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A Semi-Autobiographical and Insanely Fictitious Webcomic
Art and Story by Rob Whelehan
F.A.Q = Fictitiously Asked Questions
Q- Why make a Web-comic?
A- It has been a long time goal that has bordered on a compulsion. I also like to jump on bandwagons that have plateaued or are on the decline. Speaking of which: I am also working on some videos for Youtube. Though acutely aware real success with either is a long-shot it is still the sort of creative work I like that is fairly easy to do on my own. In short a bit of delusional belief that I can reinvent myself. To be honest, might be my version of a mid-life crisis.
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Q- Why is your artwork here so different from your other artwork?
A- I draw them with my right hand and I am a lefty. Wait, no that is a lie. The drawing with my off hand bit, as I am indeed left handed. Part of it is I am still getting used to drawing digitally. The simple style is to make it easier to fill with color. Oddly that is kind of harder for me as I have learned with my sketches I can hide a great deal of flaws with shading and such. With simple line drawings there is nowhere to hide and every line is very important.
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Q- Why is such and such proportion/ scale way off?
A- To be honest I realize one thing that wasn't included in my planning for the comic was a self-reference guide to keep everything on the same page, so to speak. So I am trying to make things more consistent and fitting as I go but it will likely be a process. As it is I am tempted to go back and fix things, but I know that will only slow things down.
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Q- Why does the art change so drastically early on?
A- Partially answered in the above two. Aside from that the first few and a few later on I sketched out on paper and scanned for later. These I worked with on the tablet digitally. As I got through those and also adapted to digital drawings the characters quickly began to evolve. As with the proportions/ scale issue Gary seems to be the most changed this process. Likely the art will continue to grow, but at a slower less obvious pace.
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Q- What does the comic's tagline mean?
A- "A Semi-Autobiographical and Insanely Fictitious Webcomic" The first part refers to the fact that I have taken some inspiration from my real life. The second part is that much of the comic is made up, and some parts will be downright absurd. A few of the characters will be based on real people while most will be totally made up. Even much of what is inspired by actual events will be wildly exaggerated. The exception leads to the next question...
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Q- Why are some labelled "The Reality Variable"?
A- Those comics are based pretty closely to actual real life without the insanity. Though they will use comic style symbolism and such they are still far more grounded in reality. The reversed name is due to me contemplating that version of the title of the comic before realizing it fit better for this avenue. It is meant to evoke a sort of "Mice and Men" cord: That whatever we plan or imagine ourselves to be that the reality of our complex and interconnected world will effect that... for better or worse. It is drawn in black and white to set it apart from the "proper" Variable Realities comics in a what I just realized is ingrained in my brain by "The Wizard of Oz".
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Q- Why did you chose the top down scrolling layout?
A- Ever accidentally notice the punchline when glancing at a comic? It is one of my pet peeves so the layout was in part to avoid that. There is also the bonus that it allows me to vary the number of panels for each comic as fitting. So far most are 4 panels.
Wish I could say that it was why the name includes Variable, since it is a variable number of panels. I realized the connection after though... though I may say that when asked.
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Q- Why do some characters have white eyes, while others do not?
A- Reasons. Not kidding, there are definitely reasons.
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