#quadracats

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

I am going to have to have a stern talk with Handsome’s alien friend. He did NOT think through the repercussions of his actions, whatever they were, that led to us being able to talk to cats. Reminds me of some people I know, actually.

[quadracats]

From Fiona’s diary:

I can’t believe I started out meeting Tux and Jazz with a dog trick! I was sooooo embarrassed! I thought it was bad in school sometimes when I say the wrong things, and those girls in gym laugh at me — I just wish I could drop into a deep, dark hole! And now I’m trying to talk to a whole other species! But Tux was so nice about it — I guess I have to remember that these cats aren’t like kids, they’re actually grown-ups. Among cats, I mean. I wonder if kittens have social anxiety, ever? I wonder if the girls in gym have cats — maybe they’re feeling the same way for a change!

[quadracats]

The subject of collars has been a sore point among our friends in the past; even though Tux and Jazz don’t wear them themselves, they are not against the idea, purely for ornament, but Scatcat thinks it’s selling out. There has even been *gasp!* sarcasm bandied about.

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

“After today’s visit, I think I may have an idea for a new book on cat communication, a sequel to “Conversations with Cats I Have Known”. I sense a research project coming on, and I think Rosa and Ramón and their cats may be my first subjects, if they are amenable.

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

“I don’t know what kind of diet Handsome had before, but he seems to have eclectic tastes. I’m going to have to have a talk with him about nutrition, for all the good that will do. It certainly didn’t work with my dear, departed husband.”

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

“I had a surprise visit today from some lovely young neighbours whom I hadn’t seen in a very long time! Ramón and Rosa moved to the island from Toronto as newlyweds when Ramón got a job up at the observatory — I understand he’s a rather ‘hotshot’, as they say, astrophysicist. Rosa told me that she’s been teaching Spanish and science at the high school.”

[quadracats]

Let’s just see how Tux and Jazz are doing. We met their humans briefly a while back, when Scatcat watched them through the window. They will be figuring quite a lot in the upcoming story — and yes, Scatcat’s depredations on the kibbles bowl have not gone unnoticed!

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

Handsome and the grandchildren have taken to each other well. I think he’ll be happy as part of the family. Listen to me! I’ve only known him for less than a day!

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

“After seeing Handsome’s demonstration of his “gadget”, I am compelled more than ever to believe his story. And now, I have seen a cat from another planet! I wonder if they are all so beautiful? I would love to have the chance to meet some of them.”

[quadracats]

“There is nothing like being awakened by the rasping tongue of a beloved cat.” — from Madame Gloriana Catsby’s classic book, “Ode to Felines”.

[quadracats]

From Madame’s diary:

“I had a bit of a funny turn today. Never mind that I had just discovered that I had a talking cat on my lap, that’s no excuse. Perhaps it’s time for a checkup.”

(Author’s note: I had a great time playing with Procreate brushes on this one!)

[quadracats]

From Alien Cat’s Journal:

“The saucer seems empty without my Takeout Planet friends. But MOLLY and I have much to do, if we’re to get the planet ready for hosting tourists. First, though, a quick trip to Alpha Catauri for some supplies!”

[quadracats]

From Alien Cat’s journal:

“Aha! I see an advantage to having such large primates for servants, as they do here on Takeout Planet. Being able to see from a superior vantage point while saving the energy of travelling under one’s own power is a tempting notion. I may have to see if I can get one of these creatures for myself.”

[quadracats]

From Alien Cat’s journal:

“To all appearances, my friend Scatcat is charming this new primate. I knew he could — despite his rough exterior, he has a good heart, and primates throughout the galaxy are known to be particularly receptive to that quality in a feline.”

[quadracats]

New story! Seems like it’s been forever (it has) but I’ve now got enough pages done to go on with the story. This one is going to go on much longer than the first three books; my ambition when it’s done, in a year or so, is to be able to publish an omnibus volume. For now, I’ll be updating Monday and Thursday; if I find I’m getting far enough ahead, I’ll up that to three times a week.

As of this book, I’ve been working a little differently than I did before. I did a lot of experimenting to explore some changes I’ve been wanting to make (part of the reason it took so long). I’m now working entirely digitally from the inking stage on (before I was drawing by hand), using Procreate, an app for iPad pro. I absolutely love it. It’s so intuitive, and the Apple Pencil is such a great tool that sometimes I forget that it’s not a real brush/pencil/pen. 

I’m also now lettering digitally — but instead of just writing directly and hoping everything fits, I found a font that looks a great deal like my handwriting and do the lettering layout in that first, in Photoshop. Then I put the image back into Procreate, fade the layer out, and use it as a guide. Why not just use the font? Because there are a few letter-forms that I think make it kind of hard to read, and I like the variations of actual hand-lettering. So this is kind of the best of both worlds.

For this cover I’m afraid I got a little carried away with Photoshop’s 3d effect for lettering; I found it by accident and had an enormous amount of fun with it. This probably won’t be the final cover for the book, so I felt free to be a little silly here.

I’m really excited to be back to doing this. Housebound as we all are right now, it’s good to have a purpose to keep me sane. I hope this brings you enjoyment and some laughs, and helps keep you sane! If it’s been a while since you read the story, why not hit the “first” button and start over from the beginning again?

—Karen

The Quadra Cats have a Facebook page! Find them here.

[quadracats]

From Alien Cat’s journal:

“Having had a good look at the Large Bipedal Primates’ garden, I see that there is still much plant material undamaged. Hopefully they won’t starve before I get back with some primate-friendly takeout.”