This will be a total revision of the Rusalka books, not so noticable in the first, but definitely in the second and third. It’s a fantasy, a romance, and a ghost story…
I did the cover sketch, and Jane did the color, the finish, the lettering…Thank you, Jane!
That looks amazing! I am very fond of the original three, and will look forward to the reworking.
Looks great – what a team!
Cover looks great! I can’t wait for the books!
A little trick with the cover: this was my first line sketch with the Wacom tablet, digital, in other words, and my pen wasn’t behaving, quite. You’ll notice a difference in the two eyes (and have probably been too polite to say so)—but hey, she’s not quite, well, *there* in the first place, in several senses, and keeps switching back and forth, so it’s understandable. And if you cover half the face and look at the other, you can see her in two personalities. Which, for Eveshka, is pretty accurate. So, at least tentatively, Jane asked me which eye did I want, and I said, use both…so she did.
Oh goodness, girls. These look so nice! It reminds me of a scene in a game called Final Fantasy Seven. There is an underwater city woven about with coral and deep sea flotsam. The effect with the… -branches?- on the cover of this Rusalka book is much the same. I might have to pick up Rusalka now! All right!
Nice cover.
Great Cover. All faces, even Nicole Kidman’s are different left to right as I noticed in watching movies with supposedly perfect-featured movie stars…So it goes.
It’s also true that we never really see our ‘real’ face in the mirror. It’s the peculiar handedness of our brains versus mirror images.
Staples has a 69.99 Wacom Bamboo Pen and a 99.99 Wacom bamboo pen (as well as more expensive ones). Which one should I buy? For casual use not professional…
I’d say ask Jane, because she understands these better than I do: but the 69 one has Corel Paint as the software, the other has Photoshop Essentials. I think you’ll be happier with Photoshop—we’ve had some trouble with Corel Paint and the bigger Wacoms. In general, the more sensitivity you get, ie, the more expensive board, the better software you get, the more ‘feel’ you get and the happier you are as a sketch artist. Also you can adjust the thing. Mine started out so touchy I was actually ‘dripping’ lines onto the ‘paper’ without actually touching the surface. It was for all the world like having too much ink on the brush.
And for some folks, their eyes don’t focus on the same thing at the same time. My left eye is my dominant eye, my right eye was amblyopic when I was in my early childhood, and so despite efforts to make me wear a patch over the left eye, I exerted equal efforts not to wear that patch. Hence, my brain ignores the signals from my right eye, unless the left eye is covered or is not corrected. I find that my eyes are focusing on different things if I do the alternate cover test.
OH goodness… my left eye is like that. Follows the right one around like a lost puppy.MY eyes also lose focus quite often… then again, I believe I may have some degree of Asperger’s Autism Spectrum Disorder along with my Attention Deficit, so… not surprising. yeah, eye problems, eh? Them crazy genes…
Oh, so sorry guys.. Asperger’s is a Syndrome, not a Disorder.. sorry! That was a superb Dyslexia moment I guess. One of those -the word is the other word today- moments. Anyway, CJ, Jane, you guys rock the art world. And the book world. Happy my birthday everyone, and I hope no one gets sick today. I never got the chance to use -my- Wacom… wibble. What Wacom have you guys seen that is the best so far that’s oh, under 3000? Ah, better make that 2000.I want to do animations and illustrations for my original and fan fiction!
Well, happy birthday to you!
And my brother, who’s done professional work on Microsoft Games, like Age of Empires, still uses an Intuos 3 and swears by it. He currently instructs computer art at SMU. His is the advice I take on equipment. The dear fellow sent me an Intuos 3 for my birthday; Jane uses an Intuos 4. They are cranky things, and you can’t depend on them lasting forever. My advice is get a case for them and treat that cord very delicately.
Danke, CJ. Intuos 3 it is then! …if it will run on this computer. When are yours and Jane’s respective birthdays? I do not wish to forget. Om mane padme om, everyone!
Jane’s is Oct. 24. Mine’s Sept. 1. Intuos 3 will behave on a range of computers and OSes, including Win 7.
Ah, okay, okay. Good! Very nice. Thank you very much CJ! Happy belated birthdays to the both of you, then!
-drools over the thought of a new tablet-
I’m looking forward to the Rusalka trilogy ebooks. I haven’t read the older printed editions yet, so it’ll be a treat either way.
It seems I still get to fight with learning Illustrator. Have to sit down and make myself go through the (other) book I bought, until I can get up to speed and feel comfortable with it. — But when I do, the results will begin showing up on my site. 🙂
I can definitely add my praise for a Wacom tablet. So much easier than drawing with a bar of soap (ordinary mouse).