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The End of the Comic
Monday, February 27th, 2006 by joelI have to apologize to you, the reader. I kind of rushed some parts of the strip, especially near the end there. Part of the problem is that this story is old news to me. I wrote the majority of it the first time. Then I did a comic version of it. Then I re-wrote it, adding around eight chapters to it (you didn’t get those chapters in this version, or else I would be at this for another year). Then I re-rewrote it. Then I did this comic version of it. Girdy wants to write it into a full book, which I am all for so long as he does all the work. So, yeah, that ain’t going to happen.
Part of the problem is that my writing style has developed somewhat since the writing of this story. At its root the Secrets story is basically ten chapters of dialogue. Which works well in word format, but comes out somewhat dull in a comic. Over the years both my writing and my comics have become more and more visual and less and less about dialogue. A classic example of this is the scene in the second installment of The Quiver Gambit where The Girl kisses The Spider then runs off. I still have sitting on my hard drive somewhere a speech I had intended for The Girl to give before she runs off. But after I had drawn the scene, I came to the conclusion that it stood on its own with no words whatsoever. I am a big believer that actions speak louder than words, and so words are becoming less important to me.
Unless you think the Secrets of the Universe website is done, it is not. What is finished is the graphic novel of the space adventure. Stay tuned for the next installment of Quiver. After that I will be starting the ‘Sophomore Year’. As per Girdy’s request, this will involve a lot of the four-panel funnies which were the root of Secrets, but it will also involve new characters and more exciting plot development. So… good times in store.
