Three Year Old Review (AKA Reviewed by a Three-Year-Old)

A few days ago, my three-year-old cousin dropped by for a visit. Eventually, she found some Draconis sketches and wanted to know more about them. So we opened up the website and I read/paraphrased the stories to her. Here’s what she thought:

Draconis Wicked - Flight is pretty. Draconis and Snakey are cool because they have long tails. Malcorona is neat because he’s a dragon like Draconis, but he spends too much time in the dark and he’s hard to see. The “blue castle” is great. All the people are neat because they look like animals and it’s fun to guess what each one is. The only person who isn’t great is Cloaker, who is scary. Marjorie needs to “make more story.”

Urban Underbrush - Dynamite and Detonator are characters from a storybook, despite the fact that they have never appeared in print. Vincent is the “Prince Charming” because he’s the only one who got a kiss from a girl. The best comics are the ones with dogs or “the little green dragon that sits on people’s shoulders.”

Always nice to get some useful feedback.

-Marj

Website Make Over

Well, we've had the old Lepus Site for a year now, and it's time for some changes. I've kept most of the old design, but I tried to get rid of some of the clutter.

I suspected that the site needed an overhaul when I added Draconis Wicked to the mix. Right from the beginning, I had always expected to add Draconis Wicked to the existing site. When Draconis finally joined us, I thought it would be like adding a second story to an existing house. It was more like suspending a brick from a sculpture made from wire. It can be done, but it should be done carefully or everything collapses under it's own weight.

So here's a breakdown of our new features:
1.) The Home Page is now a hub for the site's most important features.
2.) The Draconis Wicked page is now a mini home page for all things Draconis and the Urban Underbrush page does the same for the Urban Underbrush comics.
3.) The Blog is no longer stuck to the comics. I now write the blogs on Google's Blogger and run them to the site via Feedburner. Older posts should be stored on Blogger, including all past blogs. (I moved them to blogger last week. It took too long.)

Other things may have moved around or changed color or something, but I think you'll be able to find everything. If you spot any flaws or broken links, feel free to email me or leave a message on Facebook.

This seemed like the perfect time to kick up the site a little because this is one of those rare times when both Urban Underbrush and Draconis Wicked are starting new chapters at the same time. We'll be meeting some new characters and following new adventures and there will be some shifts in the current dynamics. I hope you'll follow long.

Enjoy.

-Marj

Lepus Studios

Spring Cleaning

(Originally posted Mar. 31, 2011)

Right now, I'm trying to tied up any loose ends before I start pushing on the Draconis project again. I've made some nice little changes to the site that I've been thinking about for a while. I've cleaned up the site banner and the links. Plus there's some new comic banners on the Urban Underbrush page and the Draconis Wicked page.

In my efforts to make improvements, I've broken one of the webcartoonist rules. Webcartoonists are often told not to go back and make adjustments to old work. It takes time and energy that should be devoted to new stuff. But there's been something bothersome about my old comics that was pretty easy to correct, the dingy backgrounds. When I switched the comics to color, I wanted to keep the background in shades of gray. This would make the characters look more vibrant by contrast. It might have worked if I was using a different art style, but it turns out that this comic looks better with colorful backgrounds. Plus, when I was working on the Grass Roots Blueprints it occurred to me that if all of the former residents were hippies and artists, then I would have an excuse to color all my walls in bright, uncommon colors. In fact, it would be wrong not to have a weird paint job. I started showing hallways with purple walls around comic #45. recently, I've gone back and "corrected" all of the backgrounds in the comics that came before #45, so the story has a consistent look, which should make it easier on new readers.

Old Version

New Version

I'm probably going to continue making improvements to the backgrounds in the new comics, but I don't plan on going back and changing any of the old work again, unless I ever need to make changes for a print version.

Also...

As you may remember, last week I ran the ad for Brock Heasley/Marc Lapierre's webcomic, The SuperFogeys. Well, it turns out that I won a free autographed comic book from their big give away. So I think I'm just gonna let that poster stay up for another week.

-Marj

We're Changing the Schedule

(Originally posted Feb. 4, 2011)

The Short Version:

Starting next week, Urban Underbrush will update on Thursdays. Our next comic will be posted on February 10.

The Long Version:

Like most webcartoonists, I am on an eternal quest to find more readers. So I was reading some articles on webcomics.com and happened to stumble over an old forum discussion on the best days to post new work. The webcomics experts suggested that Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays are usually the worst days to update because less people are surfing the web on weekends.

I took a quick survey on the Lepus Studios Facebook page to see what the fans thought about my update schedule. Most people didn’t think I needed to change the schedule, but they didn’t seem devoted to the current schedule either. Of course, the folks who commented on Facebook are already committed fans. Things that keep their attention might not be the best for capturing new readers' attention.

So how can I be more available to new readers while still being fair to the faithful followers? Switching to Thursdays seems like the best compromise. It’s only one day earlier, so Friday readers won’t miss anything, and it’s more accessible to the Monday through Thursday crowd.

Thanks to all of you who participated in the Facebook survey. Your feedback is important to me.

See you next week on our new day.

-Marj

P.S. Not only is today our last Friday update, it’s also my sister’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Liz.

Short Announcements (Because I've Already Written Enough Words This Week)

(Originally posted Dec. 17, 2010)
FYI: Urban Underbrush will still be posting on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. And they will be real comics. Not a non-canon picture of characters drinking egg nog or something.

Also, the Animated Christmas Card is still posted. Share it with your friends.

-Marj

My Gift to You (Yes, You)

(Originally Posted Dec. 10, 2010)

I don't usually send Christmas cards. So this year, I am making up for lost time. I have made a card for everyone in the world. Yes, that's right to everyone in the world. It's even a special card with lights and movement. In order to save on postage, I will be using sending said card via the internet. To see it, just click HERE.

(It looks a bit like this, only animated.)

Do you love it? If so, feel free to send it on to your friends. There is also a non-moving version you can use as desktop wallpaper. You can find that in the Downloads section.

The animated card will stick around for the rest of December, then I'll probably move it to the Gallery or to the Urban Underbrush section or something.

Enjoy.

-Marj

Hey, the Comic's Bigger! What's Up With That?

(Originally posted Nov. 12, 2010)

Comics

Starting today, there will to be some changes to Urban Underbrush. No, this isn’t going to be one of those webcomics that starts over or does a complete redesign as soon as the artist gets some new ideas. Everything we’ve done so far will still be here. But there will be more of it.

Let me start by explaining why Urban Underbrush needed to change. I have been drawing this comic for a little less than a year. I really enjoy making them and I have been pleased with everything that’s gone up. Sure, there are some jokes and drawings that I like more than others, but that’s to be expected. In summary, I really like Urban Underbrush. I just don’t love it. Or at least I’m not as in love with it as I could be. And if I’m not madly in love with the things I create, then I can’t expect anyone else to love them either.

I do love the characters though, but then, I know them better than you do. The characters in Urban Underbrush were all created for various other stories I wrote over the course of the last eighteen years. Dynamite and Detonator were originally drawn in 1993. Slasher and Scatter were added a year later. Cassidy, Maxwell, Vincent, Clayton, and Blair were created in the summer of 1997. Clive was drawn in the fall of 1998. I have had years to consider how these characters think and act. All of them have deep and complex personalities (except maybe Blair). Yet when I put them in this comic, I feel like only a small part of that is coming through.

So the comic is not meeting it’s potential. How do I fix that? A couple of people suggested that I draw bigger comics with more panels. That way, I’d have more room for story and character development. I never felt limited by the old format, but when I tried adapting my scripts to the bigger size…wow. I never realized how much was getting left out before I gave myself more room to move around.

I also want to start telling some deeper stories. This new story is going to be different. It tells how the Grass Roots House got started. It will be a long story and Dynamite and Detonator will hardly be in it. But if you don’t read it, then you will never get to understand this world and its rules. And then you will never like it as much as you could. Also, I can safely say that it is the best Urban Underbrush story yet.

So stick around. If you like the comic so far, you’ll love what comes next.

-Marj

Changes Ahead

(Originally Posted Oct. 1, 2010)

Many things in my life are falling into place. My computer is rebuilt and working like new. Also, l'll be starting a new job soon. (No worries, I should still have plenty of time to draw cartoons.) With so many big things in my life either leveling out or changing, I can't help but feel like my comics are hitting a plateau. It is no longer a challenge fo me to write and post one comic a week. I'm making this too easy on me. So I'm thinking that I need to devote more hours to the graphic novel, update Urban Underbrush more often, or spend more time marketing this site. (It should probably be some combination of the three.)

I'm getting a little slowed down by the upcoming Urban Underbrush story. The new story starts out with these gag-a-day comics, like I have been doing so far, but I want it to grow into something with a little more depth and character development. I can't shake the feeling that these characters have a lot of personnality, but only a fraction of it is coming across in the comic strips. I need to improve my writing so Urban Underbrush can live up to it's potential.

If you are a fan of gag-a-day comics, don't worry. I plan to keep ending most of/all of the comics with punchlines. I don't want to take anything away from the current comics. I just want to bring out more of what's already there.

I can't make any announcements on the new schedule just yet. I won't know how long the comics will take to draw until I have finished the scripts. When I have it figured out, you'll be the first to know.

-Marj

This Looks Familar

(Originally posted April 30, 2010)

This was the only possible way that I could introduce Clayton and Scatter (the iguana).

As some of you already know, most of the characters in this story are borrowed from comics I wrote in middle school and high school (although I like to think that the drawings have improved). Clayton, Cassidy, Vincent, and several others were taken from my eight-page graphic novel "Small Town Showdown." One of the most memorable scenes (according to my friends) was Clayton trying to hide a dozen various animals in a hotel room for safekeeping. I decided to revisit this scene for my new audience.

Speaking of which, some of my relatives have been asking me if I plan on re-releasing my old comics on the website. Someday, I may put the old comics up in the Art Gallery so that everyone can see where these ideas grew from. Or I may re-draw new comics from the old scripts, giving the stories the benefit of my improved drawing and storyboard skills. I had considered re-drawing the old comics and making adjustments to the script so that they tie in to the new stories. This idea was rejected for being "too George Lucas." I think most cartoonists who borrow from their student works end up weaving a lot of their old ideas into the new stories, without trying to replicate them exactly. Right now, that sounds like a pretty good idea, but I'll let you get to know they characters a little better before I bludgeon you with back-story.

Anyway, if you remember the original comics then you probably have some idea of what we will find on the other side of the door next week. If not, you can probably guess.

-Marj

Mad as a...

(Originally Posted March 26, 2010)

I'm really happy with the name "March Hare Demolition Contracting" as it implies both rabbits and madness. Want a closer view of the logo? It's now a free wallpaper in the "Downloads" section.

I love drawing these desert scenes. They look real high quality for very little effort. They also remind me of summer vacations. I have some relatives who live out in California. My family used to drive cross the country and visit them every other summer. So, despite my growing up in the east, I was no stranger to the expansive deserts of North America. Without these experiences, Dynamite and Detonator would probably be very different animals (I mean really different animals, They would probably be another species, or at least another genus). I like the idea of Dynamite and Detonator having ties to a dramatically different place then where they are currently living. It will give me a chance to play with other settings.

-Marj

Welcome

(originally posted Jan. 1, 2010)
Welcome to the Lepus Studios website. This site and its and comics have grown from years of studying, planning and dreaming. I am very proud that I am able to launch this site and to share my work in some small measure. I am also pleased that I was able to learn enough HTML and Dreamweaver to make this stuff look half-way decent.

So, you've read the first comic. You've met Dynamite and Detonator and have seen their love of making things explode. So who are these Jack Rabbits? What are they doing here? How did they manage to build an elaborate and (almost) working fireworks display? All of these questions and more will be answered in the weeks ahead.

By the way, the Urban Underbrush characters won't often speak to the audience but, for the first appearance, I decided that they should do something special.