Comic Report #6 - Drawing Conclusions (Patreon)

When I posted my last strip I wanted to get a second one done and uploaded within the same month, and I feel like I can almost do that, but I hit some snags along the way. Here's the sketch phase for the next comic-in-progress. Of all the narrative elements to write I always have the hardest time drawing closure. Establishing the scene at the diner and building a sense of the place as a hub for information within the city of Tombstone was the last little bit of fleshing out the setting I wanted to do before I can move on the next arc, essentially putting the last gear in place before setting the machine in motion. The trouble I run into, however, is drawing conclusions, or wrapping threads up in a way that makes sense and brings a sense of closure to a scene, while also setting the stage for the next scene to come. One of the reasons I always liked drawing action scenes is by their nature every action panel implies what will happen next, so it's just a matter of drawing the next step and following the momentum of the story. I can draw a car chase, moment to moment, and then close with a drive off into the sunset. When it comes to a more narrative arc, however, I need to close out dialogue and imply an end to conversation, and that's a bit harder. I struggled for a while on the last panel of this comic, because I wasn't entirely happy with any of my visual solutions for "close up shop and head home". I had trouble with perspective, getting the camera right to show not only that Liz was heading home but that the Leung family was sending her off warmly, further contrasting this new job to her last. Sometimes it takes just stepping back and clearing my head to see that I'm making things more complicated than they need to be, so I went with something simpler. Over the next week I'll ink and paint this strip and try to get it up while its still May, and then take some time to work on game sprite assets. Thanks for your patience in sticking with me.