Behind the Scenes: outtakes, notes, and drafts from “The Lesson” 25th Anniversary Edition (Patreon)

Hello “Sabotaged Snacks” crew!

As a special tidbit, I thought you might enjoy a peek at some of the work that goes into producing multi-media collaborative projects like this 25th Anniversary Edition of “The Lesson.”

I’ve picked out a few things that seemed potentially the most interesting.

First, an assembly of outtakes from GoodGirlGrow’s raw narration recordings. The raw audio used to produce a completed narration tends to be substantially longer than the final product. In part, that is because each line of written material may need to be recorded multiple times to get a version that sounds right. For the narrator, the recording process can be tedious. It requires a great deal of patience and diligence. But sometimes, you’ve just got to laugh. The attached audio features a few snippets of tongue stumbles where the charming levity of GoodGirlGrow’s personality breaks through.

Second, a set of rough notes I prepared for SilverPathfinder to provide some initial guidance on what Maverick and I had in mind for the commissioned illustrations. These notes describe character personalities, attire, and specific scenes for each of the images, with reference to the corresponding story text. You’ll notice that in some cases the final images differ a bit from the initial concepts I suggested. That reflects the collaborative process, including personal creative influence added by SilverPathfinder herself.

Third, the full set of draft and final illustrations sent to me by SilverPathfinder throughout our collaboration. Some images did not go through a drafting process, and others changed very little from draft to final. But a few did undergo some discernable revisions based on feedback from me and Maverick. In particular, compare the iterations of Lesson3 (where we requested reduced creasing and shading on Susan’s flat-but-no-longer-firm belly), Lesson7 (where we asked Silv to tone down the bulk on Susan just a smidge, particularly around the upper arms), and Lesson9 (where we asked Silv to round and soften Susan’s face and neckline to better reflect the rotund, bloated mess she’d become by that point in the story). For her part, SilverPathfinder was particularly happy with how Lesson8 turned out, capturing Susan’s sweaty and exhausted look. And regarding Lesson5, which was the final image Silv completed, she remarked: “Thinner Crystal is a curvy goddess. Susan got nothing on her anymore.”

It’s your contributions that make collaborations like this possible. With your help, we are sharing that generosity with other artists and together creating more ambitious things than any of us would have alone. Thanks again for what you give: the most generous among already generous support.

-Riptoryx