What's Currently On My Board (And What's For Sale)

Here's what's on the board these days while I trudge merrily on:

1) Milk & Cheese commission - overdue, but over-detailed. The lettering was a sticking point but I finally got it done last night and it was a hand wringer. The problem with my lettering is that I don't know how to letter. I draw the letters more than I "letter" them, if you follow. I don't have a facility with pen nibs to pick up a broad nib and lay down thick block lettering, and I am not great with a thick brush pen or marker, either. So I tend to draw the block lettering like open-for-color lettering, and fill in with black (usually a rapidograph, so it doesn't fade much when I erase the penciling). Lettering is what takes up the most time with drawing anything Milk & Cheese-related, because they're big mouths and yell a lot. On this piece I need to find some decent reference for the lab rats and the diplomas and then I can finish up and color it. I think it will be fun to color this one because of all the oddball details, pills, rats, Pez, a skull -- exposed brain --?!?

2) The Rhino! The poor Silver Age Marvel jerk who has to go to the bathroom in his super-villain costume (unless there's a PJ flap somewhere there Stan never discussed with the readers in a Soapbox). No wonder the guy's so mad all the time. The second 6" x 9" warm-up piece based on the big Marvel villains piece is also $75 if anyone wishes to purchase it. (Edited - The pinup has been SOLD - thanks!)

3) Milk & Cheese mini-pin up, a tiny fella at 4" x 6 1/2" (brush pen/rapidograph, marker, color pencil). "Trauma!" is $60. (Edited - The pinup has been SOLD - thanks!) 

4) Warm-up Doctor Octopus, #3 in the series, unless I rip it up (if I don't rip it up, it'll be for sale when colored!). I hate Doctor Octopus, always have. I think it goes back to him causing Captain Stacy's death, a comic I read in the first Spider-Man treasury edition which affected me deeply as a kid Marvel fanboy. Just a petty little villainous character, with terrible style and one of the worst haircuts in comics. Ugh!

5) Blank cover sketch commission, next in line after the "psyche" piece. Sinister Six. I don't really love doing blank covers, the paper usually isn't great, drawing on a bumpy comic book is kind of irritating, and I feel like I'm working extra-stiff because I'm dealing with someone's property that I'm terrified I'll ruin somehow. I like the Vulture perched on the Sandman that way, that's coming along pretty okay. And there's that crappy Otto Octavius again! Three bad guys left to work out. I never really liked Kraven (never really liked any "machismo" characters), and while I dig Electro he sure has a problematic headpiece. But Mysterio's always fun to draw. 

6) Patreon Fun Strip I add pen lines to whenever I can. Getting there.

7) Patreon one-page strip about a Nerd Doctor, also getting worked on whenever possible. I ditched the first attempt, the paper I was using was not taking the lettering well, so I transferred it to a better sheet of paper. 

8) First panel of another Patreon-only strip, a goofy childhood thing. Which I also am re-drawing from a failed first attempt. That one was ditched because I started inking without solid pencils laid down, always a bad idea unless you're Gil Kane or someone on that level who can draw straight in ink like a pro. I am not on that level, and should have been more patient. I like the new version better, so there's that. 

9) I don't know what this can possibly be. How did that get in there? Can this be an actual paying gig? How did that ever happen? What if this is all a terrible lie?

10) Not pictured: My main gig right now, involving mostly words, but also a few pictures.

11) Not pictured: My side-gig, if all works out well. Mostly words, but also working with pictures.