Steampunk Adventures Comic Chapter #1 Free Download

So the comic free online as a webcomic .. but I wanted to offer the first chapter as a PDF for free as a download. Later I will have a new version of this same chapter with extra content, better art and special added features as download for a small fee.

Please feel free to download copy and distribute this comic as long as it is for free  Bittorrent, File share.. Not only do I not care if you pirate this PDF I am begging you to!! Please help spread the word about my comic.

Download HERE!!

About Alex

Alexander Townsend that lovable coward hits home more then you think. Alex is an amalgamation of the worst part of myself with a bit of amplification for better story line. Alex is what would have happened if I never grew a spine or developed a sense of ethics. Alex is still in the hero category because his involvement with Red keeps him from running away or doing really dastardly crimes.

Read the Comic

Really Alex keep it in your pants

Click here To Read the whole comic

Alexander Townsend was my name in the SCA during my early twenties. The whole womanizing scoundrel yah that was accurately me. Though I worked very hard not to be “the other man”. Alex has no problems being a home wrecker (he would rather not get caught for safety reasons)

Alex tends to only be brave when there is a woman present to awe of his feats of bravery! I was such a coward as a kid. So many fears so many things I was afraid of movie theaters , heights ,talk to more then two people at a time, wolves, dark (when I was 15). Alex is my way of poking fun at myself.

Later on Alex’s issues are going to become a major plot line. This is something that is going to be similar to events that happened in my life. I am of corse going to change the plot change events to make the story more fun. You will have to read the comic to get the full story.

Alex like any hero in steampunk is not without his good points. He is an accomplished fencer (he is not aware of how good he is. That would require courage. ) he is very loyal to Red and his crew and sometimes this loyalty will actually override his overall fear. As much as he is a womanizer he does not feel women are inferior this has a large part to do with the various bumps and bruises he has received over the years working alongside Red. Alex is also the master of most social situations as long as it involves charm.

Like most steampunk adventurers Alex likes gadgets. Alex had Reginald install a revolver into hilt of is sword to eliminate anyone who might be able to best Alex in a sword duel. Alex has actually won more fights with the revolver then the blade (this is more due to lack of bravery then skill in fencing)

How sexy is too sexy! #webcomic

How sexy is too sexy!?!?

So I find myself getting to parts of the story where things can get graphically sexy. Let’s face it Alexander is a “man slut”. His pursuit of the latest steampunk bimbo would surely raise an eyebrow. The polyamorous air pirates and their non-monogamous ways and a touch of BDSM would also make it so readers under the age of 18 should never read my comic.

Here is my question. How much is too much? How much skin turns my story into comic porn? I am writing a story not providing excuses for nudity and sex. I have seen a few online comics that have some plot but it almost seems that somebody is getting laid every other page.

Looking at other great stories like Game of thrones , true blood, and Australia’s Underbelly (just to be clear i have a lot of writing before i could get that good at story telling) the sex and the nudity seem to fit the story. I have noted that there is more nudity towards the early part of the season. I really can’t think of a time where the sex was purely gratuitous. Sure there could have been a way to suggest what happened but let’s face it it’s fun to watch. (you know you love it) the point is that the nudity is such a part of the story it does not seem to be a boobie flick. Unless you are one of those people who find anything other then the missionary position offensive.

So here are my options
Option one : Go all out!! All kinds of nudity!! No fig leafing just draw the story as I see it.
Pros : readership will surely go up! Look nakid people!!!
Cons: alienate those who are more moderate in their thinking

Option two : Make two versions. Everything that I am doing is going to be story based so nudity need not be needed to tell the overall story. Then sell both the edited and adult versions making the adult version available only through paid subscription or print version (also keeps kids from reading it)
Pros : more revenue options
Cons: holes in story & extra work

Option three : do best to still tell the story but try to keep it clean.
Pros : wider audience
Cons : is it really what story I am trying to tell.

So tell me what you think! Email me artofpaint@gmail.com

Extra content for printed steampunk comic!!!

Nothing like a Financal pitfall to get you motivated in making money. Even more so when you realize your day job will never get you out of the Financal ditch you are in to add that extra rocket fuel to your personal projects if it might mean that someday you can cut free from the 9 to 5 and get some real work done!

So steampunk adventures was always intended to be a print book. I use the web media to promote and offer something for free. I have been a fan of lulu Self publishing. Why not start now. I could publish chapter one and see what happens.

So I had chapter one exported to PDF and started a horrendous upload to lulu . Took several hours to finally get everything uploaded (by the way I am in Australia so Internet is metered.. So it used up a portion of my bandwidth ) and guess what ???? Not enough pages!!

I am not the kind of guy to get upset for no reason. Ok I wanted to upload . Ok not enough pages . Let’s think about this for a second. This is the same stuff that is loaded on the website. Why would someone want to buy it? Then I started thinking. Let’s reward those folks who buy the printed version with something extra!!!

So here is where your feedback is going to shape how I do this! What do you want to see in extra content.

I don’t know the price of the book will be yet. But I want to make it worth it!

Ship too small to keep quiet.

So I noticed that the latest post of my webcomic was not going to be posted till the 31st. I started to think that perhaps I should make that come out just a little bit earlier.

You can get to the Steampunk adventures webcomic page here

 

Bjorn tries to keep quiet.

In this part of the comic Bjorn is trying to keep quiet about this morning activities in the captains cabin. He made a promise to Xue to keep the nature of their relationship a secret from the rest of the crew being that most people in this age does not quite understand that the captain and Xue may be bisexual not alone polyamorous. The problem Bjorne is having is that ships have thin walls and not a lot of room for secrets. lets face it with only three women on the ship the crew are always going to know their whereabouts.

 

Better to stumble then to not walk! Steampunk Cross promotion offer!

Steampunk Cross Promotion offer

I am Not an expert!
The whole reason why I started this comic was for the challenge. (another post about what started the whole challenge will be in a later post) I have always felt it is better to start something and discover you are really bad at it then to wait till something is perfect and don’t do anything at all.
I am comic artist. Well maybe after posting 30 pages I am. But I have no special training in drawing other then a book i read 1/3 the “how to draw the marvel way” by Stan Lee . I got that book when I was 14. Most of my art experience is actually in painting and clay sculpture. Sure I do a little better then drawing stick Figures but not much.

I’m not a writer. If the grammar police are still reading I am suprised I can’t spell and I am sure I’m wanted in at least 3 states for crimes against punctuation and the English language . I continue to write because its better then waiting for someone to proof read my work while they plan everything else that is more important to them like reorganizing the sock drawer. I can’t pay someone to edit my crap and my brain just does not work in a way that I can’t do it myself. But why wait.

What I have is a story to tell. I’m not expecting to have “steampunk adventure comic the movie” or have Todd McFarlane come out with a limited addition Victoria “Red” Redfern collectible action figures or even have a booth at comicon or Dragoncon !!! What you will see is that my artwork will get better over time. I have challanged myself to keep working on this project till I have finished the first book. I have challanged myself to get better at drawing.

My point is why are you not creating something!?!? Why are you waiting for the conditions to be right to start that project you are always talking about? What is holding you back? Funding? Time? most likely is ambition. WHAT am I calling you lazy? ..YES I AM! If funding is what you need then what steps have you done to find it? If time is what you need when was the last time you said “No I’m not going to go on Facebook today I am going to work on my project” most likely you cannot come up with an example for either one. Stop being an “Imgunna” “I’m gunna do this ” but never get around to it or even take the first step

So here is what I’m proposing! If you have a project that you are working on. IF you have a comic , story or painting that even comes close to steampunk I want to showcase your hard work on this blog. I want to celebrate someone who is actually creating something! Actually taking an idea overcoming their own challenges and making it happen. Sure I understand this is something that will come in short bursts. (We are all artists and “Muse” does not hang around all day … and there is the whole thing of day job)

Submit your project to Artofpaint@gmail.com
What I need from you!
-Email
-Links to your site
-A challenge you had to overcome to make this happen.

• -Steampunk Clothing
• -Steampunk Stories or Novels
• -Steampunk Artwork
• -Steampunk comics
• Steampunk societies, clubs or workshops
• Steampunk models of photography

Just to be clear I have the right to no post anything but if it does not fit in this blog I will let you know! All works must be YOUR creation. Sorry no fan fiction unless the original fiction is public domain.

Why steampunk girls are sexy

Why I think steampunk girls are hot!

Got to love cosplay girls. There is something about their creativity and geekyness that is extremely attractive. Not sure if it’s the costumes, the fact they look like a flesh and blood personification of geeky media or that I have never had a bad time at a costume party. In any case a woman in costume will always turn my head. Now of all of these groups of sexy geeky girlies steampunk girls in my mind are the hottest.

Cultured. I really have a hard time envisioning a “dumb ditzy blond” woman in a corset and goggles. “Kick your ass in intellectual debate blond” yes but not ditzy. Just the act of wearing clothing that is 60+ years out of style suggests that they are not a slave to popular culture. I have always associated steampunk with books. and books with intelligence. It conjures up visions of her reading a book in a high backed winged chair next to the fire. This fashion also suggests a spine! I have always been attracted to powerful women. And though the era they are representing is famous for the total lack of gender equality the personas they assume are almost always a woman with a strong sense of self. (mmmmmeeoooow!)

Gadgets, goggles and gears!! I don’t even care if they actually work! Those low tech accessories are just fun. Let’s face it a woman slinging a custom painted NERF maverick looks hot even if it only shoots foam rubber.

Now let’s discuss the corset and (and sometimes )cleavage. I save this for later in the post because I wanted to be clear that I am a man who appreciates all parts of a woman and not just the fleshy attributes. With that said corsets and cleavage are always a win. It’s not so much the curves the corset accentuates but the confidence and attitude that come with it. (wait wasn’t this paragraph supposed to be shallow ??) The women I know all report they feel sexier while wearing a corset. How they feel certainly reflects how you act! Agreed cleavage is a bit of a rarity when it comes to Edwardian and victorian clothing in a historic sense. But costuming on the other hand need I say more?

So now I will raise the periscope just from the gutters of my male mind. (don’t worry I will put it back later) one word “Geek”. Often women talk about how they want a man they can relate too. How they just love talking to some hot guy for hours. And the fact she can tal to him for hours makes an average guy hot. This may be a surprise but guys like that sort of thing too (at least the ones with brains) and a geeky girl almost insures that a conversation about the latest comic, RPG game or what Joss wheeton is up too. (please more firefly) A steampunk outfit is almost a signal beacon for a good conversation.

How do you catch a steampunk clad girl??? Start with a top hat and goggles and I will let you figure out the rest from there. If your lucky I might get around to publishing a how too book by Alexander Townsend.

We should have a costume contest or something

http://steampunkadventures.smackjeeves.com/comics/1036172/page-16/

Told you I am back!!

Just to show you that I was Serious about being up and running again!!

How I do it! Part one! (Air Pirate)

So I know there is a lot of people that read my comic that know more about making comics then I do …. but there are a few folks out there that have no idea what so ever. so I’m going to walk you through a day of drawing for me. This is going to follow the path from sketchbook to your web browser.

This is drawing is of  “Sarah the Steampunk Polyamrous Air Pirate” (Some title huh)

This image .. She is PISSED OFF! She just discovered someone trying ….oh wait I’m not going to give that away! The drawing was done over a few days with my sketchbook. and a 4H hard pencil!

Drawing of Sarah

This is how it looks right after being scanned into iphoto.. The problem I have been having is that the paper is too big for my tiny scanner . so you notice that the center of the image is sharper then the edges. this is because I place my hand down on the center of the image so it can be properly scanned .. I’m looking to fix this problem later.

The image was Scanned in as full color and not gray scale. at 300 DPI. I choose to not use gray scale or B&W because of some issues with Iphoto only liking RGB color pallets.  I use Iphoto to keep my images organized till I can have a chance to edit them in GIMP

Once I have them in Iphoto I categorize the image so I can find it quickly later . Keyword and bookmarks are my best friend.

Sarah in Gimp

Here I start to remove the background caused by the light escaping because my scanner is too small for the size of paper I use. One the background is removed it will be easier to add any kind of background that I wish!

Once I have done that. I add Layers ..

• Jacket
• Clockwork Arm
• Hair
• Sarah skin
• Eye Patch
• Brass works
• Gun
• Bullwhip

The idea is that each object should have its own layer .. I like to make changes to those layers later on.

Next time I will show you what happens when I add color.

http://steampunkadventures.smackjeeves.com/

 

Why you should draw LARGE!

I remember sitting in a park with a sketchbook, I was about 10 years old and I was having lunch with my Godmother. I remember showing her a drawing that only fit on the corner of a page. “That is very good … Draw it larger … always draw large”. As a kid it never made any sense to me. It always seemed that drawing small was easier. working on this comic I have started to see what she was talking about .

I carry a sketchbook everywhere … I mean everywhere . its not uncommon to see me with not only one pencil in my hand and one in each ear. Here is the problem with that .. as convenient as a sketchbook is I tend to draw small. When drawing small you limit your self to a certain size, you limit how you can draw and the amount of detail you add to your image. where if you draw large not only are you not bound by those limits but you can also “Shrink” your image down if you need it smaller … Making something larger and keeping the same quality is not always possible .

This all came to my attention when I went to scan in some images of Alex. I had drawn several versions of Alex’s face on a single page. The idea was to practice expressions and if I liked any of them I would add them to my database of sketches of Alex .. so I could quickly add it to a background and POW I have a post to keep the storyline going. (does that make me lazy … YES IT DOES … but that is a different Blog post )

Example of a Small drawing of Alex.

Notice that the bottom image (Drawn on an A3 sheet of paper that took up most of the page) looks much better then the image above it (drawn on a corner of a 8×11 inch sketchbook) I blew up the top image and reduced the bottom. See what I mean.

So this is what I have done .. My sketchbook is now a A3 size. Not as convenient to carry around however it is a good conversation starter on the train. It does make scanning an issue due to the size of my scanner but that is something that I can work with.

So yesterday my daughter brought me a drawing (by the way she is getting very good at this).. I told her “Wow that is awesome .. you are getting better .. now draw it larger … Always Draw Large.”

Thanks Connie !

 

 

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