Chapter Three is finally here, and we honestly couldn’t be more excited to share it with you. SCYLLA marks another big step into the world of Dystopia both literally and creatively. INTO DARKNESS took us introduced us to the spill, and MIDWIFE, ABORTED pulled us deep into the rituals and shadows of the midwives, this new chapter opens the door on yet another corner of the city. New environments, new mysteries, and new characters to learn and love (or fear), and from an artistic standpoint, that means an entirely fresh visual playground to explore.

As with previous efforts, Jackwraith started us off with a fully completed script. Each of the pages are laid out, all dialogue is finalized, and the first fifteen pages are ready to be finished. Rough pencils are done for the first dozen pages, and the first three are completely finished and ready for you to dive into. That means that during the downtime after wrapping Chapter Two, we’ve been hard at work building everything this story needs: the environment, the machinery, the science, the characters, their personalities, and their place in the larger world. Alfa has finally begun to feel at home with the new cast, Ventrik, Tanya, and the spaces they inhabit, and each page is getting a little smoother (and a little more fun) to draw.

There are some really striking visuals coming up, thanks to the unique environment and the strange, unsettling presence that gives this chapter its name. Without giving anything away, SCYLLA is unlike anything we’ve introduced before, and the world around it demanded a look and atmosphere all its own. Creating that has been both a challenge and a joy.

We’re having a blast at how the story is evolving on the page, and we’re thrilled to finally start revealing it to you. The next few weeks are going to be full of surprises, creepy discoveries, and some moments we’ve been waiting a long time to share.

Thanks for coming along with us—Chapter Three starts now.

In preparing Midwife, aborted Page 05 this week, I had remarked to Jackwraith that there was a lot going on in the individual panels and there was a noticeable change in the color pallet. We've been experimenting with how to share Angie's point of view... The frame, communication pane, and other graphics help to communicate that vision. There is a lot of information being shared in the comm portal, and the desire is to provide additional information for those who take a bit of time.

With all of the graphics, data being shared, and activity (not to mention the nefeshim buzzing around multiple panels), the thought was that the panels may be too busy. We'll continue to play with what we show, and I imagine that this is part of the growth in learning to tell a story. As always, your feedback is encouraged… let us know how you think we're doing

Welcome to the second Dystopia chapter! This time around, we leave the Rim and travel deeper into the city to the second level "Control Ring" and meet two new friends. 

Art Notes: In the seven months since the start of the Dystopia webcomics, the process of creating the pages has continued to evolve. My knowledge of Clip Studio Paint has grown (and I've learned that there is so much more to learn). Jackwraith and I continue the process of developing page layouts from the script, and making adjustments to panels and pages. All of the dialogue and word balloons are positioned on the pages at this point and in some cases, I'll make adjustments to the positioning of characters to better fit the panel. From the page layouts I work in a slack method of creating the pages in eight to ten page groups where I create the rough pencils for each page and bounce from one to another in that ten page group. After the roughs are complete, I start the clean up and inks starting on the first page of the group and working forward. With chapter two, I've begun working on backgrounds prior to completing the foreground characters. I then add flat colors for each of the pages, and then the week prior to sharing the pages. The last week is spent adding depth to the colors and proofreading the dialogue.

The act of creating the art is improving. I feel a stronger control over the craft and confidence in being able to manifest what is in my head. I'm still working to build the confidence in what I am doing, and the act of sitting in front of my tablet and drawing has become an enjoyable aspect of each day.

There's loads of neat stuff coming... I hope that you'll continue to join us.

This week we begin our journey into a new level of the city and all-new characters as we embark on the second DYSTOPIA chapter, Midwife, aborted.

We hope that you'll enjoy where we are heading and look forward to hearing what you have to say.