I have this sort-of-policy where I don’t put too much thought into my stories. Know what I mean? Like if you force it, it doesn’t work as well. I think things are best when they’re more seat-of-the-pants because then your subconscious brings more gems from the depths of creation rather than you trying to control everything … and having things slip through your fingers, right? Right. Exactly.
Vader; pay attention mate.
Anyway, although the meta-theme for Lithium is about control and how humans can control other humans (hence the Karen plot, in which she steals humans to try and find peace and ends up shooting her own chance for love … in the heart …), as you may have noticed the logo for Lithium is the actual Lithium electron diagram thing; you know two electrons sharing an orbit, then one outer electron – the symbol that’s on all the covers.
Now, as Mike says in OHB; Lithium is about control – but that’s not just because Lithium was historically used in actual mind-affecting drugs. I tried not to put too much thought into forcing why that’s the element I chose, but I just went with my gut – and now we’re starting to approach the end of the series, I’m exploring that a bit more; beyond the drug/control reference, what the diagram could mean. That was always my intention when I wrote the first few comics, but I purposefully didn’t decide too early on, I kept that bit of mystery alive right through.
So now we’re getting there; I’ve started to sneak in a bit more of the symbolism into comic #12, and because nobody NOBODY will spot it at this stage, I thought I’d just point it out. Hints start in Lithium comic #12 (see pictured page 96 of upcoming comic) and will get clearer in comics #13 and #14. Probably. Fun!
Now, be honest … would you look at that picture and go “Hohh, the placements of those objects on the table is a clear reference to the electron structure of the element Lithium! Golly, I’m beginning to get an idea what it could mean …”
NO YOU WOULDN’T SPOT IT! DON’T PRETEND! So I’m just spelling it out like a ‘look out for this easter egg’ – for the superfans only who’ll actually read this far!
PHEWPH this blog could’ve been a lot shorter, couldn’t it?! Woweee better stop
STOP HECK WHY MY EYEEESSSSS
STAHPPPP
We, your fans, have always known your comics are the best. Now we know why too:
You are not just horny (and like boobies), you are a horny _human_ being (who likes boobies) … for better and for worse (kind of spoiled it I guess … I do mean it in the most friendly and kind way nevertheless).
Heh thanks Thimo02, oh I’m definitely human, alright; plenty of bad stuff to balance the good 🙂
Cool….I like knowing how much effort and thought you put into your work. It’s obvious we’re not all here for some run of the mill sci-fi incest porn rag, you stand out from the beginning in setting, dialogue and characters. I never gave any thought to such an underlying theme. It felt natural, so you didn’t overdo it.
Well done, I hope you stand back some times and are proud of what you have done. I know I am.
Ah, thanks Martin, yes it’s going to be interesting seeing it as a complete series once Lithium’s done. I thought OHB was a sort of burner series while I was doing it (the first two comics are a bit … whatever), but after the series was done yeah there was this sense of oh snap I’m pretty proud of where that arc went.
Given the approaching end, I decided to re-read Lithium and in part 1 there is a book on the table where I can’t quite read the name. It looks like ‘JC 2003’. I could not decide if it was relevant but you can put my mind at rest. I have loved every minute of it and the really loving feeling it conveys.
Ah yeah so that book is just a standard library prop, I put it there cos liked the idea of it being the book that Xho gives Tom at the end of the STFW series; the physics book on loop quantum gravity – but you’d never guess it was supposed to be that book because I didn’t really match the cover so no expectation of an easter egg thee! The main book-based easter egg is in Lithium #2 where Charlie’s reading the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, as Lithium’s doing a similar thing (the witch freezing people, the returning emperor, the innocent fawn etc).
Compaired to other comics that are floating around the mass of the interweb. I’ve always thought at Your comics are on a different level where others are lacking. Most comics I’ve swiped have either been too much or too little. You are hitting a subtle balance. I wish I could specify what most other comics are missing… A lack of emotional rollercoaster, maybe?
For some reason my train of thoughts lead me to “Ignorance is bliss”.
As a kid, I might’ve read The Chronicals of Narnia x-amount of times and was captured by the stories.
Never thought in symbolism at any point. Then in Highschool, we had the assignment to read The Lion, The Witch and the Warddrobe and make an eassy on the symbolic themes accuring.
Long story short though. My view on the stories changed witht that essay and I never read the stories again because I couldn’t see past the symbolism.
Fast forward. It took me some time to see past the symbolism and just enjoy the journey that a story gives us.
Ah yeah, it’s interesting how understanding what the author was really talking about can kinda put us off the story – I always found the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe really compelling because it explained the (complex and difficult to understand) this-is-love narrative in mind-blowing new ways for me. I also really like Tolkien’s symbolism though he stayed more philosophical-exploration than straight this-is-about-forgiveness sort of story. But as I am a simple person really, I have completely built Lithium around the Lion/Witch/Wardrobe premise – as I commented elsewhere on this thread, you can see that very book in Charlie’s hand in comic #2, and Skylar’s surname is Tumnus for a reason. Aaaanyway, good times hehe boobies
Love this!
I can’t help sort-of-noticing how your sort-of-policy of not putting too much thought into your stories nevertheless sort-of-leads you to create such elaborate sort-of-gems of comics. I mean: what? To me that’s a kinda sorta definition of talent in a sorta pure form. Thank you for sharing it with us. I love every bit of it.
😂 hehe thank you Bruno!
So is there any subtext to what the doll in the hat is doing to the doll with yellow hair?
Yeup. It’ll make more sense when you read the comic but you’re juuuust gonna have to wait. Actually the subtext of that little frisson is not particularly complex so don’t get too excited …
Sure, sure…you know when you are long gone, the internet will explode because people start do discuss all the symbolism and the meta-levels your work might have.
„NOBODY will spot it“…well. And I thought, when you said, “two electrons sharing an orbit, then one outer electron”, wow, like the glasses on the table … but … never mind.
Talking of spotting stuff…here are some questions that came to my mind, just with this one single picture:
– What are those dols doing? And why are they even here?
– Why has the doll hands but no feet?
– Why 3 different glasses for only 2 people?
– Why has one glass a straw?
– Where is the electric cable for the lamp?
– What’s under the bed?
– Why has you text markers from spell correction?
– Why do you have links for comics that do not exist yet?
My brain hurts…will be back with more…
Hehe well I’m glad you saw the glasses then, and I love the idea of archaeologists studying my work long after I’m gone, I’m sure absurd erotic scifi is something that’ll have a decent shelf-life heheh. So in answer to your questions:
1: you’ll have to wait for the comic
2: it has feet they’re just crazy tiny yellow points
3: you’ll have to wait
4: that phallic symbol probably represents something … hmmm …
5: it is the year 2367. Cables? What cables?
6: Looks like some old pants
7: it was just a screenshot from photoshop
8: wordpress seems to put in links every time you add a hashtag, it’s weird but could be a useful quirk I guess.
No! No more questions! You will have to live with more mystery in your life aaarghhhh!!!!!
Don’t stop, it’s all totally great and I love your little details. But you’re right the lithium electron thing passed me by because boobies. It’s only on re-reading that these gems become apparent, so keep ’em coming. xx
👍 yeah I think I’ll keep dumping Easter Eggs in there because in 50 years time someone will spot a seriously random one no-one else has ever seen and they’ll be like EHRMAGHERDDD hehe
While you say you don’t put too much thought into what you do, I find that hard to believe and simply a bit preposterous. I would invite all your readers to suggest anything out there which has MORE thought in it — and would not be surprised when they come up with nothing.
Luckily for all of us, your brain must have difficulty distinguishing what it sees as thoughts from its actual thoughts, suffused with emotion, joy and understanding as they are.
So, first off and obviously the priority here is to say PREPOSTEROUS is such an excellent word that it has a major role in Lithium #12 – not even joking, look out for that one. And secondly, yes and thank you you’re probably right, perhaps my definition of thinking means sort of going eyes-blurred into my thought/dreamspace – I honestly don’t try to force any plot or topic, I just write and write as fast as I can, and then do some more ponderous thinking and tweaking later. Seems to do the trick, hehh.