May prompt progress, and Feedback Request

[Kim Rosenlof]

So after reading the previous comment, I realize that you were probably going for something different than I thought for your second illustration. I didn't think about the animals being happy and trying to make the trolls happy too (or something like that. I guess they are "killing them with kindness"). It is good to get different opinions because people may see things differently than you .

[TaniaGomesArt]

@Kim-Rosenlof I really think both concepts may work, is just a matter of which @Valerie-Light is aiming for. If she wants a more "killing them with kindness" thing, than definitely your comment was spot on and I 100% agree with it.

I read it differently exactly because of the happy faces on the second one, which was the one I focused more in. It is interesting to note these kind of things and see how certain differences may affect how people interpret the drawing.

[Valerie Light]

@TaniaGomesArt @Kim-Rosenlof This conversation is really helping me to clarify which story I want to tell. Thank you!
I think I want to a sort of manic, over-the-top cuteness to the army, and I want it to be clear that army is searching for trolls (so i'll clarify the anti-troll banner). The trolls under the bridge are afraid they'll be caught and maybe drafted into the cuteness army. (threat of peril, but not of violence.) I want people to feel really sympathetic toward the trolls- I think they would be the main characters in this story.

@chrisaakins Thanks for the feedback! You are totally right that that angle of eye contact doesn't work. Darn. Gotta rethink that a bit.

[lizardillo]

As the mouse has spotted the trolls, could it be alerting the others? Perhaps pointing at them and looking up as if to shout “hey! They’re under here”

[Valerie Light]

@lizardillo ooh! I like that. And compositionally it would break the line of the bridge that's separating one group from another.

[Valerie Light]

I think this revision might be a solution to the mouse-to-troll sightline issue. Getting closer. Right now I think I'm overworking the rough, and I need to move on to a clean line drawing for the sake of time. (though I might change the mouse's lollipop to something that doesn't draw so much focus.)

[ajillustrates]

@Valerie-Light You've nailed it now! And for the lollipop, I think if you just scale it down in the clean line drawing, it won't distract from your point of interest. This is so well designed, and I'm excited to see the finish!

[TaniaGomesArt]

Oh yeah, definitely nailed it!!!
Amazing how much difference there is just because of the mouse's pose. It's like now everything got connected much clearly and the story comes out easily. Great work!

[Valerie Light]

Thank you all for the encouragement! I've moved some things around on the left, and made my clean line drawing. I think the addition of the gnome man helps there.
I'm planning to work on this one in the same style as my Inn contest entry last month, so from here I'll move to watercolor and gouache, and then finalize details in Procreate again. Here goes!

[Valerie Light]

Posting painting progress from this weekend. I'm so much happier when I choose colors from my watercolor palette rather than from a color picker. Now just hoping i don't mess it up.

[Jeremy Ross]

Looking good @Valerie-Light, can’t wait to see this one finished! What a great concept.

[Valerie Light]

Thanks for all the pep talks so far! I think I'm about 80% done with this, and probably almost ready to scan back it into Procreate to adjust stuff and fix expressions and details, so please forgive the snapshots.

It is aaaalmost as funny as I hoped it would be. What would help land the punchline? I'm trying to walk a fine line between making the army dangerously cute without being too creepy, and making the family relatable but not pitiful.

Here are some of the things I'm thinking about:

• lots of butterflies and sparkles swirling around the army, rosy cheeks and twinkly eyes
• hearts or stars in their eyes?
• sky/background gets an ominous lime green glow and rimlight on the army?
• monsters slightly scarier? More teeth? Or more gross/drooly?
• Does it matter that the monsters aren't clearly travelers, per the prompt?

[Jeremy Ross]

Very cool @Valerie-Light. What if you have one of the monsters dazed and walking towards the cuteness parade as if being casted by a spell? Then you can have the dad monster reaching for his kiddo while still trying to hide?

Just a thought. I say it’s good to go now!

[Tiffany Thomas]

@Valerie-Light I so totally love this one!!!! Can't wait to see it done! I love the irony, hahahahaha, sooooo good!

[lizardillo]

I’m not sure what to suggest as I like it as it is, and I do have a tendency to over complicate things. Your watercolour skills are amazing!

I’m not sure the traveller thing is an issue but if you are worried perhaps adding couple of backpacks would give an impression of travellers.

[TaniaGomesArt]

So nice to see it evolve! It's looking really good.

I don't have much of an advice at this point. I'm so new at illustration. I'm a bit afraid of saying something that goes into details when I see an illustration that I like so much already.

[Valerie Light]

More progress! I think I'm 95% finished now. I've scanned the watercolor back in to Procreate, and have been playing with multiply layers and facial expressions and focal points till my eyes have gone crossed.

I'd love to get some reactions to it. I'm especially fighting myself on getting the right amount of focus on the army. What do you think needs work?

[lizardillo]

@Valerie-Light wow, it’s amazing! I first saw the mouse and then I follow it’s arm to the monsters. Then I see the army. It’s a nice flow. The army is really detailed but doesn’t make image too busy. Good balance. Lovely. The trolls do catch the eye as they are a warm colour.

[Valerie Light]

@lizardillo thank you! I will probably stare at it a while longer, maybe change some eyes, and call it done.

[Valerie Light]

I'm finally calling this done. Swapping the candy canes for a troll-catching net helps finish the story, i think. This has been a great exploration of style for me. There are parts of it that are way overworked, and I've lost some of the watercolor quality I'd hoped to keep. I'm realizing that the more control I gain over value and light source, the more I have to figure out my plan of attack for color before I start painting. It's by no means perfect, but this piece feels like a great leap forward for me. Thanks for the help, SVS-ers.