tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23852428.post306910785037902710..comments2023-07-02T08:01:38.043-07:00Comments on The Battletech Reader: The Progress Report....Steven Satakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03621308678106707775noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23852428.post-74954072174986882392011-02-10T20:42:56.799-08:002011-02-10T20:42:56.799-08:00Jim,
Thanks for the kudos. The Spider is a bit o...Jim,<br /><br />Thanks for the kudos. The Spider is a bit of work by our newest artist, who is busy working on the Churchill tank right now. Sad to say, that piece will not appear in the TRO - it was colorized by our layout man and was just a taste of the new artist's skill set.<br /><br />I can only afford two such pieces from him. But Stephen Huda already has a worklist and Eric Ou is busy with school right now. Those are my best artists. Meanwhile, I have covered art and paid for it already, to find that the state of the art actually eclipsed those earlier pieces and they have to be re-done in order to keep the overall quality up. Such is the price of 'doing it right', I suppose. <br /><br />Back in the earlier days, I was more generous with my commissions, accepting pieces which were marginal because they were at least better than the alternative, which was the highly derivative pencil work of the original artist.<br /><br /> Stepping back and squinting, these early pieces are still okay, but it's kinda like looking at the art they use for fantasy RPGs these days and what companies like Judge's Guild settled for back in the late 1970s.<br /><br />Back in those days, just finding someone who was capable of rendering a fantasy scene was a near miracle. Our culture has changed a lot since 1978. Back then, we encountered poorly-rendered fantasy scenes with crappy proportions which looked like sketches done on a napkin by a high-shool nerd. The Arduin Grimoire was a prime example. And for gamers, this was acceptable. No longer. You would not even find that low a caliber of art in the margins anymore.<br /><br />The same goes for the art in the TROs. Early drawings, especially pieces done by Duane Loose, were acceptable even if some of the resulting machines broke the laws of physics just standing still. No more. <br /><br />Unfortunately, between a company policy of never showing the 'Mech or vehicle near anything which might give it a measurable proportion and the linked detestable practice of expanding weapon sizes ('Plog's Disease'), the current state of art is very uneven. The Rule of Cool does not forgive everything.<br /><br />(As a side note for you gaming geeks out there, the best Arduin art was undoubtedly the covers of the first three Grimoires, done by a fellow who went by the name of Morno. Morno was Bradley W. Schenk, found today over at http://bws.deviantart.com/)<br /><br />SteveSteven Satakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03621308678106707775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23852428.post-25161020506342721552011-02-10T20:00:10.481-08:002011-02-10T20:00:10.481-08:00This is coming along, and the updates are a pleasu...This is coming along, and the updates are a pleasure to read. Did I mention that Spider is sick?! So is it just an example or is it actually gonna be in there? Anyway, I can't wait for this thing to come out... although I will wait considering quality takes time. But like I said Steve, appreciate your attention to detail and passion for quality. If you're going to do it you might as well do it right, eh?Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15392328102111381967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23852428.post-82387200380988775012011-02-06T13:22:55.892-08:002011-02-06T13:22:55.892-08:00Thank you for the compliment on Bill's colorin...Thank you for the compliment on Bill's coloring. I will pass it on.<br /><br />As for cost? No telling. I understand some black and white work is had for less than it normally commands, whereas color work (the 'sexy stuff') commands full price or even a premium.<br /><br />Writing and editing... no telling there, either. I am not sure how much they pay their expert writers and editors to do the work (but I hope they pay poor Cray a LOT). <br /><br />I am paying our current editor for the same reason I pay the artists - because I do not want to lose his skill set and because his work is every bit as vital to the success of the TRO as quality art. The artists may paint a picture for your eyes, but the writers paint a picture in your *mind*, and for many, that image is longer-lasting.<br /><br />Besides, it is a moot point where up front costs are concerned. You issue contracts and NDAs, sit back and wait for the work to roll in. When you begin selling PDFs and books, the money comes in and then, presumably, you begin paying the writers and artists and sundry others who made the whole thing possible.<br /><br />As for publishing costs, David White's excellent Mecha Zone 2 art folio (a book too little read) is hardbound and he did all the work and paying up front. Which means he has to sell the production run to make money - otherwise he will have a lot of high-quality books keeping him company for the next few years. <br /><br />I don't know what it cost him, but between copyright issues and the expense I would incur for myself (small, but not insignificant), printing a run of the TRO would probably require either a miracle or a lottery win. Some say these are identical, but at least you can pray for the one.<br /><br />SteveSteven Satakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03621308678106707775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23852428.post-17295394713208748032011-02-05T05:01:52.515-08:002011-02-05T05:01:52.515-08:00Awesome colouring by Bill Burt, makes the whole im...Awesome colouring by Bill Burt, makes the whole image pop out of my screen. Good to see the update.<br /><br />Now I wonder how your cost for this TRO compares with CGL? I doubt we will ever know, but curiousity makes me ponder this.<br /><br />Take care now. Ashleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13666947574653683678noreply@blogger.com