Artist Name: Sonia Walsh
Title of Comic: The  Switch
Date Completed: 7/25/06

Describe your story and characters:  How did you come up with this idea?  What are you trying to communicate to your readers?
This idea was a joke between me and a friend, wondering what would happen if these two characters, Reno and Axel, who look so similar, suddenly switched places.  Of course, I was just doing this out of humor, considering all my sad comics I’m doing on my own, and they aren’t meant for kiddies. 
Mostly the story is just about how Reno uses the bathroom, and is somehow teleported into Axel’s world, and vice versa.  If I was allowed to continue the comic, there would have been more to the story, including evil toasters, karaoke, and pants being lit on fire.

 

Does your comic evoke a certain feeling? 
I tried to make it as humorous as possible… Kind of hard when you only have two pages and you’re not even done with the prologue.  But I did what I could, and tried to add suspense to the last panel in hopes that if I decide to finish the comic, people will be interested.  But really… when Reno is in your comic, lack of humor will never be a problem.

 

What materials & techniques did you use to make your comic? 
I sketched everything on paper, and then inked and colored in Photoshop.  But I would have preferred using Macromedia Flash, which is the program I us most to draw.  Photoshop was a new program to me… So excuse the bad quality… Photoshop didn’t like me.  It didn’t like me at all.  As a matter of fact, it hated me so much that no matter what I did… the pen tool wouldn’t work.  So I was forced to use the Brush and the Eraser to do ALL the lineart.  Except for the straight lines.  I cheated on those… but even then, they didn’t come out straight.  I blame society for my crooked lines using the line tool.

 

Is this a successful comic?  Is there anything you would change or improve?  
I would have liked the lines a lot smoother than they are, because I’m addicted to Vector art.  I also would’ve liked cleaner coloring, and some of the Photoshop tools didn’t like me.  I’d like to learn the program better before I go making a comic.  It’s like only knowing the word Blue, and then trying to make a first class novel, it just doesn’t come out right. 

 

What did you learn?
I learned a lot more about the Photoshop program, and learned how to use a Mac computer. Amazingly, I have NEVER used a Mac before…
Apple computers, contrary to popular belief, don’t keep the doctor away.  As a matter of fact, they may cause visits to the doctor after you rip out all your hair from frustration.  But really, new computer systems are hard to learn, and I think I picked up really quickly.

 

Other comments about your creative process:
The only thing that really went wrong was that I knew NOTHING about Axel except for what he looked like.  So, the only solution was to phone a friend, and ask what his personality was.  There is more than one way to find out about a character than just playing the game.