I'm not really a fan of graphic novels. I want to be. But to tell the truth, they kind of bore me—as I'm sure BIG-BONED might bore the average reader. Admittedly, it is a niche book. But I believe it is a big niche (no pun intended). The world—especially our country—is filled with overweight people. Obesity is an epidemic in America. Every day, millions of people try to find a way to battle it. And every day, millions fail.

BIG-BONED is for anyone who has ever had a weight problem, known somebody with a weight problem, or for anyone who ever ate so much they thought they might explode. So see how the bigger half lives. Give BIG-BONED a try.

I personally didn't know that Chris had it in him when it came to writing anything funny. He usually just sits there with this tired, unhappy look on his face and exhales defeatedly when we work on stuff. It's a blast.

The previous blog entry by Chris is pretty much dead on. But in my defense, Chris is often quick to say, "I can't do it."

Oh ye of little faith.

A Message from Chris

Hi, this is Chris Mori writing—illustrator and designer of BIG-BONED.

Let me start by saying I love Jim. He is my work wife. Our constant benign banter about beautiful women, horrible commutes, and cute stuff our kids do make the work week bearable. But a few years ago (pre-children) Jim mentioned he had written a book loosely based on his gluttonous youth. For some reason we decided to turn that book idea (originally called, “Fat”) into a graphic novel. I was eager to do something fun, creative, and collaborative. That eagerness quickly turned into dread.

It has been a tumultuous two years working on BIG-BONED with him. Visually creating Jim Hastings’s pseudo biography is like going to an off-off-off Broadway musical. It sounds like an okay idea but really isn’t. Jim is like the freelance client from hell. He is nice, funny, but EXTREMELY high maintenance.

Transcript October, 15th 2007:

Jim: Looks awesome man. I love it, but can you change the color of the background?

Me: Sure, no problem.

Jim: Cool. I am looking for a canary-yellow like this canary I once saw when I was six years old.

Me: Alright. Like this?

Jim: No, MORE canary.

Me: More canary?

Jim: Yeah. Like if the sun and a post-it had a baby together.

Me: What!!? This is the best I can do. THIS is canary yellow, you’re gonna have deal with it!!

Jim: Fine. God, I just have a vision. I can settle for that yellow, I guess. You don’t have to get so upset man. You’ll thank me when we’re famous and we sell the screenplay and it is optioned….

Me: Whatever.

Jim: Oh, also can you make this look glittery?

Me: No!

Big-Boned Blog is Getting Sketchy

Things are sketchy because I'm waiting on Chris to make the changes to BIG-BONED so we can move forward. I've also asked if he wants to add his own thoughts or notes about the book to this blog.

He isn't one for words. So instead, I've included a few of his sketches—some of which didn't make it into BIG-BONED.

The Truth Behind the Spread: Page 1 and 2

I played soccer from the age of 6 all the way until high school. I loved the sport and—not to brag—I was really good. I wasn't the fastest kid, but I had perseverance. I never gave up and loved to keep going. I was a high scoring half-back and a virtually impenetrable goalie. Seriously. My timing in net was excellent. But all of that changed once I entered High School. Suddenly, every kid was in shape but me. The goal posts were twice as big (or so they seemed), while I remained at only five foot six. I was a roly-poly hobbit of a kid who couldn't jump. And there ended my soccer career.

As for Bobby, he was my best friend in elementary school. And his last name wasn't Jansen. I don't think we ever played soccer together, but we hung out a lot. He was a fun kid with the biggest collection of movie monster models I've ever seen—and that was back in the 1970s. He had a very dark room filled wall to wall with everything from the Wolfman to Frankenstein to the Phantom of the Opera. It probably would have been disturbing to most people, he was only 8 or 9 around then, but it was incredibly awesome to me.

I wonder where he is now? Hopefully designing movie monsters like the late great Sam Winston.

The origin of Pages 7 and 8

Here is my original sketch layout for pages 7 and 8 (also included below) that I gave to Chris to draw and design.

The process kind of goes like this: I take what is written and edit it down for the book. Then I sketch out each picture I want. Then after I figure out how many I like and want on the page or spread, I sketch it as a layout and add the first lines of the text for each picture before giving it to Chris. And then I email him the text with notes saying panel one, panel two.... You get the idea. Sounds boring—and it is. It's tedious work at times. But then I get to see the end result and I'm astounded.

It's amazing what a designer can do with your ideas.

Click the pics for a BIGger view.



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The Truth Behind the Poem

I wrote this poem years ago—before writing BIG-BONED. At one point I modified it to win some makeover-your-life prize from Men's Health magazine. If you've seen the way I dress, you'll realize I didn't win.

When I envisioned BIG-BONED as a movie (as I do for most of the things I write) I pictured the words spiraling from out of a dark abyss which, as the camera pulls back (at the last word), turns out to be the belly-button of Tim—who is standing anxiously on the soccer field in the opening dream sequence.

BIG-BONED 11-12

Click the pic for a BIGger Bone.

The truth behind the spread: back in high school—actually most of my young life—I was overweight. Near the tail-end of senior year, I was so distraught about my looks (of course I couldn't be sexier now) that I pleaded with my parents for their assistance. I was an emotional mess at that point. How could I not be? I was over 200 pounds at only 5 foot 6 inches tall.

That summer, with my parents' help, I lost over 30 pounds while working at McDs. I just said no to everything but salads, fat-free dressings, and diet cokes—at work, at home, on the road, wherever. It really did turn out to be easy. When I wasn't working, I was hanging out with my friends, going to the movies and playing sports. I kept busy. And I kept my face out of the fridge.


Also again, I've added this spread to the original post for continuity.

BIG-BONED 9-10

Click the pig for a bigger bone.


The truth behind the spread: In the 9th grade I had a crush on a girl who lived around the corner from me. We used to talk all the time and ride the bus together. She had an easy-going, extremely warm smile ... and I was smitten. So when it came time for the freshman dance, I mustered up the courage to ask her out.

She never spoke to me again.

BIG-BONED Pages 7 and 8

Click the pic for a BIGger view.


The truth behind the spread: I am not 285 pounds. Nor am I over six feet tall. And last I checked, I am not actually a marshmallow. However, from about the age of 12, I was given the nickname "meatball" by my "friends." When seen with my brother Chris, we were both known as Meatball Sr. and Meatball Jr.

Yeah ... kids suck.

About the word "WORK" at the top of the second page: I told Chris (Mori—not my brother) I wanted the word to feel heavy, gray and oppressive—like a concrete weight you couldn't lift off of you. We went through numerous fonts to try and get the feel we were going for. But we were never happy with the ones we chose—until this one. Though it doesn't represent what I was originally trying to convey, I think it looks a thousand times better and, instead of weight oppression, it gives the impression of chaos and frustration instead.

I've also added the spread to the first post (at the bottom) for those who want to read them in order.

The Second Spread vs. My Sketch

I have visions. And I can be very particular—as poor Chris came to learn. Sometimes my "vision" can benefit him and other times it can drive him up a wall.

As we got further and further into BIG-BONED, I became less specific on everything. Sometimes I would ask Chris to do this or that. And he'd say, "I can't."

My reply was often, "sure you can ... dazzle me."

His retort was always, "I hate you."

Here, a comparison of our second spread and my initial layout of those first two pages with copy notes:
Click the pics for BIGger views.


Page 1 sketch:



Page 2 sketch:

Here are a few character sketches I did for Tim way back in 2004 when I was thinking about drawing BIG-BONED myself.



Granted, they are not that exciting, but when I'm famous, they'll be worth like a million dollars!!!

Our Proposal Letter

Seeing as we are trying to sell a graphic novel, it didn't feel quite right to just send a normal form letter of proposal. So Chris and I came up with this idea. I've blacked out my phone numbers and addresse to thwart spammers and undesirables. Of course, you kind folks are neither of the aforementioned.
Click the pic for a larger view.



Below are a few or Chris's test sketches.

The idea for BIG-BONED

... came to me about 8 or 9 years ago—which is when I first began writing it as a novel. Originally titled FAT, it was based more on my personal life-long struggles with weight. BIG-BONED is mostly fiction, but there are similarities within. Write what you know, right?

I toyed with the idea of turning it into a graphic novel myself but couldn't seem to detach myself from the story enough to draw it out. Then, a few years later, I met Chris, a young graphic designer itching to do something—anything. So I posed BIG-BONED to him and he said "yes."

He's regretted that day ever since.

--Jim

Below: my original thumbnail concept panels. If we did BIG-BONED the way I was laying it out, it would eventually amount to about 7,683 pages. Click the pic for a larger view.

BIG-BONED by Jim Hastings and Chris Mori

Here it is, the cover, prologue, and first pages of our graphic novel, BIG-BONED. Stay tuned for updates about the print publication of BIG-BONED, the construction of BIG-BONED.com, BIG-BONED advertisements, BIG-BONED products and who knows what else.

Chris and I hope you enjoy BIG-BONED and welcome your feedback in the comments section.

Click on each pic for a BIGger view!