Process - Pages 70 and 71

Hi, folks, Barry here! 

No new page this week, because pages 70 and 71 are a double-page spread - and it's a doozy, since I gave poor Becky about a zillion figures to draw. We'll post both pages together next week.

But to tide you over until next week, here are Becky's pencils for those two pages. (In the book, this will be printed sideways, and readers will have to turn the book 90 degrees to read it!)

Incidentally, Ruth and Babe are loosely based on two real-life women - Ruth Ellis and  Ceciline "Babe" Franklin. Ellis, an indefatigable activist, lived to age 101.

I have been looking forward to seeing this spread for so long! It's amazing the ridiculous things I can throw at Becky to do, which she'll draw with no complaint - and even with actual joy. 

Becky and I will be appearing at VanCAF, the Vancouver Comics Arts Fest, this weekend. If you happen to be in Vancouver, please come say hi. :-)

See you next week!

P.S. In case anyone's interested, here's the script I gave Becky for pages 70 and 71. But skip this if reading scripts bores you!

 (Note: This is a two-page spread, so the first page of it has to be even-numbered.)

NARRATION: But damn, it was a great house.

This is a two-page spread, featuring a cutaway drawing of Ruth and Babe’s house, aka The Spot. The house is taller than it is wide, so the two-page spread is sideways, requiring readers to turn the book sideways to view it. (Like a centerfold.) Basically, on the first page is the top two stories of the house; on the second page is the bottom story of the house, and the lawn.

Also, all of the ideas I have for what’s going on in the house are just suggestions. You can change or add things all you want.

It’s a big, three-story house, and it’s basically filled with lesbians having a party. Every single person on this page is Black and female, although their ages, body shapes and complexions vary a lot.  This is an afternoon party (for now), so the people are mostly dressed casually; butches are wearing collared short-sleeve button-up shirts with the shirts tucked in, no neckties, femmes are wearing dresses like the women in the “Allegiance” musical. But some of the folks, anticipating staying until it becomes a night party, are more dressed up; there are some in fancy dresses, and some butches are wearing ties with jackets or vests. Nearly everyone in this image is carrying a drink (butches tend towards beer, femmes towards wine, but there are exceptions), or smoking, or both.

In front of the house is an A Frame sidewalk sign, which says, in large fancy letters “Ruth Ellis, Printer.” And in smaller, not-fancy letters: “pamphlets newsletters fliers posters stationery raffle tickets”

Also in front of the house, Babe is holding court behind the buffet table on the little front lawn. Her left arm, which she’s cooking with, has a wristwatch; her right arm is in a sling. She’s handing someone a plate of food. A couple of Babe’s friends - Little Sam from before (still smoking a cigar), and Jackie Ormes - are hanging with her. Little Sam has visible bruises on her face. Various other woman, including one on crutches, are chatting on the lawn and munching on chicken or on hamburgers.

And in the very-front foreground, with the back of her head towards the readers, is Lily, approaching the house. Only her head, or her head and trunk, are on-page, with the rest going below the bottom border. (Or she could be coming from the side, seen in profile; either is good).

Through the cutaway, we can see that the first floor of the house has a stairway going up the middle, with a room on either side. On one side is Ruth’s printing shop, which is dominated by a large printing press. There’s also a counter, big stacks of paper, gallon containers of ink, a sink. This is the emptiest room in the house, but there are two women in here - Ruth’s assistant, a butch woman, and June. Ruth’s assistant is giving June a tour and trying to impress her. A cat, not impressed, lounges on the counter. (Or on the printing press).

The other ground-floor room contains a crowd of happy lesbians chatting and mingling. (This area is actually a studio apartment that Ruth and Babe rent out, but the young lesbian couple who lives there have opened it up to the party.)

A woman walks up the stairway in the middle. There’s also a cat lying on a stair.

The middle story contains two rooms (that we can see from this angle), and again a staircase in the middle. There are a few women sitting and chatting on the stairs. To the left is the kitchen; Ruth is here, preparing hors d'oeuvres, while a friend helps. There are a few older ladies sitting around the kitchen table playing a card game, not dressed up, ignoring everything around them. All these women are femmes.

Along the wall that’s been cut away, there are four cat bowls lined up in a row, and two cats at the bowls eating.

In the other room, the den, a group of butches are playing charades, three of them sitting on the sofa while one pantomimes something. There are also a couple of cats.

There’s also a small bathroom off the den. Outside the bathroom, a woman is squirming, waiting her turn; inside the bathroom, a couple of women are making out.

The top floor is (again) divided into two rooms. In the room on the left, the bigger room, three musicians are playing - a drum set, a bass, and some kind of horn. (Or piano, drum, and horn. You’re the musician, you decide!) Also in the room are as many dancing pairs as can fit (all pairs are butch/femme). It’s a close, slow dance.

The other room on the top floor is Ruth and Babe’s bedroom. It’s supposed to be off-limits to the partiers, but there are three couples in here, each ignoring the other couples, all making out.