Sunday, January 21, 2018

Challenge! Discovery reviewed by S.E.


Challenge! Discovery
by Jason M. Waltz
S.E. rating: 4 of 5 stars

Rogue Blades Entertainment has a great track record for delivering anthologies (Return of the Sword, Writing Fantasy Heroes,Rage of the Behemoth, and more). Challenge! Discovery is the 2017 edition, which posed a challenge: look at the cover, and write a story about it. The illustration features a scantily clad female warrior and a panther emerge from jungle ruins.

The concept is cool, but the entries range in quality, and I disagree with the judges. Apparently the last two won 1st and 2nd place by the judges, but if I were to rate by (a) inspiration from cover and (b) storytelling (good pacing, show not tell, etc.) then I would have chosen 2 of the below:
- "Inner Nature" by JOHN KILIAN
- "Someplace Cool and Dark" by FREDERIC S. DURBIN
- "Witch with Bronze Teeth brushed" by KEITH J. TAYLOR

1) "Witch with Bronze Teeth brushed" by KEITH J. TAYLOR: 5-star blend of military Warhammer-esque battle and zombie horror

2) "Fire Eye Gem" by Richard Berrigan: 3-star; too corny for me; features a do-good Kimmeriorian barbarian named ‘Jack’?. ugh

3) "Inner Nature" by JOHN KILIAN 5-star, started ok and but ramped-up very satisfyingly

4) "The Ash-Wood of Celestial Flame" by GABE DYBING; nice fairy tale elements

5) "Someplace Cool and Dark" by FREDERIC S. DURBIN: 5-star, it is first person, weird funny and dark.... and I heard this exact story before! It took me a while to figure it out, but I heard him read this at the World Fantasy Convention 2016. A bonus essay on the writing of this story is added and is as engaging as the story

6)"World inside the Walls" by Frederick Tor : 3-star. Nice inspiration from the cover, but delivery style was dry narrative

7) "In the Ruins of the Panther People" by DANIEL R. ROBICHAUD: 4-star. Started slow and has cheesy romance lines, but ends with a huge bang, science-sorcery Meat Stamp! Loved the Meat Stamp!

8) "The Serpent’s Root by DAVID J. WEST, young adult pacing, but fun. 3.5; not obviously connected the cover as the other stories.

9) "A Fire in Shandria" by FREDERIC S. DURBIN; 4-star. Decent Amazon warrior story with a dragon (not sure why there was a dragon and not a panther)

10) "Cat’s in the Cradle NICHOLAS OZMENT (awarded 2nd place): 3-star Inspired by the cover for sure, but for a short story most of its pages are dedicated to non pertinent content. Pacing off.

11) "Attaberia" by HENRY RAM - (awarded 1st place): 4-star. Viking story with nice concept; starts as a 5 and ends as 3 (there is a disconnect between the tension & remoteness of a mysterious island and the inhabitants).

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Chronicles of Hate - Vol 2 - review by S.E.

Chronicles of Hate, Volume 2 (Chronicles of Hate, #2)Chronicles of Hate, Volume 2 by Adrian Smith
S.E. rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a sequel to Chronicles of Hate, which I reviewed earlier.

In short, this follows suit. New readers should start with Vol .1. Also, readers need to be comfortable "reading" visual images sans words. Of course, they must also like gritty, mature drawings of scantily clad women and undead warriors.

This sequel has the same style as the first: very dark & contrasty monochrome drawings, very small word count (~ 1 word per page). Adrian Smith leaves visual clues that identify the various clans. These can be subtle, but they are there. For instance, those aligned with the Mother Earth crew wear crescent moon ornaments. Many of the bad-guy clans are harder to distinguish, except for the Tyrant.

The story progresses very well and delivers on our hero "Worm" attempting to revive Mother Earth. Prior purchasing, I was worried that the story may not develop enough. But this was satisfying.

The culture of thee world develops more. It is more clear that each clan has a leader and a champion. Adrian Smith's illustrations are generally splendid. If you ever looked into any Warhammer/Games Workshop art (which Adrian has made many) and wished you could immerse yourself in a similar world (this is not part of Warhammer's TM Olde World), this is your chance.

Currently, there is a Kickstarter Campaign (by CMON with Adrian Smith) to realize this HATE-full world into a competitive board game. Pitched as an exclusive KS order, it may be difficult to get later (this runs thru mid-Feb 2018). This did inspire me to get Vol.2 and back the KS. The world of HATE evolves!


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Sunday, January 7, 2018

Death at the Blue Elephant - Review by SE

Death at the Blue ElephantDeath at the Blue Elephant by Janeen Webb
S.E. rating: 5 of 5 stars

My favorite unscripted moment from the 2016 Word Fantasy Convention occurred as Janeen Webb recited on a panel, from memory, the beginning to E R Eddison's Mistress of Mistresses. Her voice and tenor were beautiful and it sounded like a blend of poetry and song. Her point being that many of these works are more easily understood, and enjoyed, if read aloud. I knew then that I had to track down more of her work, leading me here.

Death at the Blue Elephant is her 2014 collection of eighteen, fantasy-adventure stories: thirteen published previously in various publications and the remaining five are new. Table of Contents listed below; the notes indicate the tales span most every type of tale imaginable: from Lewis Carroll-like fairytales, to contemporary horror (the titular story), to Lovecraftian Mythos, Arthurian legends, historical fantasy, Faustain deals, and Phillip-Dick-like Sci-Fi.

She writes for mature readers, usually sprinkling in a dose of eroticism. Tales often take turns that are darker or happier than expected, so readers will always be on edge. My favorites were the Lovecraftian, contemporary mystery of “Lady of the Swamp,” the sci-fi thriller-romance “Niagara Falling” which blurred reality and fantasy like a Phillip Dick story, the weird fiction "Fire-Eater's Tale" that is emotionally charged with revenge-fear-and-performance anxiety, and the weirdly-inspiring-yet-sad “Blake’s Angel” which appealed to the artist in me (for the record, I would never cage an Angel).

As her bio below details, Janeen Webb is an accomplished writer and editor (once winner of World Fantasy award among others). Death at the Blue Elephant shows that she can spin a good tale from about just about anything.

Content
1. “Velvet Green.” *new* -- Lewis Carroll-like with call-outs to Dunsany's Queen of Elfland

2. “Manifest Destiny.” First published in Baggage (Eneit Press, NSW, 2010) -- A pioneering adventure horror, not like Howard’s Conan in substance, but the barbarian-may-be-more-civil-than-settler theme abounds

3. “Death at the Blue Elephant” First published in Enter… , (HarperCollins Flamingo, Sydney, 1997) and HQ Magazine, November/December, 1997 -- Contemporary Erotic Horror

4. “Red City.” First published in Synergy SF: New Science Fiction (Five Star Press, Maine, USA, 2004) -- Sci-Fi Mystery Historical fantasy– Elizabeth Peters like?

5. “Paradise Design’d” First published in Dreaming Again (HarperCollins, Sydney, 2008, and Harper EOS, New York, 2008) -- Angels playing design in the Garden of Eden

6. “The Lion Hunt.” First published in Conqueror Fantastic (DAW Books, New York, 2004) -- Greco-Roman Historical Fantasy

7. “Incident On Woolfe Street”. First published in HQ Magazine #68, Jan/Feb 2000 (HarperCollins, Sydney, 2000) -- Horrific retelling of little red riding hood.

8. “The Lady of the Swamp” *new* Forthcoming reprint in Cthulhu Deep Down Under, edited by Steve Proposch, Christopher Sequiera and Bryce Stevens -- Splendid, contemporary Lovecraftian Mythos.

9. “A Faust Films Production”. First published in Little Red Riding Hood in New York (DAW Books, USA, 2004) -- Contemporary Faustian tale, obviously

10. “Gawain and the Selkie’s Daughter.” First published in The Road to Camelot (Random House, Sydney, 2002) -- Classic Arthurian legend

11. “Niagara Falling” with Jack Dann, First published Black Mist and Other Japanese Futures (DAW Books, New York, 1997) -- Phillip Dick -ish

12. “The Fire-Eater’s Tale” with Jack Dann. First published in Strange Attractions (Shadowlands Press, USA, 2000.) -- Weird fiction ; very good.

13. “Skull Beach” *new* -- another original tale with Faustian undertones

14. “Tigershow” First published in Agog: Terrific Tales (Agog Press, Wollongong, 2003). -- PTSD tragic horror

15. “Hell Is Where the Heart Is” First published in Next (CSFG Publishing, Canberra, 2014). --Horror–Romance following transplanted organs

16. “Full Moon in Virgo”. *new* -- Ghost-Romance story

17. “Blake’s Angel” First published in Gathering the Bones (HarperCollins, Sydney and London, 2003 and Tor Books, New York, 2003) -- Weird Artistic Horror

18. “The Sculptor’s Wife” *new* -- Modern Arthurian Legend

About Janeen Webb
Janeen Webb is a multiple award-winning author, editor, and critic who has written or edited ten books and over a hundred essays and stories. She is a recipient of the World Fantasy Award, the Peter MacNamara SF Achievement Award, the Australian Aurealis Award, and is a three-time winner of the Ditmar Award. Her award-winning short fiction has appeared in a wide range of magazines and anthologies, as well as a number of Best of the Year collections. Her longer fiction includes a series of novels for young adult readers, The Sinbad Chronicles, (HarperCollins, Australia). She is also co-editor, with Jack Dann, of the influential Australian anthology Dreaming Down-Under. Janeen has also co-authored several non-fiction works with Andrew Enstice. These include Aliens and Savages; The Fantastic Self; and an annotated new edition of Mackay’s 1895 scientific romance, The Yellow Wave. Janeen is internationally recognised for her critical work in speculative fiction. Her criticism has appeared in most of major journals and standard reference works, as well as in several collections of scholarly articles published in Australia, the USA, and Europe. She was co-editor of Australian Science Fiction Review, and reviews editor for Eidolon. She holds a PhD in literature from the University of Newcastle. Janeen divides her time between Melbourne and a small farm overlooking the sea near Wilson’s Promontory, Australia.

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Friday, January 5, 2018

Cover Art Design - Helen's Daimones with Daniel Landerman -3


1) CONCEPT (LINK) : Goal & required elements
2) COVER ARTIST (LINK)  : Finding a designer
3) COVER DESIGN(YOU ARE HERE): Evolution of compositions to arrive at the final cover


This wraps up a series of posts discussing the design of the Helen's Daimones cover. Part One covered the design concepts, Part Two  revealed details about connecting with Daniel Landerman, and this last post will be the meatiest of all since it will show the progression from sketch to final illustration. All sketches are copyright Landerman 2016.


First, Daniel took several storyboards and design concepts (akin to those shred in the first post) and provided several compositions. I chose "D" since showed Helen's face while keeping her vulnerable...and having the sword away from Lysis made it easier to visualize.

Deciding on poses
Then Landerman continued his magic ability to show details without cluttering the image.  From curious in Helen's hair, insect traits in the armor, and decorations in the clown-dolls, he loaded up the image with subtle elements.
Composition D selected, Details Added
What followed was a series of monochrome compositions that explored how light could be sourced from the magical sword, the eyes of the undead dolls, and moon.
Planning the Lighting 


Lastly, Landerman colorized the work. He was inspired by iridescent beetle carcasses for the armor.
To match the magic in the book, the dolls and wasp needed to be blue-ish, and Lysis needed to be variegated (and distinguished from the blue aura).
Basic Colors

Final with added dolls, wasp, and proper eye colors

The details are amazing!


So the journey was complete.  The covers represent Lysis's and Helen's progression accurately and reinforce the characterization in Dyscrasia Fiction.  Book four is in the works...and the principles discussed here will continue to drive the design.


Character Progression & Story Arcs in Illustration

Book Covers of Dyscrasia Fiction

Cover Art Design - Helen's Daimones with Daniel Landerman -2

1) CONCEPT (LINK) : Goal & required elements
2) COVER ARTIST (YOU ARE HERE): Finding a designer
3) COVER DESIGN (LINK): Evolution of compositions to arrive at the final cover

ImagineFX magazine is a fantastic resource for graphic artists using digital media. As mentioned in Part #1, I was inspired by Daniel Landerman's sketches in a 2011 ImagineFX article. I decided to learn more about him, eventually contacting him to explore commission options.

Daniel Landerman has freelanced in the entertainment industry since 2003 doing concept design and production art for film, TV, and video games. He has been working predominantly as a sketch artist in advertising since 2008 for folks like
BLT, Ignition, The Ayzenberg Group, Blizzard and Riot Games.Specialties: Sketching, illustration, story development, blue ocean thinking, character/concept design, storyboarding, storytelling.





Browsing Daniel Landerman's Instagram page to see if he drew the undead too, I stumbled across his Titan (Lysis is not a giant, but his head would look similar being a skull with twisted horns).
Totally psyched that I may have found an artist who seemed to already know what I needed, I reached out to him. Thankfully Landerman did do some freelancing and we struck a rapport. Below I share some links to his videos and stills on Instagram, but the real meat of our collaboration is shared in the final post:

Part 3: COVER DESIGN Final Cover




Cover Art Design - Helen's Daimones with Daniel Landerman -1

Just as we dissected the making of the cover to Spawn of Dyscrasia (with Ken Kelly), let's break down the process for making the cover to Helen's Daimones.

This is a three-post blog series:
1) CONCEPT (YOU ARE HERE): Goals & required elements
2) COVER ARTIST (LINK): Finding a designer
3) COVER DESIGN (LINK): Evolution of compositions to arrive at the final cover


(1) Concept Design:

The Dyscrasia Fiction covers have portraiture designs (as detailed on other guest posts):

Each book has a portrait-like cover reflecting the story arc of the primary characters within: i.e., Lords of Dyscrasia is focused on Lord Lysis's transition from human to demi-god, and Spawn of Dyscrasia has Helen and Lysis emerging as partners. Helen's Daimones is designed as entry way into this weird world, and serves as a coming-of-age story for Helen (and Lysis too as he becomes acquainted with his powers). Since Helen's Daimones is in between the other two books chronologically, it begged to have the below elements:
  1. Helen as vulnerable girl ~10yr old, with a cat pelt
  2. Skeletal Lysis as a protector, with horns for air & distinctive sword (Ferrus Eviscamir)
  3. Optional lighting from glowing wasps, sword, wasp-ridden dolls

Young Helen - Inspirational Art

Two illustrations inspired the "look" of Helen as I wrote Helen's Daimones: (1) spooky fairy-native sketches from Daniel Landerman (published in ImagineFX and discussed more in the second post of this series) and (2) the 1902 Mother's Crushed Oats print ad of a boy with a feline pelt, a framed version hung in my parent's house. I found that Landerman had a series of "natives" and many of them were eerily similar to the haunting girl who mingles with creepy dolls. Whomever would illustrate Helen would have to come up with a similar young girl who could evolve into the white-haired witch beside Lysis in the Spawn of Dyscrasia cover. 


Lysis's Sword, Armor, & Horns

Lysis would have to bridge the look of the Lords and Spawn covers. His magical sword Ferrus Eviscamir would have to be present, and ideally his armor would appear to be made from (a) giant insect hulls and (b) human leather. His hair would have to approximate horns.



Instead of reinventing the wheel, I reached out to directly to Daniel Landerman to explore commission options. Working with him is discussed in the next two posts, beginning with :

Part 2) COVER ARTIST (LINK): Finding a designer