Paracosm Comics Podcast #1

 

Episode 1 of the Paracosm Comics podcast is out now! Take a listen below…

Pixel Art Darkfire Animation

 Credit to Rory Mitchell for the base templates.

I fell down the pixel art rabbit hole recently, I really want to do a point and click adventure game retro style. I have crazy dreams of having a Warcraft style game set in Ilea etc, doing the sanctuary storyline where you can design your own character and do quests with the main story like the comicsbut also side quests etc. If I had the money to get others to help I would. I can barely function on a day to day basis, but I have so many fun creative ideas my brain wants to explode. Being AuDHD and disabled as well as struggling with depression, does make it a challenge and I haven’t felt up to doing the comic for months - plus I moved recently. I think I’m starting to get my creative buzz back slowly but I need to pace myself and settle in here.

In the mean time please enjoy my fun pixel stuff!

The Dominion

 

The Dominion Symbol

In the 1990's when creating my comic, I eventually got the idea for the bad guys name, The Dominion, inspired by a Manga I had on VHS called Dominion. 

(I loved THIS scene SO hard)

I made Brutallica the leader of The Dominion until Darkfire emerges - more on that though when Origins is released.

Comic Art Musings

Reptile vs Terrak

Most of the artwork for the stories I did as a teenager - not for public consumption but purely for my own joy of it - so I used other characters like Marvel's Venom as I was going through a Venom phase at the time. The old stories will likely be recycled for the updated new version and a lot of them are just ideas I had I threw out at the time with a view to refining later. I never wrote the story but would just draw what I felt then added the wording later - I am a self-taught artist from a young child by copying and drawing from memory or my head what I feel so I am by no means a professional Comic Book Artist. My aim is to learn how the pros do it and effectively "start over" incorporating my "feel my way into it" technique with the traditional methods and see what happens. It will likely take me years and I know I will never stop improving and learning and I am late in the game but better late than never and away I go!

I would use whatever I had to hand paper and pen wise - usually a biro or cartridge pens until I found fineliners. All the stories are roughs and I will likely only share a few until I get the new main webcomic up and running and then share the old stuff for where the original story came from comparisons. 

Most of the comic art was done from 14-17 although I have done sporadic bouts of it over the years to date.

I hope you enjoy and please share your thoughts and feelings along the way if you so feel inspired to!

Bex
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Psione / Darkfire

Psione is the first super-hero name of my character devised from my love of all the psychic characters in Marvel, particularly Psylocke (the main influence for my characters look and powers), and Jean Grey / Phoenix, Xavier, The White Queen, Kwannon, Legion etc from the X-Men a teen, created when I was around sixteen years old. Psione's name came about after watching Dogma and Bethany being the last Scion, I needed something kinda psychic sounding so I combined the Psi - with the sound of Scione and stuck an e on the end, Psione. A bit convoluted but thats how my brain works sometimes.

Psylocke/Kwannon 

Psylocke is kick ass, awesome purple hair, love the 90's costume, and cool psychic abiltities I wished I could have in real life... be careful what you wish for I say :p more on my own psychic development in another post though.

Pai from 3x3 eyes

The idea of a split personality or two distinct entities within one body playing off the concept of the Shadow Aspect within us all, developed after watching my fave Manga 3x3 Eyes which helped give me an understanding of this idea, and work with it in my character development over the next 2+ decades - this theme also cropped up in Psylocke / Kwannon as well with both their minds swapped / split and merged between two bodies.

Darkfire emerged a bit later as a secondary persona derived from a past life aspect (the story developed over the years). Through her I'm able to explore my own darker aspects - parts of my *Shadow Side* if you will so she is as much a part of me as anything I express in real life. Consider her the rage and the despair, the pain and the darkness, those demons made manifest when we don’t face and attempt to heal our deepest wounds. The concept of the inner battle with our demons (as well as literal ones in the comic) is an age old story.

For those who believe in the more spiritual side of things, the magick and things beyond this world, it turns out I was partly basing her on what I later picked up to possibly be an past life of mine - but more on the details later... I will leave that for the actual comic book story as well as future podcasts. Consider this a teaser!

The creation of Psione/Darkfire is a multi-level one, based on me, how I'd like to be, the Shadow Parts of me (both positive and negative), my emotional processed, my real life and inner experiences, and even the real-life experiences I've had around past lives, spiritual and psychic experiences.

The name Darkfire I took from the song sung by Frollo in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame "Hellfire" lyrics, it just stuck out and I was like, cool for a name for my character and that was that!

"Hellfire Dark fire Now gypsy, it's your turn Choose me or your pyre Be mine or you will burn"

The Sanctuary Logo

I first created the logo back in the mid 90’s ish so I had something to anchor the comic to in terms of a symbol.

 

Initially with the idea of 1 mind, 2 personalities or souls (psione/darkfire) the single line showing the one split into 2 and the dot representing the mind between, I also see it as the 1 reality split into 2 when the 2 “timelines” run separately on each world and me in between as the dot.

So there you go! The meaning of The Sanctuary logo.

Progress not perfection...

I'm by no means a professional and am very much an amateur who hasn't devoted her life to comics since she was a teenager in the '90s.

 I got re-inspired in 2016 and managed to create my first 3 issues of animated effects web, digital, and printed comics. It's now 2021 and with my health issues, moving, and family things going on, it meant I needed to take a break and focus on just taking care of my basic needs. Now I feel slowly and gradually I'm getting back into it, starting over with the Origins story.

So my comic will be messy, and constantly getting tweaked, as I develop the world(s) and the storylines. If there are plot holes and things that really don't make sense I no doubt will spot them and correct them both myself and with the help of others. My art I hope will improve in technique and skill as I develop my own style whilst I'm doing courses to help support my growth as an artist and comic creator. 

It's not perfect and never will be. I believe in progress, not perfection. I have the freedom to create on my terms and to self-publish. To charge prices I feel are right for me and to trust that those who value me will support me accordingly. 

My ideas are mine to share and come from a very personal inner space - my soul laid bare shared with the world for those that wish to visit and be part of my creation. 

I hope you will be part of my journey, and explore the world of The Sanctuary with me.

Bex

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