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Digital Ask Laurence 2.0

Discussion in 'Art' started by Vurrunna, Apr 16, 2017.

  1. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 21a.png
    Proto-Laurence 21b.png
    Proto-Laurence 21c.png
    Proto-Laurence 21d.png
    Proto-Laurence 21e.png
    Proto-Laurence 21f.png
    Laura used to spend half her time writing fan-fictions, and so has a hyper-active imagination that has about as much coherency as can be expected from someone who's writing style is known best for the notorious Mary Sue. Coincidentally, many of her fan-fictions involved the cast of Ask Laurence, particularly the grump-beast Laurence himself. Some of these even included her!

    ... Let's not think about it.

    Also, @Bonabopn , you're lucky you're a squirrel now, otherwise Laura might still have been cross over the whole "Fluffiest Fox" thing (she takes pride in her ability to fluff herself up).

    These took a while to make. Originally, I only wanted to have one panel for the first question, but the idea manifested in such a way that required more of a long haul. Future posts should have less panels, mostly to preserve my endurance.

    Also, although I mentioned it a while back, Bonabopn's joining the Super Awesome Laurence Fan Club is the first post taken out of order. I prefer to take questions in order, so I don't feel like I'm leaving anybody out, but it fit better to use this one close to its mentioning. More questions may be taken out of order in the future, just so that questions related to recent posts will actually make sense when posted.

    Also-also, "dragon slave camps" is another in-universe reference! So far, y'all have seen one example of a dragon in Ask Laurence (though traditional fans will remember two more, if they think hard enough). But there are more! I actually really wanna take the time to flesh out their culture more some time, since, as it stands, they're the simplest (and least interesting) of the races. Nothing a few empty hours and mindless brain-ambling won't solve, though.


    Have a good night, you humans and otherwise,
    --Vurrunna
     
  2. Biirdy Daysleeper

    Biirdy Daysleeper Weight of the Sky

    [​IMG]

    See Tesla ? We'd better never ask any more questions to a depressed artist who spend his life responding to our nonsential questions. ^^'

    Tesla : Meh.
     
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  3. Rgbunpro

    Rgbunpro Cosmos Killer

    Um, wow. Laura... You okay there girl?

    Also, I feel like Ed is a little under-appreciated. Why isn't there an Ed fan club? Could I send Ed a box of treats from my country? Wait, do dragons who wear masks like treats? Is that a thing? Gah! This is why we need an Ed fan club!
     
    Last edited: Aug 14, 2017
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  4. Circle Cell

    Circle Cell Void-Bound Voyager

    expected from someone whose writing style

    :nuruflirt:
     
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  5. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 22.jpg
    Phil's in for some trouble.

    And hey, it's Janet! You remember Janet, I drew her face, like, one, two times tops way back when. Yeah, of course you remember her.

    Whatever in the world gave you that impression? It's not like I started this comic back up again to cope with--oh. Right.

    But seriously, most things in this fella's head are about where they probably should be, save for the crazy bits that make me draw people stuck in a box. I don't know if science has advanced enough to classify what that part's even called.

    Eye wuz bownd two myspel sumthin evenchooulee.

    Also, if the pixel quality of the image seems at all diminished, it's because I've switched from .png to .jpg ("Do I look like I know what a JPEG is?"). I've been thinking about spreading Ask Laurence to a new website, and for some stupid reason they only accept .jpg images. And .jpg alone! No .jpeg allowed there, no sir, just .jpg, the type of file where I have to first select JPEG and then type in .jpg at the end of the file name, which also means that my twenty one episodes, many with upwards of seven panels, must now all be converted meticulously to .jpg via means of individually opening up each picture, one by freaking one, then manually hitting "Save As," then manually hitting "Other File Type, THEN MANUALLY HITTING JPEG, THEN MANUALLY TYPING IN .JPG. ALL SO I CAN REDUCE THE QUALITY OF THE IMAGES SO THEY CAN BE POSTED TO STUPID WEBTOONS BECAUSE THEY CAN'T HANDLE A FRIGGIN' .PNG.

    I'M NOT UPSET YOU'RE UPSET.

    *Ahem.* Anywho. Have a good one.
    --Vurrunna

    EDIT: Hold up, dealing with some technical difficulties...
    EDIT 2: 'Kay, fixed.
     
  6. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Stand By.png
    I've spent this entire past week cramming in sessions for a dance rehearsal tomorrow night, and just today have moved into my new college and have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing. This is not, surprisingly enough, conductive for artsing.

    I'll get to answering the standing questions eventually, but for now, I am super stressed out and don't have time to do much of anything (case in point--I currently have free time to do whatever, and I'm so stressed out because I feel like I ought to be doing something and am missing something that I need to be doing). Once I get this college stuff figured out, I'll do my best to get back to drawing Laurence. Unfortunately, I can't make any promises: I just can't predict what my schedule will be like, and frankly, if I end the day and just don't feel like drawing the fox man, it's best for all of us that I don't draw the fox man.

    Still, that's more worst-case-scenario talk. Laurence will hopefully return soon, especially since there's some other crap that might be coming up on the horizon that I'll need Laurence to help me deal with (his misfortune is my therapy).

    Wish me luck,
    --Vurrunna
     
  7. Jimlad 42

    Jimlad 42 Supernova

    Sounds fine, moving to college is really stressful and I can see where none of this would be helpful for drawing.
    Take your time, make sure this doesn't feel like a job to you, have fun doing it, and good luck!
     
  8. Rgbunpro

    Rgbunpro Cosmos Killer

    I've never lived in a college dorm, but I know the stress of not knowing one's schedule. Don't worry, you'll figure it out at some point.
     
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  9. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 23.png
    In case it wasn't clear enough, Laura totally likes Laurence. The only thing not clear is: Why?

    Because dark and brooding is in vogue, I guess.

    *Breathe*

    AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

    Well, got that out of my system. Sort of. Not really.

    As a rule, I try to keep my personal affairs out of the comic. For one, my thoughts and feelings can change on a dime, meaning to say how I feel often only gives one half of my thoughts before I remember the rest of my thoughts. Second, there's at least one comic I stopped reading partially because the descriptions were always about random nonsense going on in their life rather than witty commentary or interesting tidbits about the comic (people read funny comics to laugh at silly jokes, not so they can read my life story every day--that's its own genre, and Ask Laurence isn't a part of it). Third, frankly, a good deal of stuff happening in my life is quite personal, and I don't always feel comfortable talking to y'all about it--not that I don't trust you, I just prefer not to dump all my burdens on you and expect you to show me constant sympathy (again, I always prefer to assume you're just here for the fox).

    That said, there's been some real nonsense going on in the past few days--the sort of nonsense I always assumed happened to just the "Popular Crowd" (you know, the people that talk to lots of other people and probably go to parties and stuff). I'm gonna double spoiler this because hot-dang. Only read this if you really feel like knowing what's going on with me recently, and preferably respond in your own spoilers to keep this apart from the comic.
    So. I'm a good portion sure someone may have flirted with me.

    If that sounds pretty anticlimactic, keep in mind that I am so averse to getting into relationships that my cousin thought I was actually asexual until I admitted I liked a girl. I am anything but flirtatious or bound towards... Ugh... Dating.

    But here's where it gets weird. This person (potentially) flirting with me (in all fairness, she might just be super friendly and think that jokes about relationships aren't implicative, but all the same)--rather than make me think "Oh hey, I might like this person," instead made me think "Yep, I definitely like that other person I wasn't so sure about."

    Like, what the crap.

    For explanation, I've had a friend that, for a while now, I've been feeling slowly drawn closer and closer to. Recently, I've felt drawn even closer, and have had trouble trying to repress the feelings I started having concerning her (I've been in one sort-of relationship before, and it ended pretty disastrously--we both walked away pretty hurt, and I just wanted to never go through that pain again, nor cause such pain again). Being religious, I decided I'd give it to God, and He gave a pretty clear answer--just be friends. I was actually really relieved with this, and started to think of her as just a friend.

    Then a whole bunch of nonsense happened right in a row with one another and I found myself very at odds to repress my feelings. Plus, this all happened right when I had said "Okay, I don't need to be in a relationship with her," and just recently I've been thinking a lot on this sort of convoluted idea about I won't get anything I want until I don't want it (e.g. if I want a burger more than God, I shouldn't eat it, because it draws me away from God, but if I don't care if I get a burger or not, it's fine to have a burger, because it won't draw me away from God--which is the simple version of an idea I've spent months considering).

    Then this girl flirted with me. And, caught between choosing to stick with the first girl or run off with this other girl, I determined I'd rather keep my integrity intact and stick with the first one while trying my best to make this second girl understand I ain't interested (she joked about kissing me, which was one of the most unnerving things in my life--I immediately said no before it turned out to be one of those "Wanna Kiss" and give 'em chocolate jokes, but still).

    All of this while still not really being sure of whether or not this girl I like even liked me back.

    Blurghalurgalurgh.

    Okay. I've typed my feelings out enough to be mostly over it. Right now, my plan is to just figure out what's going on on her end, then proceed from there--it may well be that we will just be friends in this is all just a lesson in containing my emotions, and either way I've committed to not getting into any relationships until the end of this school year.

    And in case you didn't catch it: This whole situation is what prompted today's post concerning the S.S. Laura&Laurence.


    Okay, enough nonsense. Have a good one and see you around,
    --Vurrunna
     
  10. Rgbunpro

    Rgbunpro Cosmos Killer

    I can't help but think that Laurence would rather stab her with a spoon.

    Oi, relationships are complicated biz. Now based on what I'm reading, you're pulling one of the classic moves that a man pulls when he finds out a woman likes him. That is of course, to panic. Now personally I'd recommend taking some time (Which you've probably already done by now) to just clear your head and a bit and figure out what you wanna do. Now in the situation you described, I feel like the proper move might be to just continue on with your normal life, and if someone actually tries to make a move on you, just explain that you don't want to be in a relationship right now.

    Either way, I wish you the very best.
    -RG
     
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  11. The Purple Dragon

    The Purple Dragon Master Astronaut

    I get the feeling that she'll make Laurence love her whether he wants to or not.
     
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  12. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 24a re.png
    Laurence seems to have been rather effective at pacifying Phil. And that box he's holding looks suspicious--I wonder who sent that in?

    I'm presently sick, and swamped with work, so I unfortunately won't be making any witty comments about disappearing for lengths of times. Suffice to say that yes, I am, as always, still planning to continue Laurence--I had to draw this joke three different ways before I decided "Screw it" and just stuck with no shading. Apologies for lessened quality, but cheap Laurence is better than no Laurence ever in ever.

    And for anyone wondering, I've dealt with that nonsense I rambled about last time--I don't know why I brought it up here, but I guess I was just panicking at the time. No matter--here's for pressing on and making more lame fox jokes.


    With that, I suppose I ought to be off to try study computer algorithms and tediously record the data they present me while wishing I could actually be writing the computer algorithms I'm tediously recording data from. And I'm probably not even going into computer science.

    Watch out for hooligans,
    --Vurrunna
     
  13. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Intermission 2.png
    Proto-Laurence 25a.png
    Proto-Laurence 25b.png
    The Box has serious insect issues. Really, you'd be surprised how many pests manage to get roosted in there.

    I'll be honest, I'm none too pleased with this post. The pictures are too simplifies, and the last one is grossly underdone. I'm gonna try referring to my older posts to offer myself some further inspiration on how to draw the characters (for example, it seems I do better when I draw characters smaller, which likely has a lot to do with brush strokes).

    Anywho, I'll see you when I see you next--let's hold off on any further questions anybody left has for now, just so I can finish up with the standing questions.

    Happy days to all,
    --Vurrunna
     
  14. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 26.png
    Look at you. Not only did you feed a deranged fox-man's caffeine/coffee addiction, but you let down Ed. You should be ashamed.

    Next time, just send raw caffeine. Way more efficient, that's probably what has Ed upset anyways.

    This is probably the first panel I've been satisfied with since the one where Laura explained the Alaarn.

    Making things smaller definitely helped. I've been thinking about it, and I'm pretty sure that the more compact space makes it easier for me to get my brush strokes right--I usually make them quick and short, so at larger sizes I tend to make more mistakes, which generally has me settling for a less-than-optimal end result. Plus, I only did the one panel, so I didn't get exhausted while making it. Plus-plus, the outlines are from the direct sketch, meaning that I could settle for my first (and best) lines rather than getting exactly what I want and then trying to retrace. It leaves a bit more messy edges, but is overall much better.

    While it's usually the part I look forward to the least, the shading was pretty easy on this one--though it usually is. I think I used to have really bad shading techniques, so I always think it's going to be a lot harder than it ends up being.

    Lastly, I'm definitely gonna start settling back into some of my older styles (or at least that's the plan right now). This comic's only fun if I make good pictures, so I'm gonna make sure I make these pictures as good as I can.


    Don't let the fox-men sneak up on ya,
    --Vurrunna
     
  15. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 27a.png
    Proto-Laurence 27b.png
    It probably wasn't the best idea to have packages launched at the customs desk at high velocity whenever they arrive. Fine for envelopes, catastrophe for blueprints and abstract parts for tools of mass destruction (Laurence gets his mitts on that box, and he'll be unstoppable for about five minutes until his incredibly high coffee tolerance kicks in).

    I'm happy to be getting pictures out. My next step is to see if I can get back to working on my line thickness--less single thickness, more variation from thin to thick.

    It's good to be back,
    --Vurrunna
     
  16. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 28.png
    ... So is that a sometimes, or...?

    I haven't drawn the floor in the studio for so long that I'd forgotten I'd ever even drawn it (I only ever drew it when Laurence was turned into a cat, back in the good ol' days before everything exploded). Even so, including the floor made this piece a lot more interesting to work with--it let me make the depth and direction of the wall a lot clearer than it usually is. I feel like I should start paying a lot more attention to the walls, to help them seem more real and less like a generic cheap backdrop.

    Something something have a good one,
    --Vurrunna
     
  17. Rgbunpro

    Rgbunpro Cosmos Killer

    Aww, poor Ed. He's just trying to do his job.
     
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  18. The Purple Dragon

    The Purple Dragon Master Astronaut

    I wonder how much he's payed.
     
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  19. Rgbunpro

    Rgbunpro Cosmos Killer

    Not enough, I can tell you that.
     
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  20. Vurrunna

    Vurrunna Giant Laser Beams

    Proto-Laurence 29a re.png
    Hey, it's the Tallan kids that showed up while everything was going bonkers and who disappeared ever since except for exactly two pictures involving the crazy one promising to kill Laurence! You remember them, right?

    Right?

    ...

    ... Well regardless they exist and live in the studio and are now canon characters so just live with it.

    It's worth noting that I will take any opportunity I possibly can to write in Latin. CUR? QUOD LATINA EST OPTIMA LINGUA, ET ILLI QUI NON CONSTANT SUNT CUCULI ET BARBARI.

    The Tallan kids are, as the name would suggest, Tallans--a race of bird-like people that I made up back in middle school and have since become one of four prominent races in the crazy big universe I have in my head. For anyone curious, those four races are, in order of prominence, the Alaarn (e.g. Laurence and Laura), the Tallans (e.g. the kids in today's panel), the Dragons (e.g. Jierik, the guy who keeps informing the crew of budget cuts), and the Humans (e.g. some weird fantasy race).

    I've mentioned the Tallans before in a post I made way-back-when that I hardly remember and which I'm near certain very few here would recall, and which is also out of date to boot (this universe is under constant work). They are a people that has been traditionally known for its sense of justice and fairness, but which in recent years has been blighted by a large number of senators in the large Tallan Republic turning corrupt (for example, the infamous Senator Allistaire Vaarn, widely considered the most twisted individual to ever take the seat of a Tallan Senator). This has led to a measure of civil strife, as the government quickly becomes more and more corrupt and what few individuals remain that see what's happening try their darndest to fight it before the corruption becomes too late.

    The Tallans are, without a doubt, one of my favorite species I've created, which means I actually try and use them the least, because I know if I let myself every last one of my stories would be focused around a Tallan of some form being incredibly wise and sophisticated regardless of the circumstances. That said, I do have a few stories that focus around Tallans which have been gathering dust in my mind, and could do with a revamping--such as the central plot of Senator Theodore Grex fighting to restore the Republic to its roots and bring it away from the modern corruption, and an older story about the anti-hero Vikorrik and his journey to protect his 'blind' daughter both from the dangers of a broken universe and from the violence that plagues his existence (he's one of my earlier, and thus darker, characters, made before I started endeavoring to make all of my stories more family friendly).

    Why am I telling you this? Well, because it's my freaking thread and I can ramble about whatever I darn well please you impatient little it's actually relevant to some of the characters! While it should be obvious that the history of the Tallans is related to a group of three kids that are themselves Tallans, the Tallan Republic is also where Laura comes from, and especially astute readers (i.e. probably nobody) may recall that she was once invited to live with Senator Vaarn (an offer she wisely ignored) and used to live in a colony under the juristiction of Senator Grex. Why does knowing this matter?

    ...

    ... Because you can shut your flipping mouth that's why you cheeky little

    (Seriously, though, it matters because the lore of this comic is about ten times deeper than I ever really show it to be and I will take every opportunity to nerd out about it.)


    (EDIT: Also, here's a bigger version of the panel that shows off some of the art, because I put effort into this one, dang it.)
    Proto-Laurence 29a re nowords.png


    AVE ET VALE,
    --VURRUNNA
     

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