Julie Bell and The Path of Daggers

This month’s Wheel of Time ebook release features the fabulous Julie Bell!

“In the end, Julie created strong and individual characters, each one looking as competent in their own right as the next, clearly working together for a greater power.”

Check out the Tor.com article to read the whole story, including a video interview with Julie.

Sam Weber’s Ender’s Game ebook cover

I am very excited to release Sam Weber’s ebook cover for Ender’s Game. This was a blast to work on.

For the whole skinny on the how the cover came about, Sam’s thoughts, and a some process pictures, check out the Tor.com article.

Mélanie Delon and A Crown of Swords

Alas, our latest Wheel of Time ebook cover reveal! A Crown of Swords

This one by Mélanie Delon. (She of the Spectrum 16 cover.) If you head over to Tor.com, you can get the inside scoop on how we got here, including a nifty progression through various stages of the painting.

Mélanie Delon’s work is exemplified by utilizing detail and soft focus, creating images that blur the edges between realism and fantasy. It was a great match for a moment of surrender and rebirth, a moment when Nynaeve must disengage from her usual character traits and, if just for second, open herself up.

Greg Manchess’ Lord of Chaos extended video, the artist-edition

Because the awesome Megan Messinger is awesome, she has created a slightly extended version of Lord of Chaos video which includes “real-time” painting footage. Enjoy the artist-edition:

Greg Manchess on the Wheel of Time Lord of Chaos ebook cover

The next of our Wheel of Time ebook covers is up! For Lord of Chaos we present a signature battle of the series, Dumai’s Wells, as portrayed by Greg Manchess.

As usual, all the details can be found in the Tor.com post, including our groovy “sliding” cover, Greg’s thoughts on composing the image, and a
super-cool time-lapse video of Greg working on the painting from beginning to end.

RELATED:
All Wheel of Time ebook posts are archived here.
Which include:
David Grove on The Eye of the World
Kekai Kotaki on The Great Hunt
Donato Giancola on The Dragon Reborn
Sam Weber on The Shadow Rising
Dan Dos Santos on The Fires of Heaven

Micahel Whelan’s cover for Brandon Sander’s The Way of Kings

A new Michael Whelan book cover doesn’t come around very often so I am super excited to present his artwork for our upcoming fantasy series,The Way of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson.

If you click over to Tor.com you can see progress shoots and read what Michael had to say about working on the project.

Dan Dos Santos and the Wheel of Time ebook cover: The Fires of Heaven

Presenting!...The next of our Wheel of Time ebook covers: The Fires of Heaven with art by Dan Dos Santos.

Dan had the unenviable task of having to paint a preternaturally beautiful and ageless woman. He did a wonderful job of it, I’d say.

Head over to the Tor.com post to see his sketches, progress shots of the painting, and our initial thought process.

RELATED:
All Wheel of Time ebook posts are archived here.
Which include:
David Grove on The Eye of the World
Kekai Kotaki on The Great Hunt
Donato Giancola on The Dragon Reborn
Sam Weber on The Shadow Rising

I Speak Fluent Giraffe, the reluanch

I am super excited to be continuing Jason Henninger’s I Speak Fluent Giraffe, beyond his previous Cthulhu inspirations. He will be writing a series of crazy-but-in-the-good-way poems, stories, autobiographical oddities, and various undefinables.

Much thanks to Greg Manchess for the logo above, with an assist from Jamie Stafford-Hill. (Hmm, maybe another process post is in order?)

Brain Elig will continue to illustrate each story. Jason and Brian have never met but they make a great pair. If anyone could, Brian seems to “get” Jason.

Idiots' Books complete Makers

A huge congrats to Idiots’ Books for finishing up 81 illustrations for the 81 segments of Cory Doctor’s Makers.

I have to admit, when Pablo Defendini first brought up the idea of serializing the book in so many chapters, I never thought we’d be able to get something visually interesting for that long a haul. Liz Gorinsky suggested Idiots’ Books and, 6 months later, they have created a beautiful, engaging, funny, wall-of-imagery that looks just as good together as it does in its parts. The fact the you can spin and rearrange each segment is mindboggling icing on the cake, but really, I love seeing the passages as they created it. Awesome, guys!

Sam Weber on The Wheel of Time and The Shadow Rising

Sam Weber and The Shadow Rising

I’m very excited to present the next of our Wheel of Time re-packaged ebook covers: The Shadow Rising with art by Sam Weber.

When we started this project I knew we wouldn’t have an artist more primed to be involved than Sam. He’s a huge fan of the series and it shows.

If you are fan of Sam’s and/or The Wheel of Time, head over to Tor.com to see him interviewed on video, read his essay about his cover and the motivations of the character he chose to depict, and see process images of the painting.

RELATED:
All Wheel of Time ebook posts are archived here.
Which include:
David Grove on The Eye of the World
Kekai Kotaki on The Great Hunt
Donato Giancola on The Dragon Reborn

Brian Elig and Neil Gaiman’s I, Cthulhu

Just showing off the sketches for Brian Elig’s illustration for Neil Gaiman’s very funny “I, Cthulhu, or, What’s A Tentacle-Faced Thing Like Me Doing In A Sunken City Like This”.

There was a third drawing which became a Christmas greeting for Brian.

More highlights from the Cthulhu art jam thread

Riding the line between awww and ewww: here's a wee Cthulhoid from Sherya Shetty.

As always, you can check out a host of tentacled beasts, and add your own, on the “Show us your tentacles” art post.

Kurt and Zelda and “The Tempest Wakens”

Firstly: Comic by Teetering Bulb! Free! Here!

Now, back-story...

About a month or two ago I was at a gallery opening talking to Kurt Huggins and Zelda Devon — Teetering Bulb, together. They were talking about how slammed with work they were. I said that was great but, too bad, since we had this idea of Cthulhu Month coming up and I was wondering if they would be interested in doing a comic for it. Kurt started to say, “No, we really are too......” and then his words trailed off and, I will swear to my grave, the sound of gears turning in his brain became audible.

They worked like hell to get this done and yet it feels as loose and dreamy (and freakin’ scary) as if they had all the time in the world. Their work , which was always good, just keeps getting better and better -- style, color, pacing....just great stuff.

So, if you are in the mood for something quietly horrific, take a look at The Tempest Wakens.

More Cthulhu

Okay, I know I said I would do this on Mondays but there are too many great works in the thread, and too few Mondays left in December, so: Another highlight in the “Show Us Your Tentacles” Cthulhu art jam post.

This one from Susan Sanford. Cthulhu and Mr. Hulot!!! It is a wonderful life world we live in. Sanford is offering this image (along with a lot of other cool writer-y themed drawings) as a t-shirt here.

And, be sure to check out, and add to, what I will declare (completely without research or scholarship to back it up) is the coolest collection of pro and fan Cthulhu art online.

John Jude Palencar’s Horrid Wings

We recently published Elizabeth Bear’s The Horrid Glory of Its Wings on Tor.com. It’s a lonely and moving story. John Jude Palencar was an easy choice for it -- it needed something quiet and soulful, and a little sad but still strong.

Sketches below. The first was the clear choice...but the second one makes me want to see what John could do with a dark superhero project.

Mondays of Madness

I’ve been blown away by the response to the Cthulhu art thread. A big “thank you” to all the participants -- doodler, pro, and Play-Doh-er alike. Honestly, I was worried no one would respond — figured I’d be the girl wearing a party hat in an empty room — but you guys are awesome and it’s a blast watching it grow.

If you missed it, above is just one image from the thread, by Ture Ekroos. I’ll highlight a new one each Monday through December — for the full onslaught, check out our art jam, or better yet, join in!

Brian Elig speaks Girrafe. And other stuff.

We started a new series on Tor.com, I Speak Fluent Giraffe, featuring the insane grumblings of one Jason Henninger. Throughout December that means grumblings of a Cthulhuian nature, afterwards it will branch out (as if anything could be beyond Cthulhu's reach.) Only one episode old right now, but this series will grow fast as a Dunwich child.

Check out: I Speak Fluent Giraffe.





The Cthlhu poems will be illustrated by Brian Elig. I was very excited to work with Brian. I met him a few years ago when Jon Foster asked me to speak to his RISD class. (There must have been something in the Providence water that year -- Wesley Allsbrook was in that class and she went on to create some great comics for us.)

I loved Brian's work and would visit his website a few times a year since that lecture. Honetsly, I doubted I'd have an assignment with the right mix of creepy sweetness that is in so much of Brian's work. Thankfully, Jason Henninger's whimsical poems about horrible evils were a perfect match.

Two nights ago I was giving a lecture to Soojin Buzelli's SVA class. The Brian example reminded me to tell the students the unfortunate truth about marketing -- you never know what is going to work or when it will work. A postcard sent today might get you work right off, or, it may stay tacked to an AD's wall for years before they call. I'm constantly going through years old Spectrums. A promising portfolio review my stick in my mind for ages before I have the right assignment. There's no way around it: Emerging artists need to take advantage very means of showing their work, update those efforts, and try to stay confident that steady progress in their work (artistically and marketingly) will pay off in the end. It's hard work to keep that faith up. Hats off to you guys. I couldn't do it.

I drew in public! Or, Show us your tentacles: A Cthulhu art meme.

It doesn’t take looking at too many portfolios before you realize artists love tackling Cthulhu’s tentacled madness. Being a newbie to the Old Ones, I wanted to ask a bunch of artists friends: Just what is it about Cthulhu and Co. that makes drawing, painting, and sculpting from Lovecraft so much...fun. (If fun is the right world?)

Head over to Tor.com and see what Michael Whelan, John Jude Palencar, Mike Mignola, Bob Eggleton, and others have to say on the topic. And then add your own! Post any Lovecraftian or tentaclian inspired art (doodles by non artists count, maybe even more so) in the comment section—horrify your friends, worry your love ones...

Added bonus! I expose myself for the art-fraud that I am. Go and see my drawing of the dreaded Jack’thulhu!!!

It's Stubby! (Post fin-enhancing surgery.)