Etsy Interview Repost: Neil Slorance

Since I interviewed him in 2012 Neil Slorance has started making comic books!  So here is the interview again for those of you who didn't see it.

I "met" this guy through one of my blog friends on Twitter and he is awesome so I interviewed him about his Etsy shop, which you should all check out.


1. Tell me a little bit about yourself.

Hey! My name's Neil Slorance, I'm an illustrator from Glasgow in Scotland. I'm 25 and have a pet tortoise.

2. Tell me a little bit about your shop.

My etsy shop is where I put up my prints, pictures and other bits and bobs. I set it up about 2 years ago and so far it's been ticking over nicely.

3. How long have you been making art?

Since I could hold a crayon really. I spent most of my school days doodling in jotters and making wee comics about superheroes I'd make up. I really wanted to be an artist although I stopped for a good while in my teens while I was pursuing music but got back into it around the age of 19/20.
 

4. How long have you been selling art?

I started selling about 5 years ago, I remember I took my painting to a market stall in a library. I remember feeling totally chuffed when I sold my first painting, I guess because I wanted to be an artist when I was a kid and this was me taking my first step.

5. Why did you start making art?

I guess everyone starts making art as a kid and then as we grow up for whatever reasons some of us stop. I've kept going mainly because it's the best way I've found to communicate my ideas and thoughts, and where as I'm not a great talker and I stumble on words my pictures have given me a voice.

6. What inspires your art the most?

Life? Any part of life I feel strongly enough to make a picture about. Aside from that just when I get excited about something e.g I've been playing a lot of mario so I made a mario picture.

7. What advice do you have for new Etsy sellers?

Try and have a wide range of products, especially little things, they are your bread and butter. 

8. What advice do you have for aspiring artists?

Don't be afraid to show your work, even the stuff you're not proud of.

neilslorance.com
flickr.com/photos/osm_art
twitter.com/osmart

This collection contains all four of the issues of Neil's comic book Dungeon Fun.  I haven't read it yet but I really want to!

So be sure to check out all of Neil Slorance's stuff. If nothing else, definitely visit the shop and his Flickr stream.  He draws so many amazing things!

And definitely leave me a comment letting me know if you have an Etsy shop and would like me to interview you.

Comic Books 2

My first expedition into comic books wasn't overly successful but I wasn't about to give up because of it.  I stopped by Arcane Comics a few weeks ago because I'd been meaning to check it out for awhile and I was also having a pretty bad day and thought it might cheer me up  (Spoiler alert: it did).

I only bought two comics but I loved them both!  They were each the first issue of a new series too.  The first is called Haunted and it's by Red 5 Comics.  I bought it because the storyline (post-apocalyptic setting, science craziness, and a strong female protagonist) sounded awesome and also because I loved the art style and colors.  It was every bit as good as I had hoped it would be.  It has a female protagonist, a priest, and a scientist all banded together fighting off these crazy enemies and trying to survive.  There's a very entertaining science vs. religion argument as well as an action-packed story.  I highly recommend it!  Red 5 Comics is an independent comic book publisher and I want to read some of their other series too, especially Bad Dreams.

The second is called The Dream Merchant and it's by Image Comics (They publish Saga and The Walking Dead).  I bought this one more for the story than the art (to be honest, it's not my favorite art).  In case you guys didn't know, I am fascinated by anything involving dreams.  So this purchase was a no-brainer.  I had no idea how much I would love it.  There's a part where the main guy is in a mental hospital!  (just a recap, things I'm fascinated by include dreams, insane asylums, and serial killers)  This comic had two out of three in the first issue and I'm holding out hope for a serial killer.  (That's a weird phrase.)

I'm glad I gave comic books a second chance and I think you guys should definitely check out both of these series and publishers.  I will definitely be continuing reading both of these series.

Comic Book Haul

I bought some comic books yesterday.  I wanted to get something small for my 7 and 8 year cousin for Christmas but don't have much money, so I thought comic books would be good.  I bought all of these for them, except for Hoax Hunters, but then I read through them after I got home to make sure they would be appropriate and I'll actually be keeping two of them.  Princeless was hilarious but did talk about killing, which isn't exactly child appropriate and Wonderland #2 was great except at one point Mary Ann says "Bloody Hell!" and that's not a phrase the girls need in their vocabulary at this age.  I really enjoyed all of these comics and want to read more of all of them.  Road to Oz surprised me.  It's a completely different story from The Wizard of Oz, which I like.  Also Dorothy is an awful child.  I really adore the art style in both Oz and Wonderland.  Princeless made me laugh out loud multiple times.

I'm really excited about all of these comics and I hope that the girls like the ones I give them.  I think they will because one is a voracious reader and the other has a short attention span but will read books with pictures.  I'm a little disappointed that Princeless wasn't appropriate though because they love princess stories and their mom and I both love stories with strong female characters.

I Read Some Comic Books

So remember how I said I'd never read comic books, aside from Sonic the Hedgehog?  Well I can't say that anymore.  I bought all of these at my friendly (seriously super friendly) neighborhood comic book shop about a month ago.  Sidenote: I discovered this place after I was super stressed and starting to withdraw from socializing with humans IRL.  It pretty much saved me from becoming a hermit, but now I haven't been back for awhile and am kind of pretty much a hermit, because work is super stressful and that's my coping mechanism.  Anyway I asked for suggestions for comic books on Google+ and bought some of those and some of my own picks.  I bought all of these with my own money and my opinions are my own.

I bought: American Vampire, Astonishing X-Men, Uncanny X-Men, Star Wars Knight Errant: Escape, Hoax Hunters, and The Secret Service.

First things first, I want to know why they bold words seemingly at random in comics.  It drives me crazy!  Second thing, despite the randomly bolded words driving me crazy, I would be interested in reading more of Hoax Hunters.  There's some serious foreshadowing in this one and I must say that I'm intrigued.  Everything else, not so much.  I love the X-Men movies to death but the comic books weren't my cup of tea.  Maybe it's because I didn't get the first issues, since they weren't at the shop, but I think it's more like it just seemed repetitive to me.  They did make me laugh out loud, but I expected more from Joss Whedon.  I think I disliked The Secret Service the most.  I really don't even know why I chose that one.  It's about action and politics, which is a combination I only rarely enjoy.  American Vampire was kind of interesting, but not enough that I want to read more.  However I did buy issue number 34 so maybe if I had been following the story from the beginning, I would enjoy it more.  But the art in it was my favorite of the whole batch.  And I wanted to love Star Wars Knight Errant, but I just didn't, and I'm not even sure why.  Maybe it was all of the weird names that I couldn't get straight.  I don't know.

I am not saying that I'm completely opposed to comic books.  I just think I made some poor selections and one really great one.  And honestly it takes a lot to live up to Sonic the Hedgehog comics.  I'll definitely be trying out more comics and also reading more of the Hoax Hunters series.  I love that comic books are so inexpensive to try, compared to most things.