So I've been scanning a lot of my old artwork for Mythlore onto my computer. Some of these pictures go way back, done before I even moved out to Los Angeles. (Yeah, really making myself feel old here - sigh.) It's interesting to look at them now, some of them I go "Ummm, nope, not quite there."

Some of them I would do differently now. In fact, that' ( Read more... )

Last night I went to the January meeting of the Comic Arts Professional Society (CAPS), where we had an evening of sketching from a live model. It had been years and years since I'd done that, so I was a bit excited and nervous about the process. But I did it. And then today, because I was going to be posting pictures from the evening on my website ( Read more... )

I've been preparing to learn how to work with a 3D landscape modeling program lately. To start with, I needed to make a grayscaled topographical version of the map of my fantasy land (darkest color being sea level, lightest the highest elevation). I haven't yet tried to find out how this will be rendered in the program (I still need to learn my way ( Read more... )

I've said several times that my "In Praise of Friends" entries had been prompted by the death of Mythopoeic Society friend Alexei Kondratiev.  Reading all the wonderful things that were said about him made me sad that they had not been said when he was alive to read them.  I wanted my friends to read my appreciation of them while they were alive to ( Read more... )

I was roaming around a social website this last week, one that services writers, and was looking at one writer's profile.  Under the heading "Favorite Books" she began with "Tolkien's Trilogy" -- and then the rest were book titles without reference to author, at least not that way.  I looked at that and snorted.  Yea, verily, even in the confines ( Read more... )

(I've fallen behind in getting these posted, so it's a double dose today.  Because it's started to matter to me a lot that I keep up the practice.  The more I do it, the more I learn how much it touches the subject - and those who read these little bits of appreciation.  I really do love my friends.)

David is another of my Mythopoeic Society friends ( Read more... )

I take part in a writers' critique group that focuses on the genres of fantasy, science fiction and horror.  It's actually a pretty good group.  They've read two chapters of my fantasy novel The Ring of Adonel so far, and given me very useful feedback.  One of the other writers in this group, Leslie Ann Moore (author of Griffin's Daughter) has also ( Read more... )

I like dragons.  (See profile picture for this post.)  I collect dragons, but only if they are interesting looking - I'm not particularly fond of overly cutesy ones (although a do have a couple that might fit this category) or that are seen too much (although I do have a Maleficent from Disney's Sleeping Beauty).

I hadn't given much thought to ( Read more... )

A confluence of events have put the matter of fiction within fiction on my mind this last weekend.

My friend, James A. Owen (or coppervale  here on JL) posted a set of pictures of his illustrations for volumes 2-5 of his series, The Imaginarium Geographica.  Although his stories are more taking literary figures (and fictional ones) and tossing them together ( Read more... )

So Mythcon THIS year (which I DO NOT have to oversee) will be in Dallas, July 9 through12.  The chairs have selected a theme of "War in Heaven" -- which is a wonderfully provocative theme.  There are so many possibilities to discuss this issue in fantasy literature!  My mind is bubbling with possibilities.

After all, it's actually been quite a while ( Read more... )