Good morning. Good afternoon. Good evening. Wherever you are in the world today, happy day to you. In todays blog, I’m writing about the concept design of the first Robot. Which, actually took me a while. Well, truthfully, all the robot designs took me a while. It’s already difficult to draw as it is, let alone create a new character completely. So much thought goes into it. You’re considering them as an individual character, their mannerisms, their body language and of course how they look. Not to mention, when writing a story, you’re creating a world for that character to live in and interact with. It’s a lot of thought.
So, where do you begin this very daunting task? Well, I didn’t really have a clue there either. Haha, but I figured the design would come to me when I wrote a scene with the first robot in it and that’s kinda what happened. In the very first scene of the book, we don’t really get a clear look of the Unfamiliar. Instead, it’s a point of view told from the little boy eye’s and he can only make out a shadow with glowing eyes at the time. Alarming as it may be, it leaves the reader and the child in the story with a big unknown to ponder over for a while. Even as the author, I wasn’t sure how I was going to create this robot, I just knew I needed a robot.
Fast forward a bit. The next scene with the robot comes up and now I’m forced to have the robots point of view. In the scene, you hear the Robot processing thoughts, it’s interacting with the world and has a purpose to be where it is. So, I start running a small checklist: it opens a door, so its going to need hands. It’s dark in the little boy’s room. How does it see and navigate the room full of toys? It moves fast, but it’s also silent…hmmm. I think to myself, then lightbulb it comes to me. Retractable arms and legs like Inspector Gadget (Yes, I know I dated myself there with that reference). I then think, “Awesome! I’m starting to put together a robot” !!! Then there’s the body and head. Well, I wanted his head to also be able to extend around the room and I knew the body was where all the mechanics and science would have to be to make him work. So, I started putting access panels all over the front of him with a little security keypad or indicator light for some use. What exactly for? I didn’t know yet, but it was turning into something. I was getting excited about it AND that’s when the creative juices just started really flowing.
I was toying with a bunch of different designs. Each design led to a another design with some minor differences. When I was satisfied with the overall shape, I began adding in imperfections to fit the character’s backstory (Which I wont go into just right now) Like I said earlier in this blog, I’m creating a world with characters and they all have their own uniqueness. The first robot is unique in it’s own way. Which, is very similar to all of us in life.
Thanks for reading. Until next time 
-RW