The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends - PREVIEW ART - #3: Unnamed Terrifying Sheet Ghost

In the lead up to the digital release of my book, The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends, (paperback already available for those of you who are impatient) I want to share with you some of the artwork to be featured in the book.

I plan to show at least one or two unfinished drawings a week until August 14, and perhaps a bit after that date as well. I lost many hours of sleep adding color to these, so dagnab it, I'm going to show you the fruit of my labor.... soon. But for now, here some sketches that have yet to be slathered with digital paint.

For the 3rd go around, here's one of the first designs I had in mind.

An unnamed Ghost. Perhaps you the reader can give these things some names.

The image I had for him was that of the purest of ghosts, a sheet with holes for eyes. Truthfully, he resembles myself quite a bit.

Again, I'm feeling generous so you get two for the price of one, which was free anyway, so, double the luck. 

Thanks for peeking into my brain. Be careful of what peeks back.



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Amazon Link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends Presale
Amazon UK link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends UK

Also still on sale in digital, paperback and audio book forms
The Death of Death (Perma-Free)
Autonomously Yours

The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends - PREVIEW ART - #2: Unnamed Ghoul

In the lead up to the digital release of my book, The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends, (paperback already available for those of you who are impatient) I want to share with you some of the artwork to be featured in the book.

I plan to show at least one or two unfinished drawings a week until August 14, and perhaps a bit after that date as well. I lost many hours of sleep adding color to these, so dagnab it, I'm going to show you the fruit of my labor.... soon. But for now, here some sketches that have yet to be slathered with digital paint.

For my next picture let's go with....

Another unnamed creature, a Ghoul.

Again, another monster that only occupies young Martin's mind but poses no actual threat.

You get him in his sketched and soon-to-be-edited forms. Aren't you lucky. 

Unlike the witch, I had no real idea of what to make of this guy. He was improvised on the spot, yet he turned out to be a design I really enjoy. 

Thanks for peeking into my brain. Be careful of what peeks back.





Amazon Link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends Presale
Amazon UK link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends UK


Also still on sale in digital, paperback and audio book forms
The Death of Death (Perma-Free)
Autonomously Yours

True Inspirations - Part 3: John Kenn Mortensen

My inspirations aren't only literary and film related. Artists of all types inspire me, as they should any artist in any medium.

Continuing on with my True Inspirations, I'd like to talk a little about a relatively recent Inspiration: John Kenn Mortensen.

I don't know much about his personal life except that he seems to be an animator and a director for children's shows in his native land of Denmark. But I first heard of him from a story about an artist who draws darkly themed drawings on Post-It notes.

They were black-and-white on a flat 2D plane, with lots of and lots of hatching and deep dark shadows on tiny pieces of paper. Again, like Tim Burton's work, they were very dark and gothic and featured humans, mostly children, in situations involving terrifying monsters. But the thing was, these children depicted did not seem too frightened and seemed to be in no danger from these horrifying creatures.

In no danger from monsters. But umbrellas are another story entirely.

There it was again, my favorite theme: kiddie gothic.

Indeed, the drawings in my latest work, The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends were heavily influenced by Mr. Mortensen's work. I tried to not copy too much, but just enough to make his influence known.

The backstory: I'd been an artist for most of my life, but, around 10 years ago I let insecurities and jealousy of better artists get to me and thought, if I'm not as good as they are I might as well stop drawing. And so, that's exactly what I did. For 8 years I didn't put one tip of one pencil to one sheet of paper (or cursor to digital canvas), and when I finally did two years after that it was for my other two book covers––which didn't require anything elaborate––and some truly lackluster character designs here and there that nearly literally hurt me to draw. But nothing substantial, that's for sure.

Then I had the idea for this book and knew that I needed drawings for it. I was in no position to hire an artist as they can be rather expensive. I considered asking a friend to do them for me, but she seemed too busy with her own life and work to take it on (She's someone who dabbles in the gothic as well, check out her Etsy for jewelry. Excellent stuff).

John Kenn Mortensen's aesthetic was perfect for my story, and I wasn't going to get him to do it for me, that much I knew. So, I thought to myself, what the hell, maybe if I keep things simple and on a 2D plane like Mr. Mortensen does I can do something similar. I cannot say whether or not I did as good a job as he would have done, that's for my readers to decide, but I tried my best and I was pleased with what I came up with.

He truly is a talented individual. Check out some of his work below and at his page and tell me what you think.

Thanks for peeking into my brain. Be careful of what peeks back.





Amazon Link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends Presale
Amazon UK link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends UK

Also still on sale in digital, paperback and audio book forms
The Death of Death (Perma-Free)
Autonomously Yours

The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends - PREVIEW ART - #1: Unnamed Witch

Hello all.

In the lead up to the digital release of my book, The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends, (paperback already available for those of you who are impatient) I want to share with you some of the artwork to be featured in the book.

I plan to show at least one or two unfinished drawings a week until August 14, and perhaps a bit after that date as well. I lost many hours of sleep adding color to these, so dagnab it, I'm going to show you the fruit of my labor.... soon. But for now, here some sketches that have yet to be slathered with digital paint.

Let's start off with...

An Unnamed Witch.

She occupies the mind of our protagonist, Martin. But she's no danger to him, nor is she to you, as she is just a figment of Martin's vivid imagination. But does he wish so badly that she were real.

Color and texture is being added to her, hence the red outline. You'll get to see the finished version soon enough.

Thanks for peeking into my brain. Be careful of what peeks back.





Amazon Link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends Presale
Amazon UK link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends UK

Also still on sale in digital, paperback and audio book forms
The Death of Death (Perma-Free)
Autonomously Yours

True Inspirations - Part 2: Tim Burton

Darkness is a little too bright, apparently. 

Hello. No special intro. Sometimes a simple "hello" is all it takes, don't you think?

In my last post speaking of people who influenced me creatively I spoke about Walt Disney. This time I will speak about Tim Burton, another creative inspiration of mine.

I had of course seen Burton's three first efforts, Pee Wee's Big Adventure, BeetleJuice and Batman, but I wouldn't say I became a huge fan of his until I received a copy of Batman Begins on VHS. From then on something about his aesthetic spoke to me. I wasn't a particularly gothic kid or anything. I didn't wear black (not gothically anyway, it was more of a punk rock-style black), I didn't listen to The Cure or any kind of industrial music, but there was something about the kiddie-gothic style of Burton that spoke to me. I really can't describe it except to say perhaps it's because of my dark, yet humorous personality––two qualities his films tend to have.

Despite what people say of his latest offerings (I quite enjoyed Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children and Big Eyes, Alice in Wonderland, not so much), I still immensely enjoy the art direction of his films. That, unlike his storytelling, hasn't changed a bit and has become even more focused and beautiful over the years.

My two books, The Death of Death and The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends, are heavily influenced by his art and story style. If you're a fan of his you just might enjoy these two books of mine.

Indeed, Mr. Burton and I may have a connection in the near future due to a project based on "Death" that will come to fruition soon. I can't talk about it much because there's really nothing to say yet. But it's a really exciting endeavor that I can't wait to share with you all once details become more available.

Looking at the picture above and considering his body of work up until now, it's kind of hard to believe he'll be helming the live action version of "Dumbo" soon. But such is life.

Thanks for peeking into my brain. Be careful of what peeks back.

Links to books below.




Amazon Link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends Presale
Amazon UK link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends UK

Also still on sale in digital, paperback and audio book forms
The Death of Death (Perma-Free)
Autonomously Yours

UPDATE! NEW BOOK! It's been a while. Here's what I've been up to....

Hello all.

I trust you've all been good for the 7 or so months I've been away. I know, I know, you've all wondering where I've been, what I've been up to, waiting and spilling precious blood while you sit on all those pins and needles.

Well, besides listening to "Evermore" from Beauty and the Beast on repeat (I REALLY like that song), I've been making some changes here and there, biggest among them probably is the move I've made to the Japan. It's something I've wanted to do for years and I finally made it. I've been doing a lot of eating, a lot of drinking, a lot of studying, and a lot of catching up with old friends.

But most importantly, as far as you the readers are concerned, I've been readying a new book. It's a Halloween children's book of sorts with illustration done by yours truly. I started writing it at the end of last year, and finished the writing sometime in the beginning of this one. But with the impending move to Japan I didn't really have the time to finish it all until I got here. But now, the illustrations have been illustrated, the color has been added, the formatting has been formatted, and it's ready to release out into the world.

I'd like to introduce you all to "The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends." The characters have been in my head for nearly 20 years. The story for less than that, but still quite a while. The characters have gone through a couple of design changes over the years, but I like what they ended up becoming. I hope you all do as well.

This story was intended for ages 8+, perhaps those with a slightly higher reading level,  but I also think it's great for adults. And a couple of early readers have agreed with me, thankfully.

It's available for pre-order (link at bottom) and it will be released on August 14th, just in time for Halloween. But if you can't wait for that, the paperback is already available for purchase (accessible through the same link at the bottom). The audio version will be following soon after.

I certainly hope you all enjoy it. I worked really hard on it and am pretty proud of it. It's for the truly young and macabre at heart.

Amazon Link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends Presale
Amazon UK link: The Deceased Miss Blackwell and her Not-So-Imaginary Friends UK


Also still on sale in digital, paperback and audio book forms
The Death of Death (Perma-Free)
Autonomously Yours