New Years Medley Post - A Little Of This, A Little Of That (Patreon)

Happy New Year!  Today I have something of an atypical write-up for you.  I make sure to have something to share with you every week, and this week I really just took some time to just enjoy the end of the year and go easy on myself.  I worked on some things this week but very little of it was "work", but I'm gonna share it with you anyways because, that's what this place is for, to show you what I did every week.

The header for this week's article is a thumbnail plotting the next page of the comic, I knocked that out real quick so I know if I needed one or two pages to set up the next scene I'm working towards.  I will have this page more properly fleshed out for next week's update, so I think for now I'll let it be a bit of unexplained visual storytelling and see if the blocked-in acting makes sense on its own.  I remember last time I posted a thumbnail and wrote out the whole scene flow when I got to actually penciling and inking it I had a hard time finding something to say about it, so for now it'll just be the preview thumb.  

While I spent this past week resting and taking a breather, I of course spent some time drawing as well.  I started one of my side projects- Titan Garden- as a way to just draw stuff for a reason that wasn't work, just for the sheer joy of drawing things, and it's been good for my health.  I've also had a long-time love for just designing and drawing intricate machinery, which doesn't come up super often in Dead Winter or Kitsune Tails, so a lot of what I did this week was just design future-world motorcycles.  It's a bit of a change of pace, but I'm gonna share them with you today.  

When I set out to design bikes I wanted to give them each a distinct purpose that I could build their look around.  Pictured above is a Hongsha Type-251, an off-road bike that is popular in the back streets of a space colony.  It has a high clearance and knobby tires to allow it to climb up stairwells, its axles are closer together to let it round corners easily and its rear suspension is mounted high up to give it a bit of bounce across the uneven terrain of an urban off-road adventure.  A set of Yue Tu aftermarket shocks let the bike absorb impact from jumps off of raised structures like rooftops or balconies.  

Pictured here is an Uccello 7500, a motorcycle designed for speed.  It has a lower clearance and a wider axle distance to propel it forward, its tires are broad and smooth with angled facets to maintain road surface grip while leaning into a turn.  Dashboard information is conveyed by a set of holo-projections, to help keep the front end aerodynamic and because it's the future here.  While it is meant for street riding, the 7500 can navigate any smooth surface, including pipes and drainage canals, and its low profile allows it to clear small gaps that pursuing trucks would cinematically slam into.

A decidedly un-adventurous alternative to the Hongsha and Uccello bikes above, the Papillon ZX-9 is a chic and easy-to-use choice for day-to-day riders.  The use of hover projectors allows it to glide over icy or uneven roads, ensuring a smooth and gentle ride, while a thumb throttle allows the rider to control their speed with ease.  A set of pop-out compartments are placed next to charging ports, allowing a rider to charge their devices while in transit.  The back of the seat opens up to reveal handy storage space, and a fold-down cupholder is built into the moulding around the steering column.  It's an affordable option for starfarers who don't want too much adventure in their day to day lives.

And that's where I'm at for today.  I'll be getting back to proper work this week, but a bit of time just sitting and drawing machines is therapeutic for me, so I'm glad to do it.  This is gonna be a big year for sharing new things, so a bit of a breather before digging in has been welcome.  Thanks for your patience, I hope your new year has been a pleasant one as well.  I'll be back here next week with more comic work, so until then, have a nice weekend!