Obviously, "Sand & Stone". Yup, that includes the ampersand ("&"). Be consistent and refer to it likewise, yes please? The title, along with little tidbits-lines here like "Could you make it on your own" and "If a great wave shall fall," come from the lyrics of The Calling's Wherever You Will Go. Just so you know. Giving credit where credit's due. In the original version of this "About" page, I went into the meaning behind the title and why I chose it for this strip. I was all wordy then. Now I shall be very brief and concise -- or at least attempt to be. (*wry*) Basically it describes Train and Seth's relationship, in my opinion. That whatever happens, whatever occurs, they're always there for each other no matter what, standing firm. I'd like to think that that's what this whole strip is about. Well, that and demons coming Above, of course. Also, the very title itself describes Train and Seth's personalities, in many different ways. Leave it to you to figure it out. (*grin*) Addendum: The Calling's Wherever You Will Go may be Train and Seth exactly, but the song that I think is Vlad through and through? Fade by J. Englishman.
These were used at varying points in time:
Depending on what materials I use, the b&w strips are scanned as either "Sharp B&W Photo" or "Line Art." If it's b&w photo, I adjust the Curves level in Photoshop. If it's line art, I skip the Curves and shade via Photoshop. Crop and ta-da, all done. Color strips in Season 1 were done in Photoshop, but since I used a mouse then, it took a while. Now I have a Wacom tablet, so much easier. Color strips in Season 2 were done by guest artists/colorists! Isn't that great? :D Yup! During Season 2, some lovely artists guest-colored some of my strips, which thrilled me to bits. Go have a look and tell them that they thrill you too!
The initial version of this was also a mite wordy, and has since been pared down. The ultra-short summary is, I basically wanted to create a comic that was waaaaaay different from the last one I'd concluded. And I did, in terms of characters, art style, concept, topics and issues. The previous version of S&S that I had in my head was actually more adult, sobering, and controversial as compared to what actually came to be. The characters just dominated me, I suppose. (*wry look*) Plans that I had for them started to wear away as it dawned on me that due to characterization, so-and-so wasn't the type to do such-and-such, and without such-and-such, this-and-that couldn't happen. That was quite amusing in its own way. Sand & Stone was a self-imposed challenge in many ways -- I deliberately included certain art styles and looks that I couldn't stand in other comics, just to see what would happen. It's pretty interesting how the results have turned out. Some of those styles/looks that I'd hated, I now sorta like or don't mind as much. For others, I still don't like them but they're part of the whole S&S concept now, so it's virtually become second nature to accept using them. Some aspects that I used to dislike, I've now grown so used to them they're incorporated into my usual art style, which really boggles my mind. There's precious little that I still couldn't stand by the end of Season 1 that I dispensed with, which, I don't know, seems to be a promising thing in terms of this odd experiment.
You're allowed to use S&S images for LJ icons and message board avatars (excluding drawings given to me by others in the Extra section, since it's their artwork after all). But please ask me first. Those whom I've given art to, they may of course assume carte blanche. Otherwise, please let me know. A simple standard note using the feedback form saying, "I'd like to use so-and-so for this-and-that, please. . ." or "May I please use so-and-so for. . ." will suffice. That done, you can pretty much assume I'll say yes unless you get a message otherwise. It'll also make me think much more kindly of you, so it's good karma that way as well. Not too much to ask, now is it? I have had a couple of people steal my art in the past and then calling them theirs. Oh yes, you have no idea. I love my readers and think they're one of the bestest, so please do not start giving them a bad name. Just let me know. I'm usually pretty nice about and flattered by these things, just as long as folks are courteous about it.
Art and comicky links have been moved here. If you want to link to S&S, great! Here are some banners to choose from:  
Right-click and choose "save as" (upload to your own server, please). The link should be to "http://tentative.net/s&s". Have other burning questions? Ask away! |
