Irons in the Fire

Happy Friday All!  And a New Year's Eve eve we guess...

Well, like we posted last week, we are feeling very grateful for all the fun we had this past year.  We've also learned quite a bit and are hoping to gain some momentum on future projects.

We are already planning out next summer's collaborative art book (the theme has been decided but we're going to wait a little while before announcing it).  We are also planning Lucy's next children's book adventure as well as a fun monthly post idea working with La Fuji Mama and her Foodie blog.  And we're trying our hardest to get some of our one-shot comic ideas launched in web-comic form as well as printed comics.   Plus, we still have our graphic novels in production.  (See?!  We have new Destiny Gauntlets promo work which should prove we're still working on it.  Right?)

Please continue to stay tuned here, Twitter and the website.  We are very excited about everything we're working on!  We're trying our hardest to find the time to get it all done.

Cheers and much Mahalo to you all.  Here's to a prosperous New Year and all the great creative opportunities and challenges 2012 will present.  See you all next year.  ;)

Season's Greetings!

We wish you all the Season's Best!  Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, Merry Solstice or whatever you might celebrate.  We hope that the Holiday Season is full of good food, great friends & family, and wonderful memories.

We've enjoyed all of those things this year due to Arts Walks, Comic Cons, Twitter, Facebook, meeting and getting to know you all.  So let's finish out the year with a fantastic and cheery note.  So a great Mahalo from us to you!

- The Tiki Machine Crew

First Lucy Reading!

Good Morning friends!  We had a wonderful weekend and we hope that you all did too, whatever you did or wherever you were.

On Saturday, Deb was asked to do a reading of The ABC's of Lucy as Imagined by Lucy for a birthday party.  It went really well, considering she was reading to a gaggle of 2 year olds.  Both the kids and their parents enjoyed hearing Lucy's alphabet exploits and looking at all the costume ideas.  We're glad that Deb (the author of the book) was willing to do a reading and that she had such a good time doing it.  We're pretty sure that won't be the last time.  Way to go Deb!  And a special Tiki-thanks to all the party-goers for being so kind to little Lucy.

That is the biggest news we have to share from this past weekend.  We're juggling holiday parties, visits to and from family and friends, as well as writing/fleshing out some comic ideas, finalizing the theme for next summer's art book, next year's Lucy children's book and other creative ideas.  Be sure to come back to see what we are up to and any special announcements.

If you are interested in setting up a special reading of The ABC's of Halloween as Imagined by Lucy, feel free to drop us an email at tiki.machine@gmail.com

See you on Friday!

Destiny Gauntlets Page 2 Process

Happy Friday all!  Congrats to another week survived.  It sure feels like that's what the week was like for us.  As we finish out 2011, we are trying to keep the blog posts going but this lull in projects makes it a little more difficult than we had imagined.  Which is okay because that gives us a chance to share the pencilled pages of the debut issue of The Destiny Gauntlets.

At the beginning of this post, we have our penciller's (Rowel Roque) tightened pencils as they went to Sean for inking.  But today we have a special treat.  Here's the process of how page 2 came to be.  From Mike's mind, to Brook's computer, to Rowel's pencil.  Which is the point that it finds itself at now....

Script by Brook Chalmers -

Page 2…. 3 frames

Frame 1

Eva’lona is sitting lotus style in an alleyway her eyes closed.  In a smaller frame they open up.

Frame 2

            She looks down the alleyway with a worried expression on her face.

Frame 3

            She runs down the alleyway to a now clearly visible bazaar.

Here is Rowel's first pass based on the script and a little extra info emailed to him.  Rarely does anything go off without a hitch, especially when trying to get different people (with their own personal interpretations, influences and whatnot) to share the same vision.  Like with all collaborative processes, there was some adjusting to get what Mike (the creator) and Brook had in mind.

The original pass didn't "feel" right.  It didn't have the urgency the scene needed, so we gave Rowel some notes to help with that.

Which is how we came to this rough page.  Which was exactly what we had in mind so we approved it and Rowel tightened up the pencils for Sean (which is the image at the top of the post.)

How's that for seeing behind the curtain?  Pretty fun, right?  It is quite the process to make a comic book but it's an exciting one.  So as the weekend looms before us and the past week is behind us, please enjoy the glimpse into the machinations of working on an original creator-owned story.  Once we get the inking and lettering up to par and finished, we'll post those too.  Enjoy your weekend, stay sane against the insanity of malls and holiday shopping.  We'll see you here on Monday morning.

New Week, New Art Post

Good morning and Happy Monday to everyone!  We hope the weekend was kind to you all.  It was kind of hectic to us.  The best of intentions sometimes take a backseat to freelance opportunities.  Which is the reason Friday's post was MIA.

To make up for it, we have a rough and tightened pencil page from the debut issue of the Destiny Gauntlets.  The image at the top of the post is the final approved tight pencils and the next image is the rough page layout Rowel sent over first.  And the first page no less!  Here's how the story kicks off.  Plus, with all the historic info Brook has written about the world, you should feel at home.  If you want a refresher in the history of the land of Fornera, click on the Destiny Gauntlet label at the bottom of the post and go back through all the old Destiny Gauntlet posts.  Brook's vision of this mystical and mysterious world is a lot of fun to read about!

We're wrapping up the voting among the contributing artists this week for the 2012 art book.  It's pretty exciting and once we have something to share, you know we will.

We're also working on the writing of two standalone one-shot comic book stories this week too.  And once we have something shareworthy as well, you know it'll be posted here.

Have a great week.  Tell you friends about Deus Libris and The ABC's of Halloween as Imagined by Lucy.  (We're also working/setting up some signings that hopefully will be before the year's end.  Once we have definitive news, you will all be invited!)  Visit the new Tiki Machine store.  And we'll see you here on Friday.

Fantastic News!

Happy Day of the Ninja!  We hope you all enjoy participating in Ninja-related activities.  To help celebrate, we have the finished and final illustration of little Lucy dressed as a Ninja from her book.  Speaking of little Lucy and her book, well, this weekend gave us an amazing surprise!  The ABC's of Halloween as Imagined by Lucy are IN!

Despite the longshoreman strike at the port of Long Beach (which had us a little concerned) the books got in and cleared customs.  We've removed the Pre-Order tag for the book on both the PayPal button here and on the website.  Please tell all your friends.  Despite the Halloween theme, they make great gifts for kid's ages 5 and up.

Here's a pic with our printer and his lovely wife with their copy of the book.  As well as their Lucy Holiday postcard and button.  It's kind of crazy to think we've done 3 books in a little over a year.  Right?!

And here's the pic of the stack of boxes in the garage.  We didn't have a good camera with us so all you get is the dark iPhone photo.  But you get the idea...

Also, it has come to our attention that a couple of bloggers have Tiki Machine books in their Must Buy Holiday Gifts lists.  We are extremely honored to be on this lists as well as share spare with some very cool and talented people.  If you wanna see the lists, here are the links.

Food Blogger La Fuji Mama's 2011 Fuji Gift Guide

Geek Writer/Blogger Amy Ratcliffe's Attack of the Holiday Gift Guide, Part 1: 10 Books/Comics to Give/Get

A very special Tiki-thanks to Amy and Rachael!  Have a great week everyone.  Enjoy the Ninja festivities and we'll see you here on Friday.

Recap and Weekend Events

Happy Weekend everyone!  Last night, we had a great time once again at the Downtown Riverside Arts Walk.  We really enjoy our monthly attendance and wish to say thank you to those who braved the chilly night to visit us.  We find it funny that only a couple of months ago we were talking about how hot it was and now, winter is in full-force.  Well, by California standards.  We are well-aware how much colder it is outside of the state.  But to us, it's still cold.  We look forward to starting 2012 with an Arts Walk and are planning for some goodies to have ready.


Deus Libris contributer Kyle Smith showed up to the festivities and we wanted to let you all know that he now has a DeviantArt account.  Go check out his graffiti-inspired art, leave him some feedback and be on the lookout, as he's planning on putting more of his artwork into the public eye.  He's new to the scene but very enthusiastic as well as talented and we can't wait to see what he brings to next years art book!


This weekend has a great local event that , although Tiki Machine won't be at, we have some very talented friends participating in.  It's the Unique LA Holiday show and if you have no plans, you should definitely go.  Here's the info from the website and some of our talented colleagues to be on the lookout for - 

December  3 + 4   //   11am – 6pm both days

Where: The California Market Center (110 East Ninth Street, LA, CA 90079)

Cost: $10 at the door or in advance online (Kids 12 and under are free), 10% of ticket sales go to our great non-profit partner 826LA.

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 Admission includes:
• An exclusive, collectible cotton tote bag (each show features a tote designed by a guest artist)
• Unlimited re-entry for both days + our printed Vendor Directory & Mini Magazine
• Free drinks! (Holiday Punch featuring Sailor Jerry Rum, Blackstar Beer, The Naked Grape wine, IZZE, Honest Tea, GT’s Kombucha)
• Free DIY workshops + crafts by The Urban Craft Center, L.A. Zine Fest and the Craft and Folk Art Museum
• Free portraits and a print at the Oh Snap Photo Booth
• Access to Amoeba’s rockin’ downtown Pop-Up Shop – exclusive just for us!
• Two different cafe areas so you can grab a coffee or enjoy lunch, snacks or a treat

The largest independent design show in the country, attendees get the rare chance to meet and shop directly from over 325 hand-selected designers and artists. The exciting two-day shopping event makes it easy for you to buy local and support LA’s economy, discover great design and deals, join in community, and have a blast. The products at the show are proudly made right here in the USA so you’re putting your dollars right back into our economy and local community! With fun for everyone plan to spend the day with us…

Be sure to check out Matt Spangler at Robots and Racecars - Booth #150

Vince and Oliver Akuin aka Fluent Flyers Shirt Co/Studio

Have a great weekend!  We'll see you here on Monday with exciting news!