Fortress of Perpetual Midnight

As was the case with Spanish back when I thought I knew it, I'm planning also to publish official Japanese versions of my projects. (Of course, as I've noted here, my first one might be a bit heavy on the English even in the Japanese version.) I'm far from fluent, of course, but this way I can provide translations that are much truer to the author's intent than most. The expanded exposure this should provide would also give me a chance to come into contact with people who are fluent, which means I could have a chance to actually learn the language, and perhaps impose on someone to correct my work. (I think I'd have more trouble bothering to make the rest of the appropriate site bilingual to cater to these people.)

Another thing that I've pondered at times is that, since I'm going to have to learn to draw anyway, it would be really nifty if someday I could get one of my works published in my belovèd YuriHime S (not the main Comic YuriHime, as I don't imagine I'll ever manage to write works appropriately feminine or comedic for there—with Ms.? Natsuneko's work there, I might have hope, but it's nothing compared to Picard's, as I'll note later). If I did manage to achieve widespread popularity as noted above, they might let me do it cold turkey, but the more likely way is through the Ichijinsha Comic Taishō （「大正」ではなくて「大賞」） or other yomi-kiri (the comic equivalent of a pilot episode). The problem with that is that, as I've no doubt mentioned before, I don't think of many good one-shot ideas lately, as I'm so absorbed in crafting intricate webs of full-sized projects. (Even Project Cow Level, which was pre-planned to be a short, simple "practice" project, is expected to run to about one graphic novel's worth.)

And yet, oddly enough, I happened to think of an interesting one-shot idea yesterday. Although it relies on a lot of tropes, it has a major setting element that I haven't seen used for this before, and unlike some, the premise is distinctly yuri, not just a romance that happens to be between two ladies. (Oddly enough, the unusual setting for a yuri story may have caused me to have a dream last night about sleeping with a man (don't remember for sure). If so, at least I was the seme. . . .) Of course, as a short story, it doesn't have much to reveal without actually writing it, and I'd rather keep the good parts to myself just to avoid anyone else stealing them. (Yes, that's my delusions of grandeur talking again.)

If this somehow did come to pass, there's the problem that the format only allows 400 characters of commentary, much less than I'd normally use. I'd probably put most of it (and the official English translation) on the Web as a supplement to the published part, as Ms. Miyahara does. For the actual printed version, I'm thinking the essentials are along the lines of 「男で申し訳御座いません。いつか必ずレディーにもよろこんで頂けるまんがを描ける様になりますから、今は違った味でがまんして下さいませな。」 (although I haven't bothered to boot up Word to get a character count).

The "chigatta aji" bit overlaps with the question of how predisposed these Japanese folks will be to publishing stuff by some American git. I can't do much about that, but I might consider working in a more Japanese style than my own. For some reason, it seems to be coming out with a larger-than-usual proportion of pseudo-comical elements despite the fact that I don't have a sense of humor (perhaps to make up for the fact that romance is an alien concept to me), so it'll be an outlier in my portfolio in more ways than one (hey, more dovetailing with the post subject).

By the way, in the excessively megalomaniacal mōsō situation that I actually got to do a serial, Project AnthraXX seems at this point as if it would actually be palatable. Of course, it would be helluva Webcomic time in a quarterly mook. . . .

Since I finished with the job application at the end of last month, I was going to get back to other things I'd been putting off to focus on that, most importantly Project Cow Level. Of course, when I decided I did want to try my master plan, I ordered it (and the other, just for convenience) immediately to make sure I got the discount and free other format on this month's issue. I was surprised to find that I got the one from the previous month as well, which was nice as I thought I was going to have to buy it at a higher price without the .pdf, but that also means I have that many more distracting reading materials this month. We'll see how much I get done.

P.S. I also noticed that the link to where I get the free stuff is to your account's allowed downloads. To get the free stuff without a Paizo account, go to: 1 2 3. Also, my comments about the Blue Rose setting were worded a bit over-idealistically. I actually heard just a vague mention about a lot of "queer" characters on the Paizo forums.

Unusually enough for me, Project Cow Level has no sex in it, as I didn't have any interest in having such content in a story about tauren and dwarves. While I'm at it, I'm considering keeping the violence to (MPAA) PG as well. That may be difficult for one of my adventure-based (type B) projects, but we'll see.

Meanwhile, as I've mentioned before, Projects Umbra and Homuncupunk are coming to have more and more sex, while Project AnthraXX is coming to have more and more story, thus blurring the gap between A and B. Consequently, AnthraXX is probably the most ready of my original projects, owing primarily to the fact that its setting is heavily based on the real world, thus preventing me from needing to create mecha designs from scratch. Of course, it's still quite controversial, but at least there's plot to thin out the sex and I don't portray YHWH in quite such a bad light. I also think that the witches' and demons' subplot doesn't overpower the main story about the protagonist and heroine, but it's still tangential enough that I haven't completely thrown out the idea of making it a separate project.

In other previews, I've thought about vague subtitles for the three story arcs of Project Homuncupunk:

Part One: The Bounty Hunter
Part Two: The Prodigal Son
Part Three: The Emissary

I chopped the first two down to one word each for better parallelism. The subtitles reflect Jūzaburō's role in the story. ("So, what's with the second one if he turns coat at the beginning?" you might ask. Now that would be telling, wouldn't it?) Riku's backstory relates mostly to the first story arc, but the second half of it has a spoiler for something in the middle of "The Hunter," so where I include that will depend on how long each volume runs. I'm also not quite sure about the wording for the third part (and can't explain without spoiling it), but there's plenty of time to think about that.

I'm thinking of also making Project AnthraXX in three parts, corresponding with the three trimesters of Ms. Brown's freshman year. These would likely be short enough that one volume of the hard copies could be devoted to each, with one extra story as an extra for each. I don't have subtitles for the trimesters, as I don't know quite where the breaks will be, but the first two extras are currently known as "Time-Gilded Paradise Lost" and "The Dark of Gomorrah"; I'm not so sure about the third, as it doesn't really seem to add anything to the series.

Continuing from previously (and noticing that my reference to bootlegs ended up being after the break):

You may have noticed that I haven't quit the horrible job that I have. The fact is, despite its horribleness, it's the only job I managed to get in a year of searching and working with Voc Rehab. I'm going to do my best to tough it out until I get something else.

"But if that's all you were able to get, how could you get something else, you stupid bastard?" I hear you ask. After all, I still have no usable experience, skills, talents, or work ethic. However, my previous job coach let drop the value of this job: that I get a good reference from it. Sad to say, but I'm one of the best workers in the department, and the chief supervisor (the one who doesn't smoke) has a very high opinion of me. Combined with the fact that I've been able to keep this job, this is of value to getting a better one.

Anyway, I don't know about specifics, but there are a few ideas I've seen lately that particularly jump out at me:


POLICE OFFICER

This was featured in the Star's "5 Jobs for Which You Don't Need a Bachelor's" (or something like that) a while back when I happened to read.

Pros: I'd be able to get good training and experience in assertiveness and tactical combat. I'd also most likely gain access to resources that would allow me to actually find out what the hell the laws are without having to hire a legal consultant. The only physical requirements noted were a test of agility, which is the least of my weaknesses.

Cons: I'd have to deal with bullying from coworkers and suspects, which I don't currently handle well. I imagine they wouldn't be receptive to use as a temporary job until I can find something better, or to having someone with such radical nonconformist views on the force. Perhaps most importantly, I'd be likely to be turned away because I'm diagnosed as "crazy" to human eyes.

Alternatives: A security guard job would be similar, but unlikely to provide training. It would also be likely to require graveyard shifts. The military would be even better training, but I hear that bullying is extremely bad there. Worse than that, in the military, I'd be required to fight whatever wars the government wants me to fight, unlike the police, which just enforces our own laws.


GAME DESIGNER/DEVELOPER

Although I haven't had the resources or conne to be able to play their actual games, I've been following Privateer Press's main setting for a number of years just because it's nifty.

Pros: It's a dream job, one that would actually be fun to do and give me useful experience toward my life goals. They specifically say that they want a positive work environment, so I doubt that there will be so much hatred toward game designers/developers in the office itself. I'd be able to work on what are, as far as I know, the best two wargames out there, and one of the best settings. I'd also get employee discounts on what is, as far as I know, the best miniature line in the world now that GW stopped being friendly to real gamers.

Cons: The biggest obstacle seems to be actually getting the job, since I have no published credits. I've put this off so long that I'm going to have to truck it to get the "design kung fu" submission in on time, which means probably no playtesting—although I do have quite a good idea, and they're not expecting a finished, balanced product. (Unlike last time, I can easily do these things because I know about the setting and thus can write things that I wouldn't be able to sell myself anyway.) I'd also have to relocate to the Seattle area, but that doesn't bother me too much, and I already have relatives and family friends there.

Alternatives: I would have a much easier time getting grunt work. It wouldn't be great, but it's likely to beat out my current one on points 1, 4, and * in the previous post. Also, the proximity might get me a foot in the door for another go at R&D. The main question is whether I'd be willing to relocate just for that. There were also openings at Fantasy Flight, but they don't accept rookies.

Anyway, Project Cow Level, which is coming to be my (solitary) internship for my hypothetical real job, has been delayed by research for the latter, the trip, and more comics. These should all be out of the way (other than my kansō) by the end of March, so I can get back to it. In terms of other short-term stuff, I'm considering at least one submission to Gamer Lifestyle.

Now that I've finished with the comics for the time being, it's time to get back to Project Cow Level. Currently, the main problem there is that no one has expressed interest in doing the coloring for me, so I'm probably having to learn to do that myself. In particular, a story about dwarven prospectors tends to have a lot of underground scenes, so I'm going to have to worry about lighting whenever they're dealing with those who don't have darkvision. (The darkvision is taken from the SRD, so it's in monochro; to make it consistent with the rest, I'm going to have to color those parts and then grayscale them. More interesting will be the parts where dwarves are looking at places that are partially lit. . . .)

Just as I was about ready to start on Project Cow Level, Ms. mizuno_youko happened to be getting rid of an old (but still functional for the moment) scanner, and you know how I feel about free stuff. Just for fun, I tried it out before opening it. As you can see, it's perfectly good quality for a fan-comic—to the point that I should be able to draw each page on an 8½×11 sheet and still have the content of a reasonably sized page. (I may upgrade if I ever get to the point that I can make my own projects.) Since I won't be allowed to publish this one in hard copy, I don't think there's any particular reason to keep consistent whether it's portrait or landscape orientation. Actually, I really have no idea how the Comic Genesis engine works, but it's not a big deal. I'll get to that after my proposal is accepted. (Optimism? Who am I and what have I done with archlords?)

Also, as I noted here, I did a very small number of sketches before getting distracted by new comics. (I just got a bunch more after I finished them, so there won't be any more for quite a while.) They're test designs for a couple of main characters, as well as stock tauren. Some notes: *The mask idea came from my belovèd Poisoned Wind Globadiers. However, I was thinking that dwarves don't use warp-technology like Skaven or chaos energy like gnomes and goblins, so I came up with the lower-tech idea of just using some sort of gauze as a filter. Of course, gauze porosity is rather difficult to represent in comic illustrations. More mechanically importantly, the kerchief doesn't fit well over his muzzle (and makes him look a bit too much like a bandit), so I'll probably use a more direct copy of the Globadiers'. As you can see from the sketch in the middle, I wasn't sure about the framework for the cylinder, but upon closer inspection, there's a metal ring around the end. *Dwarven goggle straps don't fit well on races that have heads extending parallel to their lines of sight. I'll probably have them integrated into a cap (again, like the Globadiers) that buckles below the chin. I like the Globadiers' slightly convex lenses, but these are supposed to be based on a standard design (only altered to fit the tauren), so I'm keeping to the original schematics, excepting logistical changes. *I don't know how to properly draw braids, which are an integral part of the character designs for the project. For Aonghus, at least, they'll be solid black, so no one will notice. (Unlike in AnthraXX, he wears colors, so I don't have to go to the trouble of adding non-black lines to delineate him.) For the others, I'll probably use the primitive method seen here. *Speaking of braids, I considered giving Aonghus eartails but nixed that so you could see the chin-strap. *I don't really like cattle's noses with their big open nostrils, so I squished them. *I'm not sure about whether I should leave Aonghus's horn stump bare or use a cap (a couple of test designs on the middle right). I suppose a metal cap would help to emphasize his cosmopolitan appearance.

I pretty much have the first few chapters laid out, so I can get to that whenever I'm less distracted. I was originally going to start with the origin story, but I think it'd be more entertaining if I jumped right into the action. I'm thinking about it putting the flashback in Chapter 2 instead (as Chapter 1 is just an introduction to the team), but I'm afraid of doing that too crudely, like in HELLSING. I at least have an idea to link it to what the characters are doing right after Chapter 1, so hopefully it'll work a bit better.

My readership appears to be at an all-time high (apparently at least two regulars!), but I've accumulated quite a lot of stuff during its absence, to say nothing of my sloth and the fact that I've built up a lot of new things due to year's-end-and-beginning splurging. So, I'd like to see if you have any requests or suggestions. What I've got in the works is as follows:

( Ridiculously long notes )

Project Cow Level in General: I've made some very brief notes on the page. I may look around and get some more interesting members of the team (a dwarf hunter and a gnome techno mage, perhaps?), because it's looking very thin at the moment.

This: I've done a few sketches, including some tests for different tauren horn structures (for variety). For logistical reasons, Aonghus's horns are in the same shape as those of a minotauros character from an old Slayers fan-story I first planned back in high school. This reminded me that arifyn might be another prospect for coloring this (on which I planned to comment, but haven't gotten around to posting), but I'd prefer if he used a different palette from our previous collaboration (to which he contributed without my knowledge).

This: Hell, even the most intellectual comic writer I know uses cheesy Scottish dialect/accent for dwarves. (When looking for that, it also occurred to me that someone has seen Alvissa and Gollum together. Also, remember that the Bridge of Khazad-dûm (dissed in the discussion of the Bridge of Khazad-Doom) was specifically designed to be hard to cross as a defense mechanism.) Come to think of it, I don't know where that stereotype originated, even after some cursory research. The legendarium apparently uses such an Anglicization, judging by the liner notes, but this isn't stated in the books, so only Tolkien scholars knew it until the live-action movies came out. The earliest well known source that comes to mind is WARCRAFT II: Tides of Darkness. Does anyone remember D&D players using cheesy Scottish accents before that?

This: In looking for other bases, I was reminded of the story of the dwarves and tauren's first altercations over Bael Modan. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, most of the description of this on Gann Stonespire and Bael Modan is just elaboration by users, as I haven't found any sources on that except the text for Gann's Reclamation. Has anyone heard anywhere reliable that it was Gann himself who tried the diplomatic efforts, or that the driving out of the tauren by the excavators and their killing by the League were two separate events? Any information related to this would be helpful. Of course, it's not terribly important, as WARCRAFT is probably the setting where the creators care the least about continuity of any I've studied, so probably not too many will mind if my story has a few inconsistencies with lore.

I'm finding WoWWiki and the RPG books very useful in research for Project Cow Level, but I'm handicapped somewhat by the fact that I haven't actually played the games much. However, I know that some of you have at least played the MMO at some length. So, if you happen to remember anything about these items, please chip in.

1. According to the information on Bael'dun, Brann's requests for tauren oversight were granted, but I don't see such a conclusion on the pages sourced. Has anyone seen any such information elsewhere? Even better, have you been to Bael'dun and seen any tauren there (other than raiders)?

2. This is more of a real-world question, but does anyone know any physical details about cave-ins or sinkholes caused by digging vertical well shafts with medieval hand tools, particularly in terrain like the Barrens? I checked Wikipedia and didn't notice any such.

3. Has there been any official word on how far the distance between Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms is? I'm imagining it's only a few thousand klicks, as it's only been 10,000 years since it was all one continent, so I don't imagine they've spread out too much.

4. Does anyone happen to know a way to access the algorithm that hides languages for people who don't speak the language? I'd like to get the fake Common for "All right, chums, let's do this," but I imagine it would be a pain to send a hired Horde player to go spy on a hired Alliance player saying it.

5. According to this, Terramok is included in the game as part of Maraudon. Has anyone seen any signs of titan architecture, runes, etc. there, or information to suggest that the entire vault is part of the instance?

I appreciate any help you can give.

Although Azeroth is a very cheesy place, out of respect for my ancestors (being a mongrel is fun), I wanted to do a bit of research for Project Cow Level to try to use reasonably authentic Scottish dialect (as the story centers on a mostly dwarven team of prospectors). In my initial research, I was surprised to find that the stereotypes appear to come from both the Scottish English dialect and the Scots Anglic language, which I didn't even know existed. Furthermore, I'm not sure all of the contributors on Wiktionary know either—it lacks much in the way of sourcing or discussion, the two chief balancing factors for Wikipedia. I really don't want to have to read an actual book, so I'll probably just fake it.

Another option is to play a Dwarf in The Hobbit, in which case I'd get a dialect coach. My brother suggested this back when the live-action LOTR movies came out, because he claims we have disproportionately large heads. Of course, it might take some extra prosthetics to make me look like I'm not half-Easterling. (Being a mongrel is fun.) There are also these, but I doubt 35 minutes of coaching would let me master the vernacular to any great degree.

It was brought to my attention that problem #1 here could actually be a good thing. It's a cop-out, but it might make things easier.

One of the suggestions I've had for where to go with my projects early on was to make something in a setting that my readers know, instead of Project Abdiel, about which none of you give a damn. As it happens, one of my ideas, which I hadn't posted yet, turned out to have an interesting story in him. Of course, we've got a couple of problems:

1. Like Abdiel, the project contains very little in the way of human-looking beings, which is what I need to practice drawing the most. In particular, there are almost no female-looking humans/elves/Eldar, which are in the spotlight* in most of my projects.

2. The premise of a retrograde global amnesiac hero taken in by the opposite faction turns out to be the same as the big comic, which turns out to be titled World of Warcraft itself, so I imagine pretty much everyone's going to catch me on that. True, I'd plan to use it in a very different way (including reversing the factions), but I had read that part before, so I can't claim I'm not copying (if only subconsciously, because I didn't remember that part until later).

Anyway, I've added it to the database, which no longer has a lucky number of records. Of course, what's on the list is pretty arbitrary; some of them are unlikely to ever see the light of day*, such as .slice, which is even more derivative.

Speaking of the comic, apparently he lets the slaves out of the cages and chains for funerals, so they must get along reasonably well or have some back-up measure.

*These aren't really directly "good" things, so I haven't altered them.