Echoes

I've settled on a starting point for my fictional world, the one vaguely hinted at in the painting I titled "Necromantic Goddess."

Some of you are probably wondering why I haven't updated recently. It's because I literally haven't created anything truly original in the past couple months. That time has been mostly spent doing study after study; complimented with some step by step process analysis thanks to the Gnomon Workshop DVD's I won recently. I'm trying to digest the information as best I can and it's becoming painfully apparent how this affects my creativity at large. Not to mention I have a 6 month old baby girl that is finally starting to realize how awesome her daddy is and she absolutely loves to hang out with me... Oh yeah, I'm playing the Diablo 3 Beta too! WTF? How am I supposed to get anything done?! Haha.

Truth be told I feel as though I'm accomplishing much even without the "tangible" artwork to show. Granted, my portfolio hasn't grown very much recently; in the end the work I'm putting in now; the time I'm investing into reinforcing my skills will pay off more than just dredging away in the same old fashion.


ANYWAY... Echoes. So the plan has shifted somewhat. I still plan on creating the 3 paintings though I am taking a more round about approach. It will be a while longer before I finish them. This is because I am actively building the world they depict. I am writing notes in my journal about the terrain, the creatures, the cultures, etc. I'm sketching little doodles here and there and brainstorming about possible "main story" scenarios. The idea is moving in a more "child friendly direction". Necromantic Goddess isn't a very child friendly painting, but I'm ok with that. In fact the remaining two paintings will possibly be equally as inappropriate for children; that's not to say the final work of fiction won't be packaged and presented in a manner more suited to the youth.

My fiance's little boy is 7 years old and I am always encouraging him to read more. He hates reading and it breaks my heart as I know what fantastic places he could visit within his mind; if only he understood. I decided I want to write a children's book or a series of them because of him. I want to help create something that children can enjoy.

The reason for this is that the three paintings are meant for ME. As a means to inspire myself and help root my creativity with a sense of focus. The story/books will more than likely be chapter books with some illustrations peppered around here and there.