What are your strong and weak areas?

[Caleb Goodson]

Greetings, all!

I think a little friendly discussion amongst the creative is in order,so I am putting a topic out here. What are your strong areas as a creator? What are your weak areas?

My strong areas lie in character development and the fight scene (Especially the latter). My weak areas tend to be in the characterization of female characters (I find myself constantly having to talk to women in order to get an idea as to what a female character would do in a given situation, as opposed to male one.).

So, any other thoughts?

[Ryan Eldridge]

Aaaand, yet another artist bugs out on a project. Seriously, I think I might be cursed or something :P

[Sean Taylor]

Happens all the time, bro. The scourge of "partnership" work that isn't "front end pay" work.

[Jim Ritchey]

BOO-HOO-HAHAHA!!!! Now I know all of your weaknesses!!!! All is going according to plan... :D

Mine? KISS Principle (Keep It Simple, Stupid). Sometimes I over-explain--some things, however clever, would be best cut..
I need to avoid tangents with characters that don't prop up the main dynamic of the story.
I can handle transitions better.

That is all--anything else can be blamed on my art. :D

[Sean Taylor]

I thought your art was at fault for everything, amigo. Or do I have you mixed up with that other James Ritchey III?

[Jim Ritchey]

Fall of the Roman Empire? My art.
The Protestant Reformation? My art.
The Spanish Inquisition? Yup--you guessed it...
Dynamite Entertainment? Oh, S**t--that might be real...:D

[Caleb Goodson]

...but I like your art...

[Jim Ritchey]

The writer in me thinks the artist in me is insufficient to fulfill his magnificent, singular personal vision.
The artist in me thinks the writer is an egg-headed poseur who needs to snap out of it, get off his metaphorical lazy behind regarding product, and to not use so much pesky dialogue.and narrative--'cause violence is cathartic!

But...Thank You, very much!

[Caleb Goodson]

Violence is cathartic, but there has to be reason behind the violence...oh, who am I kidding? Bring on the fights!

[William Satterwhite]

I'm a jack of all trades but a master of none.

In fact, it might actually be a stretch to consider myself even a "jack" at some things but I have at least a basic knowledge now of all the steps in the creative process of putting a book together as well as a little bit on the production end. The downside to this though is that I'm not sure I've allowed myself to actually become good at anything in particular and as far as my art goes, I know for a fact that having to ink (and to a lesser degree, color) my art has negatively affected my growth as a penciller- I used to have a more detailed style and enjoyed putting as much as I could into a drawing, but ever since I started inking everything I've found myself putting less and less into my art.

[Caleb Goodson]

Being skilled at everything, but a master of none means that while you may not be as good as some in a single area, you can still produce good work in any area, and fill in for anything that is needed.

I don't really see a downside, as you can talk about any area of production, and your opinion will be respected.

[Jim Ritchey]

Dewd, I'd never seen your stuff before this site--to Comicspace, and I love it. You've got a unique style, and all I see wrong is that you need to overcome some stuff artistically that anybody who's been down the road of learning, well, has had to learn.
1.There's nothing wrong with your finishes, stylistically (like I said--unique)--but you need to concentrate on structure, and building the figure at the layout stage, and fitting it within 'the cube of space'--the perspective.. That way, you can ink however you want, and it will be perfection. If you put the time on the rest of the characters that you put into Stealth, you're there.

Still working on that, me-selfsk.

2. I hate drawing backgrounds, too--but your backgrounds should be even more realistic than your figures. Reference backgrounds at every opportunity--since you're a writer/artist--I can tell you, it's a good habit to get into to gather photos while your scripting--Thank You, Google!!!
3. Figures should never be static--bird's eye, worm's eye, keep the camera moving. 'Static' should only be used for a 'punctuation' in 'talking heads' pages--like signaling pent-up rage. The figures should always seem like they're in motion, even if they're standing still, otherwise. Check out some old Eisner or Toth pages, and you'll get my drift.
4. Line weight. Kirby level of Old Skool---Thicker outline for closer figures, thinner lines for farther figures and backgrounds. Be religious about it.

Some above applies to your very interesting work, some mebbe not--but it seemed a good opportunity to get it out there. If I'd listened to Bob Burden on some of what I'd just mentioned above 18 years ago, I'd be worshiped as a comics god today (instead of bordering on an industry joke). Again, yer stuff is awesome even without the above.

[William Satterwhite]

Thanks for the great feedback Jim, its greatly appreciated and will definitely be taken to heart!