Bloodgeon (Graphic Novel/Comic Book)

'Bloodgeon' tells the story of a young man named Jason Krypt, and his world's destruction both metaphorically and literally. Just when Jason was preparing to move out and enter the world of adulthood, his world was destroyed one night by a false prophet. Whom had murdered his family, took Jason prisoner, and awakened a dark secret within him.

Jason is the latest in a lineage of an ancient vampire clan called the 'Voltar'; that wields the ability of lightning and electricity. The false prophet by the name of 'Sam Asteron' had utilised Jason's power to destroy the world  and level it to ruins. He now plans to rule over this new post-apocalyptic world, as well as control a demonic entity and the arch-nemesis of the Voltar clan; Arkeline. This sun-like demonic entity was set free from a seal set by Jason's ancestry eons ago, and was a by-product of Asteron's plot. Arkeline, if it collides with the mortal realm, will devour planet earth and end all that is.

Now Jason is alone, in a new world that is foreign to him, just as he is to himself. Jason is now reborn as a monstroud, feral, mangled vampire. Now having lost everything he ever knew as a human, and gaining abilities that he now sees as a curse. He is now left with a guilty conscience, but little did he know that the end of the world and his untimely death, was a new beginning for him as the vampiric anti-hero; Bloodgeon.

Final Results:

Download and read as a PDF here: ​https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LIAl9R1HlT8wKAat0gc3jIIW6Q9rY6xQ/view?usp=sharing

Physical paperback copy:

Ideas:

When brainstorming ideas for this comic, I went as far back as 2022 when I had just begun university, and looked over every note and idea that came to me in daydreams, actual dreams, and newly accumulated ones. I have had all sorts of grand-scale concepts in my head for this story, but only so much could be fitted into one comic project. This meant I have taken only some ideas, whilst leaving others for a later date, as I want to continue this post-graduation.

When the time came to write the script, I took what bullet points I had saved and noted down; and wrote a three act structure of equilibrium, conflict, and resolve. The story follows Jason's metamorphosis from human to vampire, which is intended to be displayed as a 'coming of age" element and how it reflects a teen growing into a 20 year old adult. I wrote this entire story in Google Docs, with excess story plot beats being implemented over time with edited drafts.

The Script:

The story itself was entirely penned by myself, with secondary opinions coming from close friends and family. The story is inspired by my own interests, some personal experiences, and ideas that have came to me from other written stories for visual media that I have taken inspiration from, such as video games, animation, comics, books, Television/Film, and more.

Read the final draft here: docs.google.com/document/d/1o9InRjtA73UYB8j99HVSYjfo1uZ1wiTILocMOoO46pY/edit?usp=sharing

Please note: Some alterations were done to the script in the final production to streamline dialogue and meet deadlines.

Initial Ideas:

A lot of the environmental design is inspired by that of gothic architecture and gigantic urban city landscapes. With these locations in mind, I decided to make a fictional city named 'Allshadow". Mostly inspired from central Glasgow and Govan, only in a post-apocalyptic setting.

I also designed the world to be very realistically familiar to our own, with supernatural, fantasy, and horror elements interwoven into the illustration's visual language. 

Development:

Planning Stages:

Shortly after my preliminary sketches, I took what concepts and ideas I had developed into Clip Studio Paint EX, with the intent to compile traditionally done comic book panels, speech/thought/action bubbles, dialogue, and artwork into dedicated comic book panels.

It would be in CSP that I would slowly mould the visuals and detail them to show a fully developed story. I would also carefully create my own digitally created brushes and pick a colour palette that would be best accustomed to a cmyk palette for printing. 

Initially I had laid out foundational sketch drawings to plan where things would go and how the characters would behave, but later on near the end, I decided to just detail as I went along. 

I found this method to be useful in keeping things together to form a clear image within the panels.

Colouring and Rendering:

Graphic Elements:

Panel borders:

When developing the comic, I found it important to make sure that I made it look uniformed and follow the basics of a comic's structure, that being through panels, speech/thought bubbles, and the illustrated content inside them. But also design the elements myself that I can repeatedly reuse and utilise throughout the comic, in a way that leaves a memorable impact that these graphical elements belong exclusively to this comic alone.

Speech Bubbles:

Thought Bubbles:

Onomatopoeia:

Fonts Used:

fonts:

Livingstone,
DEATH CROW,
Castellar,
Algerian,
Perpetua Tilting MT,

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​Dirty Ego,
Viner Hand ITC,
Mirage Gothic,
Tempus Sans ITC,
Wings Of Darkness,
Felix Titling

Experimentation & Refinement:

Referencial Material:

Real Life Locations:

In developing a visual style and sense of direction for what I would like the comic to look like, I had taken a few trips to derelict estates in places like Dumfries, Port Glasgow, Carlisle and even on my first trip to America in New York City last December.

Also, whilst developing the comic, I had looked to certain tutorials and guides to make sure I was going in the right direction in creating a comic book digitally, as this is my first attempt at it in a professionally attempted method. Meaning a lot of this project was very unknown to me, and had taught me a lot in creating a comic book.

Comic/Manga Inspiration:

To better understand how to create a comic of my own, there was no better place to go than to the source.

I had sifted through all kinds of comic stories that have struck me emotionally, creatively, and artistically. The stories below showcase some of my favourites, as well as new findings and well-revered titles that have been celebrated in the graphic novel industry field.

I tend to gravitate towards darker, thought provoking stories that feature conflict, over-coming them, and a resolve/ending that makes you reflect mentally on what you have read. As well as visually appealing art that illustrates and complements the story's writing.