Before I get started, I wanted to thank each of you for being here! Yesterday blew me away with how well this campaign has funded, and we are only in day two! 

In yestersday's update, I had a poll where you guys could vote on which interior character art you wanted me to sketch first. And the winner was Miranda!

Below I will share a little bit about her character and why she is special to both me and the story! But one cannot talk about Miranda without also mentioning the love of her life, Ruthnor. So today's art reveal is a bit of a two-for-one ^_^. 

Now I will be honest with you. I can write epic stories, and I can draw character art to express my visions clearly, but I really struggle to talk about my characters and books >.< I will try my best, but I always joke that it is easier to write 100,000 words about a topic than 500... So, if what I say sounds fragmented and awkward, that's just me trying to fit 100,000 words into 200. 😅 (Also, my editor isn't here to correct my spelling or grammar. 🫣 You get just me.)

So without further adue, meet my fiery mentor and fearsome comic relief, I mean Miranda and Ruthnor!

These two couldn't be more different from each other, but somewhere in a time before the events of Star Found & Star Awakened, these two met and fell in love. One day I might write their own story, but for now they are two very important side-characters.

Without giving away too many spoilers, both of these characters play a key role in the choices my main character, Evie, makes throughout the books.

Miranda is one of my favourite characters, because I see in her the wisdom I wish I listened to in my own life. Whenever she teaches Evie, she is often speaking to me in whatever has happened in my own life at the time of writing. I also love that she is an older, curvy character, that is both confident and a skilled warrior. (Because strong warrior women are my favourite ~ You can thank Xena for that!) 😅⚔️

In Star Found, Miranda has a fairly minor-ish role, but that deepens as we venture into Star Awakened, and her mysterious past is finally revealed. She gets more page time as well as her own portrait in Star Awakened (This one!) She is a character which surprised me with her own story and growth. She was never meant to be such a major part of the story, but, as I wrote the first draft, she grew on me. Here is one of my favourite quotes by Miranda in Star Awakened ^_^

But Miranda doesn't join Evie alone. Her husband, Ruthnor was with her in Star Found. Ruthnor is the character which made me laugh the most. His mannerisms and sense of humor often had me giggling out loud and making my family look at me strangely. He is the lightness to Miranda's knowledge and wisdom.

One of the new art additions to Star Found is the illustration of Ruthnor. I've been told that he is most people's favourite character. And for those who have read Star Found, you have much to look forward to with him in coming books! 

So there you have it. My very poor attempt at describing my characters without spoilers. 😅 But what I lack in words, I hope I make up in portraying them in the art. And you will have to read the books to get to know these two more intimately.

The next thing I wanted to share was stretch goals for this campaign. Usually when I set these up, they are the special features from gold foil, sprayed edges, end papers etc. But I know that I wanted these books to be pretty no matter what. So I already added all those features to the books. Which kind of left me without ideas for stretch goals.

My biggest goal with this campaign is to do a print run, which means a high upfront cost for me to print the books so I can get all these shiny features. But, I still want to reward you guys for supporting my dream. So, as the days progress I will be making several polls to see what you all are most interested in. But in the meantime, I figured that I will use stretch goals as art reveals for the interior illustrations I am drawing for Star Awakened. 

But not all stretch goals are just reveals. 

Leatherbound books are more durable, and I love the way they feel and look with gold foiling.

Another stretch goal will be when we hit $10,000 or 100 backers. All backers will receive a themed sticker or some other small gift! (Physical tiers only*)

And in between art reveals, I will unlock digital art packages. From NSFW art, to wall papers. That way everyone wins! I will make a nice graphic today for the stretch goals and share it with you in the next update! 

Lots of exciting things coming your way! Throughout the campaign I will share all the art, or at least as much as I can (there are some NSFW ones I can't share here, but you can always check them out in my naughty Muse tiers on my Patreon, there is a FREE trial).

For today's poll, you get to vote on whether you prefer Miranda or Ruthnor. And tomorrow you will vote on the next art reveal ^-^

Most of Star Awakened's art is still in the concept phase, so I need a few days to finish illustrating them between sharing. 

So if you have been on the fence about backing, don't miss out! Back today!



Oh, and before I go, did you know you can read a sample of Star Found here?



Until tomorrow! Keep it epic.

Yours in art.

Therena

PS:

Don't forget to back both me and my partner for Booktopia to get these two pins! I have an entry level pin tier which qualifies, and I just added the eBook to that tier (I forgot to do so when I set up the campaign! Oops) But anyone who backs that tier will also get the eBook. So if you are international, or on a tight budget, that is the tier for you! 

Welcome and thank you for the overwhelming support so far! This project has been 2 years in the making (4 if you count when I wrote the first draft for Evie's story!)
It's been a labour of love, a wild dream I pursued with reckless abandon even when I had no proof I could write, let alone illustrate, a full novel.

You see, Star Found was supposed to be a "short story", something I could finish quickly and say I did it. (All my journals of stories I've written up till then were several volumes big already  and too intimidating) Well, after I transcribed the journals for Star Found, it became abundantly clear that my vision for a short story was nothing but a wishful thinking as short stories don't end with 300,000 word counts ...

Nevertheless, it simply meant bigger, better books. For at the same time I wrote Star Found, I started taking illustration more seriously as well. Though no journey is straightforward, and being an artist comes with a heavy dose of imposter syndrome. But those first backers ignited the fire under my dream. They gave me the confidence I needed to fuel my creativity. And as such, Star Found ended with 14 illustrations! And my confidence to create my own cover art!

And so the standard was set for beautiful art filled books. Now, I doubt that I will have that many illustrations for Star Awakened, my art has since become more complex and detailed. But I have every intention of adding at least half of that to the second book in the series! Not to mention all the new additions of illustrated end papers, etc.

I would like to invite you along as I create it over the next two months! 

Over the course of the campaign, you will have the opportunity to vote the order I draw in. If all goes well, I might even do a live drawing. (Though this has challenged my poor computer GPU in the past. But I'll still try 😅) I'll be stopping by with almost daily updates with polls, WIP art, and more. For the next few weeks I'll be fully immersed in the world of the Tri-Realms. Specifically creating art for your beautiful books!

As another way to reward you guys, I'll be sharing a question each update. When you participate and comment, or even voting on the polls, you will have a special treat added to your pledge after the campaign! (An exclusive holographic sticker!)

So to get things started, tell me your favourite romantasy series / author in the comments and let's gush together about this amazing genre!

How to choose just one ... Would it be cheating if I picked 3 or more?

My first love for dark romantasy started with Sara Douglass' Wayfarer Redemption series. As did my dream to become a fantasy cover artist! (Inspired by Lois Royo, who did her covers) In fact, I recently reread her series, and can see her influence on my own writing decades after the first time I read it! These books wrecked me. Especially book 4-6! Her character development is phenomenal, being able to take a character I reviled, to one I not only sympathized with, but became my favourite of all time!

Another author I discovered only recently is S.J. Maas. Specifically her Throne of Glass series. Long have I lusted over her hardcover books in the bookstore with those character covers. (Though I could never afford them) But it wasn't until after I wrote Star Found and had to research the genre more, that I bought the eBooks and read it. And not surprising, I loved it. 🤫Though I hated Celeana in the first book. But it's a gift to take a main character from annoying to loving and caring about them. And Sarah did this incredibly well.

With both these series', the authors masterfully wielded not only plot twists, but character growth. And they have both inspired me to do the same. I love writing flawed characters that are not only relatable, but which you will grow to love. They face not only the dangers of the fantasy world around them, but also have to overcome their own internal demons. Depression, fear of failure, low self esteem, loneliness, betrayal, and not belonging are just a few of their challenges they face. It's my hope that you will come to love these characters as much as I do. And enjoy their journey as they grow and become the best versions of themselves.

I leave you with an illustration from Star Found, featuring Cain & Evie. 


Until tomorrow!

I look forward to hearing about your favourite books! And don't forget to vote in the poll! You can also unlock more rewards by clicking on any of the achievements linked below!

Yours in art,
Therena

PS: If you haven't backed yet, you can still claim one of the early bird tiers! And early bird rewards!
The first 60 backers will get an oracle postcard, and everyone in the first 48 hours will get an exclusive early bird sticker!



And don't forget to check out my partner's campaign to claim your 2 FREE pins when you back both of us! (*physical tiers only)