Gearing Up to Wind Down

I'm about to go on a little vacation, and I'm pretty stoked about what I hope to get done, (aside from eating a lot, enjoying the family, and celebrating Christmas and the new year...) I was messing around with some Joes on my desk today, and the spark ignited - I will be making it a point to have new Invictus pages up for the new year, by hook or by crook.

Also, I'm aiming to work on a couple pieces of prose I've had rattling around in my head for a while now. My friend Mike Baron, who came to prominence writing the comic Nexus in the 80's (Seriously - one of the best indy books ever made) had this to say about writers:

 "Writers are people who have to write. They write every day. They don’t talk about it, they do it. People who don’t write every day are not serious writers. All right. Five days a week, minimum. This is about writing comic books, but it applies to all fiction."

 I was glad I read that AFTER spending last night writing a full first draft of a short story tentatively called "Not Enough Time". But it encouraged me not to stop after every small victory. Forge ahead. Write. I could say more, but why talk about it?

 To all who check in, Happy Holidays, and for those brothers and sisters who will celebrate Christ's birth in a couple days, Merry Christmas!

Cogs - by Cotton the Machine

Here is a little live action from earlier this month.  You can't see me - I'm on drums.

More Art - and a recording update

This is a test of the first page of a project I hope to have fully underway in a couple months.  I'll probably have to do a couple revisions of each page before I'm fully satisfied, but I feel like I'm finally on the right track.

Invictus is kicking my ass - in that, I have big plans, but not a lot of time to execute.  Mainly because my "sets" are off-site.  I have some vacation coming up, and I hope to get the next act filmed during that time.  Be assured, I haven't given up, and seeing a post by Justin at Generals Joes today, I'm even more inspired to get back to it.  Ah, life.

Finally, I'm hip-deep in co-producing the new album by my band Cotton the Machine.  We should have it out near the beginning of the new year, but feel free to like us on FB and check out our recent live videos to get a feel for what we're doing.

Thanks, folks, for visiting regularly.  I know I've been silent, but it's encouraging to see that people are taking a minute to stop in and see what's what.

Oh work...

I'm still here, but I'm overwhelmed.  Between crazy work days, busy weekends with the kids, and too much music (a good thing) I've had to put off Invictus for much longer than I'd hoped.  I was scouting out locations this weekend again, and have some tentative plans for a shoot - we'll see.  I know - promises, promises.  Invictus isn't done, but my time is short, and I want to do the best I can for the story, so please be patient and check back. 

Monster Machine!

This is a test panel from a new project I am getting ready to dive into.  I look forward to sharing more once it gets closer to reality, but in the meantime, enjoy!

Where is Invictus?

Just a quick update - things have been crazy in GigaMach land.  Lots of work, and projects, and music happenings, but Invictus is definitely not at the back of my mind.  I will try to get a new page up by this weekend, so don't give up, and thanks for sticking with me through the dry spell.

How Do I Shot Drum? - More Recording

So, the other thing I do, apart from having a family and taking pictures of toys and trying to train my drawing skills and work 40 hours a week...is drum for local SD bands.  A lot.  This weekend, my band Cotton the Machine hit the studio, and I'm pretty excited about the results so far.  We will probably finish 11 tracks in about a month, and I will be sure to post here when it's done.

I also have an album coming soon from The Secret Seven, the drum tracks for which I recorded a couple months ago.  Two disparate rock bands, two albums...I am a blessed man.

I am hopeful Invictus will return next week.  Stay Tuned!

Invictus - Page 19 and the end of Act 1

 

Act 1 ends here.  I'm excited about where this is going, and I hope you are, too.  Stay tuned - Invictus has just begun!

Invictus - Page 18

Did anyone read the Fantastic Four?  I always appreciated when the artist drew Sue Storm as a translucent figure when she turned invisible.  How easy would it be to cop and and draw nothing?  Pretty easy, I imagine.  Sorry the post is kinda late, but I again got caught up in life and left editing till the last minute.  But I think the results speak for themselves.

Invictus - Page 17

Oh shi....!  If you wondered how Typhoid was able to sneak up on Footloose, wonder no longer.  I used this effect a while back on another pic, and wanted to expand on it.  I'm pretty stoked about the results.

I imagine that stealth tech like this would take a LOT of power in a five-minutes-into-the-future world, which would be why Typhoid doesn't maintain the invisibility all the time.  But she knows how to use it to maximum effect...

Invictus - Page 16

Here is page 16.  Enjoy, and as always, you can read the whole story so far by clicking the link on the right.  Happy Friday!

The Trouble Shooters - A Modern Adventure Team

Last night, I purchased one of the last sets of the Adventure Team Leader and Dr. Venom from the GI Joe Club store - There were 16 sets when I made my purchase, and none this morning.  I guess a lot of folks had the same idea.

The fact is, I'm a fan of the Adventure Team concept, if not necessarily the execution...I'm more of the mind that an Adventure Team should be like the group of geniuses and men-of-action that followed the great Doc Savage around back in the 20's and 30's.  So, inspired by the great kit-bashes of Monte Williams, I present The Trouble Shooters!

I hope to be able to do another dio in the future with these guys, completely unrelated to GI Joe - something a bit more "my own".  That includes modifying the Trouble Shooters to be more their own, and less obviously an amalgamation of parts.  However, Invictus is my first priority, dio-story wise, so until then, meet the (tentative) team and let me know what you think below.

Wow! Thanks, GeneralsJoes.com!

A big shout out to Justin at GeneralsJoes for getting the word oout about Invictus and pointing so many new visitors to this page.  I've been a big fan of that site for the last couple years, and it was Justin's dios that inspired me in part to take up the Invictus project.

So, for all who have come from Generals Joes, a big welcome.  I hope you like what you read, and stay tuned.  I have a lot more planned for Invictus, and some other projects in the wings that I will be posting about here soon.

Yo Joe!

Invictus - Page 15

"Daisy, Daisy,
Give me your answer do!
I'm half crazy,
All for the love of you!
It won't be a stylish marriage,
I can't afford a carriage
But you'll look sweet upon the seat
Of a bicycle built for two."

Now, sing it in Typhoid's voice.

Invictus - Page 14

Sorry for the longer than intended delay.  Last weekend, I recorded twelve drum tracks for the new album by one of my bands, The Secret Seven.  Sunday ended up being a wash, and with as busy as my work week is, I didn't have a chance to take any new pictures until yesterday.  However, the next two or three pages are all shot, so I should be on a better schedule for the next month.

What I enjoy about the picture taking process is how it helps me write.  I know generally where Invictus is going, but stingers like that last panel above sometimes only come to me when I have camera and figures in hand.

Late...Ugh

Just a quick post - I had a mini-tour this past week up to LA for my band Geezer, so production on Invictus has suffered.  Check back later this week.  I will try to get the new page posted ASAP.  Too much good stuff going on is a good problem to have. 

Yo Joe!

Invictus - Page 13

The newest page is up!  I'm a couple days late, but better late than never, eh?

I still have a few copies of my SDCC print edition left which covers pages 1-12.  If anyone is interested, please drop me a line via my contact info to the right.

Korso isn't as invincible as he's like people to believe, and it turns out Typhoid has a weakness of her own.  But be sure, they may be down, but not out!

I hope to have page 14 up next week on time, and if I can get a few pages ahead, I'll try.  The plot is about to thicken...

Comic Con is over - Invictus has just begun!

Comic Con was a great time this year.  I handed out a little over half of the 50 LE print-runs of Invictus to some of my favorite GI Joe creators, including Larry Hama, Dwight Stall at Hasbro  (Yes, the same Dwight Stall who named Barrel Roll after himself!); And Herb Trimpe, who was exceptionally generous and shared ideas with me like we were old chums.  That was an extreme pleasure, and I hope to see him again at Con or online. 

In fact, everyone I got to meet and interact with was awesome and generous, and I hope I have something to offer again next year, as it really enhanced my Con experience.

So, now that Comic Con is over, I will get back to Invictus pages.  Look for the next one by next Friday.  I will likely publish a new page each week, and I'll announce it here, so come back and check regularly.  Also, I'm working on a completely different piece of fiction that I will hopefully have a preview of in the next couple weeks.  It's a prose story in a fantasy setting, the working title of which  is "Trials of a King".  I am thinking about posting it up on Deviant Art once I've got some editing done.

Comic Con Cometh! Also - New Music!

I picked up 50 copies of my Comic Con Fan Comic today!  It's pretty cool to have them in hand, and I look forward to giving them out to a select few.  This is all a trial, of course, for a fully original comic project I'm working on - Still in the planning stages, but getting something actually finished and printed makes the project seem attainable.

As well, I am pleased to post that my new band, Cotton the Machine, is on the verge of finally trying to break in to the SD music scene.  We've been toiling away in my garage for over a year, refining our sound, and learning to work together.  We all are itching to play, so stay tuned here for show dates, or join us on Facebook:  Cotton the Machine on FB

Finally, Geezer is going to rap your socks off this Saturday the 14th at the Ruby Room with MC Frontalot and others.  Come in costume and get there early - we go on close to 9.  Here is the flyer!

SDCC Print Cover

Here is the cover to the limited edition print version of GI Joe: Invictus I hope to have ready for SDCC next week. I tried to make it in the style of the old Marvel Joe comics. It was a fun one to do.

Dio-Comic- GI Joe: Invictus

The link below leads to my ongoing dio-story, which I am currently posting at Flickr.  As new pages go up, I will update this site accordingly, but feel free to bookmark the link and check there regularly.  For SDCC, I printed 50 limited edition issues of pages 1-12, and I hope some folks from the Con came to the site because of that.  I intend to update a page a week, so keep checking back and let me know what you think!


Click away...
Yo Joe!

Also, I don't know if folks realize, but I am posting new pages here (on the main page) as they come out, as well as updates on my other creative projects, so please have a look and bookmark accordingly, if you haven't already.

Welcome!

GigaMach productions is where you can find the art-works of Nas Helewa.  From comics to writing to music, links and news on current projects I have my hands on can be found here.  As much as possible, I will try to keep this page the one-stop shop, but often there will be links to outside sites, such as bands I'm affiliated with; and my Flickr or Devient-Art pages, as well as a few content-specific blogs that I am trying to maintain.

If you've come here after meeting me at SDCC, an extra special welcome.  I hope you will leave me some feedback and visit again often!

Let's Rock,
-Nas