With the gracious assistance of Genesis E. Whitmore (@littletales), I have received a beautiful commission from “the paws” of Kat Miller (@Foxena) showing Vanarra and Sahnassa IN FULL COLOR – head to toe! This is the very first time they’ve been rendered beyond silhouettes!
So far, the reaction has been positive, but there’s always the risk in actually drawing the characters that they’ll differ from what people were thinking – the mental images they had already drawn in their own heads. One person has actually told me that he imagined Sahnassa to have almost a tiger-like face, stripes and all! I’m sure there are many other variations. (Frankly, I think this is awesome…)
In retrospect, I think I’ve had this same reaction to the cover of pretty much every book I’ve ever read that showed the characters. You know what? That’s okay. The cover of a book has never stopped me from making my own mental images, and I don’t expect that this beautiful and artfully rendered cover will keep others from doing the same with this book. What it does, however, is guide those new readers who are having difficulty visualizing what these characters might look like, and I think that’s really helpful.
What’s more, the amazing work of Elizabeth Phillips in narrating the book is also just as artfully and skillfully rendered – her voice acting and production are amazing! She brings real warmth to the characters. Now, will Vanarra and Sahnassa sound exactly like what some were thinking they might sound like? Obviously not! The voices inside of everyone’s head will be different, but what Elizabeth does is bring artistic emotional intonation and characterization to help make the characters real and solid and intimate for those who haven’t read the books before. Just like Kat, she sheds new light and another perspective on the characters that broadens them brings them to life like nothing else can.
I am truly blessed to work with such talented people. Oh, and about working… Beyond: Incarnation is now in the hands of the editors, and they are blazing away! I’ve also made the updates generously provided by Daniel Sherrett (@SSJ3Mewtwo) to The Rescue, and it has been re-published on Amazon. I’m working with Amazon right now on allowing current owners of the book the option of downloading the updated copy, if they would like.
Wow, that’s a lot! Thanks again, to God, for the amazing opportunities and folks I get to work with! It’s awesome!
Take care, and see you in the future!
JTL
James Todd Lewis Author of The Thurian Saga, including The Rescue, The Aftermath, The Ascent, The Summit, and Purebred. Follow me on Twitter! @hmseagle Visit my Amazon author page! amazon.com/author/jamestoddlewis
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