I’m getting closer to completion of the BLOTTING PAPER first issue’s Chapter 1: The Ingurgitator. Drum roll! What I had hoped to have out by the end of 2011 is now looking certain for early 2012 so some celebratory banging on my own drum is in order.

Testing out type. (Photo by Louise Graber)

There have been changes to the script. This has resulted in compressions, extensions and deletions. I found that I needed more space to convey some sequences. This meant shortening some parts in order to keep to the 40 page total that has progressively crept up from the planned 20. Some sequences weren’t working so they had to be cut although they may appear in a subsequent chapter if I can get them sorted out, and some parts, whilst working in script form, were just too difficult for me to draw.

My box of type. (Photo by Louise Graber)

The type in print.

The other interesting development has been the photographic part of the project. Initially employed as a reference device for locations, objects, figures and gesture positions that would in turn be converted into drawings, the lens art has now become more of a feature. Some pages are even starting to look a little like sequences from a Mexican foto-novela or picto grafia comic. This was not my intention. There is still the anticipated drawn, collaged and printmade elements along with the traditional rubber-stamped text (see the photos above). Anyhow, I expect that the next report will confirm my hopes of the forthcoming completion of the first issue of the comic and contain the announcement of publication place and date.

For a visual diary record and time-line overview of this project, see all of the BLOTTING PAPER production reports relating to Issue #1:  No.1   No.2   No.3   No.4   No.5   No.6   No.7   No.8   No.9   No.10   No.11   No.12   No.13