Tin men and winged primates oh my!!!

Here are my takes on some of the Wizard of Oz characters. These two are just pencil sketches that I inked with a fine line sharpie. I wanted to

give the flying monkey a more menacing and mamilian look so I opted for bat wings I threw the bell hop cap in for fun. The tin-man I wanted to show frozen in time, almost like he was working on escaping then...just couldn't. These sketches put an idea in my head to revamp the Oz story but lets not jump the gun yet. I'm just getting started.

Let me know what you think. I realize that these sketches look a little rough, I inked my pencils and didnt erase the rough edges. These are concept sketches, just quick drawings to put thought on paper. I want to put different levels of my art work up in different stages, it's kinda like viewing my thought process and it helps me figure out what to do next.

This is a pencil drawing I did of good old St. Nick if he had gotten caught in a zombie attack! I have an obsession with zombies, as a matter of fact one of the first things my wife and I found out that we had in common is that we would both be well prepared to survive in case of a zombie attack. True love. Anyway this is just a pencil sketch that I did to have fun, hope you like it and let me know what else you might want to see.

Art, life, and random comments: My very first blog

Well, My name is James Kyle. I am a happily married 30 year old living in DeSoto, Missouri with my wonderful wife Nicole. I work at a home for special needs individuals, go to school full time to be a teacher and all around I'm happy with my life... Except for one thing.

I've always wanted to be a comic book artist. Ever since I was a little chubby boy I have loved the images and storys that comic books have to offer. I found hope and security knowing that there were heroes doing good for the world in those comics I read. I soon found myself drawing those heroes I looked up to and found out that I wasn't that bad at it. Soon I found refuge in a group of young comic lovers drawing our own crude versions of our famous comics, but I never stopped drawing.

It's been 30 years now and drawing has taken a back seat to everyday life. I was to the point of just doing doodles in my free time, but my wife, in all her loving and understanding has prompted me to pick up my pencils and give it one last shot.

Here I am back at the drawing board. I will be posting drawings and taking critiques and suggestions. I will also be telling random tidbits from life just to keep it interesting. I don't know if it will do any good but hopefully through this I will find my confidence in drawing again and maybe... Just maybe someone will see my drawings and I can get my foot in the door to a career doing my art.

I hope you enjoy it and like I said, leave suggestions. Any odd ideas or characters you want to see done just let me know and I will draw it up. I will try to post daily and I look foreward to this experience.