SPQR Blues part CIV (both rows)

[spqrblues]

So, if you want to see the first row, here it is. Second row is about 25% inked. All done.

Remember, I haven't drawn in a very long time. I'll need a while to warm back up and remember how to, you know, draw, and stuff.







{{ the archives live here }}

Comments

[b2creative.livejournal.com]

IT'S ALIIIIIIIIVE!!!!

Whoo! Good to see you back!

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Weird to be back. I mean good. Good to be back :D

[samhenderson.livejournal.com]

Hooray, it's back!

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Because we're many-layered? Fresh? Green?

Yeah, I don't know either. I should stop contemplating produce and find someplace in this house where I can get a little quiet and get back to my pencils.

[ahsavka.livejournal.com]

HOORAY!

Also, I am impressed (as always) at your ability to do that teeny little nose. I love Mus's nose, of course, but the "skillz" you need to get that button nose right every time are, shall we say, "l33t".

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Someone asked me recently at a comics meetup/techniques chat whether I did a lot of character design sketches before introducing a character, and I realised I don't usually do much, or any at all... except for that little nose. Lots of sketching, still, to get Iusta's little nose right :^)

[frostedelves.livejournal.com]

Yay! Welcome back! It's lovely to see you and see more of your story. :)

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I've given myself a challenge to keep up the daily schedule for a week, which I think will actually help me with some other projects I have going at the moment. The theory is that I'll be all limbered up. And there will be lots of Romans :D

[helwen.livejournal.com]

Yay! Glad to 'see' you again :)

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Glad to be seen!

[kyleen66.livejournal.com]

I love the last panel. It looks especially clean. I also like the detail of her elbow.

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Say, sometime when you're not super busy and travelling and going crazy with work, I am looking forward to seeing some of your finely crafted literature. And by "literature," I mean... well, yeah, some written stuff :D

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

The whole set of her body in panel four is amazing -- the eyes and mouth convey so much emotion.

Your fingers may feel like they're rusty, but clearly the art and artist aren't. Welcome back!

Dr. Phil

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

I haven't tackled the challenge of Felix's curls yet, but I'm leaving that until my fingers have had a chance to stretch :)

[ladyqkat.livejournal.com]

Oh, it is so great to see you back! I know how badly life can attack and not even give you time to do a quick *wave, I'm still alive* post.

I have really missed SPQR Blues because we (my SO, sordak, and I) have finally decided to start posting some of our stories starting with a silly alternate history called The Roman View.

You see, you are one of my inspirations to share our stories, so some of it is your fault. ;p

ETA because I forgot how to do a link code, I was so happy to see your work.

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Historical fiction blog? Roman historical fiction blog? Alt history Roman historical fiction blog? Whee!

(I think the heat has sapped my higher-level commenting skills. I'd better go have a cold drink :) )

[ladyqkat.livejournal.com]

I do hope you enjoy it.

It really, really deviates from known history and the alternate split took place when The Roman was an infant (just a hint and I don't think it is even mentioned in the story). No names were used in the first part, The Roman View, and, IIRC, only touched on in the second part, Roman Revelations. But it is a good starting point (besides being the only one that is finished) for our series of stories, which begin over 75,000 years ago on Earth and end several thousand years in the future on another planet.

May I put a link to SPQR Blues on my links list on our primary site, Make A Wish Upon Tomorrow?

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

That's very ambitious. I'm impressed.

And, I'd be thrilled to be linked. I'll be sure to link back from the spqrblues.com site. The links page needs some cleaning up and reorganising anyway.

Do you ever use Project Wonderful (http://www.projectwonderful.com/) banners or have you considered having them on your site?

[ladyqkat.livejournal.com]

I will save that site for later. Right now I am still learning my way around WordPress (which, at the time, was the best host site I could find) and will need to see what kind of advertising I can use. I know they have some, but I am not sure if it has to go through them first.

sordak created this universe when he was very young and has graciously allowed me to put my characters in and play. He and I have finally stopped listening to the nay-sayers (what can I say, we are both dense) and realized that, while we may not be world-class writers, both of us have a modicum of talent and stories that some people like reading. So we do have some things 'ready to go', but we also have massive re-writes to do on a couple of the stories.

Going to go do the linkee thing right now.

[droolfangrrl.livejournal.com]

Yay! *hugs*

[xanath.livejournal.com]

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!! ::hugs Carol:: Salve, amica mea! So glad to see you back to work, you and drawing again! :D

[rosefox]

YAY welcome back!

[pikku-gen.livejournal.com]

*pheeeow* I was afraid for a moment, you know. Anything can happen in this crazy old world. Good to know you're back and drawing! =D

And such a lovely picture that, the first morning together... XD

It's back!

[karisu-sama.livejournal.com]

HURRAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY!!!!

And your art looks lovely as ever! :D

[http://users.livejournal.com/_w_o_o_d_/]

Wow, you're back for real ? We'll see if I still manage to catch up before the big Boom...

Is it a Roman thing to keep your breast covered at all times, even when in bed with your husband / lover ?

Or is it an effort on your behalf, in the interest of the protection of innocence ?

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Women in flagrante are often depicted in Roman art with their breasts covered, but I figure it's because of how difficult a Roman bra must have been to put on and take off. According to Roman clothing expert A. T. Croom, a breastband (strophium or fascia or fascea) was up to 5 meters long, a strip of cloth wrapped around the chest a half dozen times. The common Latin term for "breastband" also means "bandages."

Also, I don't want to corrupt my innocent readers ;)

[mummpizz.livejournal.com]

You're kidding, the art looks good. Just the 2nd panel in the 1st row is a little bit awkward. But her goldy locks (+ smile) make up for everything.

Good to have you back, I was pondering if it was about time to go into mourning already.

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Not quite yet.

Maybe soon.

But not yet ;)

[oneangryrabbit.livejournal.com]

:)

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

See! I really did it! Even if I wouldn't show anybody the pencils.

Cryptic message

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

And, embarrassingly enough, you're right, I'm wrong--add 2 years to that age. I was thinking of at the beginning of the comic. D'oh. I need to get my facts straight. Plus there's about 2 additional years of wiggle room, historically speaking.

Re: Cryptic message

[oneangryrabbit.livejournal.com]

Ah, I was looking at this strip and thinking that she's awfully curvy for her age. That makes much more sense. Now I have to go poke at the older ones.

Re: Cryptic message

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

She gets those curves from her notorious mother. Or, as my own mother would say in our family parlance, "she comes by them honestly." (Which is just the "nice" way of saying so-and-so has big hips/derriere/chest/etc.)

Re: Cryptic message

[pikku-gen.livejournal.com]

...ooooo, I like that phrase... can I use it sometime somewhere?

Re: Cryptic message

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Oh, most certainly. I don't know whether it's a regional thing or a family quirk. I have a couple of very quirky families :)

Re: Cryptic message

[cyanocorax.livejournal.com]

I've heard this turn of phrase, though not from my own mother's rather proper city family. Google has only 224,000 instances, mostly about how someone obtained their riches. But the "inherit from family" is also there -- http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/come+by+honestly

I really must get some more books for my language reference shelf.

[wintersweet.livejournal.com]

It looks like you remember juuuuust fine. (Sigh. Can I come study at your feet? ;) )

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

The first thing you will learn at my feet is that my socks seldom match... unless you count them both usually being the same thickness and height.

[alex-smollett.livejournal.com]

Huzzah!

[amedia.livejournal.com]

EUGE!!!!! So good to have SPQRB you back!!!!!

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

What a shiny SQUEE icon :D

I'm late heading back uptown, and I have long trip ahead of me thanks to drastic problems on the subway line--but that means I can spend my long ride on the express bus working on pencils, and hopefully get the inking done by midnight. Well, I can do so if no one's looking over my shoulder and wondering what's up with all the Romans in bras. I get so inhibited when people look over my shoulder and wonder what's up with all the bras.

[palusbuteo.livejournal.com]

HOOORAAAAY!!!

Your art looks just as good as where you were forced to leave off.

Glad to have you back! And can't wait for the next installment!

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

Your icon is looking dashing and soldierly and legionary-ing-ly. If I ever make it to a reenactment, I'm sure I'll go crazy snapping pictures of everything and everyone for photo refs.

I'll break out the KV63 icon—it just needs a bit of dusting off after being buried in the sands for so long.

[palusbuteo.livejournal.com]

*squeee!*

It'd be great to have you come to an event sometime.

Aug 29th we'll be in Deerfield, MA for an encampment. Public hours 10-5.
:D

We're also planning to take over Higgins Armory Museum again in 2010, probably in July :D

[(Anonymous)]

YOU'RE ALIVE! HURRAY!!!
*thanks to all the gods she has sacrificed sth to*
So glad to see you're back... not only that, but you have wonderful Roman people to treat us with! *hugs to death* Oh no *pokes* sorry? don't die on us now?

Nemo

PS: Lovely hair, especially on panel 4. Dull skills? I think not...
PS: I see they're still not affectionate to each other, even after the previous night. Sleeping with your back at you husband/wife is a bit cold, especially for the first night, right?

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

I'm alive! Mostly!

Well, it's August, so maybe it's too hot to snuggle? (It's way too hot here in MMIX.)

They no doubt like each other well enough, but cuddling is too much work. At least they got the main obligation over with. One small step at a time. They can start a "to do" list :)

[sonnentau.livejournal.com]

Oh my gosh, you're back! It's so wonderful to see SPQR blues alive again. :)