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Yeah no, the dialogue is made up. I actually can write really great dialogue, but it's something where space is working against me, because dialogue for me is such a rhythm thing, and in six pages, it's hard to keep things moving, and get the dialogue to flow. But I think this will get better as the world expands. One thing that is probably very evident, is that because this is my first work--there's a lot of pressure to keep giving the goods, and the way things are set up, there hasn't been as much room for creating the setups I would in a different kind of story. But I'm hoping that will change as things go.
I think also there's some waffling on the Baron's tone, and that's due to some of the wavering between him being Baron La Croix and Baron Semedi. It may seem like a silly distinction to make, but because I couldn't find as many things to do with La Croix, I've been creating his manifestation out of Semedi, and while I think that's pretty sound, I think it does cause some wavering, because they are two very different gods, in my opinion. La Croix is much more cultured and refined, and I've been a little frustrated in my inability to fully reflect that in the art--and then Semedi is much more crude and profane.
As far as the tarot, the episodes are building on each other in a way, but you bring up a good point in terms of doing a series of cards for an arc. But part of this for me is also mapping the cards for myself, and bonding them to these stories, so that in the future, when I see the Ten of Disks card, I'll have an idea of what that card means for me, which will make it easier to read the cards without thinking about them. But yeah, that is a really good idea, and something I might play with more as I go. Once I get enough of a story going, I'd really like to start playing with the intertexuality of the images and cards. Like building out the earth cards in relation to each other in some way that also fits with the story.
And you have to remember the tarot is just a part of the process, another key part is the infomancy part, in how I compile the images I want. I take that pretty seriously, and really do sort of follow the words, while choosing them wisely. I like to be open to the inspiration of the random things that might get kicked back at me by the net when I say this word versus that word. There's a dialouge there that is endlessly fascinating to me. It's like collaborating with the whole world all at once. I also tend to be drawn to themes and ideas that are related to deities I've worked with in the past on some level, and I'm not afraid to be guided by that.
As for the art, I completely understand, and I hope as I improve your enjoyment of the art increases too. It's something I'm learning on the fly as well, and some pages I get what I want to happen with the page, other pages less so. But they're starting to get more consistent as I figure out how to use these tools a little better. Initially when I did this the push was that I was tired of waiting to get an artist to work with for a book, and I just wanted to show what I can do, even if my means are very limited in that department. But after the first page and cover, I've decided I really like the look. I think it's the perfect style for what I'm trying to do, but it just needs to get cleaner and more consistent, and in some places maybe even more daring. So I know I'm not there yet, I'm excited about the path I'm taking though.
Bleaugh. I could ramble about this stuff all day. I actually don't really have a problem with the criticism. Especially when it's so well reasoned.
I especially welcome it from Barbelith, because this book is really a testament to a lot of things and ideas that this site helped point me toward. It's not a stretch to say without the Temple and all of the great amazing posters in it, this book would not exist as such.
Sorry about the slow browser bit. I haven't personally had any problems, but I'll ask around and see if there's anything I can do. It might just be one of the pitfalls of using a free service. But I hope not. Initially it was going to be over at wordpress, but my friend who was going to host it on his database, had some permissions issues. |
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