Skailla

Howdy, adventurers? 🌿

Did you manage to complete the 30 days of #nonorthvember? Then it’s time to grab your prize!🎉

The package will include:

- 1 Patch

- 2 A5 prints

- 1 Mystery signed A5 print

- 1 official No Northvember sticker

In order to organize the delivery addresses and validate your 30 drawings, please fill the form:

forms.gle/hYtAcSxguKewRDTv8

These prizes are a gift, meaning they’ll be sent to you for FREE. your information will be secured and not shared under any circumstances!

You have until December 5 to submit the form.

Prizes will only be sent to participants who followed the guidelines during the challenge.

If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments (my notes are very cluttered at the moment).

👉if you still want to finish the challenge regardless of the prizes, you absolutely can!! I’ll continue to share “late” posts on my Stories!

Thank you all for taking part on the challenge and for making this month the most epic November ever! You are all amazing!

Hey guys!

How are you today?

As you know, I'm currently working on my newest graphic novel, No North!

I'm looking for a background artist and was wondering if any of you would be interested.

This is a paid position - Rates will be discussed through email

I’m currently working with the talented @tatiilange as the comic’s BG artist, but No North is a visually detailed comic and it’d be great if we could get another artist to join our team. These are the skills needed for the job:

• Managing perspective, light and color well

• Knowing how to paint both natural landscapes and buildings

Here are a few examples:

Concept Art from the movie "Spirit"

Background art from the movie "The Princess and the Frog"

The comic won't require that level of detail, so I'd love to get to know your own personal style.

If you're interested, send your art or portfolio to my email: skaillamail@gmail.com

And if you know anyone who could be interested, please share this post!

Thank you and have an awesome weekend!

Howdy, adventurers?

WE DID IT! 🎉

30 days of adventure and a lot of hard work went into every piece the participants did for this incredible month! I never thought that so many people would want to take part on this challenge. This was hands down the best part of my whole year, and I can’t begin to tell you how much fun I had, how many wonderful people I got to know and how far I feel we’ve all come together!

Did you manage to complete the 30 days of #nonorthvember? Then it’s time to grab your prize!

The Guidelines:

• There must be 30 drawings, one for each prompt

• At least one No North character must be featured in each drawing

• Must be your own original artwork

If you followed the gui delines, please fill this form with your delivery address and upload your artwork

CLICK HERE FOR THE FORM

The prize envelope will include:

• 1 A5 Sticker Pack

• 2 A5 prints

• 1 Mystery goodie

• 1 Original A6 artwork or a signed print (I’ll do my best with the originals, but I wasn’t expecting so many people to join!)

These prizes are a gift, meaning they’ll be sent to you for FREE. your information will be secured and not shared under any circumstance!

You have until December 4 to submit the form.

Thank you again to every single person who joined or supported this event. You people are amazing and I’m so grateful to have you with me on this journey! Keep rocking, y’all!

Hey guys!  I bring you some epic news, I'm holding a challenge on my instagram account! www.instagram.com/skaillart/

No Northvember starts November 1! GET READY 🌟

You can join as many days as you want to.

🔹 A winner will be randomly chosen by raffle and will get a digital drawing! The more you join, the more chances you have!

🔹Include at least one No North character on each of your drawings (you can find them on my Instagram and here on DA). OCs are also welcome to join!

🔹 Use the hashtag #nonorthvember so I can see your post!

🔹 EVERYONE who completes the 30 days will get a prize!

🔹 HAVE FUN!!!

Leave any questions you have in the comments. Let’s get ready to embark on a whole month of adventure!

Uf, this took a while but it's finally here! NO NORTH'S QnA!

Thank you everyone who asked me questions, I had a lot of fun answering them! I didn't include all of them here, (if yours is not here, I'll eventually answer to your questions personally!).

Do check out my PATREON QnA, too. My Patrons have been following the process of creating the comic very closely, so they asked amazing questions. If you're interested, the answers could be insightful!

General Questions

What is No North?

No North is an upcoming western comic featuring two unlikely dog friends and their adventures. It’ll feature the same characters seen in another comic of mine, Up and Ahead.

What is No North about?

Uninspired and failing at becoming the writer he always wanted to be, Martin roams the streets without much perspective. That’s when he stumbles across Steban, a wild traveler with no sense of danger, and his life takes a drastic turn. Ending up in Oddwind, a town plagued by constant disappearances, the unlikely duo takes it upon themselves to solve the mystery and break its curse. But little do they know of the dangers that hide in the lands of the unknown…

Is Up and Ahead canon in the No North universe/storyline?

Not anymore. The whole story will be rebooted in No North.

What is the main theme?

No North’s main theme is about trusting your own north when facing the unknown. Each character arc will be a journey of struggles to discover (or not!) their own truth and reach their ideal selves.

Where is the correct starting place for this series?

You can start directly with No North, but I recommend reading Shut Eye first. It’s considered the story’s “Chapter Zero”. It’s not essential, but things will make much more sense if you do!

How much time has passed between No North and the story of Shut Eye?

The intro happens only a few months after Shut Eye, but the story itself takes place 5 years after.

What was your main inspiration for No North?

I’ve always had a taste for Westerns and adventure stories, but what kickstarted it all was when I watched Rango on a flight back home. It was 2011, and it made me binge on all westerns you can think of: The Good the Bad and the Ugly, For a Few Dollars More, Django, Once Upon a Time in the West, and so many more I don’t even recall their names (most were pretty bad, I must say, but it’s all part of it!)

But what truly brought in the mood, theme, visuals and even characters was when I came across the band Lord Huron in 2012. Their songs were charged with so much mystery, strangeness and wonder I could hardly believe what I was hearing. Music remains my biggest and strongest source of inspiration, and Lord Huron is still the very core of No North.

Will this be free to read or do we have to purchase it?

I’m currently building an official site where you’ll be able to read the comic for free. Patreon supporters will get to read pages way ahead, though. I’ll also be posting the pages here on DA, as I always have :)

The complete PDF and possibly the printed book will also be available for purchase once the comic is finished.

Are you going to make your own animation episodes videos in YouTube?

Not proper animations, put I plan to make videos with the comic pages animated with parallax, a soundtrack and maybe even dubbed. We’ll see!

Story/World Questions

Are dogs the only sentient animals in this comic or will we be seeing other species?

Most other animals are just as intelligent, but chose to live differently and preserve their own cultures. Most mammals, like bears, horses, bison, wolves, cougars and rats are all equally capable. Birds have a strange way of talking, fast and repetitive, but they’re also intelligent. Fishes act like our own fishes, though, they don’t speak or show any signs of developed intelligence. Most dogs choose to eat them as meat. And yes, you will be seeing other species during the comic!

Will there be new characters in the comic?

Yes, there will! Most of them were actually introduced back in 2012 and I plan on finally making them justice. But besides them, get ready to see some new faces!

How many characters are there?

Only considering Book 1, The Northless Compass, there are 14 prominent characters and 27 supporting/side characters (only counting characters with lines). Sounds like it’s cluttered, but I promise it’s not. The script has a total of 66 pages.

Is Gold Marrow still around?

Yes! But the town is now called “Oddwind”, and its no longer located in the desert. It sits at the foot of green hills, and a river goes by it. The river is actually called Gold Marrow for old times sake <3

Judging by the artwork, is the entire Up & Ahead/No North Series Western Themed, Around-The-World Themed or both?

It’s mostly a western hybrid. Most of the story will happen in the small town of Oddwind and its wilderness.

What kind of gorgeous landscapes will we be seeing?

You can count on forests, deserts, mountains, rivers and other hidden treasures! During this first story we’ll remain mostly in the deserts and on the edge of a mysterious forest.

Production and Process

How long is this comic going to be? Will it be a series of books or only one book?

The first book will have around 180 pages. I planned the series to have a total of 8 books, all approximately the same size as the first one (or a bit smaller), but this might change.

How long have you been working on the story?

Including Up and Ahead, I’ve been working on this project since 2012 (8 years). But only on No North, since 2016 (4 years). I didn’t work full time on it, however, so that’s a big part of the reason why its taking me so long!

What are your writing methods? Do you outline and categorize everything or just sorta go with the flow?

Here’s how I approach my writing:

- I first draw and paint the scenes that come to my mind. The order doesn’t matter, they’ll just serve as plot points I need to include. I listen to a lot of music in this stage!

- I establish where I want to start and where I want the story to end. then I print and rearrange the drawings on my board, placing them in an order that feels right. After that, I start writing flashcards including more plot points and categorise them by the emotion I want to convey in the scene (ex. Orange cards are danger/conflict and blue ones are sadness).

I have a very visual process. This is the board I made for my first draft in 2017:

(The current one is organised by chapter/book and it's way bigger)

- Then I write a summary of the chapter and start working on my first draft. For the second draft, I might rearrange the board and even recreate it. I try to write my scenes as if they were mini short stories (with a goal, a conflict and a changed state), and make sure they all serve a purpose.

- Then I print my draft and write all over it with a pen. Reading it on paper makes a HUGE difference! I only print the first and the one I believe to be my final draft, though.

- I go over this process as many times as I feel necessary. “The Northless Compass”, No North’s first book, had 8 drafts.

I categorise a LOT. I make tables and endless side studies and I complicate things too much at times. I make plans and break them. But I also go with the flow while drawing what I imagine, and that's what gives life to my process in the end.

What is the hardest part of making No North?

There were many difficulties during the development of No North, but the lore had to be the hardest part. Connecting things and making sense of the supernatural (or not) was crazy, all while keeping true to the theme. At many times it felt like it was taking away from the story and characters, so balancing this out was also a challenge. I had a list I’d write again and again with all of the “unanswered” questions about the story, the “hows” and “whys”, and some of them would drive me crazy! I promised myself I’d only start the comic once I could properly answer all of them, and so I did, and that’s part of what took me so long. Some things will be left unknown in the comic, naturally, but I like knowing them for consistency sake.

The second biggest challenge was a more dynamic one: trying to make the story exciting, keeping an interesting pacing and scene weave, and letting the characters lead the way through their own drive.

Any favorite moments within your production of No North; plotlines, characters, scenes, themes, etc. you loved creating?

My favourite moments had to be the spontaneous ones, when characters would “surprise” me. I’m an excessive planner and it can get very overwhelming to write at times. But sometimes I’d have a scene planned out and the characters would turn it upside down. That would also be part of the challenge, but some unexpected relationships came out of these spontaneous interactions and from “listening” to what my characters really wanted!

Do you plan to make another animatic for No North?

I do! But these take time, and I’m only focusing on building the site and starting the comic right now. But soon!

Are there any inspirations or meanings behind the designs of the characters?

Yes, there are! My biggest influences were animal fables, Disney/traditionally animated movies and Don Quixote. While further developing Steban and Martin, I did a deeper research on character silhouette and what I wanted their shapes to say about them.

Steban’s design is flame-like, flowing upwards and positively. He’s triangular, an agile but unreliable shape.

Martin is his opposite: he’s round and soft, stable and reliable. He’s grounded and mostly based on the circle shape.

You can also see where Don Quixote and Sancho play a part in their silhouette, and specially in their personalities. Steban is essentially the idealist, and Martin his realist voice of reason (but who can also get caught up in his ideas!)

Are we allowed to make OCs and when are you releasing the map of the world?

Absolutely! The official OC is already out, and everyone is welcome to join the world of No North! The amazing Up and Ahead OCs some of you guys created are still part of this world and are also very welcome to be updated with the new sheet design.

The map only features the places our characters will travel to, so it won’t be a world map. However, if you guys would like me to, I can create the rest of the country so OCs will have more places to visit, come from, and have adventures of their own.

How many scenes from the Art of No North book will be kept in?

All of them are being kept so far, however, they might change slightly in context and execution during the comic.

Is there a chance that we can meet some of the other characters that we have learned about in Up and Ahead before the story itself gets published?

Yes! I’m already posting character sheets of the main and supporting characters featured in the first book of this adventure: The Northless Compass.

You can check them all out here.

How exciting is your job, and if you have any new adventures can I tagalong!?

I’ll be honest, the job basically consists of me sitting on my uncomfortable chair with one leg hanging like a flamingo’s, eyes glued on a drawing tablet for hours on end. It can get tiring and frustrating easily, and it does get very lonely. However, you’re able to create characters, worlds, stories, mysteries and intrigues, and it suddenly feels like you’re embarking on the adventure yourself. When a bright idea hits you, you feel like dancing like you’ve never danced before. Completing a new book, printing it and making it come alive is the most exciting quest. Then being able to share it with other people, hearing their thoughts and theories, taking part on fairs and events, meeting readers in real life, and so much more! This is my definition of ecstasy. I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

I do, however, make a few outdoors exploring for research, and that has to be the most adventurous part of the job. Yes, you can tag along, I’d actually love to have company during these outings!

Do you think if you get enough attention you could get a Netflix animated adaptation?

OHWOW. That would be an absolute dream come true. I’d jump head first into it, if it ever had the slightest chance of happening!

Character Questions!

Why did you name your characters Steban Eveler and Martin Longbark. Is there a significance to the last names of Eveler or Longbark?

Back in Up and Ahead I used real human surnames for the characters (you might remember Martin’s family name was “Bennett”). While I was remodelling the world for No North, I thought it would make more sense if they had surnames that reflected either family characteristics, usual dog behaviours or breed features.

I was just playing around with surnames that sound like non-existing verbs, and I wanted to make one up for Steban. He’d want to make his life feel like something beautiful and ever-lasting, so Eveler was one of the names I came up with, and thought it suited him.

For Martin, I focused more on one of the most adorable (and sometimes annoying) characteristics of his breed, the Beagle: They have many different types of bark, and one of them is so long its almost like a howl. I owned a beagle for many years and loved the way she howled. So Longbark was only natural, haha. See what I mean here!

Will we get to see Steban's backstory later on, like why he’s hated in the town?

Yes, you’ll learn everything about it in No North - although Steban himself is not very eager to share it.

Where did the name Steban come from? Does it hold any significance to you, or did you just feel it fit the character?

It was very spontaneous, actually. I was still in High School, drawing him in class (when didn’t I?) when the name “Esteban” popped into my head. I wrote it with an “S” for some reason, and when I found the right way to write it, I just thought the sound of his alternative name suited him a lot better. The “S” gives him that swift, fickle sound.

How is Steban's name pronounced?

Just like Stefan. You just put the “B” in place of the “F”.

Where'd the handkerchief come from?

He had it since he was a teen. His father (Sebert) casually gave it to him since Steban always liked cowdogs. But Sebert grew to regret it when his son turned out to be serious about that stuff.

Has Steban always been so adventurous?

He’s always had a very adventurous spirit, but he grew up in a house where expressing these impulses was a terrible idea. His father was extremely rigid and controlling of the whole family, and Steban always lost the fight over his freedom. It took him years to break free (more than what would be considered healthy, which he took great shame over), but he eventually did. He now lives for adventure and never ends a day without something to remember!

What does Steban sound like, if there's anyway to describe his voice?

Steban has a melodic, rather deep voice. He sounds exactly like Roo Panes when he sings “A Year in a Garden”. Check it out here!

Will Old Joe make an appearance in No North?

Yes, he will! He’ll be a very key character in the story. But it’ll take him a while to make an appearance.

Will there be any Up & Ahead character coming back in No North? I missed Roukan so much!

Daw, thank you! He won’t be a part of the plot itself, but keep an eye out for him, he’ll make a few appearances.

Other then him, all other characters will be back in No North: Steban, Martin, Lester, Margaret, and even Miguelito.

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Thank you all again for your questions, please let me know what you think of it in the comments! <3

Have an awesome weekend!