Cheap sketchpad sketch

[avram]

Wow, that really is a crappily-put-together sketchpad — the slab of board that serves as a front cover fell off the first time I used it. I think it’s bonded to the first sheet of paper with rubber cement, so easily enough fixed once I can find mine. But sheesh!

Another art-related concern — I was reading an interview with Colleen Coover (creator of Small Favors, a woman-friendly lesbian porn comic that I still haven’t managed to find an actual copy of) and saw the following:

ST: You use a lot of zip-a-tone effects in Small Favors. Is that actual, physical zip-a-tone, a computer-generated substitute, or something else entirely?

CC: It is really zip, which I was using a lot when I first started working on Small Favors. However, as my supply got lower, and it became apparent that I wasn't going to be able to replace it, I have been working on using different techniques to create dynamic light and shade without it. [...]

I couldn’t believe that Zip-a-Tone wasn’t available to a dedicated cartoonist, but googling around and searching through art supply store sites didn’t turn anything up, not even under the generic terms (mechanical tone or benday screen). Now I know why kuronekogirl orders her tones from a Japanese comics supply house. This must be more of that Getting Old stuff.