Author: Queen Gwenevere

Page 206: Tentative Getaway

WOOHOO, a new page! The getaway! Or… not… (Why the claws? Well, Erro needs to get a grip because there IS a giant waterfall a little way downstream; and of course he’s just a wee bit pissed off.)

This latest delay has been brought to you by multiple deadlines (business as usual) and MoCCA Fest (yay!) and Spectrum Fantastic Art Live (yay!) so it’s not like I’ve been slacking! One of these days I’ll figure out how to cram comic pages in between all that other stuff, though. ONE OF THESE DAYS. (April has been pretty much as follows: rush client deadline – MoCCA Fest – rush client deadline – SFAL – rush client deadline – can I take a nap now??)

Aiming for the next update… ummmmm… derpitty derp… Let’s say around May 8? Very tentatively? If nothing else pops up to derail things.

Page 205: Snail Power

Snail Power! Otherwise known as Dropping the Hairdryer into the Bath. (Okay, yeah, that is one supercharged electric snail…)

Next page is thumbnailed, gonna try to crank it out by next weekend, but convention prep is happening now so we’ll see… let’s aim for the next update around March 19 (status updates in the sidebar.)

Page 204: Secret Weapon

WE’RE BACK! With the secret weapon of doom! Maybe. If it works. (Remember those electric snails we mentioned way back here? YES, that was not random filler! Everything has a purpose! No really!)

Ahahaha… So much for February. I think this month has been cursed. First I caught whatever Winter plague was going around, and then just as I was getting out from under that and finally caught up on deadlines, WHAM, migraines from Hell for about a week. YAY. Let’s try this again and see if we can get this comic moving at something faster than a snail’s pace for March…? Next page is thumbnailed, so that’s a good start – let’s aim for the next update around March 5? (And this time I’ll also try to remember to update the status in the sidebar. Ahem.)

Page 203: Swooshy Doom

Okay, back in business in spite of all Hell breaking loose in this country! I was expecting holiday delays, but not “welcome to your new dystopian future” delays… Anyway, going to try to stay on track with this comic as long as I can! For now, enjoy a bit of battle, snakes, and, well, all Hell breaking loose entirely elsewhere!

With any luck, I think I can have the next update ready next week, so let’s aim for February 4.

Page 202: Dancing Days Are Over

All right, last week got weird and busy in sudden ways, but hey, NEW PAGE! In which the music dies and we all fall down!

Huh, okay, so next week is Christmas-New-Years-Etc. and there will be family getting in the way for the rest of the year… So I guess we should tentatively assume the next page will go up in the first week of January. Status updates in the sidebar (if I remember during all the holiday brouhaha.)

Until then, Happy Holidays!

Page 201: Danger Looms

YES okay, new page! Dripping with drama and giant snakes!

Wheeee, so since the last page, I’ve attended this utterly incredible workshop, One Fantastic Weekend (it’s run by the peeps behind the One Fantastic Week Podcast.) Despite what the name sounds like, it’s ALL about business – the business of art, the art of business, and how to make a living as an independent artist. All I can say is it’s probably the best workshop I’ve attended so far in terms of learning TONS of useful things in a short amount of time. If you’re an artist thinking of going independent, you should abso-freaking-lutely attend this workshop!

My post-workshop mantra for 2017 is:
MAKE MORE ART
POST MORE ART
SELL MORE ART

Anyway. Back to business for now (some client stuff has been occupying a big chunk of my schedule, but that’s mostly under control now, so hopefully there will be a bit more time for comics.) Tentatively aiming to post the next page around the 12th. (Status updates in the sidebar as usual.)

Page 200: Danger Approaches!

What the hell is that!? Well, remember what Erroneous was up to a few pages back…? Yeah. That’s what. Just when we thought things were bad enough, now there’s snakes. DANGER. BEWARE.

Anyway, QUICK update, no time for the usual blather! (Basically all hell’s broken loose since the last update, I’m still getting back on track with everything, would prefer not to mention politics on here, but yeah, all I can say is ARGH.) Page 200, WOOO! When life gets back to semi-normal I guess I should do something special for this milestone, huh.

Next page is probably going to be somewhat delayed, but let’s aim for a tentative update around the 24th. (Status updates in the sidebar as usual.)

Page 199: The Show Must Go On

OKAY. Yes. New page! With some kind of impromptu ballet! Looks like Fursovitch has it all his own way… for now… (Yes, those comparative sizes are accurate. Cudgel is a Big Boy and Iris is tiny. A tiny ball of undead rage.) (As for Cadaver, it’s in his nature as a haunt to obey every command of Carnage save one. So being subject to an enchantment that prevents him from obeying seriously messes him up. Dissipation is the only way out!)

Anyway. Sorry about the extended delay, there. Tis the season for everything to happen! Since the last page, I’ve been at IlluXCon, caught a case of con crud, and am just now getting back on my feet… IlluXCon was totally worth the subsequent con crud, though – it’s my favorite time of year, a whirlwind of the most incredible art and the friendliest artists anywhere. Plus hot cider sangria. And a Wonder Woman Flash Mob. GOOD TIMES. But it’s back to the regular grind for a while, and hopefully back to a semi-regular comic schedule (as regular as it ever gets, anyway.)

Next page is, um… barely nascent. Let’s aim for a tentative update around the 7th. (Status updates in the sidebar as usual.)

Page 198: It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got That Swing

New page, whee! This party’s just getting started! We’ve got swing sensations Frank and Vitalia, Cudgel and Carnage rocking the brother act, and an undead aerial waltz, it’s the show of the year, folks! (And no, Iris does not easily let go of her axe.) (It’s like a security axe.)

All right, had to zip off on another brief trip there (went to see the family and do a lot of unseasonal swimming,) hence the delay, but should be back on track for a while (as much as that’s possible this time of year. This is when everything happens at once.)

Next page is thumbnailed, aiming to post it this weekend (status updates in the sidebar as usual.)

Yes, I am aware that “Hell’s Trumpets” could be SO easily mis-read. I have no regrets.

Page 197: EVERYBODY DANCE NOW!

Okay, new page, finally! And now is the time in the Wayward Queen where we dance! 😀

So much for accurate estimates of my time… But we have a page, despite the prolonged chaos of the past couple of weeks, including wrapping up a crazy client project, migraines, the Return of the Heatwave from Hell (it is SEPTEMBER. Why is it freaking 90 degrees out??) AND, oh joy, more last-minute changes on the crazy client job just as I was about to post this. YAY!

(There were going to be musical notes, but A) they were taking way too long to add, and B) they looked pretty cluttered. I hope those flowy lines still read as musical staves?)

Next page is… uhhh… barely started. So I guess we’ll aim to have it posted around next weekend? Assuming no more unpredictable SNAFUs? (Status updates in the sidebar as usual.)

Page 196: Rock and Roll

Okay, new page, finally! With drama galore, and the Black Balalaika of Doom! Can Fursovitch fiddle those nasty blues away? Stay tuned!

Since the last page, I’ve been Legendeering in the wilds of the Canadian Rockies with a bunch of crazy artists (which I should write up when I get a chance – Mountains! Glaciers! Bears! It was awesomesauce.) and have been hit with a crazy animation project where every other day is “oh hey here’s another huge list of changes and new scenes and can we have it all done by tomorrow morning?” and at the same time we’re in the middle of a nasty sweltering month-long heat wave and I have no air conditioning, so this is fun. (We should all know by now that Summer is a hot mess as far as regular updates go.)

Next page is in the thumbnail stage and I am swamped next week, but am hoping to wrangle the next update by next weekend. Status updates are over in the sidebar whenever I remember.

Page 195: Something Slinky

Something Slinky This Way Comes… To confront THE BLACK BALALAIKA OF DOOM. Yes, Fursovitch lugs that thing around for a reason. Yes, this comic is about to get even more ridiculous and I’ve been looking forward to the next bit since forever. XD

(Why does Erro keep yacking to himself after he’s removed his ears… Oh, whatever, it’s Erroneous.) (And yes, we continue to leave the question open as to what Erro’s ears actually look like. Because I continue to be undecided as to whether they’re pointy or not. YOU DECIDE.)

Next page is still in the thumbnail stage, hoping to post it by the weekend; if not, it might be delayed for a week due to more crazy intensive workshops coming up (’tis the season.) Status updates are over in the sidebar as usual.

Page 194: Return of the Naked Menace

Yes, he’s back, and ready to rumble, clothes or no clothes! It only gets more dire from here, folks! (Let us all be thankful for Convenient Hair.)

Next page is still in early stages (and it is stinkin’ HOT out this week, so work is going a bit slower than usual)… I guess we’ll aim for next Monday-ish. Status updates are in the sidebar as usual.

Page 193: But wait!

Okay! We are back from IMC and back on track! But what is this happening?? We shall see!

I may have to attempt a blog post on IMC at some point, because it was glorious. A whole week shooting the breeze with the likes of Mike Mignola, Greg Manchess, Donato Giancola, and Scott Fischer, plus frisbee, soccer, unicycles, way too much food, way too little sleep, and midnight rounds of warm cookies and apple pie moonshine. GLORIOUS.

Anyhow. Next page is in the thumbnail stage, aiming to finish by the weekend. Status updates over in the sidebar as usual.

Page 192: Quibbles

Poor Carnage. Leading this gang is like running a kindergarten, really. A bloodthirsty, dysfunctional, overpowered kindergarten. Will the lunatics eliminate their victims, each other, and everyone in the nearby vicinity?? Stay tuned!

Page 193 is still in the thumbnail stage, but I’ll see if I can finish it by Saturday. If not, it might have to be bumped to the week after that, because IMC is happening after Saturday and there will be nooooo time for anything else. Status updates in the sidebar as usual.

Page 191: Nibbles

The rest of the Wrecking Crew to the, um… rescue… or something. Something better than Iris, anyway. (Iris doesn’t just bite necks. She gnaws all over. Yes, she’s a messy eater and won’t share her lunch.) Will anyone survive intact? Stay tuned!

And yes, Cadaver and Cudgel are far more obedient than Iris… Perhaps to a fault. Cadaver because he’s dead and has no imagination, Cudgel because he worships Big Brother and does anything he says.

Next page is half-penciled (yay!) so I think we can aim to have the next update by this Friday. Status updates will be posted over in the sidebar (now that I’ve figured that out a little better… Apparently it was hiding some of my status text last week. Oops.)

Page 190: Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Who gets the gizmo? Nobody yet! Beware the undead hugs! Will anyone escape alive, or will they all be hugged to death? Stay tuned!

Right. So that page took a BIT longer than expected (a significant portion of tie was spent trying to position Frank and Cadaver in a way where Frank’s hat wouldn’t completely obscure Cad’s head… You have no idea how tricky that is. Hats are officially a nuisance.) Okay, so in order to give a better idea of when the next page goes up, I’m using the little progress status over in the right column so you can see where we’re at. Current estimate is next Monday-ish…

Page 189: Grabby Hands

Magical gizmo, limited supply! Grab it now while the grabbing is good! Gizmo, gizmo, who gets the gizmo? Stay tuned!

Hmm. Let’s aim for the next update next Wednesday? The next page is in progress but there’s still a ways to go…

Page 188: Flotsam and Jetsam

The submariners have landed! Soggy and groggy, but thoroughly washed… Who will recover first, the bat or the brat? Stay tuned!

Well, things have been more than a little hectic… Of course I had a table at MoCCA Fest, and the apartment is still littered with debris from that, but it went pretty well overall! I’ll post a report on my blog after I get through some of the other things on my to do list, like the clients saying “so is it done yet?” (At least taxes are now DONE. That was my entire life for pretty much all of last week, haha.) Still trying to drag this comic back into a regular schedule, I think we’re getting slowly back on track, with a few hiccups. Next page is penciled, hope to have it inked and posted by this weekend! (Crosses fingers…)

Page 187: Plumbing Hazards

We all knew this was coming sooner or later, right?

(Don’t mind me, just scurrying in with a quick update right before MoCCA Fest starts happening…) YES, things have been delayed due to MoCCA Fest and also a super top secret project that I can’t announce yet (but it’s cool!) After MoCCA Fest is out of the way, regular updates hopefully resume – aiming for the next page next weekend.

Page 186: Still on the Run

Yeah, these guys are still alive! For how long is anyone’s guess… (Fursovitch, if you’ll recall, climbed up one of those waterfall turret-things to monkey around with ham radio… That happened back here.)

Next update hopefully next Friday/next weekend, if all goes well.

Page 185: Mammoth Malfunction

Big elephant fall down go boom! D: I guess that’s it for the almighty mammoth-bots, their extinction is nigh… Wiped out by the short-circuit.

The chase is on again! Next update on Friday if all goes well!

Page 184: An Inside Job

*Cough* Okay, we’re… back… again? Sorry about that, there were sudden deadlines, and then worse deadlines, and then total insanity from November through most of January. We will attempt to be weekly from here on out, barring catastrophes. Updates on Fridays!

And yes, we have here a rare page without dialogue. It’s Cadaver, he’s not the chatty type. More like the dead, silent type.

Since it’s been a while AGAIN, here’s a reprise of the handy links from earlier if you need to go back and refresh your memory as to what’s going on:

Go back to the entrance of the Mammoth-Bots…

Or go further back to the entrance of the Wrecking Crew, AKA the beginning of this whole fight-chase-craziness…

Or go all the way back to the arrival of our dubious heroes at Thornback Ridge…

Or go way the heck back to when our unlikely heroes first escaped the Wrecking Crew by zipping off to Thornback Ridge.

(Any further back and you may as well begin at the beginning.)

Page 183: Back on the Mammoth Ranch…

Yes, we are BACK! Back to the comic, and back to the mammoths! My apologies for the long hiatus, this has been a crazy crazy year of back-to-back conventions, workshops, and deadlines. This was my first year of really doing conventions, too, so of course I had NO CLUE how to do any of this or how to manage my time while doing it, and a few things slipped (like this comic.) Now that I’m getting the hang of things, we can hopefully stay on track.

During the hiatus, I’ve also been trying to build up at least a small buffer to make this comic more manageable, because it was getting to be a major scramble keeping up with updates while juggling everything else.

Look out for weekly updates now on Fridays!

Since it’s been a while, I know some people might want to go back a bit and refresh their memory as to what in heck is going on here… So some handy links:

Go back to the entrance of the Mammoth-Bots…

Or go further back to the entrance of the Wrecking Crew, AKA the beginning of this whole fight-chase-craziness…

Or go all the way back to the arrival of our dubious heroes at Thornback Ridge…

Or go way the heck back to when our unlikely heroes first escaped the Wrecking Crew by zipping off to Thornback Ridge.

(Any further back and you may as well begin at the beginning.)

Page 182: Down the Tubes

And this comic goes officially down the drain! Along with Vit and Iris! And that’s the last time I’ll have to draw that damn bucket conveyor, huzzah! Next up: whatever happened to the rest of the cast? Stay tuned!

AUGH so yeah, apologies for temporarily dropping off the face of the planet, there. I’m trying to prepare for two back-to-back conventions/workshops around the end of the month and I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I’M DOING and am running around in a state of frantic panic. (Among other things, I haven’t flown in years, HOW DO AIRPORTS WORK WHAT’S ALL THIS TSA STUFF I HAVE TO DO WHAT NOW PLASTIC BAGS HUH WHAT!?) On top of this I have a major project due before the end of the month. I may be hitting maximum capacity, here. So expect things to be crazy and sporadic until after the first week of June. I think it’ll be a relatively normal Summer after that, though.

Okay, so… I will attempt another update or two before the month is over (key word here being “attempt”…) Currently trying to get the next page up next Monday. (Status updates on my Twitter – I’ll try to remember to stay on top of that this time, I swear.)

Page 181: Over the Top

In which Vitalia takes a ride! No posh hotels for this girl yet! Although a shower may be imminent… (And this may be the last time I have to draw that confounded bucket conveyor… Except maybe a glimpse of it on the next page. But then I am DONE with that thing! Yay!)

Going to try for the next update on Thursday or maybe Friday. If I can eventually get back to a regular Thursday schedule, that would be swell. Status updates on my Twitter as usual.

Page 180: So Close and Yet So Far…

Okay! We are back in business! Sorry for the temporary hiatus, I was wrapping up that crazy job that’s been going on since February; and this weekend was fully occupied by MoCCA Fest, which was fun but exhausting, and ironically didn’t leave much time for working on comics after a full day of looking at and buying comics. (Buying waaaay too many comics, hahaha…) HOWEVER – the big deadline-intensive job wrapped up last Friday, so hopefully we can get back to something like a regular schedule around here!

All right, it’s tax week but there don’t seem to be any other immediate deadlines at the moment… SO let’s try for the next update this Friday. Status updates on my Twitter if it looks like this won’t happen.

Page 179: Washed Away

LOOK, NEW PAGE! Whoops, looks like Iris turned on the faucet… Well, that’s one way to clean up a vampire infestation!

Okay, so let’s see… The Big-Job-O-Crazy-Deadlines should be winding up soon, though there’s still a flurry of “we love it, now change everything by Monday” to slog through. So let’s tentatively aim to have the next page up by Sunday night/Monday? (This might be pushing it, but we’ll see. As usual status updates will be on my Twitter if it looks like it’ll have to go up later.)

Page 178: Turning Point

Okay. OKAY. Oooooooooookaaaaaaay. Right. Yes. NEW PAGE. In which Iris persists in existing and may possibly have turned the wrong valve…

Sorry about the temporary hiatus, my deadlines sprouted extra deadlines that spawned a whole host of deadlinettes and things spiraled out of control from there… (Two migraines in a row and an unexpected radiator repair did NOT help at all, either.) However I think some of the deadlines are slightly more under control for the moment, so I’m posting this page now while I have a chance! Before tackling the NEXT thing that’s due… meep! D:

Things still look pretty crazy deadline-wise for the coming week, so I make no guarantees, but I’m gonna try getting the next page up next weekend. Status updates will be on my Twitter if it looks like this ain’t gonna happen.

Page 177: Discovery

Well, THAT’S convenient! Gotta wonder if she’d have ever found that thing without being chased – nothing like an axe-wielding vampire for extra motivation! Now, of course, she has to actually get her hands on it…

UM. Yeah, bit of a delay getting this page up – it was too stinking cold in my work area to sit and scan things, I just wanted to stay huddled under the blankets to be honest. Anyway. Aiming to have the next update on Friday, but the way this week is looking there’s a good chance it’ll end up being more like late Saturday. (Check my Twitter for status updates as usual…)

Page 176: Impact!

In which Iris gets what’s coming for her, right in the face! (This episode brought to you by the power of pendulums.) What’s next for Vitalia? Is she in the clear now? Or stuck in a bucket at the bottom of a mysterious mine? Stay tuned!

Well, that was ALMOST on time. Can I get the next page up next Friday? Going to try for it! (Status updates on my Twitter as usual if my schedule goes all kablooie…)

Page 175: Playtime is Over

In which Vitalia is FED UP and ready to throw things, and Iris is fed up with not being fed. (Can Iris really jump that far? Not sure. Maybe if she’s hungry enough.)

Okay, will TRY to have the next page up on Friday this time. (It’s simpler, so maaaaaybe I can do this!?) Status updates on my Twitter as per usual.

Page 174: Crazy Junglegym

Whoops, got distracted by last-minute Spectrum submissions (it’s ALWAYS last-minute, I swear.) But anyway! You can’t keep a bad vampire down, so we continue our chase! Vitalia needs to get better pest control. Vampires are hard to get rid of.

Okay. Since this page had so many delays, I’m a bit behind on the next, so we’ll tentatively say the next page will go up Friday. (Check my Twitter for status updates.)

Page 173: Getting in Gear

Vitalia gets her rear in gear and fights back! With, uh, gears! Whatever works, man! Is Iris gone for good? Or will it take more than gears to shake her off? Stay tuned!

Well, this page took way longer to draw than I thought it would. (GEARS. AUGH. GEEEEEARRRS.) (Next chapter is going to have as few gears as possible, I swear.) Going to try to have the next page ready for next Thursday, we’ll see how this goes. (Status updates will be on my Twitter as usual.)

Page 172: Luncheon Plans

In which Iris fails to convince her lunch date to cooperate, and Vitalia continues to quibble about the menu… (And yes, being technically more or less a half-vampire, Iris could easily stomach a steak. But she likes fresh girly blood better. Especially in the visible absence of any steak.)

Okay! Next update will be next Thursday, if all goes well! So far it appears to be on track, but check my Twitter for status updates.