About a month ago, I posted a "random art" blog entry depicting a couple of characters who I said would be wholly unimportant in The Chronicles of Crosarth. I claimed they were background characters who I had no intention of using again.
I was being completely honest at the time.
But as I looked at the script for Chapter Seven, I decided I didn't really like it. I mean, it had some good bits, but about a third of it was just not worth the page space. I decided to return to an earlier concept I had considered much earlier in the writing phase - that of an encounter with a bounty hunter. Problem was, I needed an actual character to to fill that part.
...but then I remembered I had these two perfectly good character designs sitting there, which I had already established in the background of an earlier panel.
And so they became our (as-of-yet unnamed) Hunters.
Honestly, I think Chapter Seven will turn out to be much more entertaining because of it. The original conception would have included maybe a little more character development, but far less action - and most of the character stuff is being left intact. I mean, it's not that nothing was going to happen originally; two people traversing rural Crosarth would have gotten tedious. No, the original conflict just would have involved a much less exciting story with Kellin breaking his leg.
But then I'd have to live with Kellin having a broken leg for quite some time (since page one of the comic, less than a month has passed - heck Chapters Three and Four together take place over the course of six hours). I don't want to live with that limitation for another couple of years while he heals.
So yeah, Bounty Hunters. Enjoy.
- Traegorn
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 I watch a lot of crime and mystery shows on television. I mean, I don't watch every program of the genre, but enough. One thing that's happened over the years though is that I've developed a rather decent ability to figure out who the killer/criminal/whatever is just by looking at them. Whether it's CSI, Law & Order, Castle or Elementary - nine times out of ten I know who did it.
I don't need to hear the characters even speak. I don't need to know the "facts" or motives. I can just look at them, and I have a pretty decent idea.
You may ask, "Trae, how does this (wholly useless in any real world capacity) trick work?" Well the answer is simple: Who they cast in the part.
I jokingly refer to it as "Trae's Casting Theory" and the principle behind it is pretty easy. The more recognizable the actor playing the suspect, the more likely they are the "killer."
The part of the "killer" is usually one of the more challenging acting roles a guest star will end up with on one of these shows. Because of this, you often need a more experienced performer - by definition someone who works more. When you watch as much television as I do, you recognize a lot of the actors who work regularly. Once a familiar face walks on screen, I know they're probably the bad guy.
Now this isn't right 100% of the time - sometimes the part requires a person of low experience to be cast. If a show calls for a child actor or a young person, the performer obviously may not have a lot of experience. Likewise, if a special skill is needed (dancers, musicians), a less notable performer may end up in the part.
But as I said, nine times out of ten, I know who did it.
- Traegorn
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So I used to get all self reflective this time of year. I'd talk about self improvement, how my life was going to turn out, and what I thought the year would bring. Eventually I figured out though that I like my current life, so I'm not looking to initiate any actual change myself right now... so what's there to write about? The only life changing stuff that could happen right now is the unpredictable stuff outside of my control, and I can't really write predictions about that.
That led me to think though, what can I predict?
So I sat down and wrote my personal predictions for 2013. I've broken it down by topic, and hopefully I'll be at least mostly correct when I check this in a year.
So here we go...
Trae's Predictions for 2013
The World - There will be additional conflict somewhere in the world. If the United States gets involved, they will be criticized for interfering with another sovereign nation's business. If the United States doesn't get involved, they will be criticized for standing on the sidelines.
Seriously, it's going to be the same old, same old.
And Putin's alignment with the Orthodox church will further turn Russia into a new police state.
The United States - Democrats will forget they actually won some stuff in 2012, and fold to the Republicans. I will get my hopes up, and then end up crying a lot. Obama will manage to get one good thing passed though, and this will be just enough to get my hopes up for next year.
Like maybe a little more gun control.
Technology - There will be at least one new iteration of all of Apple's products. Some will love them, some will hate them never having tried them, and the rest of the world will just be fairly indifferent. Tech reporters will, none the less, cater to the first two groups by talking about Apple as much as possible - because they want the ad views. Speculation about say, a new Apple Television, will either turn out to be true or just be complete BS. No one will actually care.
Also, T-Mobile will declare bankruptcy.
I don't have evidence for that, it's just a gut feeling.
Music - Everyone over the age of 18 will hate whoever new comes out, but insist the music that they listened to at that age is "classic." In other words, exactly what's been happening every year since the dawn of recorded music. Music never changes, it just gets louder.
Also, PSY will stop getting as much US radio play.
And there you go! Check back in a year to see how right and/or wrong I was about everything! I promise it'll be as thrilling as the first time you read these at least!
Unless I win the Publisher's Clearing House Sweepstakes or something, then I'll just be too busy rolling in piles of money to update this blog.
- Traegorn
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I used to do reflective posts every year detailing how my life had changed, and how different my life was than the year before it. I didn't do one of those posts last year though... and it doesn't look like I'll likely do one of them this year. Why?
Because I guess my life isn't that much in flux anymore.
This isn't a bad thing honestly, because my life is exceptionally good right now. I mean, seriously, I'm pretty happy.
Are things perfect? Well of course not - if there weren't things in our life that we wanted to improve, life would be boring. But I'm married to a woman I love, we're financially stable, relatively healthy and my creative drive is as high as its ever been. Seriously, what is there to complain about?
Okay, there's stuff to complain about, but nothing of actual, personal importance.
So I look forward to 2013. A year in which I will hopefully get enough of what I actually want to be happy, and strive to improve myself. Kind of like 2012. And 2011.
- Traegorn
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I like doing "random art" posts to my blog - where I post art I've worked on recently - as it lets me fill in the days where I don't have a lot to say. Of course, recently I've been working ahead on my comics with a buffer. This means that the majority of my art would be mildly spoilery.
Which, as a writer hoping to keep people interested in what happens next, would be bad.
This, of course, leaves me with a small conundrum. Do I sacrifice content for the blog to help the comics, or do I spoil my audience to keep people reading my blog. Heck, right now I'm writing an entry on a Friday night because I couldn't think of much to say other than "Christmas was fun, I drove back to Indiana," this week.
So this week stuff has been slow - no random art, and practically no updates from me. But it's the holiday slump. And that's just how things go.
- Traegorn
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 So right now I'm sitting in my parents's house in the suburbs of Milwaukee. Crysta and I are here for the holidays, and things are pretty good right now. Of course, the road getting here was a little bumpy...
As on the road from Indiana to Wisconsin, I got rear-ended in Schererville, IN.
See, rather than just take the Interstate all the way, I usually get off of I-65 onto US30 in Merrilville - and I take that to 394 in Illinois (which feeds me onto the tollway). I do this, honestly, just to add some variety to the drive. It helps keep me awake.
Well, I was definitely awake this time.
I was stopped at a redlight on US30 when I saw a pair of headlights behind me in my rearview mirror. A pair of headlights that weren't slowing down fast enough.
And then BLAM.
Our poor Nissan Versa got knocked pretty good, thankfully square on the bumper. It was hard enough to tap us into the car in front of us (although so lightly there's not even a scratch on the front of the car). The car that rear-ended me though? It sped off, leaving the scene as quickly as possible.
The folks in the car in front of me were thankfully understanding. It was a father and his two teenage kids (his teenage son had been driving). The kind gentleman called the police, and we then waited in the parking lot of a nearby Walgreens for them to arrive.
The folks in front of me ended up having no damage to their car (thankfully), but our Versa didn't get off so lightly. The damage wasn't huge - just a body panel was damaged for the most part. The hatch-closed sensor has been rendered inoperable, but it opens, closes and locks just fine.
We filed a report with the local cops, and I'll need to file an insurance claim. I want to thank the nice folks in the Jeep in front of us, because that dude was pretty awesome. The guy who drove off though? He can kiss my ass.
There is a moral to this story though - and an important one. Right before leaving on this trip I was loading the car. As I put my laptop in the trunk, I said outloud "What are the chances I'll get rear ended?"
Yeah...
- Traegorn
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 So it's December 21st 2012, and the world still hasn't ended so far. I'm crossing my fingers, but I'm pretty certain it'll be here tomorrow. I've spent most of my life hearing conspiracy and new agey types talking about 2012. I've watched as the idea slowly permeated the mainstream. Right now, it's such a common theme, Jello is using it in their commercials.
That's right, Jello commercials.
Honestly though? I've gotten so sick of it my brain hurts. I am so tired of seeing "Mayan Calendars" in editorial cartoons. I'm tired of hearing people say "if the Mayans were so good at predicting things, why did they die out?" I'm tired of hearing about Niburu colliding with the Earth.
Oh god, my ears feel like they're going to start bleeding just thinking about this stuff.
So let's clear a few things up, shall we? That "Mayan Calendar" image which shows up all the time? Without fail, what's shown is almost always an image of an Aztec altar. That's right, it's not even a calendar, let alone Mayan. I don't know if that's racism or just a lack of research, but either way - it's idiotic.
Secondly, the Mayan people? They're neither dead nor did they say the world was ending. The civilization fell, but the people and culture still survived. There are literally villages full of Mayans going about their daily lives as I write this. If you felt so inclined, you could actually go ask a real Mayan if the world is going to end.
Expect him or her to laugh at you.
Lastly, I don't know much about "Niburu" except one important thing: it isn't even remotely a Mayan idea. It's Sumerian. It's from a different continent, different time period and very different civilization. The Sumerians really did die out, so I'm kind of curious how the heck they have any say in this whatsoever.
But heck, today is Yule, and I think the greatest present of all is that I'll get to stop hearing about 2012 theories after today... well, except for all the idiotic "the Mayans were wrong!" stuff which should permeate this weekend.
Yeesh.
- Traegorn
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Today's "random art" is of a few new members I'm adding to the cast of UnCONventional this year. Two of which, Tim Barnes and Martin Noble, we've already met (and yes, I know I named them Barnes and Noble - and no, I don't care). Technically those two we first saw back in Chapter 3, but I always intended more for them.
The third is Ruth, who you'll first meet in Thursday's strip this week.
One of the most unrealistic things about UnCONventional (in my mind) is that the Staff of the con has been really static throughout the course of the last three years. While it's true many staff's have a core group that sticks around for years, most ones based around a college have a large portion of transient staffers - especially when you're in a smaller city like the fictional Eau De Puanteur, WI.
I've tried to cover it up a bit, by shifting out the "generic" staffers over the last few years (with the exception of Gary) - and this year we'll have lost a couple of named characters as well (Larry and Jillian won't be showing up anymore... not that they showed up all that often to start with).
Barnes, Noble and Ruth are going to be important parts of the "secondary" cast, and we'll get to know them better with this year's arc. And hey -- it's a redheaded character in the cast who isn't dead! It's exciting!
...well, from a color palette point of view. I'm weird, I get excited about colors.
- Traegorn
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I made myself wait a few days before writing this - as the events in Newtown, CT felt like a punch to the stomach. Considering I didn't know anyone directly affected by it, I can only imagine how horrific this was for the people of that community. I honestly would love to say I was surprised that something like this happened, but I really can't. I thought I had hit my breaking point with the Sikh Temple shooting a few months back, but I had no idea things could get this much worse. I said back then "Can we talk about guns now, or should we wait until the next spree shooter?" -- with no idea I'd be back on the subject this soon.
If I've learned anything from 2012, it's that the American culture of the gun is a nightmarish recipe for disaster. We have one of the most heavily armed civilian populations in the world, yet a portion of our population can't seem to understand that this is somehow related to our high rates of gun violence. Likewise, these same people protest against any limitations on the second amendment, but never complain about the long existing limitations on almost every other right in the constitution (including the first amendment).
You know, we're not the only place in the world where things like this have happened. In the mid-nineties, Australia was the site of one of the largest spree shootings in the world. Their response? To institute gun control legislation on a massive scale.
And you know what? It worked.
Obviously the murder rate involving firearms dropped, but (more importantly) the murder rate using weapons other than firearms did not go up. Restricting access to weapons of mass murder reduced murder rates.
Who would have guessed?
So, this year had the following:
1. A mass shooting of innocents in a movie theater
2. A mass shooting of a religious minority in their place of worship.
3. A mass shooting of children in an elementary school.
What the heck do we have to add to that list for the horror of our reality to sink in?
- Traegorn
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