Stories Make Everything Better! a very broad definition of stories and pretending and why they are important.

I've been thinking a lot about stories lately, because I'm sort of slowly getting a few ideas in order to actually work on a couple mine (shocking!), but also because of the alarming fact that there are people who have have no stories in their lives. This is evident in some kids, who do not pretend, and in many grown-ups (or grown-up wannabes) who do not take pleasure in other people pretending, let alone pretend themselves.

 Now let's be clear - I take pretending to a ridiculous degree, and I don't just mean all the steampunk and cosplay stuff I am into. I mean all day, every day. Every time I imagine what my cats are saying, or that Nook troubleshooting is like a boss battle, or getting a line down is like a mini game, I am pretending. It's even worse (or better!) when I'm around my siblings. The simplest incident can quickly become an epic story, or evidence of a sinister plot, or whatever. And then there's the totally insane chatter whenever we play Mario Kart. Even if I see a big cactus and a little cactus, and the big one looks grumpy because the little one is annoying, that's pretending. It's just more fun that way.

I suppose when I think of pretending in those terms, there are a lot fewer people who alarmingly do not pretend, but there are enough. When you pretend, you tell yourself a story, and that's very important. People are hard wired to create stories and to pretend. Yes, it's an evolutionary advantage that we immediately recognize faces, but it's also entertaining. It gives us this:

"Happy Mazda Car" is a suggestion Google gives you, because that car is obviously really really happy about something! And what about Silly Symphonies? If you add music to a cartoon and make a bunch of flowers or things on a desk dance around, it's really entertaining. Which brings me to my next point - Disney and storytelling!

 Oh yeah! Disneyland! I would live there if I could! But I actually want to talk about California Adventure. When California Adventure first opened, it was crap. For one thing, a California themed theme park in California is a waste of $95. For another thing, there was little to set it apart from other parks, except it only had one fast roller coaster. The best thrill ride there was Tower of Terror, and not because it had the most G forces (or negative Gs, which is actually its main appeal). The cool thing about ToT is that it is based on the Twilight Zone and has a really cool story bit at the beginning, with cool special effects. The line goes through an old hotel boiler room, and the combined effect is disorienting and unnerving, which makes the crazy ride more fun.

Another example is Soaring Over California, a ride I'm ambivalent about. I like the effect, and it is a fun ride. My favorite part, honestly, is trying to look at the epic machinery before and after you ride on it, and the cool little aviation museum that makes up part of the line. It would be so much better if it had a story (and did a barrel roll - and before you say it can't because it doesn't actually move, remember that Star Tours doesn't actually move either, and it does all kinds of crazy maneuvers by slightly tilting the floor and making the screen show twisting, turning adventures. The human inner ear is not sensitive enough to override the eyes.) Even if there was a transition between the video segments, like flying into clouds, it would be more interesting, giving you a moment to be excited about what you'll see next, rather than jolted by a jump cut.

Recently they've redone huge swaths of California Adventure, making it more 20's themed, and incorporating a bunch of old Disney characters like Clarabelle, Horace, and Oswald. It's meant to represent the Hollywood that Walt Disney arrived in when he started his animation career, while Disneyland represents his hometown, American history, and the worlds of imagination. It's very effective.

 Here is the new statue of Walt and Mickey, representing the young Disney getting off the train in Hollywood in 1923 (ignore for the moment that Mickey, and even Oswald, did not exist in 1923 - this statue is meant as a bookend for the statue in front of Sleeping Beauty's Castle, where a mature Walt holds Mickey's hand and points out the worlds of Disneyland). That's my sister and me, and our dad. We're wearing twin dresses, but we're obviously not twins, despite what the kids that we taught thought. I'm the one in the Oswald ears.

 My favorite change to a ride is actually the simplest one. They had a ride called Mulholland Madness, with street signs and stuff along a small, jerky roller coaster with a couple of flat, unbanked hairpin turns. It was not a great ride. Now, it's Goofy's Flight School, and it's fun. What they changed was the decorations. Seriously. The line has posters up about how to fly, and Goofy trying to do air delivery of chicken eggs. The roller coaster cars now have propellers on the front, and the old street signs have been replaced by clouds and terrified chickens. And it all works to make the ride funny, because it has a story (actually more of a premise, but that's really enough).

Ha ha I got sidetracked..... Disney..... it's like crack for my brain.

Anyway - stories and pretending. One of the times I realized a lot of people don't pretend or aren't that interested in stories was when I was talking about video games with a 4th grade class I as subbing for. Call of Duty Black Ops had just come out and I asked one of them if the story was good. Crickets. I asked if he'd finished it. Nope. Hadn't even started it. He opened the box, popped in the disk and played the online mode all weekend. Most of the class didn't play the story modes of games. Now there's nothing wrong with online or versus modes (unless you're in 4th grade playing CoD) but I can't do it unless I've finished the storyline at least once.

Maybe they find the story mode hard since they are younger, and they games more socially, but I don't know.... A different 4th Grade class this year really liked Epic Mickey, and there are parts in that where it's very unclear what to do next..... 

I was thinking about it, and I really don't like many games that don't have a good story. I'll sacrifice multiple modes and good graphics if the story is good and the gameplay is fun (and even if the camera gets stuck all. the. time. I'm looking at you, Epic Mickey). Preferably all those things will be there.

Like in Portal. Portal would be a very good puzzle game with just the game mechanics, but the presence of GLaDOS has pushed into the realm of classics. Derping around in levels with a neat gun would be diverting, but when you add stakes and an adversary, it gets even better. Make that adversary a homicidal, hilarious computer, and you've got something really special. Learning the backstory of Aperture in Portal 2, and meeting Wheatly, was awesome, especially since they added new types of puzzle elements to go along with it.

I guess it's just weird to me that there are lots of people who won't read or watch sci-fi an fantasy, because it's not realistic. Whenever I encounter such people, I am a little concerned for their well-being. I know some people who cannot watch cartoons, because of the disconnect from reality, which is...odd.

 Anyway, I'd better keep up this writing and drawing thing I've got going since I came back from Disneyland (there's got to be a cheaper way to get inspired!)

Put Together Paper Models

Here is a video of how to assemble the paper models I have been writing about. I figured this part would be easier to show, rather than trying to describe it.


Here is a list of materials you will need:

Wire- available at craft stores and hardware stores. Avoid the wire in the jewelry section; it is too stiff, and too expensive. Floral wire works really well and comes in several thicknesses, or gauges.

Glue gun - low temperature or two temperature (use the low setting). You can touch the low temp glue after a few seconds.

Glue sticks - make sure you get the ones that fit your glue gun. I like the big ones myself. They last longer. Also make sure they are the right temperature. I try to get dual temp ones.

Wire cutters/needle nose pliers- can be found at any hardware or craft store. I got a set of three at Wal-mart for less than $5.

Putting the models together is not hard, as long as you are a little organized. Work on the biggest pieces first, then put them all together. I usually start with the head and trunk, using one long wire as the spine. Then make each limb. If you leave wires sticking out of the feet, they can stick into foam and stand up. Make sure you have enough wire sticking out at the end that connects to the body to make a little loop so it wont slide out of the glue.

For really small parts, you can also get really fine floral wire. This is especially useful in hands, since you can sandwich it between two layers of paper so you can get more flexible and realistic hands.

Paper Puppets 2

In my last post, I explained how to make the parts for a paper stop motion animation model. Now I'll show how to paint them. I also use colored pencils sometimes, for the details.

Last time, we got to the point of tracing out each moving part and numbering them. Trace one more copy of your original, onto more substantial paper. This will be your color scheme. If you haven't picked out your colors yet, this is your chance to make multiple copies and experiment. James Gurney, the author and illustrator of Dinotopia, has a lot of good advice about color schemes in his book Color and Light. A good rule of thumb is to stick to 3 or 4 colors per character, with one of those colors in contrast to the others.

Small to medium brushes are nice for this, and they should be fairly soft, but not really floppy like the brown or sable watercolor brushes. I like synthetic brushes because they last longer too. It's really important not to make your watercolors too wet. I usually use one or two brushfuls of water to wet my main paint color, and make a little puddle in the lid of my watercolor set. (My favorite brands are Prang and Guitar. Crayola is actually very good too. Avoid Roseart at all costs - they are pale and wimpy.) Don't use the straight paint color unless you want a really bright color, although that might be good for a superhero. I usually make Westerns and/or ghost stories, so I like muted colors. I always mix my paint in the lid, and I leave the mixed colors in there so I can rewet and mix them later. That way I don't have to use black to darken my colors, which I find muddies them. Browns and purples are better if you need to darken a color. There is also a watercolor called Paynes Gray that comes in squeezy tubes, and it's a very lovely alternative to black. That's the only expensive watercolor I buy. *

Here are my brushes and one of my messy paint lids, with some wet brown paint:

You can see how I mixed the old dried dark brown and dark blue paint into the new brown paint to get a more interesting color.

Do a light, flat layer of paint on your copied drawing. Keep a scrap piece of cardstock handy to test your colors on before putting them on your actual picture.

Once that's dry, add darker shades around the edges to give the figure some depth. Also, you can bring out details and textures. I blended the shading in more on his pants, since they are a rough wool, and I used a hard edge on his leather jacket and boots, since leather has some shine to it. To blend the shading, put a very small amount of plain water on the picture first, then carefully add your darker color. Use a thin line, since it will spread into the damp area, and you can always add more later. For the harder edge, simply paint a darker color over the dried paint. For the darker colors you can also just use less water for a thicker paint. The areas farthest to the back of the character will be the darkest (the wrapped around scarf, the underarms and flares on the jodhpurs)

Once you have decided on your color scheme, use the same colors on the individual parts. Since they're going to be cut out, you don't have to stay in the lines!

Next: Cutting and gluing!

*Besides my squeezy tube of Paynes Gray, I have discovered that Prang's powdered tempera paints are absolutely gorgeous. They have a velvety texture and muted colors that I really like, but they are very hard to find. They are what I used on all the characters and backgrounds in Ghost Train.

Paper Puppets for Animation!

I put these on my steampunk blog too, but they're not necessarily steampunk, and I haven't posted on this blog in almost a year. I get all kinds of ideas, but they seldom make it out of my brain.

Anyhoo, here:

Now that I'm all done making things for and vending at Wild Wild West Con II, I'm going to put a couple of art tutorials on here. For starters, here are my two actually good animations.

First, the models. I like to make mine out of paper. It is much easier to work with than clay, especially under hot lights, and it is much much cheaper than proper machined armatures with rubber skins. You can make them look exactly how you want. I also like how it looks like moving illustrations in a way that other models don't. That fits my style a lot better, since my background is in drawing.

Actually no! First, the storyboards. You don't want to start anything else without a storyboard, or you will do lots of extra work. So do your storyboards. They don't have to be fancy. The main disadvantage of paper characters is that you have to make one model for each angel you see them from, sometimes up to 8 just for the full body. If you make extra models for closeups, it gets even more out of hand. There are several spots in Ghost Train where I made large models for just one shot. This madness can be kept to a minimum with the clever use of storyboards. If you never see the back of a character, for example, don't make the back view model.

Anyway, once you have planned your story out, select the character and angle that appears most. Draw the character in a neutral pose, using the simplest design you can. Then trace or copy it. Never ever ever mark, color, or cut your original drawing. On the copy, break the design down into simple shapes, and draw a dotted line where there they will overlap. Like this:

The numbers will be important for gluing all the parts in the right spot when they are cut out. Then trace each part onto heavy paper, like Bristol or watercolor paper. If your models are small, like under 4 inches, normal cardstock or even index cards will do, but they are too floppy for bigger models. It is hard to trace on thick paper - you need a light behind it. They make light tables specifically for this purpose, and you can get them at most art supply stores, or you can just use the flashlight app on an iPad, or an actual flashlight under the glass from a picture frame.

Make sure you get enough overlap on your parts, and number them as you go. You'll end up with a little exploded version of your character, like a kit, waiting to be painted and assembled.

Next: how to color it and put it together.

p.s. It's a good idea to number each piece on the back as well.