Issue #4 update

God, December?! It's been bloody ages since I posted on here. I started a graphic design business back in February (check us out at amazing15.com) and life has been INSANE since then (which is great, obviously, but it's left precious little time to work on the comic).

That said, work does continue – I'm about 30 pages into #4 and it'll be about 45 pages in total so should be done early in the new year I reckon. Which'll make it over a year since #3. To those that give a crap I'm really sorry. Must do better.

Still, I'm pleased with how #4 is shaping up. It's a big issue with lots of 'answers' (and a few new questions, naturally...), lots of talking (I've just done a two page sequence that sees two people passing each other the time of day in a country lane), lots of flashbacks and lots of stuff which required some hefty military research. Military research? Wait and see.

Here's the cover.



I finished a first pass on this ages ago but wasn't 100% happy with it so I've been tinkering for a while. Done now though. \

Until, you know, I fiddle with it again.

Workspace

Been pretty busy with life stuff recently hence the lack of updates, but have still managed to find time to do some work on The Absence #4. Nothing I really want to post up here yet – the pages I'm doing at the moment are quite spoilerific. In the meantime, I thought I might post this. Purely for my own indulgence really, so bear with me.

This, for those that might actually be interested, is my workspace:


KEY:
1. This is a (now out of date) character list. It has descriptions of what each character looks like as well as their relationship to other people. I keep a similar (and more current) version as a Word file too.
2. These are the thumbnails for the five page sequence I'm drawing at the moment.
3. The current page I'm drawing. This one happens to be at the roughing out stage.
4. A page from issue one. The five page sequence is a flashback with Marwood talking to Father Jonathan (he who fell to his death in the prologue). I printed the page with the church interior so I could try and keep some kind of consistency.
5. This is the script for the sequence. It's covered in doodles. I write it like a film script, with little to no thought to how it'll flow as pages but then scribble all over it and make notes and rewrite as I do the thumbnails.
6. Hard to make out here, but this is a bulging A2 portfolio. It contains all the art so far done for The Absence. The zip broke a long time ago...
7. My tatty putty rubber. Not to self: must get a new one.
8. Pencils (2xHB, 2x2H for sketching), sharpeners, rulers. Without fail, I'll knock all this shit onto the floor with the arm of my chair everytime I get up or sit down.
9. The drawing board. Home-made by my dad who used to be a draughtsman. He built it himself so he could work from home and I've sort of inherited it. The strut on the back is made from plumbing. I love that! I ink differently - I loose the drawing board and just work on the table. I find that easier for some reason. I used to draw the same way but I started to get a bad back and dad kindly offered me use of his drawing board.

The lighting in my office is terrible so I have a lamp behind the drawing board for night time working. There's also a radio behind there too. And that's it. Check back soon when I might post something more interesting. But don't bet on it.

Young Marwood

Been somewhat busy recently with the arrival of a new baby, but work on issue #4 of The Absence continues. Lots of flashbacks this issue (and with it lots of answers too...) Here's the young, unscarred Marwood from page 2. Well, page 2 and page 7. You'll see what I mean when the issue comes out...

The collection has arrived!

Very excited to receive this parcel today:



So, if you look over to the right of the screen there, or follow this link, you'll find the first collection of issues 1-3 The Absence for sale on lulu.com. 112 pages with a new cover, including the art for all three issue covers plus a pin up section by some great artists and all for £8. Not bad is it?

Aintitcool Review!

Well then. This is rather brilliant. The Absence has had a review on cult website Aintitcool!


THE ABSENCE #1

Writer: Martin Stiff
Illustrator: Martin Stiff
Publisher: Self Published via LuLu
Reviewer: Mr. Pasty

THE ABSENCE is a six-part miniseries starting with issue number one, HERO, starring Marwood Clay as a soldier returning to a small village on the coastal edge of Southern England. The only problem is Clay was presumed dead, killed in World War II. Further complicating matters is the fact that the townsfolk were kinda glad he was offed and are less than enthused to see him return home. Unfortunately not all of him has made it, as ol’ Marwood lost the lower part of his mouth below the nose. He sort of resembles that anatomy mannequin in the high school nurses office but his disfigurement runs much, much deeper.

I have to give props to Martin Stiff for serving as both writer and illustrator, as just one of those duties is a daunting task on any book but to do both, and to do them well, is truly the mark of a great talent. I was a little disappointed the comic was in black and white, as I feel like I’m reading a newspaper, but that’s just me nitpicking because THE ABSENCE leaves very little to be critical of. The narrative is sharp, the pacing is just right and Stiff has a loose hand when it comes to the illustrations. I like the way he’s able to capture fear and anxiety right out of the gate which is a considerable feat considering that you really don’t know who any of the characters are and have no established reason for giving a shit about what happens to them. Stiff makes the most of his atmosphere and shadows to draw the reader into a brilliant opening sequence that involves the collapse of one man’s world. Good stuff.

Some of the dialog is hokey but that has more to do with the geography of Stiff’s setting than his execution. In fact, I think it lends credibility to the story because if it’s taking place in Southern England than dammit it should look, sound and feel like Southern England. One thing that drives me batty is when comics have aliens, monsters and mutants all duking it out on the streets of San Francisco yet they all talk like socialites from the upper west side of Manhattan. As far as THE ABSENCE is concerned, we don’t yet understand the significance of Marwood’s return or what scars he shares with the townspeople, but Stiff has done an excellent job of giving me a reason to stick around and find out. And if you’re just in it for the cheap thrills you’ll be happy to know there are abandoned churches, Germans with hypodermic needles and gratuitous beer shots. Dark, creepy and utterly satisfying, THE ABSENCE is a self-published comic that not only meets, but in many cases exceeds what you’d expect to find from any of the big name printers. Pasty likes.

Small Press Big Mouth review

A great review of issues #1-#3 over on the Small Press Big Mouth podcast. Although I've had a few written reviews it's kinda weird hearing people actually 'talking' about The Absence.

I'll post the review as an audio file in a month or so but in the meantime I heartily recommend you all head over to the Small Press Big Mouth blog and download the podcast right now! You can also find it on iTunes under the Geek Syndicate podcast umbrella.

The review of The Absence starts about 30 minutes in but do please listen to the rest – it's a brilliant podcast about the small press comics scene.

Collection cover - final version!

I banged on to a nauseating degree about the process involved in putting this cover together, here, here and good Christ, even here. For some reason this cover was a fight from start to finish. I think it's pretty complex (maybe too complex - it's been wanked to death I fear) and I've been so insanely busy with a bunch of other stuff I've just not had the time to dedicate to getting it right.

Anyway, I think, now, finally, at last, it's done. And if even if it isn't, I fucking well am.



I'm raring to get my teeth into issue #4. The last 5 pages of that issue is a sequence I've had in my head since the inception of The Absence so after 2 years and 140 odd pages I can't bloody wait to get it out!