Exploring Illustration (inking)

 Hello everyone,

First off, writing continues on Book V of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Truth. Look for more updates on it soon! I'm so glad I went back and rewrote this story from the draft. In August our family went on a trip to Redwoods National Forest in California, and it was a huge inspiration for me for some key parts of the story. Forested mountains + beach = perfection.

I recently read the manga epic Nausicaä: Of the Valley of the Wind. I had seen the movie multiple times, but finally read the story, and it is magnificent in its scope and message. I've been inspired by Hayao Miyazaki's art style to try my hand at inking some illustrations, so I picked up a set of inking pens and have been having fun in a new sketchbook drawing and inking. Eventually I want to do a side project where I turn a short story or part of a longer story into an inked comic. I did this back in high school for a creative writing class project, and it was a lot of fun!

Thanks for reading, and have a nice day!

Inking Some More

 In the evenings I watch Walker, Texas Ranger with my husband, and most of the time I need to find a way to stay awake, so I do stuff to keep my hands occupied. Lately I've been getting back into ball-point pen inking, and here's a few pieces. Most are free-form, but Link was drawn in pencil before I inked him!

A fierce brooder. Brooders are unicorn-like equines from The Legacy Incarnate series.

Cuddle Buddy

 Sabra cuddles with a stuffy of her favorite dream buddy.

Tablet Sketching

 My brother is letting my borrow his Wacom Intuos drawing tablet, and I must say it's a nice one. Here's a little sketch I did with it.

"E'lsra" Drafted and Updates

 Hello everyone!

For the last few weeks I've dived head-first into the rewrite of Book 3 of the Legend of Draconite: E'lsra. I started rewriting this book several years ago, and I'm happy to announce that I've finished the draft!

What's interesting about this draft compared to the original book, though, is its composition. I actually haven't finished drafting the story, just this book. I have decided due to the size and the current flow of the first part of E'lsra that I will split this story into two, adding an additional volume to The Legend of Draconite to complete the story arc that starts in E'lsra.

That isn't to say this book, Book 3, is incomplete in a storytelling sense. There is an introduction to the characters, world, ideas, and plot of E'lsra, a build-up, a climax, and an aftermath, just like any good story. It felt natural to stop where I did, making "Part 1" of the book the whole book, and "Part 2" will be Book 4 of the Legend of Draconite, bumping Moonstone and Ascension down the line.

Incarnate Key Original and Final Comparisons

 This is a post I've wanted to do since the publication of Incarnate Key. Something I had mentioned before was the major revision this story went through. The main purpose of the revision was to make this story more relevant to the overall series; the original was fun, and had some good ideas and details, but overall it was meaningless to Sabra's development as a character and her role in the Legacy Incarnate. 

This can also give you a good idea of the work I do on my books as both the author and editor. I don't have a huge team to back me up and do the heavy lifting for me, and so I've had to spend a lot of time making the story the best it can be before printing. While the original had some good ideas, many had to be radically altered or removed to make room for something better. (Sorry giant-clawed, giant-winged, GIANT bats!)

Thus I want to present major differences and similarities between the two versions of Incarnate Key. This probably goes without saying, especially since the book has been out for so long, but ...WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD! Enjoy!

Character and Race Concepts

 It's been a very long interim between the Incarnate Key release and this. I have a few concept pieces I've been wanting to share since November. These are really good for getting the drawing juices flowing going when I am having artist's block. The last few months have been kind of crazy, as I haven't had much time to draw at all. 

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This first one is a concept for the Molouk egg and how the chick fits into it. It's nice to work some of these ideas onto paper for future reference. It makes the world in the stories feel a bit more real!

This is Sabra the Incarnate doing her morning exercises. She works hard to stay fit, which contributes to both her physical and magical strength.

This last piece is one I think I may have shared on my old blog. I did this romantic scene several years ago in colored pencil. I believe it's based on a scene in The Legacy Incarnate where Sabra is having a dream about her and Henry. 

Thanks for reading. Hopefully I'll post more frequently from now on!