the blog of bumblemoo studios!

Webcomic Mole Investigates...FanDanGo!

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:27:04 GMT

yups, there's a new webcomic mole column this week! this time i take a look at the eclectic FanDanGo by Darth Mongoose :D

wow...lots happening on the bumblemoo blog lately, i'm liking this ^_^

The Adventures of Emma the Vampire

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 08:18:43 GMT

In a break from your usual wikivic - tis I! wren! With the exciting (cue sarcasm) news that the first installment of my cheesily titled Adventures of Emma the Vampire is now up and ready to read on my writing page.

I've always loved vampire stories and after watching yet another new vampire TV show recently (Moonlight actually - I would definitely recommend it to vampire fans) I thought - I wanna have a go! And so I did, and Emma is the result.

Despite her origins and the cheesy title, Emma is not the kind of angsty vampire TV shows seems to love. She's happy as a vampire, completely amoral and not any form of detective (what is it with vampire detectives on TV??). She is interested in everything and enjoys messing with people, yet, strangely, the people she's messing with don't always appreciate it...

The plan is to have a new story up every month (more or less), but if I get good feedback I could be inspired to write faster:P I'm not sure how long the series will be yet (at least 13 I think), but once I have a few done they'll be put together in a nice little book ready for the day that us bumblemoos get our own stands at all those nice conventions.

If you have any comments (good or bad, I can take it) about Emma or any of my other stories let me know at chestnutwitch[at]yahoo[dot]com.

a couple of little updates (not yours tho wren! XD )

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:44:24 GMT

- tweaked the home page to include a link to wren's writing page

- added the 2 progress images for the 5-page 'lunchtime' comic to the portfolio archive

- added images from the 'dreams' art book to the published work section, and switched it around a bit so the more professional ones come up first ^_~

website update and new things brewing on the horizon

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 13:57:29 GMT

today i updated my portfolio to include a link to our comic 'lunchtime', i also removed a load of images form the main page and put them into the archive. i might archive more soon and just have a smaller portfolio all together...

as well as those few images, the archive has also been updated to include my compiled progress images that i'd never uploaded there before - the ones for snow white, little bo peep, the rapunzel painting, and the 3D bathroom project i did last year are there, with all the notes i added to them at the time (altho a lot of what was in the bathroom one seems pretty irrelevant to me now lol! XD )

hopefully soon i'll get the time to upload the progress images for 'lunchtime' too, plus i've got 2 more 3D projects that are nearly complete so watch this space!

wren10514 is also working on a serialised story that we hope to be able to bring you the first chapter of soon too :D

Webcomic Mole Investigates - Donna Stewart!

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 11:53:02 GMT

first off a little experiment - if anyone reads this blog on either a regular or semi-regular basis please LEAVE A COMMENT of some kind here!! it can be anonymous or blank i don't mind, but if no-one ever reads this blog there's not much point in us having it!

also firstly - please check my last blog entry (also made today) for a new comic by us! (i just thought i'd split the entries up as they're different subjects)

so to the actual point of this entry - a new webcomic mole column! this fortnight i interview Donna Stewart, the creator of 'Digging for Apples' and 'Second Skin' - the two manga-inspired comics i covered last time. she has some very interesting things to say about her own work and about webcomics in general so i hope you enjoy it! :D

the column is here

i have also updated my page on the bumblemoo website which lists all the columns

a new comic!

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 11:44:05 GMT

i think i'll make this update kind of brief as i've been going over the same updates on my DA journal, personal LJ and various other sites and its getting a bit tiring!

so, to make a long story short, we have a new 5-page comic up on the bumblemoo website! it was our entry to this year's neo manga competition - it didn't win but we still love its little cotton socks XD

just click on the 'lunchtime' thumnail on our webcomics page!

here's a preview of page 1

there will be some progress stuff up on the sketches section of my portfolio on the bumblemoo site soon, but as yet i've not had the time to update it. but they are on DA here and here ^_^

website update

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 21:38:08 GMT

i've added 6 more images to my portfolio archive (no prizes if you can guess which ones! XD )

plus 'wikivic-y' book 1 is now only available to read via the bumblemoo website! originally i had posted all the pages up in a print-friendly black and white, but now all of the pages that were originally in colour are back to being in colour again ^_^

there will be a few more archive updates soon as i'm transferring a load of old work off my deviantArt account and putting it away for safe keeping.

i will also be starting a section on the webcomics page for 'wikivic-y' book 2! however, until i have amassed enough random comic pages to make another book, it will just be a running collection of comic pages without any particular author's notes ^_^

EDIT: oh! and the link to my last webcomic mole column (digging for apples and second skin) is now up on the webcomic mole page!

webcomic mole strikes back!

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 08:29:07 GMT

there's a new webcomic mole column up over on indieReview - its HERE ^_^

this fortnight i take a look at webcomics 'digging for apples' and 'second skin' by darth_funk - enjoy!

i'll put a link to it up on my page on the bumblemoo website ASAP ^^

actually its wikivic posting, but its about wren's stuff ^_^

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 12:10:10 GMT

yay! we're finally able to put some of wren's short stories up on the bumblemoo studios website! there are 5 shorts now available to read on wren's page here

http://www.bumblemoo.com/bumblemoo_WrenWriting.htm

they are

- the white lady
- diary of a clone
- haunted house
- jump
- model girl

i hope you enjoy them ^_^ its nice to get some new content on the site which isn't just from me lol! :D

website changes and the odd new thing...

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 09:52:55 GMT

*phew* its only once in a blue moon i get to update this thing! anyway we've all been pretty busy lately as usual - first off here are some changes to the website

- the homepage is slightly different, our contact info is now on there instead of on the 'about us' page

- the reviews page has been removed as i'm now stopping myself from reviewing comics (apart from those in the next point) as they're taking up too much of my 3D / drawing time

- there is a new page for my 'webcomic mole investigates' column, which has been running for a few months now over on indieReview.co.uk. there's an explanation of what it is on the new page, plus links to each individual column in case anyone wants to read ^_^

in other non-website related news

- banemoo and i have been working on an entry to the neo manga competition during the last month. i drew and coloured all of the final comic, but we came up with several ideas and layouts together in sketch form and he helped by critting my figure drawings of the main characters - i've got some development work and the 5 comic pages sitting around on my computer waiting to be uploaded somewhere, but that will have to wait until the competition is over!

- i've got a new image in my portfolio, its the logo / mascot for a classic metal band, No Strings Attached. they told several artists what they wanted and i just couldn't help drawing it when i heard the idea! here's a postcard-sized version

little website update

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:30:53 GMT

i've made a few changes to my portfolio gallery (mainly adding in snow white, rapunzel and bo peep, as well as some new life drawings ^_^ )

new column + little website update

Thu, 29 May 2008 11:43:15 GMT

and so the bumblemoo trundles on... ^_^

i've got a new column up, this time its an interview with comics artist Paul Duffield! --> http://www.indiereview.co.uk/index.php/webcomics/webcomics-columns/webcomic-mole-investigates-paul-duffield.html

i've also made some small chages to the website - updated the events page, updated the links page (its amazing how loads of personal art sites are only up for a little while before the artist decided to get a new domain name or do something else...so many dead links! o.O; )

erm...also briefly updated the 'about us' page and my portfolio (well, the update consisted of moving a few things out into the archive rather than putting anything new in...i think i'm going to take the advice of several mag articles and pare down my portfolio to only a few things i think are the best, rather than loads and loads of images ^_^ )

webcomic mole investigates...looking for the sun!

Thu, 08 May 2008 21:00:21 GMT

*phew* it seems like a very long time since i made an entry about a new webcomic mole column o.O; anyway the next one is up now, and this time its about mrs </a></b></a>toothycat's wonderful fantasy adventure comic 'looking for the sun' ^_^

its up to read here --> http://www.indiereview.co.uk/index.php/webcomics/webcomics-columns/webcomics-mole-investigates-travelling-between-worlds.html

i'm a bit tired to write much about it here i'm afraid -_- but please check it out - toothycat.net really is a treasure trove of free UK webcomics!

update on a few things

Fri, 02 May 2008 09:47:21 GMT

*phew!* long time no bumblemoo update! well never fear, we're still here and working hard on our various creative endevours ^_^

updates!

at the moment wren is working hard on several story projects, although they're mostly for competitions so we can't upload any to our website yet unfortunately...she's also just started salsa dancing, capoeira (its a brazilian martial art mixed with dancing), and got herself a dance mat for the PS2 - i can see that her feet are going to be hurting a lot in the coming weeks XD

banemoo is working with me on some ideas for the neo comp as well as doing his own 3D projects. we're back on our guild wars kick and our party has now got further than we ever have before! we're also playing a lot of fighting games - mainly virtua fighter 4, which is really cool. he's been doing ninjutsu for a few months now and is considering which other martial arts to take up as well - everyone's going to be very fit soon!

i'm working on entires for the neo and RSoM competitions this summer. i'm also playing quite a bit of katamari on the PS2 and guild wars on the PC. i'm not involved in as many dance or fitness classes as the other guys but i'm trying to step up my gym trips to 3 a week, which is working as i'm now getting used to going in the mornings before starting work ^^

other recent things

i won the march / april letraset manga hoshi competition with my snow white picture! i got a little collection of markers for my trouble which was very nice ^^ you can see my entry, as well as a gallery of other entrants and winners, here --> http://www.letraset.com/manga/shopcontent.asp?type=mangagalleryhoshi2

i never updated about last week's webcomic mole column! it covers 2 funny webcomic strips by twosideswide (i had fun reading up on them for it XD ) the column is here --> http://www.indiereview.co.uk/index.php/webcomics/webcomics-columns/webcomic-mole-investigates-hilarity-ensues.html

my webcomic, CLM Training Academy, has gone on hiatus over the summer so that i can focus on other comics projects - but it'll be back around october time with a load of new character profiles to boot! :D

the collaborative indie UK artbook that 3 of my pieces will be appearing in is nearing completion - i think the guys are on track for the may expo 2008 release, so it'll be just a few weeks until i'll be holding a copy or two in my hands! it'll be very nice to see my work in there but i'm mostly looking forward to flicking through what the others have produced, as most people haven't shown their images online in full yet so i haven't seen what'll be in there ^_^ they're considering maybe putting the book on lulu after its initial print run so there is a chance that i might be able to order more copies if anyone wants one - but if you're going to the may expo be sure to pick one up there! XD

---

right, i think that's it for the last few weeks! busy busy busy as usual... hopefully one of these days i'll produce some artwork that i can actually post up somewhere (all the competition stuff needs to be kept under wraps). but if anyone's interested i've been doing figure drawing practice every day recently - i've been posting examples periodically on my personal LJ ( wikivic ) and on my DA --> http://www.wikivic.deviantart.com/

adieu until next time!

new webcomic mole column up!

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:08:22 GMT

this fortnight its wyldflowa's Rainbow Carousel!

the column is HERE!

there's a forum thread here if anyone wants to ask questions, make comments or suggest more comics!

this fortnight its Freakangels!

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:38:22 GMT

erm...well as the title succinctly says...this fortnight my webcomic mole column is about paul duffield and warren ellis's free webcomic 'Freakangels' ^_^

the column is here and there is a thread for discussion here

as i've now covered a fantasy/horror and a gritty post-apocalyptic comic, next fortnight there'll be something a lot more sparkly and girly ^_~

(CLM is also keeping to its regular weekly updates this year [shock horror] so don't forget to check that out if you like! ^_^ )

portfolio gallery update

Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:07:14 GMT

yups another one already! nothing major, just added the webcomic mole banner to the 'various 2D and 3D art' section and consigned a little bit of old 3D stuff to the 2007 archive... [portfolio gallery]

i'm liking the way my work has been coming along in 2008 so far (altho 2 of the art book pics aren't uploaded to my portfolio yet). i've been able to muck about with a few different things this year: my first ever character expressions sheets, lots of sketching, planning a 20-page comic in detail, doing a pic with 3D, cell shade and soft-shade in it, trying out a digital oil painting, doing a load of vector work for the momiji comp...not to mention all the things i've learned on my paid website project, my 'trick or treat' 3D project (first ever alpha maps yay!), and trying to learn to write decently for the webcomic column on indieReview...

...geez no wonder i was feeling a bit nackered last night o.O;

*gets back to work*

New Banner for the Webcomic Mole

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 16:33:06 GMT

today i finished the banner for my indieReview.co.uk column 'Webcomic Mole Investigates'

i'll be working on the next 2 columns this weekend - that should put me a month ahead yay! ^_^

New UK Webcomic Column!

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:24:54 GMT

my new UK webcomic column went up yesterday! ~whee!~

its here --> http://www.indiereview.co.uk/index.php/webcomics/webcomics-columns/webcomic-mole-investigates.html

yipes that's a long url! o.O;

its a bi-weekly column where i aim to introduce and give a short review of a different UK webcomic each time. hopefully this will be helpful for those who baulk at the sheer amount of webcomics out there of varying quality and genres

in the future i hope to be able to cover some comics more in-depth, and maybe have the odd interview with the creators themselves ^_^

this fortnight the focus is on shrouded by vanessa wells

there is also a forum thread for questions / comments / discussion / webcomic plugs here --> http://www.indiereview.co.uk/index.php/web-comics/282-webcomic-mole-investigates.html#282

website update

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 11:39:17 GMT

updates to vicki's portfolio page on www.bumblemoo.com

- momiji designs
- trick or treat concept art
- rapunzel expressions

and a couple of things tweaked and archived as well

momiji waah!

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:55:26 GMT

as you know one of my designs for the momiji competition was not showing up on their website, well in order to fix it they've had to delete my old entry and i've had to completely re-register and re-enter the comp, losing the few votes i had ;_;

so if you did vote for me before pretty pretty please go and re-vote for this one instead? --> http://www.dontpaniconline.com/designbrief/entry/?submitted=1&id=2878

i'd really appreciate it ^_^

*sighs*

momiji go go go!

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 12:20:46 GMT

today i entered a comp to design 3 new momiji dolls based around the theme 'indulge' - to read more ramblings about the comp etc. you can read my personal LJ post about it, otherwise, check out my designs below and if you like them, please vote for them here --> http://www.dontpaniconline.com/designbrief/entry/?id=2853

so without further ado meet sugarplum, summer and spa!

(summer's not showing up properly on the website yet, but not to worry! she is actually a part of the set too ^_^ )

a new column on indiereview.co.uk!

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 12:05:37 GMT

as the title so subtly suggests, i will be writing a new bi-weekly column for indiereview.co.uk starting next weekend!

the column will focus on UK webcomics, giving an introduction to a comic every 2 weeks as well as a short review. over time i hope to be able to also write some more in-depth columns about particular comics or creators, and also maybe even the odd short interview with creators :D

there will be a slant towards the more manga-inspired webcomics, as that is just my personal taste, but i am open to suggestions for western-style webcomics to cover too. hopefully this will get me reading a wider range of comics, which can only be good! ^^

if you have a suggestion of a UK webcomic you'd like me to cover please let me know!

minamicon 14!

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:58:53 GMT

all us bumblemooers returned from our 1st minamicon just yesterday (and i think its safe to say we're all very tired this morning -_- )

i won't go on about the con on here because i already did! check out my report on my personal LJ if you like ^_^

friday --> http://wikivic.livejournal.com/191357.html#cutid1

saturday --> http://wikivic.livejournal.com/191664.html#cutid1

sunday --> http://wikivic.livejournal.com/191989.html#cutid1

more reviews uploaded to indiereview.co.uk!

Sun, 10 Feb 2008 20:55:03 GMT

another couple of my reviews have been posted up on indiereview.co.uk!

distant thunder by foxy

i love distant thunder! the art may not be quite up to professional standard but i love the fact that its chock full of amusing game and fantasy references - the humour is right up my street :D

its quite an old review tho, i think i wrote it 2-3 years ago, so its not necessarily that decent o.O;

nimbus base by wandering muse

i liked nimbus base issue 1, i bought it and wrote the review at amecon 2007 whilst we were chillin back at our hotel room ^_^ i hope that wandering muse will release more issues, but its been quite some time since this one came out so i'm not so sure o.O;

stardust - an anthology by sweatdrop studios

i wrote this overview/review quite a while back...i think this one might become a bit of a milestone release for some of the artists involved, who have since gone on to win RSoM or do other amazing things with their art ^_^