A Long Journey

Just recently, I've purchased and listened to a song sung by Susan Enan, entitled "Bring on the Wonder." It starts:

I can't see the stars anymore living here
Let's go to the hills where the outlines are clear

Then it goes into the chorus:

 Bring on the wonder
Bring on the song
I pushed you down deep in my soul for too long

This is a slower song in terms of beat and rhythm, with a guitar as the main instrument. The feeling I get from this song is one long journey, not necessarily a physical journey, but one that is internal. It could be for one person, possibly for more, or even for a couple, depending on how you interpret it. Ever since first hearing it on YouTube, it has served as a sort of theme always present in my head whenever I work on the DA Shadow Phantom series. Thus, this song has been a great inspiration.

Cover for the Album in which "Bring on the Wonder" is included

The second verse especially seems to go well with my main character, though I myself relate to it as well.

I fell through the cracks at the end of our street
Let's go to the beach, get the sand through our feet

To me, this seems to be an escape of sorts, or a desperate desire for escape. I know I have felt this many times, and my main character Dalan feels this quite a bit as well throughout the course of the story. Then the chorus.



Storytelling and art are more about the journey for me than the actual end result. While some journeys in real life can be painful ones that people don't want to recall or even have gone through at all, stories sometimes show how journeys, both beautiful and painful, can build character. They can be learned from if they aren't shoved down so deep that the people carrying those memories become bitter, afraid the bad things that happened in the past will come up and get loose in their lives again.

So far, my journey as an author through the DA Shadow Phantom series has been an intense one. If you don't mind some very slight spoilers to DA Shadow Phantom, I'll lay out the first part of the story here, since this story is what is currently consuming most of my time. I am currently alternating between writing the story and creating the art for it, including cover images and character design.

The story starts with Dalan, the main character, in summer school. He seems to be a stand-offish kind of guy right off the bat, not really involved with school or with any friends except for his best friend from childhood, Matt Spencer. Heather Dennison, a girl in his class, has known him since middle school, but he hasn't talked to her much. The first time the readers meet her, her kitten, Chester, has stowed away in her bag to school.

DA Shadow Phantom Comic - Chapter One: Mark of Evil, pg 1

Here, the readers learn that Dalan is afraid of cats, which is a very odd quirk as far as most people are concerned. After being attacked by the stowaway kitten, he jumps out of the classroom window and runs home. There, the reader discovers a mysterious mark on Dalan's back shaped like a pair of bat wings that seems to be the reason as to why Dalan is so stand-offish, why he does not easily trust people.

This is Dalan's introduction as presented at the beginning of the story, before Chapter One:

I walk around with a curse, so I hide it.

I hide myself from everyone else in the outside world,

hoping they won't see through my thin facade.

 A turn around sketch of Dalan in his transformed state

Dalan's so-called curse is that his uncontrolled emotions trigger a transformation. He begins to turn into a blue-furred creature with superhuman strength and fangs and claws, and he can't control it, so he doesn't trust himself around people. He doesn't want anyone even to see the tattoo on his back, the mark of his curse, lest they should guess the truth. The intro goes on to say:

I may hide from the world...but really,
all I want is to be able to look up into the sky at night,
cluttered dirty orange as it is with city lights,
and know that I'm not alone,
that I'm not just a face in the crowd...
or a faceless figure forever in the shadows.

Thus, Dalan's desire is laid out. He wants to be normal, to be able to live life as a normal teenager and have fun with his friends, if he had them. Eventually, Heather notices how strange he acts and tries to follow him when he escapes from school to go into the city, attempting to find out just what it is she can sense is going on with him. At some point, Dalan takes to patrolling the streets at night, protecting innocent people from criminals. He does this as an attempt to pacify the creature he can feel inside of him, struggling to get loose.

 DA Shadow Phantom Book One cover image - in progress

The image above is my progress so far in creating the cover image.  On the left is the image I have done so far without text. I have the foreground figure done, along with the preliminary shading. It is a digital artwork, so I am working in layers in Photoshop. The city in the background is still just line art right now and unfinished. The image on the right is an experiment putting the image and text together.

I'll try to finish up the cover image in the next couple of days, then Volume One of DA Shadow Phantom will be up on Amazon for sale. It's an ongoing story, so there's plenty of fun to be had with it, both for me and for my readers, I hope.


Happy reading!


For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.hubbard.50

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328?notif_t=page_new_likes
Facebook North Country Series: https://www.facebook.com/NorthCountrySeries?fref=ts

Deviant Art profile: http://nykol-haebrd.deviantart.com/
Tumblr profile: http://nyko-shad.tumblr.com/

The Art of Storytelling

It's been awhile, but I've gotten back into reading the fantasy book series I'd started awhile ago: The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan. I'm on what is officially called Book Two: The Great Hunt, though the first 'book' is actually broken up into two novel-sized sections. Thus, I consider it to be book three. Anyway, this series has a very detailed writing style. Sometimes it is a little hard to get into, but other times I'm completely captivated. I can't get out of it.

Second book in The Wheel of Time series, dealing with the hunt of the Horn of Valere,

which will awaken dead heroes to fight for whoever sounds it.

This author truly has succeeded in making fantasy seem like real life. The emotional journey I described above that the reader goes through in a story is the mark of any good writer, I've noticed, no matter what their style.

Rand Al'Thor - I have seen many pictures of Rand, the main character in the books I've read of Wheel of Time Series so far, but this one amused me the most. I think he just might make a great anime character ^_^ This amazing artwork is by hevial@deviantart.com

A depiction of Matrim Cauthon by a different artist, Ri-m@deviantart.com

This depiction suits Mat perfectly, in my opinion.

As a writer, whether it's fiction or non-fiction that you write, it is your job to create a world where you can make your readers laugh or cry with you, not because they are supposed to, but because it seems like the most natural thing in the world for them to do. If you can accomplish this all without breaking the illusion you've created of your world, then you are a truly good writer.

Some advice I read once about writing likened the art of writing to a tour in a glass-bottomed boat, both for the writer and for the reader. I don't remember the author of the book I was reading at the time, but what he said stuck with me. Just imagine you are riding in a glass-bottomed boat in the ocean, and you see all these colorful fish around you. Soon, it seems as if the glass is not there at all, nor are the people in the boat with you. It is just you and these amazing fish.

Then imagine if the person beside you dropped something, let's say a pair of sunglasses, directly into your field of vision. Just for a moment, you are jerked from your illusion. Even if it was just for a moment, the illusion was still broken, and it might take you a while to get back into it. It's nothing that serious, but as a writer, you should never do that to your readers. If you've created an illusion that you let your readers get into, don't do anything that could jerk them out of it. Once you jerk them out, you might never get them back.

As Enrique Jardiel Poncela, a Spanish playwright and novelist, once said, "When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing." One way I've found that a writer can jerk readers out of the illusion he or she worked so hard to create is by explaining too much instead of telling the story. I know it's a huge temptation to suddenly spill all of that glorious, dark, horrendous back story I've worked so hard to create, or perhaps I've created an entirely different world, language, and culture. It's great that so much work went into creating it, but I've learned two rules when it comes to storytelling that allows my readers can interact with the story itself.

1.) Show, don't tell. Usually, if something is worth mentioning, it's worth showing the effects and/or specifics of it rather than telling all the rules. The readers will pick up what's important on their own if you give them the appropriate clues.
2.) There is an appropriate time and place to reveal information. Whatever you want to reveal, just make sure that the information helps to build the plot.

 

In a nutshell, if you want your readers to enjoy the hard work you've put into crafting your story and/or fantasy world, don't let on that it was hard work. Simply let it flow into the story.

For instance, in my series, DA Shadow Phantom, many of my characters have interesting backstories, including Dalan, the main character. Most of these backstories never see the light of day, but they are there. The point of having backstories that the readers never get to learn is that they help you, as the writer, write even secondary minor characters more convincingly. Everyone has motive, something that drives them to act the way they do. The readers don't always have to know what that motive is, but if it's there, they'll sense it between the lines, so to speak, and the illusion will remain in place. Even my main character's back story I divvy out in bits and pieces, and only if it helps to build the plot and the illusion I've created of reality in this story.

DA Shadow Phantom: Dalan

Sometimes, a little bit is all that is needed to create a convincing illusion

of a world beyond the 'window'.

As for what I've been up to as far as writing and art, I have primarily been working on my series, DA Shadow Phantom. I am nearly done with the first story arch. There are only about three more chapters to go. I have yet to put up the first book for sale, but I will as soon as I finish the book cover image, which I have been working fervently on. Thus, it should be ready soon.

However, I do have my first fantasy book, North Country, Book One: The Riders of Redrog done, along with the cover image. It is now up for sale on Amazon Kindle. Check it out: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DIGO504#_


Happy Reading!


For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.hubbard.50

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328?notif_t=page_new_likes
Facebook North Country Series: https://www.facebook.com/NorthCountrySeries?fref=ts

Deviant Art profile: http://nykol-haebrd.deviantart.com/
Tumblr profile: http://nyko-shad.tumblr.com/

Stop Worrying and Get Creative!

Yesterday, I attended a webinar hosted by Daniel Hall about how to get your book out there. He said that the first important thing to realize is that you do indeed have meaningful subject matter to impart to your readers and that it doesn't have to take months or years to write it either. I found this to be very interesting.

The title here speaks for itself :)

 

It was actually pretty helpful. Part of the presentation was on how to set up a Word document (both Doc. and Docx.) on Amazon as a Kindle. I took print screens of the slideshow to help with my note taking, so my first book, North Country, should soon be up on Amazon as well, as it is already up on Smashwords.com. So far on Smashwords, I've sold 3 ebook copies and have had a handful of page views and downloads.

 

Another of my recent endeavors is that, after a bit of cajoling from my brother, I played Dungeons and Dragons for the first time with him. The type of character I chose to be is a Halfling (race) Rogue (class). I'm basically a short little character with thief skills that is supposed to be quick on his feet and have a decent amount of street smarts. Being an artist, I couldn't help drawing my character out as a visible aid. He was quite fun to design.

Ike Palin, the character I designed for D & D and colored with colored pencils.

I think he turned out quite well. So does my brother and his fiancé,

because they can't stop saying how cute they think he is.

So far, D & D is a pretty fun game. It's based primarily on imagination and storytelling. Since I'm a writer, it seems to suit me just fine and is giving me a little more confidence telling my part of the story aloud to a group, which I've never been that good at before.

Speaking of storytelling, I've recently been working on adding my first fantasy book, North Country, Book One: The Riders of Redrog to Amazon's Kindle. It's now in my bookshelf on Amazon in review, but it should be up for sale in 24 hrs. The name it's under is Nicole Hubbard, as I'm the author. North Country is an epic fantasy adventure that starts out with Liz, a young girl who wants to be a warrior, and Raefon, a young dragon from the nearby walled haven.

 This is a drawing of Liz I did in markers.

 

This is a sculpture of Raefon I did in super sculpey and painted. That took months, between school and a part time job. There were plenty of frustrations, but I enjoyed the process overall. I want to do another project of this type if I can get the materials.

Here is a short synopsis of the first book:

Liz is a young girl who wants nothing more than to be a warrior like her father. Raefon is the dragon version of the ugly duckling. What does such an odd pair have in common? An ancient bond that has connected them since before their birth. As a girl, however, Liz has no chance of becoming a rider of the great dragons. Raefon’s differences make it impossible for him to get a rider. Can these two destined companions meet before their powerful bond drives them insane? Can they ever be free from the scrutiny of those around them, free to pursue a greater destiny?

Another book that I am working on getting up for sale as an ebook is the first volume of DA Shadow Phantom, a fantasy series I have been working on for a little while now. The main character there is a fourteen-year-old boy called Dalan, who has a curse. Whenever his emotions build up, either due to stress or physical exercise, something stirs inside of him, something not human that is clamoring to get to the surface. Despite his efforts, he can't control it. Is he doomed to live his life alone so he won't inadvertently hurt those he cares for? Or can one of those loved ones learn to accept him as he is and help him on his journey to accepting himself?

Dalan Raymer, a digital image I did of him in his usual getup. The symbol behind his head has a lot of significance in the story, as the readers will find out a little bit further in.

I am currently formatting Volume 1 and creating the cover image for it. I have the first story arch almost all the way written now, but I am releasing it a little at a time. Anyway, once I am done with the formatting and cover image, I will put DA Shadow Phantom, Volume 1: Transformation, I will put it up on Smashwords and Amazon as well.

In the process of all of my endeavors, I am learning a lot and having a lot of fun. For a writer and/or artist, that is what really counts. If you don't have fun doing what you do, why do you do it? I guess that's my thought for the day. I've been reading through a book on how to stop worrying by Dale Carnegie, and it's got some great insights on what stress and worry, and being generally unhappy can do to your health. It's quite true. You feel better physically if you're happy.

Happy reading!


For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.hubbard.50

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328?notif_t=page_new_likes
Facebook North Country Series: https://www.facebook.com/NorthCountrySeries?fref=ts

Deviant Art profile: http://nykol-haebrd.deviantart.com/
Tumblr profile: http://nyko-shad.tumblr.com/

An Introduction to an Artist-Writer

Hi everyone! I'm Nicole Hubbard, an author and artist.

I have been doing both since I was very young, my first memories of drawing being when I was four. Since I was reading by that age as well, my story-writing adventures started soon after. I have always loved adventure and fantasy stories, such as The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien and the Redwall by Brian Jacques. More recently, I've also gotten into manga and anime. So far, I think my favorites in that world have to be Fullmetal Alchemist and Code Geass.

 Fullmetal Alchemist - Edward Elric with a really cheeky grin XD. Ed is a really fun character. In Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, I also like Lin a lot too. He's the kind of character that is hard not to like, and he knows how to get his way, usually.

 

Code Geass - Lelouch Lamperouge, probably after just having used his Geass on someone. In my opinion, he is a fascinating character with a quick, strategic brain that keeps me trying to figure out what he's planning.

Anyway, I write fantasy myself, and I love doing art, as I said. I have a lot of training in fine art: people, dragons, animals, and mythical creatures mostly, though I have done scenery when I have to.

My original drawing of Raefon, the main dragon character in my book series, North Country. I actually had to draw him on several large sheets of paper, as the drawing just kept getting bigger and bigger. This took me 3 months to complete, and I had to scan it in pieces and clean it up a bit.

Lately, I've been getting into digital art more, as well as doing my own cartoons, illustrations, and book designs for my stories. So my style has really expanded a lot since I first started out.

This is an image I've done recently from my story, DA Shadow Phantom, though it will come later in the story. For now, I'll just say that the character here is the main character, Dalan Aiden Raymer, and that glowing tattoo-looking mark on his back is a visual sign of his special abilities and even what he is in the first place. He thinks he has a curse but will hopefully learn differently.

A detailed close-up of the glowing mark on Dalan's back, the symbol of what he thinks to begin with is his curse. This is an example of the digital art I have been playing with. I do a lot of it in Photoshop by hand, though occasionally I will also use source textures that I add into the backgrounds where appropriate.

 

I'm just starting to get ebooks out to where more viewers can enjoy them. Two projects I am currently working on include North Country: The Riders of Redrog, and another series I've been calling DA Shadow Phantom. Both of them are fantasy stories, and I might later turn DA Shadow Phantom into a comic or graphic novel. I've already been designing the characters.

North Country, Book One: The Riders of Redrog - This is the front cover I designed when I put the book up for sale as an ebook on Smashwords.com. To read a free sample or purchase the book, click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/325431.

 

You can download a free sample in any of the ebook formats listed at the bottom of the page.

I am still working on the front cover of DA Shadow Phantom, Book One. Once that's done, as well as the proper formatting for ebook conversion, I will put that up as well.

Happy reading!


For more artwork and story-related stuff, or if you just want to get in touch with me and see what I'm up to, visit me at these websites:

Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.hubbard.50

Facebook DA Shadow Phantom: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DA-Shadow-Phantom/125944890946328?notif_t=page_new_likes
Facebook North Country Series: https://www.facebook.com/NorthCountrySeries?fref=ts

Deviant Art profile: http://nykol-haebrd.deviantart.com/
Tumblr profile: http://nyko-shad.tumblr.com/