Cyberpunk
A science-fiction subgenre characterized by countercultural antiheroes trapped in a dehumanized, high-tech future.
-Encyclopedia Britannica
Dear readers, welcome to leveL, an online comic by Nate Swinehart. I am the proverbial Nate and this site is where you can read leveL and see some of my other random work. Nifty, huh? Just click on the comic button above to read leveL itself, but here you can get some basic info on the whole operation if curiosity serves you as such.
"leveL is an epic science fiction/action saga. It tells the story of Cael Dalton, a quiet teenage boy who lives in the sprawling capital megacity known as Level. Heavily medicated and haunted by a dream he himself doesn't understand, he suddenly finds himself thrown in the middle of an whirlwind adventure that just might lead him to the truth he's been searching for."
That's the original summary of leveL, and it’s sadly about all you can get out of me about the story outside of reading it yourself.... It may seem strange but I think that the whole fun of reading stories is trying to figure them out as you go along, and leveL is full of mysteries and secrets, thus it is meant to be explored deeply! One of the key elements of Cyberpunk stories is a bombardment of information crammed tightly into each page, and I try to follow that model. I put lots of time and effort into each page and I pack them as full of information as my little left hand can muster. More of the plot is revealed than you think, it takes a careful eye to piece together what’s going on in this world, so read carefully!
leveL is about to celebrate its third anniversary. It's a scary thought that I've been doing this for so long, but at least it's a testiment to my commitment to the project, be that good or bad. We are now breaking serious ground on the fourth episode, and things have just started to heat up. I'm happy to say I've got nothing but fun stuff planned for the future...the next few episodes are going to be lots of fun, hehe.
To help new and old readers alike, I've decided to put together a little FAQ for the comic and the site in general. Enjoy!
Q. How long have you been writing leveL?
Though I technically began drawing the comic about four years ago, a lot of the ideas and characters have been running around in my head for much longer than that. leveL is a big composite of ideas and characters from many different stories and sketchbooks, and they all have a found a semi-happy home here for your reading enjoyment!
Q. What's the update schedule?
Updates.....ah yes......currently I'm updating the comic in chunks of action, therefore each update takes a different amount of time and it's hard to pin down any sort of concrete 'schedule.' That being said, the interval tends to be about two weeks between posts, and each update is about 3 or 4 pages. This all depends on my real-life commitments (less we forget I do have a full-time job :X) and the content of the pages themselves (for instance, a page with a huge cityscape in the background is going to take a might bit longer than, say, Cael's dreams in whitespace.) For an idea of how long it will be for the next update, there's a little status bar at the bottom of the main page indicating what stage I'm at with the new pages.
Q. DUDE! I don't want to wait for these updates, is there any way I can see a preview of the new pages???
Actually, there is! When the Status Bar reaches the "SKETCHED" and "INKED" marks, I post up a preview (with no dialogue) on the voting pages. Just click the vote buttons on the index and you can see how things are shaping up, plus you'll be supporting the comic as well...aren't I sneaky??
Q.You know, the art in the first couple episodes totally blows, what's up with that?
Like I said, leveL was started over 4 years ago. My original intention for it was to tell this story that I could see really clearly in my head, but I lacked any real ability to draw since I only ever did it for fun. The comic was both a means to tell the story and a method to teach myself how to draw...therefore the art at the begining, as you so poetically put it, blows.
Q. Fair enough, but are you ever going to go back and re-draw them? They really hurt my eyes...
Oh, me too. I can't look at the first two episodes without dry heaving. That being said, I do get a lot of comments from people saying that they enjoy seeing my art and writing skills progress. I have written have a script combining the first two episodes which is rather radically re-written, and I would like to actually draw it....but for the moment I'm just trying to get to the end of the current episode. When I start Episode 5 I just might start up the re-write concurrently, only time will tell. For now you can just enjoy watching me grow as artist...and by 'grow' I mean sort of spit and sputter, writhe around a bit and twitch. However you like it.
Q. So are you an art student or anything?
NOPE! If it's not apparent, I've had no formal art training and have pretty much taught myself everything I know through online tutorials, forums or just plain practice. My plan is to get serious training once I get back from Japan, but until then I'm on my own!
Q. Wow, so what tools/processes when drawing leveL?
Up until page 22 of Episode 4, leveL was sketched on Strathmore Drawing pad with mechanical pencils, inked with Staedtler pigment liners, scanned into Photoshop CS in B&W at 300 dpi, and colored and shaded therein. Since then, it's been a strictly digital affair. The entire comic is now sketched, inked, and colored all in Photoshop...gives me a lot more freedom and is MUCH faster, which is a blessing to us all. I pretty much only use Photoshop for the leveL pages, everything else I do with either openCanvas or Painter.
Q. WHOA! There's cussing and people dying in this comic! What gives??
If leveL were a movie, it would probably be rated PG-13. There is nothing so SCANDALOUS that the Campus Crusade for Christ would be knocking on my door (oh if only *cracks knuckles*), but some of the characters do cuss, there will be a tad bit of violence and dealing with "mature" themes and yes, a lot of characters are going to die in the process.
Q. Wait...you don't mean the MAIN characters could die, do you?
I do.
Q. WAUGH! Well in that case, do you have any other comics?
Actually, yes. I'm currently trying to start up a sister site for a new comic called Wing Ed. It's a black-and-white digi-ink comic. Something more humourous and less epic than leveL, more for stress relief than anything else. More word on this to come, but for now you can see some of the concept work in the Art section.
Q. So do you get paid for any of this?
Absolutely not! leveL is strictly a labor of love, I do this cause I enjoy it and I like having people read it. Maybe one day I'll try and make a profit from it, for now it's just recreation. HOWEVER, if you want to support leveL, please see the Extras section where you can buy prints and make donations. PLEASE, I am so poor! :D
Q. OMG, so like, Mary and I were talking and we totally think that this character is waaay in love with that character, is it true??? Oh, and are these two related???1? ARGH, Tell me, I MUST KNOW!!
Please no questions like this. As I said, I think half the fun of the story is reading it and figuring this stuff out yourself. This whole comic is made for personal interpritation, everyone will get something different out of it. THAT BEING SAID, if you would like to discuss your theories or ideas about what's going on, I am 100% all about that. Drop by the Forum to discuss or just send me an e-mail! I love hearing what people think, just please don't ask me to give away plot points or anything like that. Also, if you are confused about what's going on or who is who, please don't hesitate to ask, I'll be happy to help.
Q. Can I link to leveL?
Absolutely! leveL is link free and there are banners in the Links section, so go to town!
Q. Will you draw a picture for me?
Uhhh, depends on how much time I have at the moment. You are welcome to ask, but offering an art trade would probably be better incentive ;)
If I missed anything or for any other information, feel free to e-mail me any questions and I will reply! I love getting e-mail, so don’t be shy!
NOTE: All of the characters, pictures and story lines were created solely by me. No matter how crappy they are, please don't take or copy them. If you want to use something I've done for some reason, e-mail me asking permission before you do so! (However, gifts are OK and I will gladly and happily accept them) Thanks!
|
