Evolution of a Character

Dear lord he has a long neck... Okay, this is Mike a character I created back in high school and over that time Mike's appearance has changed a little here and there. But that's not what I'm going to get into. Instead of talking about who he is I'm going to talk about the evolution of how I use this character.

You see, Mike was created out of the idea of doing a newspaper style comic strip. He has also been the subject of a story that I had to write in my English course in college (which I hope to find the papers so I can burn them someday) and recently I used him to help self-promote myself as a possible children book illustrator. So nifty, Mike reappears a lot so why does that matter? A lot, actually. 

Mike develops over time not out of characterization or plot development but through situations where I need something explained. It could be a story that needs a character or a mailer piece that needs a small kid. So Mike changes for the situations I need him for. 

So Mike changes like a piece of silly-putty. The silly-putty can change shape but it is still composed of the same material as it first started as. You have a kid dressed as a knight carrying a lance that is also a fishing pole and he's also named Mike. His appearance may change but he's the same thing. 

So why am I going over this? Well, Mike popped up again. I want to do a project for this blog and it seems Mike and his steady steed the pig are going to be used for it. The project demands certain details so once again Mike is changing to meet that challenge. I really do not know where this may go but it feels right to let Mike ride again.

Mike & Steady Steed. 

Hopefully coming soon.

:)

Recently I have been asked by Marek Wysoczynski to help add to his World Smile Archive where he has been collecting all types of smiles from across the world! So I said yes and end up making this little thing up above. I wanted to try something new and went with a different style. The style was inspired by the work of Manon Gauthier. 

Make sure you head over to Behance.net to see Marek's collection. Also feel free to join in! Marek is looking for all types of talent: Photography, Drawing, Dancing; anything to make a smile! You can find more information over here. 

Sketchbook Dump

Well, started to fall behind so until I can draw something new for the blog here are some of my older sketches to take a look at.

Tickle-Me-Pink!

When I first started designing self-promotional postcards that were sent to children book publishers I did a quick sketch of a convict with a little girl on his back. Actually the design of the characters are based off of two friends of mine. The sketch never evolved into a postcard, probably something to do with the convict sitting on a dead body with a questionable knife in its back. Hmm, how did that get there? 

But I did love the idea of an escaped convict having to deal with a little girl. The story became Tickle-Me-Pink! Just think Homeward Bound, Three Men and a Baby, and Goodfellas all combined into one! Or something like that...

FuzzBucket and His Cardiac Arrest Inducing Adventures

This is FuzzBucket.

And this is his cardiac arrest inducing adventure.

The Pegamaid! Every Girl's Dream, Right?

Okay, is this what every little girl dreams of? A horse mixed with a bird mixed with a mermaid? It's like a turducken-genetic-abomination! This sketch is brought to you by a lovely suggestion from a friend of mine. I'm already having nightmares of this thing!

Here's an up-close shot of the girl. Her design is actually based off another work of mine that I did a good while ago. Her design as been tweaked a little but her baggy hoodie, big shoes, and horrible haircut have remain the same. The bow's new.

Life's a Birch

This will be my first of many of "OH GOD WHAT AM I GONNA DRAW!" drawings. Today's drawing is little Makar from Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. I gotta say I love the little guy, and it doesn't help that he jingles anytime he walks too. Adorable. For being a little tree folk he sure could produce some musical sounds. Not that I have anything against tree folk! I'm just saying it must be hard to do anything when your body is mostly made of bark.

Sucks to be Spidey

Okay, it may not be new but it's something. This is a simple illustration pulled from one of my self-promotional books that I hand out to clients. The illustration is one of many made for the poem Maybe Dats Your Pwoblem Too by author James W. Hall.

You can find more illustrations like this piece and other works of mine at http://www.behance.net/austinwcarlson

The First, and Not the Last?

Hi there folks! And welcome to my blog Shorts All Year Round! Hmm... kind of empty here... actually, very empty... Well, it is my first post so cut me some slack here!

What I'm hoping to use this blog here for is to post illustrations and sketches that I decide to do. Hopefully real soon too! So keep watch!