Kelci D Crawford

February 23, 2014

Vlogs, Caricatures, and Comics

So you might have noticed I haven’t been posting vlogs for the past two weeks.

Part of this is: the footage I’ve got doesn’t interest me, and if it doesn’t interest me, you would probably like it even less so. The other part is: nothing of value is really being talked about, and I want to change that.

I was thinking of vlogging more about comics and art books, but I want to know what you think. What should I do with the vlog series?

Talk about comics? Answer questions from readers of Validation and Johnson & Sir? Show how I make comics? Or something else entirely?

On the topic of making things, this weekend I spent some energy getting a caricatures portfolio together. Here are some of them I got finished:

Caricature2014_1web — This guy did a TED Talk, but I missed his name. He talks about learning new skills with 20 hours of practice.

Caricatures2014_2web — Brad Pitt playing Lt. Aldo Raine in Inglorious Basterds.

Caricatures2014_3web — Neil DeGrasse Tyson

Caricatures2014_6web — …and some woman I spotted in a shopping catalog. I wanted to exaggerate her hair because it was ridiculous.

I haven’t drawn caricatures in about a year, so they’re not the best ones I’ve ever made. I’m also hoping to beat my personal record of drawing a black and white caricature in under 1 minute 30 seconds. The only way to do that is PRACTICE.

“Why are you making caricatures?” You’re asking, no doubt.

Because 1) I miss doing them, and 2) I want to get more gigs drawing caricatures at parties and conventions so I’m not so reliant on one stream of money coming in.

There’s nothing wrong with making comics for a living.

As a matter of fact, I’m psyched and so ridiculously lucky to be able to make money drawing comics.

Like Validation, which is still going strong. We even picked a winner of our Facebook giveaway and I gave stickers and a signed print! And you still like what we do, which is just icing on the absolutely delicious cake of luck.

While I’m on the topic of comics, The Legend of Jamie Roberts is going pretty well! The plan got pushed back a bit more, though: I’ll begin making pages in March, but launch won’t happen until late March or the beginning of April.

The Legend of Jamie Roberts is being pushed again (not by much, though) because I still need to finish up the scripts. I’m halfway through the story, if not more. And I want to make sure that I know where the story is going before I start making pages.

That, and I’m redesigning their costumes.

JamieRobertsNewCostume — This is my favorite design so far, but I think I’ll change it again. The idea is she’ll be adding more to her costume as she travels through Corith.

Even though the sketch is black and white, the plan is to make the comic in color. I’ll be sharing colored sketches more as I work on the story.

That’s all for now, so back to the drawing board for me!

P.S. Have you heard of Patreon? It’s a voluntary subscription service to support creators. I’m thinking of getting an account on there. What do you think?

February 16, 2014

Illustrations and Commission Announcements

Today I knuckled down and started a four-page anthology submission. I even shared it on Facebook and Twitter, but I’ll share it here, too. Sorry for the crap quality, but I took the picture with my phone:

It’s called The Story of Queen Padmini and it’s based on true events, detailed in my favorite book at the moment, Women Warriors: A History.

Speaking of Women Warriors, I’m planning on making a new series of illustrations. Keep your eye on my Tumblr for updates, because that’s where the series will make their first appearance!

On the vlogging front, you might have noticed there was no update this week. Sorry!

My mind has been on getting new gigs lately, to add to what I have going at the moment. I’ll be opening up for commissions within the next few days, so keep checking in.

And speaking of gigs and commissions, I drew caricatures for three years. I think I might get back into that for a bit…

As much as I love making comics, I also really miss interacting with customers when drawing caricatures. That was always the fun part of any day.

Anyway, I’ll be updating this blog a lot more often now. I’m aiming to update every day, so keep checking back for news and sketches (and other awesome things!).

February 13, 2014February 12, 2014

Update on Charlie & Clow

See that comic page up top? That’s the first (yet unfinished) page of Charlie & Clow.

So in a previous blog post here, I said that I would be having a Kickstarter campaign for this comic. Well, it’s not happening, at least not for a few months.

Why did I cancel it?

Well the biggest reason is that I don’t have all the comic pages finished. It’s hard to fund a book when it isn’t even finished yet.

I do want to keep this comic black and white because I feel it fits the tone of the story (not to mention black and white pages are just faster and more fun to make).

“What’s the story about?” you might ask (as you should).

Charlie & Clow is about a young lady named Charlie who runs into some supernatural trouble and reluctantly teams up with a man named Clow to fight it.

Anything more than that and it would be spoilers.

However, expect some monster designs soon!

Speaking of monsters and non-human people, I added some new work to the “Commissioned Work” page that you should look at. It was the most fun and challenging character design assignment I’ve gotten thus far.

Ok, I gotta’ get back to work. I’ll see you next time.

P.S. I’m trying a new idea where I update this blog everyday. Is it ambitious? Yes.

February 12, 2014February 12, 2014

How to Write a Contract, Part 3: Here’s a Sample

In our first two installments, we talked about Talking to Your Partner and Rights. We also outlined a few important elements in a contract.

Today, I’m going to share a sample contract I have used before, so you can see what a contract looks like (or possibly just copy it and tweak it for yourself. I don’t mind).

Keep in mind that the contract is something you and your potential client have talked about, and the terms detailed in it are things you both have discussed and agreed to beforehand.

I’ve left name spaces and prices blank. This contract is for someone sharing their rights with the partner signing the contract, but you can change it to fit the agreement between you and your potential client.

Contract in Regards to the ____________ Project

I, ___________________________________________, herein referred to as “the author,” hereby agree to the following terms regarding the project ______________:

That _______________, hereby referred to as “the artist,” will be paid ____ per image drawn.
That the artist retains all rights to the artwork for the project, and that the author retains all rights to the script, dialogue, and other written word associated with the project.
That the author and artist will split any future royalties of the project 50/50, excepting Rule 4.
Any profits made from artist-rendered prints will be split 75/25, favoring the artist.
Payment transferred from the author to the artist, or vice versa, may be made via Paypal or Bank quick pay. If the payment method is Paypal, a small percentage of increase will occur due to transfer fees. If the payment method is Bank quick pay, it is fee free and will need email address for set up.
An invoice will be given once weekly on Sunday to the author from the artist for service rendered, royalties owed, and other expenses associated with the project (including postage).
In regards to revisions, the artist agrees to share the artwork in progress to the author and allow the author any number of revisions to the final work, as long as the request for revisions comes before the end of the week, which is Sunday.
If the request for revisions comes after Sunday in regards to the previous week’s images, then the time frame of finalizing the strips will be extended.
When work for each image is finished by the artist, one large digital copy for printing and one small digital copy for digital release will be submitted to the author, along with a copy of the invoice, at the end of the week. Special requests may be made for sending physical copies of the artwork.
If at any time the project is canceled, the author must pay for what images are finished or in progress to finishing for that week of cancellation, and disperse what royalties have been earned within that week. Any royalties made after the cancellation date must be split according to the above agreements between the author and the artist.
The artist will make every effort to ensure that each image is error-free and ready to print when submitted at the end of each week. If any errors still exist, the author, within their best capacity, must make the artist aware so the artist may correct them. Any errors that need correcting after Sunday submission will be edited and resubmitted the next day, Monday, or as soon as possible.
All correspondence and documents provided will be treated as confidential between the author and the artist, unless consensus had been granted for both parties.

The above prices, specifications, and conditions are hereby accepted. It is the responsibility of both the artist and the author to honor the agreements specified above. These agreements are not valid until signed by the author and the artist. After signing, copies must be made for the author and the artist for their records.

Artist’s Signature: _____________________________________

Date:________________

Author’s Signature: _______________________________________

Date: ________________

If you need further resources for making a contract, be sure to read up on the Artist’s and Graphic Designer’s Market, as they cover this in depth.

I hope this helps! Let me know if it does or if I forgot anything in the comments below.

February 9, 2014February 9, 2014

No Post Today, Update Wednesday

Sorry! Due to a terrible strike of the Procrastination Plague, I was unable to complete my promised blog post for today. The final installment of How to Write A Contract will be on Wednesday.

In the meantime, you should be reading Validation and Johnson & Sir!

Over at Validation, we’ll be announcing a winner of the giveaway by Christian and me! Check in on Facebook, because that’s where we’ll make the announcement.

If you want new sketches and project updates, Twitter is the best place to find me. If you have any questions, you can ask me there or leave a question in comments here.

I’m still vlogging on YouTube! This week’s new episode can be watched here.

My Deviantart has been busy, as has my Tumblr and my Pinterest. Go check out some of the sweet stuff I’ve been sharing (including new inspirations on some boards over at Pinterest, but I won’t spoil anything).

And at the Store, there’s a new print! Click the image below to get it.