Audrey’s Magic Nine – #43

by on September 10, 2018 at 5:01 am
Chapter:

AM9 Writer: Michelle Wright
This is difficult. I have fallen in love with Audrey, and it is with much regret that I step out of her marvelous world. I hope, Dear Reader, that you have enjoyed this adventure as much as I have and will do something creative today, tomorrow, and everyday. I thought about drawing a picture to honor the end of the project, but I do not possess the extraordinary talents of Courtney Huddleston, Francesco Gerbino, or Tracy Bailey. I can’t ride a bike either, and the only puppet I own from childhood–a gibbon strangely–refuses to stay in a storage box. It appears when least expected, and I cannot anticipate its logic. So, I am indulging in two vices: chocolate milk and my mother’s original fruit salad recipe with marshmallows and whipped cream as the key ingredients. As I express my gratitude to creator Courtney Huddleston, the creative team, Penny-Farthing Production and you, I do so with whipped cream smeared on my cheek, and somehow on the big toe of my right foot. Thank you.

AM9 Colorist/Artist: Tracy Bailey
Well, if my email dates are correct, it’s been just over two and a half years since Courtney first approached me about this story. That block of time is a wild blur to me, for a lot of reasons I won’t bore you all with, but Audrey and all her wonderful friends and family became a sort of calming center for me. I was never so happy to get to work as when there were new pages to be colored. I’ve grown to adore all these characters, and while saying farewell to a long-term project is never easy, for me this one is a little sadder than usual. But I can’t tell you how thankful I am, to the whole team, for being included in this beautiful experience, and I’m so grateful to all the readers for supporting it these past years. Thank you, everyone! Thank you!

AM9 Inker/Artist: Francesco Gerbino
AM9 was my first inking experience.
When Courtney asked me if I was willing to ink up his works and in some cases, enrich the background–I did not think this experience would enrich me so much.
In these years with Courtney, I met a friend to talk and work with and above all I learned to draw in a different way.
Audrey’s Magic Nine also grew on me, kept me company, and became a friend. Now that I have finished I miss it. I have loved this project and I hope that one day Audrey can come back to us with new adventures.

AM9 Cog in the Wheel: Courtney Huddleston
Anyone can come up with an idea. That’s the easy part. But making that idea a good one…that’s where the real challenges come in. I’ve never ventured beyond the “idea phase” simply because I don’t have the skill-set to do so. Believe me, I’ve tried. I envy those that can write. I’ve read so many wonderful graphic novels and webcomics over the years. Some had fantastic art, some had art that was more of an acquired taste. But the one constant, was the writing. Good writing always brought me back whether I liked the art or not. But it didn’t work the other way around for me. I usually could not continue reading a series that had fantastic art and poor writing. If I did continue, it was usually just to collect the art, without reading. It’s been this way for me since I was a kid. And so that is why stalking, begging, and pleading with Michelle (to write this story) was vital in bringing AM9 to life. I don’t know if she agreed because she liked the concept, or because she got tired of me staking-out in front of her house. Either way, it all worked out, and I could not be happier.

If my email dates are correct, it’s been just over 10 years since the first time I worked with Tracy. She has been coloring my work in some form or another for the past decade. Come to think of it, she’s been coloring a lot of people’s work for the past decade. What many don’t know is that she is so much more than a colorist, singularly speaking. She can also draw! Pencils. Inks. Colors. Covers. Sequential panels. She can do it all! I didn’t know this for years, nor did she volunteer this information about herself. Then one day I saw her webcomic “Catena Cafe” (formerly Catena Manor), and I was blown away by her art. From that point on, I tried to make sure that anytime she colored my work, that she was also involved in the drawing process as well. She illustrated half of the last webcomic we worked on together, Luci Phurr’s Imps. And she illustrated all of the bonus stories for the AM9 Books–which you can see a sample of in the comments of the previous update. Even fellow artist/friend Scott Sava saw her talent, as she also illustrated his long running webcomic “The Dreamland Chronicles”. For me, few things keep me on my toes more than sending my pages to be colored by someone that I consider a superior artist. It keeps me humble and grateful that I’ve had the chance to work with her.

The internet has really made working with people from around the world so much easier–as is the case with inker/artist Francesco Gerbino. Mr. Gerbino has been working on Audrey’s Magic Nine from the comfort of his home, in Italy (Sicily to be more precise). And much like Tracy, he can do it all. But instead of going on and on about how awesome his work is, I’ll instead give you the link to check it out yourself. Like Michelle Wright and Tracy Bailey, this is yet another talent that I am in awe of, and lucky to be working with. If you have a moment and wanna check out his work, you can do so HERE

Thank you to the readers (new and old) that have come back week after week to check out this little story. I hope it was as entertaining for you to read as it was for us to present.

Lastly, for anyone interested in ordering Book 1 or preordering Book 2 of Audrey’s Magic Nine, simply click the banner at the top of the page, which will take you straight to Amazon. Book One is already out, and Book 2 will be available in October. Both books come as hardbacks, that contain the main story that you’ve read here online. In addition to that, in each book there’s several bonus stories (like the one in the previous update) that are only available, in the book. There’s also behind-the-scenes material like sketches, page layouts, etc.

Again, thanks so much for taking this journey with us.

Court