Friday, October 21, 2011

So, what's next?

I know it's been a while since my last post — longer than usual after a release. A combination of "RL" events, work, and other "stuff" just kept me away. Plus, I was not sure on what to write!  :) 

However, that is not to say that the grOw series has not been worked on. In fact, I have been working hard on the next stOry — reworking the plot, rewriting the text (which in most scenes, is a complete overhaul), and doing "research" into reference materials for the characters.

The next release will be a reworking of the former-E.L.Publication's story "Sorority Boobfest." This stOry needed major reworking, including the title. While the writing was pretty good, the story, itself, was a combination of cartoony characters, over-the-top "Victoria Secret" descriptions, 80's montage-like scenes, and a full disregard for physics.  Now, a dash or seasoning of any of the afore-mentioned elements is fine — it gives a story spice. However, when even "suspending belief" becomes difficult, a story can truly fall apart. Too much sugar or chocolate can actually ruin a great dessert. There are also times, of course, when some of these elements work — they can be, of course, the main reason we indulge in stories such as these. You just need to give it a good basis first, to get the best quality from your tale.

On a side note about the grOw/stOry series, based on the last release, it seems the grOw/cOmics are much more popular — by a huge margin. Interesting.

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Interesting, I typically enjoy the stories more than the comics. Both are great though!

PhoenixtheII said...

Hey, what can I say? I'm a sucker for BE + GTS ~12-30feet'ish.

Fits your category nicely wouldn't you say? :)

Anonymous said...

I second that! I like the BE + GTS growth the best. Grow4/2 was great! I would like to see another story like that!! Thanks

other290 said...

My 2 cents: I've watched the BEarchive since ~1998 (first saw your work), BEstoryClub shortly after it's start.

Even though times are still tough for most, I think full comics (esp. with an good original story) are harder to find. You show the growth & changes and frame the action very well. The stories need to be good and the chosen scenes have to be interesting to make the stories sell.

I've always liked your stories and comics. The story club's comments @ BEA show their stories tend to be longer but the illustrations don't always follow the action well, the growth is via description only, and the quality depends heavily on the author. Their releases depend on the illustrator & author together, but length and story development leaves unhappy customers due to the subscription cost vs. quality.

The one nice thing about your stories is you can release them faster than the comics - but both are HQ & worth waiting for.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, I like both, but I'm a reader, who buys books and enjoys good stories. Lots of people seem t be just into visuals these days.

When the BE story club started, it was with illustrated stories. By popular demand, they changed pretty quickly to comics and have mostly stayed with them since. I actually prefer the stories (I like having something resolved in one story instead of spread out over months), but that is clearly a minority view these days.

In any case, I agree that both your stories and comics and outstanding, and I hope that you'll continue with both.

Anonymous said...

I third Grow 4/2 as my favorite of the series. Maybe add some light FMG too. :) I'd love to read that story.

But you can please some of the people most of the time, or most of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time.

Anonymous said...

I did enjoy the 2nd and 4th editions of GrOw. I love the BE/GTS action but I loved how you tackled butt expansion and FMG. Would love to see you do all four in the next issue. Either one girl who tries different body types or different girls like the last issue.

Anonymous said...

I've found them all to be good, and 2 & 4 we're good. However, I loved the third one myself. The Butt Expansion in that was awesome!

Anonymous said...

Random question ... have you ever considered a re-mastering of "Wishful Thinking" into one of your new and improved gr0w comics? That would be epic!
-Duck-

Anonymous said...

I have tended to like the comics better, but that's primarily because I think you have the story to back up the art. I like the stories too, but I like to see the progression that the comics allow you. I for one do not care at all for FMG, it's wholly unappealing to me. My favorites in Grow 4 were 1 and 3. I'm not really into GTS either, but it's alright.

Anonymous said...

Please consider doing a B.E.-via-breast-implants story. We've spoken of this a number of times over the past 16 years. I hope you'll consider.

As-always, thanks for all that you do for the B.E. community.

~Double

Anonymous said...

BE+GTS winning combo with some AE too. Just gets it all in there. I know it most be harder working with scaling shadowing and stuff with GTS but it has been soooo good! More please :)

Anonymous said...

First of all BA, you're amazing! I agree with most people on here that the comics allow me to watch the progression of the characters and the effects of their BE, ButtE, GTS, or what have you through out the comic. Plus, you're incredible with your drawings and shadings.

I loved Grow 2 and 4 as well! I love the fact when the guy character has PE as well. I agree with whoever wrote that maybe you could redo "Wishful Thinking" or "Busting Out". Those comics are what made me fall in love with your work.

Or maybe you could work with tekweapons on a comic? Just an idea.

-BELover

mrkidmanga said...

long time since i posted :P,
regretfully i have not purchased the latest st0ry, the pics look great and im sure the story is to, but i prefer the comix, plus im really hoping for a return to the FMG you did in the past grow comixs, i know most of your fans here dont like the BE+FMG but i love it and theres a huge fan base out there that also do ;)

hope your well!

other290 said...

Been a while, hope RL work is going well. Looking forward to seeing what's next.

BustArtist said...

Anonymous#1: Thanks! Each has its own strengths and weaknesses. As I think of new projects, I am usually categorizing them as "stOry" or "cOmic" immediately due to the nature of the idea.

Phoenix_the_II: I would say it fits me just fiiiiine. ;D

Anonymous#2: the motion is seconded! :)

other290:Thanks! Some of the earlier stOries were "straight to release" — meaning, the text was not altered one bit. Many of the El Pub stories were shorter due to the fact that they were constrained by the cost of actually printing of them. Longer grOw/stOries don't have the cost-of-printing to worry about — only the extra time involved in writing and illustration more images. This allows more freedom and opportunity to really flesh out the stOries.

Anonymous#3: I, too, am a reader — though I wish I had more time to do so now adays other than techincal manuals on HTML5 and the like. :) See the comment above to Anon#1... some projects can be done better in a text story, and some in a comic format. I hope to continue to do both.
I not only enjoy good stories, but when a good writer crafts his language to really paint a great mental picture and move plotline. I've always greatly enjoyed the works of Stephen R. Donaldson and Stephen King for these reasons.

Anonymous#4:True, you can't please all the people all of the time. It's also one of the reasons I like to bounce around with the setting, growths, and storylines whenever I can in the grOw/cOmics, to keep things from getting stale.

Anonymous#5:While the grOw/cOmic#5 series is not set in stone (and is right now purely a collection of firing neurons in my brain), I have been toying with the exploration of the GTS+BE genre solely, something that, until now, has only been a part of the storyline. However, mutli-growth themes within a single narrative is something I will return to as it is a lot of fun. I am also trying to conceive of the next pure BE cOmic as well, similar to grOw/cOmic#2.

Duck:I have mulling this over for the passed two years, actually. :) But I have been thinking on how to make it more "up to date" and fit within the grOw framework that I have created, rather than just rehashing it. I DO have some ideas…

BustArtist said...

Anonymous#6:The cOmics allow for a great panel-by-panel visual of growth, which I try to take advantage of. It gives a great movie-like experience for a still-image medium.
The FMG, for me, was an experiment and add-on to the "multi-themed" growth in GC#4. While not a poignant fetish for me, I enjoyed its exploration and have come to, at least, "appreciate" it. I may feature it lightly in some future "multi-themed" series.
As said above, to each his own, and I hope to rotate themes to keep most pleased and keep things fresh. (See answer to Anon#5 above)

Double: I am still keeping this in the back of my mind. The subject is a bit of a challenge to me, as I am trying to get a good process in mind on how it could work fully. The latest grOw/stOry is an attempt at the implant-growth scenario. In fact, the original version (which is in the appendix) has implants as the method. In my version, I did change it to nanite technology to both fit the setting and to overcome some obvious issues when implants get… ahem… THAT big. ;D

Anonymous#7:I never really thought of AE before GC#4. Thought not to the extent that I take BE, I have come to realize, that I do like it within "reason" (a truely relative term).

BELover: Thanks for the "amazing" comment. I appreciate it. As to TekWeapons, I enjoy his work a lot. We seem to have different styles, so I am not sure how we could work together. Plus my schedule would also make it difficult. However, I have always toyed with the idea of doing something more "anime-like" (for lack of a better term) like his or to others' style to speed up the process. I would NOT surplant the current grOw style, but add to it. My shadings and coloring come from a background in professional photoretouching and a strong pre-computer background in drawing and coloring (including charcoal, markers, oil and acrylic painting, and airbrushing).

mrkidmanga: Thanks for the input! As said above, to each his own. I have been mulling over how to bring in some FMG for those who like it, but not intrusive to those who don't. Maybe a single issue cOmic series? Hmmm…

other290, reply 2: Yeah, RL is hammering me a bit, and thus, the delay in all these responses. :) BUT, work on the next stOry is seriously progressing, just not in the art and preview stage just yet.