There has been some lobbying around my house to bring back the sheep character that appeared a while back. This was a quick gag I thought of that conveniently did just that. It was an interesting challenge to draw clouds that look like specific things, stay visually consistent with the fluffiness of the sheep, and still read like a cloud. Next up, pets that look like their owners.

The plot thickens… just like pudding I guess. Lumpy. Who is this strange newcomer? What is he hiding? Why does that vase remind me of Charlie Brown? Tune in next time for another exciting installment in the mysterious world of Detours! Or something like that.

More experimentation with dark backgrounds. I was tempted to expand this dialog over two pages, giving me the chance to show more of the cable car station. In the end, it didn’t seem like the pacing would be right. I wanted to emphasize this was brief interaction.

…and that’s about it. We now return you to your regularly scheduled interruption.

Another year, and another comic page! Snaps your head back, doesn’t it? A lot more thought than necessary went into this page. I had to design the cable car station as well as the new character that runs the place. I kind of like how he turned out though. What do you think?

I’ve been interested in working some darker tones back into the drawings, so I like the way this page came together. The feel of the first frame is especially good. What is Zeke going to run into next? I have no idea. I guess we’ll find out together!

I keep calling this an experimental comic. That may be the equivalent of slapping “beta” on any site that still has some kinks to work out. However, I do end up experimenting with one thing or another on almost every page.

On this page, for example, I tried to draw Zeke looking more straight at the “camera.” You can see this especially in the second frame. This was much more successful than my freaky first attempt. Generally it is getting easier to rotate the character in my head and draw him from different angles. It would be really cool to do one of those 3D clay models like the animation studios use! Someday I’ll have to get to that.

I’m focused on keeping Detours relatively loose and quick to draw. It is just for fun and relaxation. These last two pages came together easy enough that I wonder why I could not find the time to do this in the last few months. There seems to be some inertia that builds up in my mind. Putting pencil to paper becomes daunting so I do nothing. Strange how easy fun can become work, isn’t it?

Anyway, it turns out drawing is fun after all… who knew?

After a long “sabbatical,” here is the nearly anticipated continuation of the Detours experimental comic. There is some backstory, if this single panel isn’t self-explanatory.

That’s it, you ask? One measly panel after more than a year of waiting poised, breathless on the edge of your seat? …um, well, yeah so far… but more coming soon! I didn’t want to overwhelm you without fair warning… yeah, that’s it. Just looking out for you.

You’re welcome.

I can explain. It all started with a swirly texture that I sketched out a few days ago. I had no choice but to scan it in and start playing with it in PhotoShop. Once I came up with a few interesting variations, I thought, “That would make one sweet background for a comic!” Of course I couldn’t stop there, having come so far, so I worked up this scene of Zeke exploring something. How it turned into a book cover is anybody’s guess.

Will there be an actual Detours book rolling off the presses?
I’m not currently at liberty to say… Although I can say this much; it definitely isn’t going to be printed before I actually draw the comic. Pretty sure on that part.

All I’ve got for you so far, are the fragments of my experimental comic.

The problem with Detours is I want to know what happens next. But the only way to find out is to write and draw it myself.