Journal Posts

Rethinking things.

You know what, this weekly update schedule doesn’t seem to be meshing too well with the day job. Fun stuff over the Hallowe’en weekend and unexpectedly having to work yesterday means that there’s not a hope of having a page complete any time this week.

The pattern seems to be that there’s just not enough wiggle room in my intended schedule. If I do anything in my time off from the day job aside from work on the comic the schedule falls over and I don’t get the page done on time. Guilt-inducing for me, disappointing for you.

So I guess that’s a roundabout way of saying that I’m going to be moving away from the weekly update format for the time being. My goal will now be to update every other Wednesday. This should give me time to actually hit my deadlines, and means I can actually put in a little more polish as well – so rather than pages that have been rushed right up to the last minute to make the deadline, you’ll get artwork that’s been given the time and attention it deserves.

Rest assured that this is every bit as frustrating for me as it is for you – I really want to tell these stories, and the one-page-at-a-time thing is pretty agonising.

2 November 2011 | 11 Comments

The artist at work.

I FREAKIN' LOVE COLOURING

Sorry, no page update this week; between work and a very busy (and enjoyable) weekend away there just weren’t enough hours in the week.

Next Wednesday for certain, though! Seriously.

19 October 2011 | 2 Comments

Bear with me.

Hurr I'm a burr.

Things will be in a slight state of flux for the next week or two – I’ve recently landed a part-time job at my FLGS, so there’ll be a period of adjustment while I balance that and the comic.

In the meantime it’s likely that I’ll be needed for more than part-time hours in the immediate future, so there may be some disruption in updates for the duration. My apologies in advance for that, but be certain that Dark Places will return once things settle down.

EDIT: Since interest has been expressed and print-on-demand makes things easy, the Bear With Me t-shirt has been added to the selection of eminently desirable merchandise in my my Zazzle store. It’s available in light and dark flavours.

8 August 2011 | 7 Comments

The Stones of Gwethyas.

Work on the next chapter continues apace, and I’m aiming to kick things off next week. In the meantime here’s a random bit of scenery from the world of Dark Places.

High in the Plains of Gwethyas, travellers wandering from the King’s Road may encounter what looks to be a strange outcropping of rock, grown over with lichen and heather. Many such stones lie fallen and half-buried across the rolling landscape, but enough still stand to trace the outline of a massive circle fully ten leagues across.

No one knows who brought the stones to Gwethyas, only that they are incredibly old – ancient when the Fey Courts raised the rings and avenues of Kollmoor to serve as gates for their armies, long predating even the hilltop caer-tombs of Koghbrannow. That many of the stones are worn smooth by time and exposure only hints at their vast age, as no tool forged by man or dwarf can mark their surface. Despite this many of the stones still bear carvings of grimacing figures, hunched and threatening.

The hardy folk who graze horses and cattle on the plains shun the lands bounded by the “Gurnstones”, claiming it to be a blighted and unclean place. They refuse to take their herds within sight of the stones, as any animal straying into the forbidden region is abandoned, or even driven off should it attempt to return.

22 June 2011 | No Comments

London Comic & Small Press Expo

Dark Places @ London Comic & Small Press Expo

Just got back from the London Small Press Expo, where I was tabling with Peter Vine – scholar, gentleman, writer of of Hard Graft.

So, hello and big thanks to everyone who stopped by and perused my wares – and even more big thanks to everyone who bought something! Welcome to the site, do check out the archives (and the store ), maybe even leave a comment. I love hearing from people who read and enjoy the comic, and it was especially gratifying to have several existing readers of the comic come up and say hi. I liked that a lot.

I should also mention that you can Like the Dark Places Facebook page or follow @darkplacescomic on Twitter to get up-to-the minute information on page updates, Livestream broadcasts, future convention appearances and all that good stuff.

12 March 2011 | 1 Comment