A New Neighbourhood in London
A New Neighbourhood in London
Welcome to Shiba Town: how I'm building a fictional neighbourhood from scratch
Hi there!
It's nice to see you again, and I hope you’re doing well. I’ll save you from my musings about the weather this time and jump straight to the content! “But, but… I finally ordered that raincoat, and I wanna talk about it…” Shush Claudia, people are here for the drawings.
In the previous newsletter, I asked you which kind of content you were more interested in, and you said:
Behind the Scenes - 50%
Original Art and Stories - 33%
New Releases and Shop Updates - 17%
Even though you’re more interested in my usual behind-the-scenes content, I was also happy to hear that you’re looking forward to original art and stories, and that aligns with what I want to do, so I’ll try and bring more of that in! As a matter of fact, you’ll help me. Reach the end of this post to see how.
That said, you asked for behind-the-scenes, so that’s what you’ll get today. Scroll down for a first peek at the concept art of Shiba Town, a neighbourhood in future London that will feature in the next issue of The Last Day of Rain. Most of you are hearing about it for the first time today, and I’m excited to show you!
Building a Neighbourhood From Scratch!
In retrospect, I’m still unsatisfied with my art in chapter two of The Last Day of Rain. Because I wanted to get it out in time for the fair, I didn’t develop the concepts enough, so the backgrounds weren’t as exciting as I had hoped for, and I felt that I could have done more.
And, while I could work without concepts in the past two chapters because they were set somewhere that already exists (Rotherhithe), the next chapter features a fictional eco-neighbourhood in future London. And I want it to feel real.
So, I decided to spend some time thinking about its history and what it would look like. The neighbourhood is called Shiba Town, and it’s under the ground to keep its inhabitants protected from heat waves. I’ll tell you more about it in due course, but in the meantime, here are some very early drawings of what its buildings look like.
By 2091, when the story's events happen, the town has grown across three different stages, so there are a few different architectural styles. Can you spot which ones were constructed at the same time?
Once I had rough drawings of the buildings, I began assembling the city in 3D, using Blender. It’s still far from done, mainly because it’s been over a decade since I last worked with 3D, but creating something from nothing is very satisfying.
I’ve been looking at references, thinking about how people live in cities and what spaces they need, how certain features and buildings can work from a construction point of view… There is a lot to it. IT’S FUN!
Let me show you a couple of images. Maybe you’ll want to come for more. Or maybe not!
Yup, that’s Canary Wharf in the background. And below is a sneak peek at what’s under that giant solar panel. This is the “bohemian” part of town, which won’t make it to the books. But it’s part of Carol’s backstory, and it’s there in a corner, so I’ll come back and make a comic in here one day. Perhaps it will be about Carol’s parents, as they struggled to provide a comfortable living for their daughter in a rapidly changing world.
I also flew to Lisbon recently and saw this bicycle park in the airport that I’m absolutely going to pop into Shiba Town at some point. It’s all in the details!
This is what I have to show you for now, and some more will ensue!
So when’s the next book coming?
I’m slowly beginning to work on chapter 3 of The Last Day of Rain, and it’s inching towards becoming a 44-page book, as I’m including some of the concept art above as a bonus! So, I may try launching my first Kickstarter ever. 😳
If you have any tips for crowdfunding comics with a small social media following, I’d love to hear them in the comments below.
This will be the third out of six volumes, and I’m slowly accepting that getting to the end of the story may take a while. But all good things take time, and it’s happening slowly but steadily!
📝 You can order chapters 1 and 2 from the website.
Other updates
I’m very excited to see The Last Day of Rain bundled in the stretch goal of The Dancer, Issue 4. It sounds like a fantastic book, and I’m going to back it as well. Stories about dance and martial arts tend to have raw, emotional content that speaks deeply to the heart, and this story contains both.
Here’s the premise, should you be curious:
“They Call Her...The Dancer is a story that focuses on the beauty and brutality of dance and martial arts, delving into the morally grey psyche of a professional dancer and assassin.”
If you back it and it reaches 8k funding (which it looks like it will), you’ll receive a bundle of six indie comic books, including mine (and I feel honoured!)
I will write for VOICES from
, so stay tuned for that, too! My first post will be about my recent visit to the Comic Arts Museum in Brussels, which fueled my inspiration.
VOICES is a section in the online publication that allows creators to share their content in 300 words or less, and if you’re a creator, you can do it if you’re a creator, too. It’s a fabulous idea, and I look forward to seeing where it leads.
Next issue: help me write a short story!
Following the poll results above, I plan to write a small original story to send out in a future issue of this newsletter. I may or may not illustrate it, but it will surely be a story.
Would you like to help me out? I used a website that generates opening lines, and here are some huh, interesting ones that it gave me:
I always wanted to be an ant.
91 people died looking for the magic teapot.
Dylan had grown accustomed to seeing werewolves on a regular basis.
Kalayna was known for stealing other people's husbands.
So, I suppose you want to ask me how I pulled it off.
Vote away, and I’ll begin the story with whichever line gets the most votes!
See you soon!
And thank you for reading! As usual, while the following newsletter is in the making, you can find me on the regular socials:
And also, my online shop for books (and e-books!) and prints:
🏪 https://claudiamatosa.com/shop