Don't mind me. Just giving my new journal CSS a try. Didn't want to mess with all the big clunky stuff of my hugeass Imagicon Report just yet.

So I've been reading "Sir Apropos of Nothing" by Peter David. The book, not the comic. That is some good stuff right there. Funny business.

I'm also SO looking forward to that new Star Trek movie. It. Looks. Amazing. Omgsh seriously. I hope there's a midnight showing! If there is, I'm TOTALLY there!

On the other hand, the Dragonball: Evolution movie just makes me want to punch something. I don't even LIKE Dragonball, and those trailers make me wanna cry or something. I mean, talk about totally ripping the source material a new one.

It's like the Wanted movie. I mean, if they had just STUCK to the comic source material, it would have been one of the best comic book movies of all time. But noooo. They had to go turn it into an assassin story with, like, morals or something. Whatever. In the comic, the guy just likes killing people.

Like, that's the whole thing. He hesitates to kill people through like the whole thing until the very end, and he's all like, "OMGZ I LIKE KILLING PPLZ". I mean, come on! Awesome!

ALSO. I just discovered that I can put an emoticon next to the title in each of these little header sections. I'm gonna have way too much fun with that in the future, I promise you.

OKAY. NOW I know how this new journal CSS works! So that's enough rambling out of me. Ciao!

Important Links

Kastle Comics

Atlanta Comic Creators

Post Secret

Engadget

Webcomics I Read

Count Your Sheep

Devil's Panties

Dominic Deegan

Girls With Slingshots

*Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/24024137/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/24024137/ Thu, 02 Apr 2009 13:55:42 PDT
Of course, I show up to the convention expecting to help out at the Dealer's Table and walk around with some of the costume characters to hand out business cards, and then kick ass at the comic art contest. Little did I know that Stan had other plans in store for me! I did a lot of the aforementioned such n such, but then Stan comes out with, "Oh, by the way, Sarah, one of our people can't show up for the How to Get Published panel, so you're going to take his place!"

WUT.

So I ended up being on a panel Saturday evening. It was me and Chris Fason and Sean Taylor and Bobby Nash and Jamie Cottle and that WereRat guy whose name I can't remember. It was a lot of fun, actually. I had a good time. And I think the crowd liked us, because we were only supposed to be in there for an hour, and we ended up just chilling and talking for close to two hours, and nobody got up and left. It was fun. And I got to hang out with Sean and Bobby, who are both comic book writers, and they have decided that I am awesome, and said that they'd look forward to working with me in the future. Woohoo! Always a good idea to make friends with comic writers!

As far as the art contest goes, that was kind of a flop. Only two people showed up, me and my buddy Geoffrey. But it was good times still. We each had to draw five words or phrases out of plastic baggies, and draw a one page 11x17 comic thingy about those words. Geoffrey got "Aquagirl photographs a changing monkey outside the Hall of Justice", and I got "Leonardo (from the TMNT) investigates an energetic Christian Bale outside the Legion of Doom". Needless to say, both were VERY amusing. And Sean and Bobby were our judges, and decided that we both one first place! So we split the prize and ended up with 1 1/2 packs of comic art boards, which is AWESOME, cause that stuff ain't cheap.

Me and Geoffrey gave our comic pages to Sean and Bobby with the promise that they would scan them and email us copies. So as soon as I get that email, I'll post my page in my gallery, just cause it makes me laugh so much.

Aside from that, I did lots of hanging out at our dealer's table and drawing pictures. I sold some sketches off the table and stuff, and probably made like $50 over the weekend or something. Did a couple commissions and then sold some generic pictures like a smexxy Emma Frost and a Kingdom Heart Sora and stuff like that.

And now! Picture time!!

Despite the fact that I didn't DO anything or DRESS as anything, I still managed to end up in a picture!! Check it out!

I'm the chick with her face hidden behind the camera, in case you couldn't guess. I was escorting Spider-man (one of our customers in one of our costumes) around to make sure he got to the events he needed to be at and didn't get accosted by fangirls. My job was pretty easy, though, cause he was usually the one accosting people, and I had no orders to stop that. Except when he picked ME up and threw me over his shoulder and carried me away. Then I had to protest. He said he had a thing for readheads.

The bright green sticker he's wearing is from a blood drive that was going on on the second floor of the convention. There were some very amusing moments where Spidey sat down in one of the chairs and the blood drive people went hysterical, taking pictures of them "drawing blood" and him fainting and stuff. This one kid next to me was all, "Look, Spider-man's giving blood! I hope it's not still radioactive!"

Then we had a little Marvel/DC crossover thing going on here.

Batman was another of Kingdom Comics' customers in one of our costumes.

Millionaire playboy Bruce Wayne by day. Gotham City's dark knight by night! But apparently, even Batman's got a little playboy left in him.

*Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/23881125/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/23881125/ Wed, 25 Mar 2009 11:19:46 PDT

Okey dokey folks! ImagiCon in Birmingham, Alabama is this weekend, and me and my crew from Kingdom Comics are going to be running the comic book type events for the convention.

I know for sure I'll be working at the Fan Boy Frak Off at 3:00 on Friday, and I'll totally be at the Art Contest on Sunday (not sure what time it'll be). Aside from that, I'll be at tables and panels and events if people need me or if I just wanna stop by and check it out.

If you're going to be in the Birmingham area at all this weekend, totally come by and check it out! I've heard some awesome things about this comic convention, and I know my boss wouldn't have invested his time and effort into working the comic track if he didn't think it would be worth it. So go!

Like I said before, if you can't find me, worse comes to worst, go to the Art Contest on Sunday. Wait till the end of the contest. The girl WINNING the contest? That'll be me.

(P.S. The title of this journal is cause I just watched The Pagemaster the other day and have that fairy song stuck in my head.)

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/23771855/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/23771855/ Wed, 18 Mar 2009 21:30:20 PDT

[EDIT]dA said they're not going to put my picture back up. Like I said, I don't give a damn about the picture, but it's the PRINCIPLE of the thing! Raslfrasl. [/EDIT]

... so I was just reported for art theft ...

Can you believe that? ME! Reported on dA for art theft! I just go to check my messages, and I've got a couple devNotes in my box saying I was reported and the picture was deleted from my gallery. I don't care about the picture, really. But the fact that someone accused me of stealing artwork is insulting!

You probably don't even remember the picture. I did it years and years ago. It was of Kouga from Inuyasha as a kid getting a baby wolf cub. I don't even LIKE the picture anymore, and in fact I think I stuck it in my scrapbook forever ago. But it's the principal of the thing! I mean, the NERVE of someone accusing ME of art theft! I am SO damn offended right now! I am the LAST person on the face of the PLANET who would steal someone's artwork! I've ranted in journals about that before, and I'm sure some of you long-time watchers remember that!

UGH! I am SO pissed off about this! Really!

I "submitted an inquiry to the Help Desk" to get my lame-ass picture put back in my gallery, but they said it'll take 48 hours before I hear back from them.

UGH! And again I say UGH!

Tams thinks what probably happened is some stupid teenager saw my picture, and THEY stole it, and told all their little 12-year-old friends that THEY drew it. Then when one of the said stupid 12-year-old friends saw MY picture, the ORIGINAL, they flipped shit and thought "OMG SOMEONE STOLE MY BEST FRIEND'S WORK I MUST REPORT IT WITHOUT THINKING OR ANYTHING OMG!"

Sounds plausible to me.

UGH once again! UUGGHH.

I mean, I appreciate the dA report system and all that, and it is really handy for when there are ACTUAL art thieves out there, but this is ridiculous! They just deleted it without mentioning it or talking to me or anything. Did they bother asking if I stole it? NO. Did they even bother checking to see if there was another one of these floating around dA? Probably not! If they did, any genius could look at the fucking DATE and see that I posted mine first!

RARG.

In other news, ImagiCon next weekend. Don't miss it.

RAR.

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/23532877/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/23532877/ Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:10:04 PST

SO, long time no see. I'm horrible at remembering to update this thing. Turns out that Kingdom Comics is going to be running the comic track at ImagiCon this year! I've gone over the website, and this con looks like it is going to be totally awesome. I'm going to try my damnedest to be in Birmingham and maybe steal a dealer's pass or something.

Oh, and there's this totally neat art contest they're doing at the con, too! You show up with your art supplies, and draw like 5 random words out of a bucket, and then you have 2 1/2 hours to draw a full 11x17 comic page about those random 5 words you picked. That just sounds like way too much fun! So if I can go, I'm totally gonna win. If you live in the area, and you're going to ImagiCon, watch the contest and check out the chick who wins. That'll be me.

In other news, I don't normally do memes and stuff, but this one just seemed fun. You just write 25 random facts about yourself. Sounds easy enough. Let's give it a shot! Go!

1. I've had chicken pox twice. Ouch.
2. I'm the only kid in my family that hasn't had a serious head injury.
3. My total height is 5' 2 1/4", but I tell everyone that I'm 5' 3" to make myself feel taller.
4. I drive a red PT Cruise with flames up the side, and his name is Elvis Phillip Terrance Cruiser.
5. I haven't been to a comic book store in two months. It's killing me! I'm SO behind!
6. I don't like chocolate. Inhuman, right?
7. I have four freckles on my right arm that are in a perfectly straight line. Seriously.
8. I can also connect the dots on certain freckles on my leg and make the big dipper.
9. I skinned my elbow when I fell off the mechanical bull last week... Still hurts. >.<
10. ...I haven't shaved my legs in about a month...
11. My typing speed is about 180 WPM on a good day, with very few (if any) typos.
12. I've never failed a class in my life, but I had to take summer school twice (including the summer after senior year) because the school lost some of my credits.
13. I think between kindergarten and senior year, I went to 14 different schools. Maybe 13. I lost count.
14. I'm on question #14 and already running out of things to say!
15. I'm real big into American Idol. I want Danny Goki or Adam Lambert or Scott Maccintyre(sp?) to win.
16. Um... I never beat Kingdom Hearts. I just watched my brother beat the final boss battle. I got stuck at the Hollow Bastion.
17. Tiny Titans and Spider-man Loves Mary Jane are my guilty-pleasure comics.
18. I've never seen High School Musical, but I secretly almost want to, just to see what all the hype is about.
19. I kick ass at Tetris.
20. I'm one of those weird people that likes playing Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit and doing crosswords and stuff.
21. Uuuuhhh.... I broke my arm when I was little when I fell out of the car and my mom ran over me.
22. I am a Ninjapirate. Yes, those exist.
23. I have a WALL-E comforter on my bed. And a matching pillow case.
24. UM. I'm taller than my mom and my older sister, but my little sister is taller than me. Rar.
25. YAR I'M DONE!

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/22855404/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/22855404/ Tue, 27 Jan 2009 23:53:29 PST

Happy birthday to meeee
Happy birthday to meeee
Happy birthday Sarah Queen of the Univerrrrrse
Happy birthday to meeee

Please tell me I'm not the only person who isn't planning on going out and getting plastered just cause I turned 21?

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/22580112/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/22580112/ Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:56:33 PST

WEEEELLLL. How's this for odd. My first journal update in three months. Huh. I hadn't realized it had been quite that long. I keep up with stuff teh_good.

As far as stuff goes, Kastle Comics hasn't been updated recently because my computer with my scanner and printer and comics and photoshop and stuff like that is BROKEN. OH NOES.

I can fix it, but I also just moved into a new apartment, and I can't find some stuff, including my KEYBOARD, which is slightly necessary for the working functionality of a computer, THUSLY, the computer is out of comission until I can find my keyboard and reinstall Windows and whatnot.

Until THEN, I am stealing Trevor's laptop so there.

On another note, I am horribly ashamed of myself. I did something today that I had never done before, and swore that I would never do. It was a terrible, horrible thing that I have done, and I don't really know how I'm going to recover from it, but I'm sure I'll manage it somehow. Eventually. With the help of extensive therapy.

What have I done? Weeeellll....

My friend Eric talked me into playing World of Warcraft today. And I couldn't help it. I liked it. X(

This is something I had never thought I would enjoy at all ever in my life and yet here I am enjoying it... Hopefully I won't get hopelessly addicted, but let's be serious here. I got addicted to Animal Crossing like it was crack on a stick.

I better just face it. I'm screwed.

Damn you, WoW! Damn you, Eric!

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/21060825/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/21060825/ Sun, 19 Oct 2008 10:07:50 PDT
When we started at 12:00, we only had about three people, because everyone else was running late or forgot what time it was or had to come in between work shifts or something. So it started out slow. But more people showed up, whether it was to draw or just to hang out, and then things started kicking.

I ended up finishing my comic at 5:02 in the morning, which means it took me a grand total of 17 hours do to 24 pages, and that was with more detail than I'd ever managed to get into a 24 hour comic before. So apparently drawing Kastle Comics all the time has gotten me used to drawing fast while still retaining quality.

Which, you know, rocks.

So I was the first one finished. I hung around for another half hour while I packed up and everyone read my comic, then drove home at about 5:27 in the morning. As soon as I got home at about 6, I crashed instantly. But now the sun is out and my room mate is awake and has his stereo on, so that means Sarah is awake until further notice.

When I left the store at 5:27, no one else had finished yet. There were 5 people still drawing, and one person hanging around and occasionally scribbling something in crayon on a sheet of paper. I'll find out on Wednesday when I go to work again which ones finished and which ones didn't make it.

There was also a friend of ours who showed up with a video camera, and recorded some stuff, so once he edits that and whatever, he'll probably post it online somewhere, and I'll link to it for y'all to check out.

As soon as I get my comic back from Stan, I'll scan it and upload it for y'all to see.

Till then, I'm going to find something to do that requires no movement or cognitive thought. Ciao.

17 Hour Playlist:

Batman the Animated Series
Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back
Wildcats TV series
Ghostbusters
Flash Gordon
Cloverfield
Dawn of the Dead
Hot Fuzz
Hide and Creep

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/21020896/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/21020896/ Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:45:41 PDT
It took me a while but I finally came up with an idea and I've been sketching the characters like crazy trying to commit them to memory before I get to the event so I remember what they look like! I know last year, I completely forgot what my characters were supposed to look like, so main character dude ended up with a big dandelion head for his hair. It was baaaad.

I figured I might as well mention a few things for anyone who's planning on doing 24HCD, whether it be your first time, or you've done it every year since it's come out. Just like, advice or tips I've learned doing this for four years in a row now.

-Be prepared. Bring everything you'll need, and even things you think you won't need. I know the first year, all my pens ran out partway through the night, and I had to borrow from someone else so I could finish. And don't just bring 24 pieces of paper, because I guarantee you'll need more.

-Drink lots of caffeine. Seriously. You need to be able to stay awake for more than 24 hours, and the best way to do it is caffeine. Whether it be soda, coffee, or energy drinks. Also, snack throughout the night. I don't know if this holds true for everyone, but sometimes if all I do is drink soda, by 6 or 7 in the morning, my hands start shaking. So eat food!

-Wear comfortable clothing. You're going to be sitting in one spot in these clothes and shoes all night, so make sure it's comfy. I have a lucky shirt that I've worn every year, and if I can find it, I'm gonna wear it this year, too. It's ultra comfy. I also always bring a hoodie, just in case Stan goes crazy with the A/C like he did the first year.

-Now, this may not apply to everyone, but from what I've seen the last few years, almost everyone who finishes all 24 pages follows a similar plan of attack. This is what I (and they-ish) do. I come up with an idea before I go in there. I try to come up with it as soon as I can, so I can go over it in my head a lot to make sure I've got it down. You can't go in with any writing or characters or layouts or anything, so it's all gotta be in your head. As soon as the event starts, I jot down quick thumbnail layouts to get it out there so I don't get to 6 in the morning and not be able to remember what happens next. Also, to make sure my story fits in 24 pages.

After that, as fast as I can, I make the world's messiest sketch of my characters, just so I have a reference for when my brain dies. Then I get started drawing.

This is where most all the finishers do the same thing. We go through and pencil every single page in order first, just to make sure we've got something on paper. Then we go back and do basic inking on all 24 pages, then if there's time, so back and do more detailed inking and shading and whatnot. This way, you don't burn yourself out on the first few pages, and even if you run out of time and can't finish inking, you have 24 pages at least in pencil. It also helps pace yourself, I think, because it gives you a better idea of how fast you can work and how much time you're allowed to spend on each page to make things work.

And I guess that's it from me. This entire journal was pretty pointless, but I think I get entirely too excited about this event each year. It's always something I really look forward to, and it's always a lot of fun. I've recruited a bunch of people this year, including a ten-year-old girl! Granted, she isn't staying the whole 24 hours because she's not allowed to stay up that late, but she's gonna show up and draw pictures too! Rock on, ten-year-old girl! Rock on!

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/20507237/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/20507237/ Mon, 15 Sep 2008 14:41:01 PDT
Hopefully, I'll be getting an art table at MTAC this year, if I don't miss the registration dates again. Those artist alley tables sell out so fast that you have to catch it like the DAY they go on sale, otherwise you don't make it. And that whole waiting list thing is crap, if you're on the "waiting list", it just means "no". Meh.

Really, though, MTAC would be the perfect con for me to get an art table at, because I don't even like that con anymore. Any other convention, I'd want to walk around and go to events and stuff, but MTAC lost me after last year. They aren't doing GEEK anymore, and Lisa Ray isn't coming, so there isn't much left that I really really look forward to for that one. So, here's hoping I get a table.

Also, I am currently working on formatting my comic strip Kastle Comics into print-mode, and should hopefully have a volume of that printed sometime shortly, assuming I get off my lazy bum and do the work. If I get that off the ground, not only will there be bunches of KC strips in there, but also an original story not featured on the website, and an additional story about Hobos and Penguins drawn by Wess.

And also also, don't forget 24 Hour Comic Day, coming up fast! It's October 18th this year, and it's gonna be awesome! Partly because we could end up with FREE BAWLS!! Rock on!!

I've been trying to think of a comic idea for this year, but my mind's coming up blank! Oh noes!

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/20173000/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/20173000/ Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:47:59 PDT
So, here's how it goes down.

Monday
10:00-11:30 Intro to Digital Media
Rest of the day is free. Watch this not happen again.

Tuesday
9:30-10:45 Art History (9 ****ing 30!)
11:00-12:00 World Lit
2:00-3:30 Intro to Psychology

Wednesday
10:00-11:30 Intro to Digital Media
12:00-9:00 Work

Thursday
9:30-10:45 Art History (9 ****ing 30!!!!)
11:00-12:00 World Lit
2:00-3:30 Intro to Psychology

Friday
10:00-11:30 Intro to Digital Media
12:00-9:00 Work

Saturday
12:00-9:00 Work

Sunday
1:00-5:00 Work

SO! Bye-bye, life. See ya later. I just made it through my first two days, and I've already got to read three chapters of The Odessey, and like two chapters for Psychology. Oh, and the book store gave me a PHYSICS book instead of a PSYCHOLOGY book when I made the order online. Clever people.

To save on gas, I'm riding my bike, right? Except the chain is rusted, so it can only be in 1st or 5th gear, and the back tire is flat. Wheeeeee!

The good news is, my Intro to Digital Media class will be better than I thought. I originally thought it was going to be all Photoshop and Illustrator, which, after years of personal use, I have nearly mastered (I don't think anyone can FULLY master Photoshop), so I was worried that there wouldn't be anything new the class could teach me. But! Turns out we'll be learning Flash and Dreamweaver, too. Awesome! The teacher is... um... odd... But some of the projects look totally awesome.

I totally lucked out when it comes to Art History. Normally, the class is looking at slides and memorizing artist names and dates and stuff. But this semester, the very semester I signed up for, they're changing the curriculum! So instead of memorizing dates and names, which I totally can't do, it's just going to be learning about the themes and motifs of the different periods of art, and understanding the thought process behind it, which I can totally do! Naturally, they changed the course structure because the almighty Sarah was going to be attending the class, and they knew it would displease me if it was nothing but slides in a dark room for an hour and a half at 9:30 in the morning.

World Lit is gonna be eh. The teacher is funny, which is cool, but it's gonna be strict as all get out. No skimming over the chapters ten minutes before class like I did in English 102. Nope. I'm gonna hafta actually read these books now. We're reading The Odessey, In Cold Blood (which we're only reading cause it was written by a guy from Alabama), Shakespeare's Othello (I hate reading Shakespeare, he's not as good as everyone cracks him up to be!), and The Joy Luck Club, which I have never heard of, but I'm getting the feeling I probably should have.

And then we've got Intro to Psychology, which I'm only taking because it's required and it's the only thing I could get to fit into my schedule. The class actually looks like it could be cool if Dr. Jones would shut the hell up and stop talking about himself and how fertile his wife is, and just get on with teaching us the class. Ugh. I hate temp teachers.

Yay for college!

In OTHER news, I got my hands on a free brand-new never-been-opened 7-pen Rapidograph set! HOLYCRAPOMGWTFBBQEXCLAMATIONPOINT!!! I haven't had a chance to play with it yet, because of aforementioned soulrape program I'm currently attending, but I will! Oooohhhhh, I will.

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/19327539/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/19327539/ Fri, 11 Jul 2008 07:57:33 PDT
You remember those Red String fanart pieces I did for the Red String fanart contest? Well, they won first place! All three of them!

Apparently, Gina liked them so much she couldn't decide which to give the winning spot, so she just gave it to all three. How cool is that?

This means I get Red String posters and original artwork and stuff! Hoorays! That makes me a happy Sarah. I love Red String and its artwork, it's soooooo pretty.

-Kastle Comics ]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/19272389/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/19272389/ Tue, 08 Jul 2008 11:29:25 PDT
I just watched the first episode of the brand-new Slayers series, Slayers Revolution!! After almost ten years, they're bringing back my FAVORITE anime EVER! It was my very very first real anime (I don't count Sailor Moon as a real anime), and it's always been my absolute favorite series in the whole entire world.

The first two seasons, Prime and Next, were amazing as all get out. Then when TRY came out, I was so excited, but it just didn't live up to the excellence of it's previous incarnations.

But now! Revolution! It looks excellent!! The first episode sets it up to be just as amazing as Next, and it's chock full of typical Slayers-y humor. Absolutely brilliant!

The only downside is that I'm going to have to watch this week by week instead of a 26-episode all-night marathon like I'm used to.

]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/18273043/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/18273043/ Sun, 11 May 2008 12:16:54 PDT Midnighters picture I did forever ago? WELL. Scott Westerfeld, the author of the Midnighters books, found the picture on line, and featured it in his blog!

I don't usually go all fangirly over anything, but...

SQUEEEE!! Happy dance!! Woohooo!!!

You can check out his blog RIGHT HERE and see the glittering review he gave my pretty picture.

Also, Kastle Comics has reached 100 strips!! Check it out!

]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/17977941/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/17977941/ Tue, 22 Apr 2008 15:04:42 PDT
So, just for kicks, I'm gonna experiment with opening commissions and see what happens. I'll be able to start working on those starting at the beginning of May, so let's see how things play out here.

Commission pricing and information is right here.

If you want to commission a picture, or have any questions, you can devNote me or email me at ninja.shira@gmail.com.

Don't forget to visit Kastle Comics! It updates with a new strip every day!

]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/17431768/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/17431768/ Thu, 20 Mar 2008 18:48:05 PDT Kastle Comics page is alive and kicking. A new comic strip updates every day, so make sure you bookmark it and keep checking back to see what's new.

Me and Trevor just finished moving into our new ritzy pad. It's very fancy if I do say so myself. Kinda worn out from three days of moving and unpacking, but it looks fantastic.

Also, I should be getting a new computer in a few days. It's a (very) belated birthday present. It's gonna rawck. Hard. And hopefully this one will last me more than a year. I've gone through four computers in six years. I have bad luck with technology, I guess.

]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/16611290/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/16611290/ Mon, 28 Jan 2008 11:20:08 PST kastlecomics.comicgenesis.com and I'll get it all updated as soon as I can. I've got most of the HTML built for the site already, I just have to finish it up, then upload it to the ComicsGenesis servers. I should have the whole operation up and running within a few days, so keep checking back.

In other news, today's my birthday! I'm the big 20 as of now!

]]> *Shira-chan http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/16475232/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/16475232/ Sat, 19 Jan 2008 13:09:00 PST

http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/14776867/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/14776867/ Mon, 24 Sep 2007 18:03:16 PDT




Chip was Phoenix Wright, and Rob was Edgeworth. We picked up some random girl named Mia who dressed as Maya, and THAT was just confusing. I'm the cute chick in the green and the stripes, and Mark is the guy in the black shirt. The two of us followed Chip and Rob around carrying the Objection signs the whole time.

Last year, five people recognized Chip and Rob as Phoenix and Edgeworth. This year, we got over 250 pictures before we lost count. It was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.

]]> *Shira-chan

http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/14707131/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/14707131/ Wed, 19 Sep 2007 20:11:51 PDT

That's right, it's that time of year again. 24 Hour Comic Day is October 20th and 21st. Just go to the official website to check out locations and times and such. If you've never heard of 24 Hour Comic Day, it's a worldwide event that takes place every year. People all congregate at comic stores and art stores and such and attempt to draw a 24-page comic book in 24 hours or less. It's a blast every year, and a great challenge to undertake as an artist. I encourage everyone who can make it to attempt it. If you can't get to an official location, that's okay too. You can work straight from home, and mail or email your comics in to the judges. It's just always more fun if you can do it with more people. Things get pretty crazy when you've got a room of artists hyped up on coke and coffee at 4 in the morning.

Secondly off, Anime Weekend Atlanta is this weekend, and I'll be there. I won't be in costume or have a table, because I'm a poor starving artist. I'm going to attempt to get a table for MTAC this year, though. So if I can afford it and get to it before they sell out, I'll be setting up at MTAC and selling prints and original drawings and whatnot.

Speaking of starving artists, I'm going to start taking commissions. I'll post a journal later with all the rules and stuff. Until then, if you really want something right away, devNote me or email me at ninja.shira@gmail.com to discuss the details.

In other news, college is eating my soul. But I think I have a spare in my closet.

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http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/12870273/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/12870273/ Sun, 06 May 2007 23:55:16 PDT
Saturday was Free Comic Book Day. Holy CRAP it was HUGE. And I thought last year was busy! Oi! A half hour before the store even opened, we had a huge line waiting outside the door, and then until 1:00, the store was so packed you could barely move.

We had a bunch of superheroes at the store. There was Spider-Man, Spider-Girl, Spider-Woman, Flash, Green Arrow, Supergirl, and a couple Storm Troopers. Darth Vader was supposed to show up, but he was busy with his Homewood Day Parade thingy. As soon as I get pictures from that, I'll post a couple.

The last few days, I've been playing Tales of Legendia. It's not as good as Tales of Symphonia, but I've been enjoying it. I only have a few complaints with it. Like it's ridiculously easy. With ToS, you had to figure out what you were supposed to do next, and there were a few battles where I died and had to try again. In ToL, it tells you exactly where you're supposed to go exactly when you're supposed to get there. You never have to think of anything for yourself. And all the battles have been really really easy. Even the ones you're set up to lose end really fast. They could at least give you a run for your money.

Also, the story has been kinda cheesy... There's a certain level of cheese I expect every RPG to have, but this one crosses the line. But don't get me wrong, I've been having a great time with this game. The character interaction is hilarious. The Bantam Bouncers have gotten me laughing almost to the point of tears several times. But I think it's kind of almost more like playing an anime than playing a video game.

Speaking of anime, I just started a new series that has just got me in stitches. It's called Welcome to the NHK. NHK stands for Nihon Hikikomori Kyoukai (I think), which is basically an imaginary society to encourage young Japanese youths to become hikikomori, or social reclusive people that are afraid to leave there own homes. The main character is a hikikomori and is convinced there's a conspiracy with the NHK (does not exist!) to keep him a hikikomori. And so his kitchen appliances tell him that the only way to combat the conspiracy is to remain a hikikomori. But slowly he starts to leave the house more, become a porno-obsessed, dating-sim-loving otaku fanboy. And there's this girl who takes him on as her personal project to try and cure him of being a hikikomori. I've seen about half the series, and I am LOVING it. Not recommended for anyone under fifteen, though!

In other news, I'm thinking of getting a second computer monitor to hook up so I have more on-screen space to work with in Photoshop. Having one monitor isn't bad or anything, but when I've got my reference pictures open and my drawing open and all my toolbars and stuff, it gets kinda cluttered. With another monitor, I can put my reference pics and toolbars on one screen, and have my drawing on the other screen, stuff like that. I'm checking out Best Buy tomorrow to see if I can get a good deal on a monitor.

And that's the sum of my life up till now. Free Comic Book Day, Tales of Legendia, Welcome to the NHK, and a potential second monitor. Exciting, no?

]]> *Shira-chan

http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/12621262/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/12621262/ Mon, 16 Apr 2007 15:59:52 PDT
Also, the Lisa Furukawa concert was, once again, fantastic. Since the theme of this year was giant robots (MTAC Prime? Optimus Prime? Get it?), she sang Mr. Roboto by STYX at the beginning of her first concert. As soon as she started, half the room starting cheering and shouting, and then after she started singing, the other half finally realized what she was singing, and they started cheering too. Good times.

Me and my buddy Chip got to hang out with Lisa and her conguy at the Paradise Kiss Evening at the Attelier event. The deal was you had to be invited by one of the constaff because you're dressed like you wore ParaKiss clothes. Me and Chip didn't dress up, but Lisa was invited because, hey, she's Lisa Furukawa, and so she brought us with her. It was pretty fun, they gave us bubbly juice in champagne glasses and really good cake, and they were playing some really good anime music. We just sat around and talked for a few hours and it was good times.

And, Chip got to do something he's wanted to do for a long time. He got to sing with Lisa Furukawa. They sang Yoko Kanno's "Be Human" and it was pretty. Rob sang with them, too. That was a lot of fun watching them, and that just made Chip's day.

Again unfortunately, this was Lisa's last year at MTAC for a while. She's been there three years in a row, and now they need to schedule someone new to shake things up. I wish I could have gone to her final concert on Sunday, but we were standing in line for two hours and it was running late and we had a three hour drive to get home, and we couldn't hang around any longer. And I'm really upset that I missed it, cause she said she was going to sing an Angela Aki song, and I'm in luff with Angela Aki.

The only other event that I really, really, really liked was the Japanese Street Fashion Show. That was a lot of fun. They had a bunch of people in typical Japanese street fashion styles. They had Fruits or Decora, which they described as being like a rainbow exploded in your face. They wear lots and lots of layers, lots and lots of accessories, big bulky jewelry, all that jazz. Lots of fun. Then they had EGL and EGA (Elegant Gothic Aristocratic and Elegant Gothic Lolita), you know, all the fancy gothy dressy stuff. And they had ganguro and yamamba, which are the tan fashion-trendy girls, and the deep-fried panda chicks. It was way fun.

Now, normally at cons I don't hang in the screening rooms for long, because there are better things to do than sit and watch anime, cause I could do that at home any time, right? But MTAC had a supreme lack of things to do, so I ended up in the screening room a couple times, and there are two anime I must recommend.

Anime number one is Yamato Nadesico Shichi Henge. The English name is Perfect Girl Evolution. It's so ridiculously absurd and random and hilarious. It makes fun of every anime and bishounen stereotype in the world, and it's greatness in a can. When we sat down and started watching it, we thought, "Okay, great, it's a pretty-boy school-girl anime, whatever..." and then ten minutes later we were in tears laughing. It has the most random, weird jokes EVER. I only got to see two episodes, but it definitely caught my attention, and I'm gonna get my hands on more.

The other one is equally funny, but in a different way. It's called Nodame Cantabile. It's beautifully animated, and the music is gorgeous. It's an anime about music, really. Guy plays piano and violin, but wants to be a composer. He's scared of travelling, though, so he's stuck on Japan. And right when he's losing his motivation and about to give up, he meets this girl, Nodame, who plays piano. Again, I only got to see two episodes, but I'm already in love. It's gorgeous. And if you like or appreciate or play classical music, you will absolutely adore it. The interaction between the characters is freaking hilarious, too. It has it's sweet, touching, serious moments, and then five minutes later you'll be out of breath from laughing.

And now for something completely different.

Con pictures! We took a bunch of them, so I'll just link the important ones. I was the one behind the camera most of the time, so there aren't very many pictures of me, and none of them with me in my costume. Me and my friends did Pheonix Wright this year. Chip was Phoenix Wright, Rob was Edgeworth, and I was Maggie Byrd, the cute little cop from the beginn... ]]> *Shira-chan

http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/12462916/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/12462916/ Wed, 04 Apr 2007 21:15:24 PDT StupidTester.com I am 25% stupid.



How about you?

I'll get internet working on my own computer one of these years. Until then, I am abusing the hell out of my mom's thumb drive getting pictures and photos and references back and forth between our computers since we don't have the help of a network.

The one thing that I miss most of all from my lack of internet is the fact that Doctor Who premired in Britain already, and I can't download the new episode! It's awful!

But! If you're into comic books, there are two things you MUST pick up this week. Incredible Hulk this week leads directly into World War Hulk in which Hulk returns to Earth to smash some brains in.

Also, surprisingly, The Avengers Initiative is REALLY good. I mean REALLY good. An excellent way to start off a new series. I loved it. The end was completely and totally unexpected. Definitely worth reading.

]]> *Shira-chan

http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/11835904/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/11835904/ Thu, 15 Feb 2007 21:35:51 PST Dominic Deegan while the artist was away for the weekend.

HO-LY CRAP. I have never had so many comments and favorites and messages and watches in my message center in my entire history of dAness. Even when I was published NATION-WIDE in the NEWSPAPER, I didn't get as much as twelve hours of exposure on Dominic Deegan.

This is craziness, I tell ya. Crazy.

It's like, overnight I suddenly have 50 more people who added me to their friends list, all cause I spent a half hour doodling some black and white fanart.

If you wanna see it, you can just go to the Dominic Deegan website. Or, you could, but the server is down at the moment.

_{(Not my fault. I swear.)}

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http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/11499060/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/11499060/ Sun, 21 Jan 2007 17:24:35 PST
It's a lot of images, so it may take a while to load. Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized image.


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http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/11206481/ http://Shira-chan.deviantart.com/journal/11206481/ Tue, 26 Dec 2006 22:45:34 PST

Okay yay! I just got back from Florida for Christmas vacation! It was fun! So I have some pictures. You can see all of them at My Photobucket Account, but if you don't wanna look at all of them, I'm just sticking up the ones that matter.


The hats I made for Manda and Cody.


Cody trying on his new lingerie.


Me making a funny face!


The whole family!


A much cuter me.

And that's all I have to say about that.

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