Here are some answers to questions people have asked me at conventions, plus some
answers to questions they didn't ask but I wanted to discuss anyway.....
Q. Why does the latest Space Babe 113 comic have a fold-out cover?
When looking for printing options recently, I notived a company that could do a DVD booklet with
a fold-out cover. I hadn't seen any comics in that format, so I was immediately
consumed by a burning desire use it.
Q. Is she drawn in that style to get round some censorship problems?
No, the comic looks like that because I wanted to explore using abstract, stylised characters in story telling.
Besides, the nature of the stories would make it look silly if she was e.g. photo-realistic
(assuming I could draw it like that).
Q. Why is she Space Babe 113, not just Space Babe?
In Space Babe's world, everyone has generic or abstract names. In order to distinguish
each other, they append the last few digits of their citizen's id number to their name.
...and of course, it is an old SF cliche that people have numbers in their names, going back at least
as far as
Hugo Gernsback.
Q. How do you pronounce "113"?
I say one-one-three, you may say tomato...
Q. Is it a continuing story?
Yes - the main story arc takes 9 issues. After that, I've a few more Space Babe 113 stories in mind,
so she may yet meet Dr. Cojones...
Each issue is pretty much self-contained, though issue 2 ends with a cliff-hanger, as does issue 6.
Q. Why do her knickers talk?
Space Babe wears standard-issue European Space Force knickers, equiped with
on-board artificial intelligence. Her knickers can perform the functions of a PDA,
manage her e-mail, calender etc. Also, they have access to built-in sensors, monitor her
health and can connect to various wireless networks.
Q. Why are all the panels the same size and all the pages the same layout?
I'm glad you asked that....
One day, I was looking for some gift-wrapping paper
and I noticed that there were
a number of designs built from squares, placed in a rectangular grid.
Having read Scott McCloud's
Understanding Comics, I immediately recognised that it was an
example of visual images juxtaposed in deliberate sequence - i.e. a comic by his
definition.
OK, it wasn't a very interesing comic: there were only a few different panels,
repeated indefinitely
down and across the page and all were abstract designs, not illustrations.
However, it was easy to imagine sheets of gift-wrap paper containing actual stories.
Not knowing anything about the wrapping-paper industry, I didn't take the idea any further
but remembered it when I started thinking about doing the Space Babe comic. Initially I
intended to make the pages be like fragments of the wrapping-paper - they would be grids
of square panels, maybe 7 across. That would suit the first part of the story I was working on
( some of the stuff that will be in issue 3 ), however I quickly realised that:
- It probably wouldn't suit all the rest of the story.
- maybe the panels would be too small.
- I'd have to do far too much drawing.
I also hoped it would give the comic a "relentless" feeling and suit the
abstract ( OK, cartoony ) nature of the artwork.
....and besides, if I'd tried to do use a more "usual" approach,
I would probably have spent so long worrying about layouts, I'd never
have had the confidence to get past the first few pages.
Q. What format is Space Babe 113?
So far, the first 9 issues are "US comic with the top chopped off" - roughly the same size as
Berlin by
Jason Lutes.
I've recently been experimenting with DVD booklet sized comics.
Q. Do you work digitally? What software do you use?
The Space Babe artwork is created with the aid of a PDA and PC - see
information here.
Q. Will Space Babe go out with me?
Q. It's just a load of T & A, isn't it?
Well, yeah, I can see how it might look like that but I hope there's more to it.
Check the reviews
here by Win (creator of
Salamander Dance) amongst others.
Yes, I love her stuff, it's dark, sexy, cute and stylish.
