How I Started

I had always envied those who could draw, people who could create a world of images with just a pencil and paper. I attempted to doodle, but I was not very impressed with the results of my efforts. Then came the age of computers. I found that even though I could not draw, I did have an eye for graphic arts. One of the first programs I loaded on my personal computer was Harvard Graphics. This was back in the late 1980's. I did not know many people with a home computer. Harvard Graphics came with a rather thick manual, and dozens of "floppy disks" to be installed. I did not find Harvard Graphics intuitive but with a bit of effort I was creating page layouts, birthday cards, and newsletters that looked pretty good.

Page layout is one thing, but it is not the type of original art that I yearned to create. I still could not draw.

I was always a decent storyteller. Even as a young teen, I used to keep my younger cousins entertained with ad libbed stories of Captain BooBah, a ghostly pirate who sailed the skies in a ghoulish Jolly Roger looking for children to kidnap.

I tried writing novels. In fact, I started three. All decent stories, but I just did not have the work ethic to write on a regular basis. I knew the stories in my mind, but I was not interested enough in the work involved to submit them to paper. And so, these novels remained on my hard drive only a few pages completed.

Then, about five years ago I discovered DAZ 3D Studio.  This free software allowed me to create the type of original artwork I had always wished I could produce. My earliest DAZ artworks were rather primative, rather simplistic. But I was proud of them. I studied the works of other DAZ artists, asked questions and experimented. My images were improving.

I decided to try combining my storytelling with my new found ability to create images. My first effort was "The Statue," a six panel illustrated story. 

I found that I equally enjoyed creating the artwork and writing the story. In fact, one would stimulate the desire to do the other. A story would trigger an image in my head that I was challenged to create. And, an image would trigger storylines.

I made a short story for my son, Andrew, which I titled "Allegory." And I also made him a birthday card short story. Cards were becoming fun. I created a birthday card and a get-well card for my nephew, Louis.

I tried to develop longer stories for my artwork.  And so, I wrote "Once Upon a Time."  I created approximately 70 images to illustrate the story. 

While my artwork was still improving, and I was proud of what I was creating, I knew my art was a far cry from some of the masterpieces I saw from other DAZ artists. However, my artwork coupled with my stories gave me a product that was better than what I was seeing elsewhere.

I was feeling confident enough in what I could accomplish that I decided to create my first graphic novel. I used DAZ to created the images; Microsoft Word to create the text; and Adobe PageMaker to put them together. It took me 18 months to finish "... Or Die Trying." I brought my completed files to a  local printer, and paid for the printing of five copies of the 110-page, 250 images, graphic novel.

I tried to find a publisher for the book. However, given the 250 full color images, I could not find anyone interested. So I turned to a self-publishing company, Createspace.com. While the quality of image reproduction was not up to my standards, I was able to sell my book on Amazon.com.