E. M. Syvertsen
patreon
Update;
🕑 Added 2021-03-31 02:17:55 +0000 UTCHad a bit of a burnout, and needed a few weeks to recover, so pardon the absence... I'm back now :)
Meanwhile our Discord server is growing and thriving :) People are chatting and sharing art and it's been so many wholesome moments. We also tried out a discord voice chat stream where I worked on some art stuff and talked with those who wanted to join in and answered questions (to break the ice and have some convo starters since I'm gonna go ahead and guess I'm by far not the only shy introvert here ;) ). It turned into this really sweet thing were we ended up drawing each other's characters and just having fun bonding over art ^u^
Regarding how to join the discord server, it is available to all pledging patrons of any tier. I'm not too savvy with Discord, but one of my lovely patrons, Katrine, shared this useful comment in my previous post on the matter:
"In case there's other non tech savy people here who didn't know about this, and struggled to find it like me: It's in your profile settings, under the 'app' tab on top. You should be able to connect to discord from there"
We have various chat rooms for different topics, both SPiKE related and non-SPiKE related, and some where I post some of my content or discuss story theories and the likes with you or bug you with little unelaborated story teasers >u>
I really liked the voice chat / streaming options on Discord, as they felt more Patreon Exclusive than Twitter has been. I'll still be doing Twitter streams, but I'll also do more exclusive Discord/Patreon ones.
SPiKE news:
I'm back to working on the graphic novel more, and I am discussing a publishing date with Egmont, but I'm sorry to say that I'll keep it private until I am absolutely certain that I'll make it in time. So when I come back to you guys with the actual release date, that will be when all the pages to vol.1 are finished and sent to the printing press. Right after that is when pre-orders and signings will be happening.
But I feel it is the right thing for me and the work flow to not say when the book will be out, cuz then I'll start feeling the deadline pressure of people expecting something on a specific day and somehow that's when shit just stagnates for me and I can't get myself to do anything. It's like this creative catatonic state, it is what fucked up the publication last time, and I wanna do it right this time.
I feel I have it more under control this time, and I've used my time since the last attempt to work on the rest of the series and putting together the first six volumes so that I won't have to "waste time" having to plan them out (as in how an editor of a series knows what the story is about and has seen all the scenes, but now has the job of arranging them into episodes that work the way the director intended. ...Only as a comic artist you are your own director, cinematographer, editor, cast, set dresser and whole entire film crew ^^; ).
TLDR; I have a plan and I feel confident that it will work better this time. I'll let you know when the release date is as soon as I've sent all the pages to my publisher.
What I can tell you so far is that the first volume will be approximately 145 pages, and probably have a sketch gallery in the back and some other stuff I hope to include.
There will be some cameo characters in it as well, so stay tuned for that :) It's in the last chapter, and I try to work chronologically this time, so I'll draw yours when it is time. There is a group in the Discord chat that is for these cameos so those who want to can chat with me there about their character, and I might even design them live in discord streams as you and I chat about them (if you're ok with that, I mean).
The first SPiKE volume will be in Norwegian, and depending on how well it sells there might be a chance to sell the licence to publish it abroad in English and other languages by Volume two, but if not then my publisher has said that we will try after vol.3 at least. Norwegian Graphic Novelists are becoming quite many and quite popular these past few years following the groundbreaking success and beauty of Malin Falch's (detkef on dA) series "Nordlys" (Nothern Lights) series, to the point where we're apparently categorized under the term "Nordic Manga" in other countries, and there seems to be an increased interest in the stuff we do, and translations from as early as the first volume seems to be discussed with at least a couple of us already.
Since the first volume is in Norwegian and I know a lot of you have said you want to buy it anyways, and some even having started learning Norwegian (bless you, that's some hard core dedication my dude <3 ), I want to try and help you guys out with that as much as I can. I'll ask my publisher if there is a way that the volumes can either be ordered and sold abroad or if there is a way for me to buy and ship them for you. If I can do that, then I will sign each of those copies and - if my printer allows it - add a printed out English translation of the text / speech bubbles.
The volumes themselves will probably follow the standard of hardcover, semi-glossy gorgeously high quality printed colored pages, A5 ish size (I don't know enough about formats to say anything specific there, sorry), 150-200 pages give or take, and the price I'm guessing will be around 35 USD (based on what I've seen others' books sell for, which is usually 249 - 299 NOK, until following years where older volumes are on sale for anything between 99 NOK to 199 NOK. Us artists get a wee bit of royalty for each sold volume though, so the more they sell when they're fresh the more we can focus on drawing the next one and not wasting time worrying about our incomes or lack there of ^^; )
Bit of a tangent there...
I'll admit, the thought of having SPiKE published once I'd actually signed the deal, absolutely terrified me. I kept trying to be excited about it, while feeling so strongly that it wasn't ready and that I needed more time getting ready both artistically and emotionally. I needed to know I was ready for not just the first book, but the first Arc, cuz once I start there will be no stopping until the whole series is published, and with the amount of volumes planned I will have to work on this every single year until completion.
And there was no way I was ready for that last time.
So while I'm sorry to have dissapointed you guys back there, I am glad I made the decision to call it off and spend some more time making sure I was ready for this and have a sort of battle plan ready, and I feel .... less fearful this time. I'm actually started to look forward to seeing it in an actual book, you know? I think this time I'll feel proud to show it to you guys, and less inclined to hide and just shun the thing xD If this is to be my magnum opus or whatever, I wanna do it right.
I keep using this song recently as a motivational boost. Rival Sons "All the way", cuz they have some quotes in there that speak to me lol... also the tune is hella catchy.
To paraphrase:
"So if you get it wrong, go back and do it right.
Find out what you love, hold on to it tight.
This time we're going all the way. "
This time, I'm going all the way.
And I'm excited about it.
I'm taking April to really test myself and figure out what process works the best for me. Some days I'll need to work on the pages in private, other days I might enjoy some company and stream the sessions, probably more on Discord than Twitch. I think the Twitch ones will be for the times where I feel ok with streaming but not interacting so much as I need to focus, whereas the discord ones will be for my more social hours where I feel like talking with you guys along with it.
Coloring is defo where I need to focus the most, so I'll be streaming the lineart process mostly. Or the re-working of some pages.
I want to do weekly streams, but keeping them brief and frequent instead of one that's half a day long and then not stream again for days or weeks xD I'm learning to be more mindful and accepting of my energy issues and limitations to avoid burnouts, so I'll try to introduce a timer where I work on my pages for two hours at a time, making sure to take solid breaks in between where I walk my dog, and practice on relaxing afterwards before going back to drawing.
(and yeah, as weird as it sounds, I have to practice relaxing xD I struggle with basing my self worth on how many things I manage to do in a day, and that's no healthy way to be and it's made me unable to properly relax and unwind. So it's a new skill I have to acquire and practice on. ...lucky for me, it involves video games xD or playing instruments or hanging out with my pets more. Doing stuff that helps me feel recharged without feeling guilty for spending time on it or prioritizing it.)
I will also work on the commissions I already have, when I have the time and energy for them. I want to set aside time for them once a week, because it feels the most manageable to me right now. I will therefore not open any new slots until all of the ones I currently have are finished, and once they are I will only take a few at a time, and introduce some quicker, cheaper options. Like maybe opening five slots, where two are the type of painted ones I've done so far, and the other three are in my more comic-y style, for instance.
Or chibis! Those sold like ice cream in summer O__O <3
OOH!
I have some other exciting news, or more like... future ideas and project plans (that are managable and won't distract from the comic)
So, my boyfriend is this McGyver type creative engineer like dude who has a 3D printer and tinkers with some amazing projects and gadgets he creates. He's got this mindset of "if you can think it, you can create it" and loves to encourage people to bring their ideas and projects to mind.
Needless to say, when we start brainstorming, my brain buzzes like a toddler on a sugar rush, man xD
Spike figurines.
But also some that I'm hella excited for that he suggested and knows how to make; led lamp figurines..! They have these sensors in their hands, built inside the figurine, where when they come in contact with this resin light orb thingy it starts to glow in customizable colors. The figurine stand doubles as a charging port. Bruh, they sound so fekkin' amazing OuO I wanna make them to have them myself as well xD Imagine like a little chibi Spike sleeping on a moon orb..! <3 It would be the cutest night lamp QnQ <3
But also collectible, regular figurines that I model in 3D, then we print it on my boyfriend's 3D printer (we're also slowly saving up for a proper resin printer OuO ), I hand paint then and sign the base stand thingy, and then sell them as cute little on demand collectibles, AND you guys can come with suggestions on which characters and what poses etc :D
I'm thinkin Nendoroid style for starters, like chibis, cuz it'll be easier to model. If I can't figure out the 3D thing, I'll hand sculpt them and cast them, because my boyfriend has some personal projects where he's gonna have to figure out mold casting and we thought it'd be great to learn it together.
If you've seen Nerd Forge on Youtube, that's basically what we're becoming xD
If all goes well, we're moving in together this fall, and we have dreams to some day own a house with a proper workshop for all our creative needs ^__^
Fingers crossed my SPiKE series does well enough for that to happen! :D
A little farm like place with a big garage workshop, lots of space for my future foster dogs to run around on and stuff...
lol I'm getting carried away... Corona's been such shit to us all that I think we owe it to ourselves to dream big now <3
I'll stop with the ramblings here, but TLDR;
join our discord <3 (It's LGBTQ+ friendly, non-racist, and overall a wholesome place to be, and we strive to keep it that way <3 )
Stay tuned for more streams, and thank you so, so incredibly much for all your love and support! <3 Your pledges matter so much more to me than you know, bud.. <3 :') *hugs you tightly*
