Francis. This story came out of a lot of fun talks I had with her and when I could feel myself dying inside after a hard couple of years I decided to stop dying and start drawing. I thought this little story would be easy and fun and easy. But I don't know. I murder myself with my art. So... I hope you enjoy the ride. And the love story. Cute boys. Medievalish fairy tale times. Horsies...
The Look:
It's a fairy tale so I wanted a fairytale look. I wanted simple. I wanted easy. You know... I've been drawing long enough that I should know that simple is not easy. When I get involved it's never easy. It's color, it's lineless, it's done 99% on the computer. Everything that takes this comic so far out of my comfort zones I can't even tell you. I. Can't. Even. Tell. You. I hope though, that when you look at it you think - ah! Children's book! Little Golden Books! My childhood!!! (Come join me in the early dawn of time before the internet!)
If you have ever seen a Little Golden Book, Mary Blair, SHAG, Amanda Visell, Peachiifruit (Where did her devart go?), Rosemary Travale, Natsume Ono, Sheilah Beckett!!! It's retro, it's nostalgic, you see it and you expect fairy tale! I'll confess - I stole the whole line is a nose thing from Rosemary Travale. I did. I took it. Imagine my chagrin when she commented on my comic!! I credit Peachiifruit with the drybrush look that I could do in paint and had NO CLUE how to mimic on the computer. (No clue!) Mary Blair should inspire everyone. Seriously. Walt Disney loved the woman, ignore the It's a Small World ride. Her art and design was unbelievable and charming!!! The lineless thing I really saw done excellently by B1nd1... I'm sure you will look at some of those sources and go - wow try harder Trish. I am!! I am....
I am!
I just hope you're enjoying the comic. I apologize for being slow with the pages. I'm realistic about the fact I'll never be able to live off my comics but I hope I can share them with you all. Check out Today's Inspiration. Check it out everyday! I do.'
Lastly:
Are those my only inspirations? Good lord no. If you can easily list everyone you look up to you need to open your eyes wider, these are just the select ones specific to this project. I wouldn't be doing comics at all if not for Asterix, Ranma 1/2, and old school Donald Duck, Sugar and Spike, and classic Peanuts. I look at painters, illustrators, animators, comickers, everyone. I love artist's sketchbooks, I love people who draw. I read comics of all types voraciously. I read them with bad translations, I read them online, offline, in books, in papers. I collect Artist's Sketchbooks. I treasure them. I love roughs more than finishes. Am I just rambling now - you bet!
Thanks for reading, I hope y'all come back. <3
