New Page #26! There’s only one page left in this issue. Come back next Wednesday–you don’t miss it!
You know what else happens next Wednesday?! Volume 2 of The Dreamer is released!!! I hope you’ve all ordered your copy!! Comic Shops only will probably get it on the actual release day…
Use these codes:
Vol 1: 978-1-60010-465-7
Vol 2: 978-1-61377 – 031-3
Vol 2 Diamond Order Code (for Comic Shops): SEP110353
As a special farewell, since we’re at the end of the issue, VOTE this week for a trip down memory lane with Thomas Knowlton! All of his greatest moments in a little “highlight reel.” (Warning: It might take a few seconds to load.)
And don’t forget to order your limited edition Thomas Knowlton souvenirs in The Dreamer Tee Shirt store! These are only for sale until NEXT WEEK and then they’ll be forever gone!
SHIT, ALAN! Dying is bad enough but for the love of God don’t turn into a ZOMBIE!
And stopping the letter in mid sentence? Smooooothhhh….
The VI made me laugh and cry!!! D’aww!!! The memories…we’ll miss you, Knowlton! <3
Oh and sorry if my swearing offended anybody. Alan just looks a lot like I did a year ago and it’s scaring me. O.o I get carried away sometimes. Understatement as usual. lol
Pffft! You just meant “Shove Hale Into TARDIS” and wrote the short version by mistake ;)
Of course. ;)
:-D
LOL. (yes, I did giggle) Shove Hale in TARDIS indeed.
Just watch out for this:
http://shirt.woot.com/friends.aspx?k=8901
Hey! Who took my Delorean?!?!? ;)
I bet it was Griff Tannen in cooperation with the Daleks. ;-)
I should have known.
Okay. That just made me lol for real XD
We’ll miss you Thomas Knowlton in later issues and Alan you can not die, someone get a doctor!
Gah! Cliffhanger much?
This whole issue/chapter/whatever you call it has been lovely and intense, Lora! It just keeps getting better and better.
Also coming back after reading the VI to say man, way to bring Knowlton alive! RIP.
Damn it, damn it all to hell…now I’m crying.
Someone pllleeeaaasssse find a doctor for Alan…
And the VI: You will be sorely missed, Thomas Knowlton…</3
for someone who’s never drawn puke before, you did entirely too good a job–made me queasy just to read that. I’m hoping the next issue shows them trucking Alan off to the doctor whilst passed out.
Love the VI. Sniff. Will miss Thom dreadfully.
Hahaha, I left “gross!” on her facebook page when I saw it. I hate puking. More than coughing, though Alan needs to not do either. :(
My BFF almost puked looking at the black-and-white version!
I think it speaks highly of your artistic talent to say that this is a page I won’t be re-reading very often! :D
Says the girl who wants a SPUNKERS CLUB STORY! Think you can handle it? ;)
Of course! As long as it’s not in full color, 3D, pop-up, scratch ‘n’ sniff, I should handle it just fine. (And I’m sure the family genes would kick in at some point and I’d begin to giggle.)
I could be all sorts of gross and say at least it’s not black…that’d mean blood, and we really don’t want him bringing up blood.
Sorry, I’m a doctor’s daughter and a mom, so it doesn’t phase me too much to talk/read about it. IRL though…
anyway, I’ll stop now :P
How in the world am I going to make it all the way to next Wednesday? I have exams to study for – I can’t keep this in the back of my mind all weekend!!! :P
Oh my gosh–the VI made me cry, and I’m already coughing and hacking and congested from a bad head-cold. x_x It was lovely, though.
And Alan–auuuugh Alan!! >_<
Feel better!!! *hugs*
AAAAHH!!
I repeat:
AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!!!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11ELEVEN
Oh, Alan won’t die; he’s too important to the story to die this early, right? Right?
…I’m very, very worried for him.
The VI was wonderful, even if it made me sad about Knowlton all over again. It’s really amazing the way that you made me care so much about him. I’d never heard of him before I started reading The Dreamer, and now I want to know even more about him, and I’m sure that when I learn about him I’ll be picturing him as you’ve drawn him. Basically, what I’m trying to say is that you’ve done an amazing job with him as a character, and knowing that there actually was a Thomas Knowlton makes him even better and his death in the story even sadder.
Thank you! It means a lot. I tried to bring alive, make him fun and yet stay true to what I know about him at the same time.
Not Alan too! Please, haven’t you killed off enough characters in this issue? Who are you channeling? Is it George RR Martin? It is, isn’t it? Well, please stop.
We areI am way too emotionally invested in him.Far more men died from disease than battle. Poor Alan might just be a statistic…
alan is far too awesome to be just a statistic :)
That needs to go on a T-shirt.
I loved the vote incentive! It was so cool to see the progression of your art within the summary. I especially noticed the strong variation of line-widths that sets the depth-of-field in the later pages: it’s really beautiful.
Also, I’ve written a story that involves a character being seriously ill like this, and it’s so weird to see all my research about respiratory illnesses coming into play. I must say it’s very realistic! Do you think of Alan’s illness as an actual definable one (i.e., pneumonia, bronchitis, tuberculosis), or is it just generalized?
That old art work…! Eep! Yeah I’ve definitely gotten better.
The lightweight change happened in issue 10. Before that the pages were drawn traditionally and I just couldn’t make my pencils look that rich. With a program called Sketchbook Pro, all of my inks are digital and I love the effect!
Oh and as usual, well done research will help you find spoilers for the Dreamer…
VI: geh- ah- wha- GAH!!!!!!!!!!!! HE CAN’T LEAVE US!!!!! I DEMAND HISTORICAL REWRITE!!!!!!
AS for the page: Is this where Alan goes to presant day to pay Bea a visit???
Be nice that really happen seeing Alan in the 21st Century
I forgot to put That before be
hehehe! Screaming to go back the whole time…
“…Surely you must know that I am….” Lora, I love you dearly and you know that I all but bow at that maybe-not-quite-so-fictional-alter of yours, but so help me, if the end of Alan’s sentence to Bea is “…I am too old for you…” I may scream….just a fair warning. Of course, that will never stop me from bringing popcorn to Wednesday’s event……(and I still don’t believe Knowlton’s dead yet :(……)
Or if it’s “I’m not the One for you” or “I’m not good enough” or even worse “I love Milly more”
“I’m already married!” lol Not likely. But I had to say it.
that was a traditional way of ending letters
“know that I am…
your devoted servant,
So-and-So”
So it’s likely to be something more like “Know that I am…always yours, heart and soul, Alan Warren.” Or something suitably brave and soul-bearing.
hehehe yes, much more likely. ;)
i bet he’s confessing his attraction to Nathan. That’s gotta be it. The whole him-and-Bea thing was just a sideline.
Doonnn’t even. Leave at least ONE MAN in my life as straight. If you turn Nathan around too I’m going to have to get a sex change. No one likes women anymore. It’s depressing.
Nathan: Ok now you people are just plain confusing me…
Me: It’s ok, Nathan. Have some diced carrots and butternut squash.
Nathan and Me: *munch*
By the way, please save some for me :)
*hands over the veggie bowl*
And yes I am in that depression boat. lol Or rather, I will be when I’m actually looking for relationships…
Me: *slaps your hands with Sonic Screwdriver* share the veggies and I’ll share my Fish Fingers and Custard.
Nathan: Do fish even HAVE fingers???
lol When I said “hands over the veggie bowl” I meant I was handing you the veggie bowl, not putting my hands over it. lol
Now it’s my turn for kiss and make it better *give Nathan her hands*
ooooh. o///o sorry Caera
Hahaha, it’s ok. Nathan made them all better.
He makes everything better! Oh, and I have been meaning to ask this…is it ok if i mention/attempt to draw you in a peice of fan art that may or may not be used for FanArt Palooza???
lol sure! I want to see it when you’re done. Don’t forget to draw my 3 foot long braid. XD Ok so maybe it’s not 3 feet yet but it’s getting pretty close…But if you’ve got the braid in there there’ll be no mistaking me. ;)
Unfortunatly…I suck at braids. But considering Nathan mentions you by name there shouldn’t be a problem recognizing you
lol ok. Fair enough. ;)
Well the “script” goes:
Panel 1:
Nathan: *holds up sonic screwdriver* “This is a sonic screwdriver. Now if Caera and Half Moon can stop fighting over my coat, I will show you the pysquic paper next”
Panel 2:
Nathan: “Ladies, if you will?”
You: But Nathan, Half Moon’s not sharing!
Me: *clutching coat* Your coat’s sooo soft!!!
Is Nathan the Doctor now? :D
Well that /was/ one of our jokes
Hehehe ok I just missed the memo where it became official. :D
lol, it’s only official in my head…like many other things
As long as it’s official somewhere, it’s still official.
hehehe! if that’s the case…Nathan’s not dead!
He just regenerated! Yay!
Watch out Matt Smith. I know who you REALLY are now and you’re not gonna escape! <3 lol jk
oh brother, one more picture just poped into my head for fanart!
Probably the same as the one in mine…
pffft! Well, great minds think alike!
Oh, you’re in /that/ depression boat too?
It doesn’t matter; we’ll always have Nathan. :D
Nathan: As much as I enjoy our escapades and all the affection you bestow upon me, don’t you think you should find someone in your time frame to love?
Me: If there was anyone! And besides, love-out-of-time is always sooo romantic.
Nathan: ^u^
And the fact he can’t talk back unless we ask helps too.
Oh he always talks to me. He’s like one of my characters now.
Nathan: 0:D
Oh, you have conversations with people who only exist in your head (and books) too???
I have more conversations with them than I do real people these days. It’s because I spend so little time socializing and so much time writing. :D
lol join the club…but you have to admit it /is/ fun sometimes
Hehehe. Which is why I do it. :D
Lol, do they ever “fight” for your attention?
Not in a while. They have plenty of my attention these days.
Lucky…I have plans top draw a picture with most lf them fighting (in a dust cloud) and Connor, my only quiet one just sitting there with his feet up saying “My turn yet?”
Hehehe. Mine make faces at me. :)
http://imalshen.deviantart.com/art/Self-Portrait-115309126
That is awesome! I love how the guy with black wings looks…and I probably shouldn’t try a portrait with all my characters in it…it’d be at least two feet long
Hahaha, that’s Marek, and he’s my favorite, if I may say so. He’s just so awesome…
As for drawing all my characters, I’d never finish. I just picked a couple. And this was before Jeremiah was “born.” lol He’s a piece of work, he is. :D
Ha! Sounds like Riley, he’s my “problem” character. To put it one way, my characters nickname for him is Emo Boy, (I do call my friend who Riley is based on this too. Neither of them really like it :)
Oh, Jeremiah is fun. He just has a snarky sense of humor. :)
lol, is he in the pic???
Not that one, he didn’t exist yet. Here’s some other pics of him:
http://imalshen.deviantart.com/gallery/3674734#/d1wnllc
http://imalshen.deviantart.com/gallery/3674734#/d2inxgh
He’s hot!
Jeremiah: *bows* Thank you, Miss.
Me: o///o *glomps Jeremiah* You’re welcome! *looks at you* Can I keep him?
You can certainly have visitation rights but he and I have to start on his story once I finish “Sheyneh” so keeping isn’t really an option right now. lol Also, are you sure you want to hang around in my head? ;D
Jeremiah: Excuse me, Caera but it’s bad enough you’re talking poorly about your own head, but I happen to *live* in there you know.
Me: Exactly!
Jeremiah: >.> … I’m still holding you to that bo-staff duel we’ve planned.
lolololololol!!!!!!!!!!!!! you sound like me!!!! If you want, we can trade boys once in a while? though, my head mihgt be a little more screwed up than yours…
Vamp Nathan: …Considering how many boys are in here, and how many different “characters” of yourself there are…I’m surprised /you/ have not vacated the premisis.
Me: -.- Why thank you Nathan. Remind me to make you mute next time.
I dunno. Jerry is pretty messed up. Has something to do with being trapped in a nineteen year old body for ninety years, with no sign of change.
Jeremiah: Don’t call me Jerry.
Me: *glomps Jerry* Hello Sweetie!!!!!!!
Jeremiah: “Sweetie” I’ll answer to, if only to you, but no Jerry. I’m not a cat.
Me: I beg to differ.
Jeremiah: *smacks with bowstaff*
Me: Uh, Sweetie, Jerry’s the mouse…
BTW, can I try drawing him???????
*shows you how long it’s been since I watched Tom and Jerry*
Jeremiah: Well, my bad. I guess it’s to be expected since Tom and Jerry cartoons stopped being made some years before I was even born, so I’ve never seen one. And I am most certainly not a mouse either.
Me: Thanks for saving face for me, man.
Jeremiah: See? I can be nice!
And draw away! lol It’d be my first fan art. Fan art for a story I’ve not even written yet.
YAY!!!!! Question, he’s blonde right? And what color are his eyes???
Yeah, blonde hair, his eyes are a darker blue. And he’s so skinny he can hide behind his bo staff.
Jeremiah: NOT my fault.
Me: You know I like my skinny guys. <3
Jeremiah: My point exactly.
*We smirk at each other*
meep! You’re making it harder and harder for me to give him back!!!! Although the weird part is, I drew him last night, and I drew him skinny with a long neck and the staff on his back.
Unfortunatly I think I should redraw his eyes again, ’cause they kinda make him look like a girl. The ponytail doesn’t help either
Teehee. Yeah, it’s impossible for him to keep his hair short and to put on weight. I had trouble with his eyes too that first time I drew him.
lol, ok now he sounds like most of my guy friends!
Jeremiah: Yeah. The teen boy’s plight. And Caera couldn’t at least make me twenty.
Me: Dude, you are 108. And nineteen was an awesome age for me. Why wouldn’t I give you that?
So do looney ones. lol
This was supposed to be in response to “great minds think alike” but I’m not sure what happened. My phone happened, I think…
lol, that’s why I’m getting a new phone finally!
Mine is a new phone. That’s the problem. lol
ouch
Yeah. Tell me about it.
Ha ha ha ha! “I’m too old for you “?! Best guess ever. You deserve a prize!
Too old for 21st Century Bea or 18th? lol
If he’s too old for 21st Bea, then what are we doing with Nathan?????
I was just thinking that. That’s why I asked for clarification. lol
Wow. with all the gunshots and death and everything, I think this may be the most painful (physically) page for me. Great job capturing it all.
the VI — BWAAA-HUHHUHHAAAAAAA!!!!! *blows nose*
Wait a second… Is vomiting a symptom of tuberculosis…?
I bothered to look this up online and it doesn’t mention vomiting… Wikipedia wouldn’t ever lie to me! I look forward to finding out for sure what it is. :D
PS. The vomiting panel made me want to blow my nose as I do after a good hurl. Great job!
My guess is it’s either the strain of physical exertion (I’ve heard of people tossing their cookies after running a race) due to fighting in that battle with a fever, or he triggered his gag reflex from coughing so hard. Or both.
My first thought was “OMG, vomit!”
Then I read the snippets from the letter. My money’s on him finishing that sentence, “I am dying of tuberculosis” or something to that effect. Knowing you’re dying is definitely an incentive to NOT confess your love for someone, because you don’t want them to be tied down to you, especially when they’re so young.
But that’s just my speculation. I hope I’m wrong.
Good guess! But Bea turned 17 a year ago, so what ever event he is referring to happened before he got his cough.
NOO! Alan don’t die now, be strong. Please don’t die. We need you <3
PS. Awesome as always :D
I must be one disgusting and unsympathetic child because I reacted to the puke by giggling and “Hehehehe, puke!” D: Bad, Deb! Very bad!
“Surely, you know that I am the culprit who’s been eating all your pa’s tea cozies.”
LIKE!
Ah-ha! He wasn’t only doing it to Knowlton, then!
Epic incentive…this page made me cringe though. :P
I saw this page and cringed, between the vomit and just how overall sick Alan looks. I don’t want him to die, but I think I’d be more surprised if he lives… unless Bea steps in somehow.
OMG ALAN! I need to know what he’s going to say. It better finish with “love you” somehow lol
I also loved the VI it was great to go back and see Knowlton’s greatest moments! I actually forgot about a few of them, he was so great! I feel so bad for his family war is so awful.
I’ve been in a bit of willful denial over Alan’s “Consumption”. I kept thinking that his sweating/fever meant that his crud was viral and might eventually clear up. Sadly, I’m a curious monkey who lives in the information age and the Mayo Clinic has blown that fantasy right out of the water: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/tuberculosis/DS00372/DSECTION=symptoms
Stoopid, jerk Mayo Clinic…
I don’t know…TB tends to be a long-term thing, and this has hit Alan in the space of what, a week? that’s awfully quick for a chronic disease. With how quickly it’s going, it seems more viral than anything else. I’m just hoping it’s not smallpox, because that was going around during the war, and if it is, then Alan just infected all of Knowlton’s Rangers, not to mention Bea…
Alan’s big “brother” Joseph Warren headed up the smallpox inoculations in Boston in the 1760s. There may or may not be a forthcoming mini-comic in the works about Alan’s experiences with that. ;)
Heh, I can see it now, “Fun with Vaccines!”
“Wait, you want to fill a syringe with what and inject it where?”
This comic has taken a turn for the gross this week! Hahaha!
Fraterna Inoculata!
Just wait! :) Meg S. has already laid out the whole story, actually. It’s just sitting there, waiting for me to draw it!
so does that mean Alan’s been inoculated? that’s a good thing :)
A whole lotta good it’s done him here.
I think it depends. In A Midwife’s Tale, Martha Ballard’s niece Parthenia succumbed fairly quickly once the (presumed to be TB) illness sets in. She was healthy when she married and two years later she was dead. From the diary, I believe her illness was only seen/mentioned in the last months of her life.
http://books.google.com/books?id=Qa_MpVB06YUC&dq=parthenia+barton&source=gbs_navlinks_s
http://dohistory.org/diary/themes/dissection/index.html
Oh well, I guess the regiment can have their (ruined) tea cozies back, now that Alan spat them up like a hairball. (ewww) I thank God I have a strong stomach or else I would be throwing up because of all the eww involved in that very realistic-looking vomit.
Ok, now I will be serious. Alan, get a doctor already! Oh wait, a doctor would just perscribe leeches and rest. :( No help there. Please live Alan, we cannot live through another heartbreak. We do not want to see your memorial like Thomas Knowlton’s in the VI! (Of which said VI sent me to the verge of tears)
I think this is the most well drawn page in the entire story. I am overwhelmingly impressed at your ability to drawn Alan so realistically sick looking. And the VI is just great.
Thank you! Mike got horribly sick last year with all these symptoms. I’ve thanked him for enduring all of that just to be such a wonderful model, lol!
LOL! That’s the way to take the bad things in life and use them for good :)
I think he’s got the black lung. Farmers can get that too, right?
Perhaps a good spot of English tea shall fix him right up.
…I think the Son of Liberty would rather die…
Thank G-d I’m half British…I could never live without my Tea. lol
So by “half British” do you mean “half Scottish”? I’m asking because I’ve heard many Scots don’t like to be referred to as British despite Scotland’s geographic location.
I have Welsh, Scott, English and Irish on my mother’s side, though she got her citizenship a little less than ten years ago. My dad was born here. So I say Half-Brit because there’s simply nothing else to call me. lol
We won’t even get into my paternal ancestry. We’ll be here all night.
So, was the VI intentional for Veteran’s Day? Or was it a happy coincidence?
The person I couldn’t help thinking of while attending my local Veteran’s Day events, though, was Nathan. So many people like him–nice kids with a bright future ahead of them whose lives were cut short by war. :(
It’s a sobering thought.
It’s also kind of ironic that Veteran’s Day was originally observed as the day the “War to end all wars” officially ended. Obviously that particular nickname wasn’t very accurate. Duh!
@Caera: I was about to comment that the Irish part of your ancestry wouldn’t really qualify as “British” but then remembered that Ireland is officially one of the “British Isles” so your “half-Brit” description is basically correct. Anyway, just for the record my combined ancestry is English, Scots-Irish, German, Dutch, French, and Swiss. I promise I will drop this subject after this entry!
Well my Irish side wound up in Northern Ireland before I was born anyway so either way. lol
Wow! It is good to know I am not the only Heinz 57 here. I too, am English, Irish, Scottish, German, with French, Egyptian, and Italian mixed in. Lol! This mix comes from over 1,000 years…….. I won’t get into it. It’s kinda complicated. :)
Hahaha. I have between my parents just about every last bit of Europe.
Lol!!! Henz 57 is exatly how my mom describes our family!!!! My joke is there’s everything but Afician, Spaish, and Asian running around in my blood
Yeah, I missed African and Asian too. Bummer!
@Caera: Oh, NORTHERN Ireland! That simplifies things. They’d be less likely to take offence at being called “British” than those in the Irish Republic, being part of the UK and all.
You’d be surprised. They live in Northern Ireland but they are Irish, and don’t let you forget it! lol
It’s just a matter of residence at the present moment…decade…
Does anyone remember when people used to vomit “off-screen” or at least it was done in such a way that we didn’t have to actually see the puke? I just barely do!
@Caera: Considering much of their history with their “neighbors” on Great Britain, it’s little wonder the people of BOTH parts of Ireland would prefer to be called “Irish”! I guess what I’m trying to say is that while they are certainly ETHNICALLy Irish they could probably be considered GEOGRAPHICALLY “British”, like it or not, because Ireland IS one of the British Isles. It’s kind of like how Swedes and Norwegians are both “Scandinavian” and Spaniards and Portugese are both “Iberian”. Anyway, that’s my theory. Oh, Whatever! I’m ready to just drop this whole subject if you are!
lol Well suffice to say I am the lot. Ethnically and geographically.
“Let us agree it is difficult to put the world together. Let us remember, however, when you put man together, you put the world together.”- Walter P. Reuther
Long-time reader, 1st time comment-er, b/c I just had to say that this is seriously the most heart-wrenching and beautiful issue of a comic I’ve ever had the pleasure to read. The entire thing was so astoundingly brilliant, from the detailed battle scenes to Alan’s words. I had to go back and read it over and could do so a million times more. Lora, please don’t ever stop drawing/writing “The Dreamer.” There are so very few pieces of art like this, and your work really is an inspiration to the rest of us historical-fiction lovers.