Greetings Star Seekers,

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend. And what better way to celebrate than with a new interior illustration reveal!

I just finished this illustration of Azazel for Star Awakened this morning.


This is the first greyscale illustration in Star Awakened, as all the others are full colour so far. But I felt that this captured the mood and emotions of the scene much better. And I love a good dark black and white illustration.

We are closing in on the final days of the campaign, and I can't wait to share more art with you. As of right now I only have 1 interior illustration left to draw, and 1 endpaper. I may draw 2 more depending if I have time in October between my next campaign and editing. Star Awakened will have 8 interior illustrations once it's all said and done. Plus 2 different endpaper illustrations.

Another interior illustration I finished is the special thanks page where all backers will be credited!

Sneak peek at the pins:

The pins arrived! And they look so pretty!

The ship is inspired by Evie's sailing ship, The Black Maiden. And the construct is little Menos, the adorable sidekick from Star Found.



And off course there is the pin set featuring Evie in her ascended form. But, did you know that while the phoenix is Sarah's collaborative pin, that there is in fact a phoenix in my books as well?



You can get both these pins for FREE when you back both our canpaigns!

Until tomorrow.

Yours in art,
Therena


Back today!

Greetings Star Seekers,

Today I get to share some exciting news! My pins arrived as did my author proof! Which means I can share some pictures with you! 

Now, I should probably preface this with the disclaimer that these are cell pictures and my professional photographer self may be cringing that I'm even sharing it publicly. But I'm just too excited to wait to do a proper shoot to share. So here's the first look at the pins and books!

I am in absolute awe with how pretty it is! And I couldn't be happier! 

Do you collect pins as well as books? 
My own collection has grown significantly as my derpy dragons also arrived yesterday!

Here's all the pins I have designed! And my own growing collection. If you look closely, you will see the cross collaboration set on there as well.

They are like miniature little art pieces!

Tomorrow I will share another illustration I finished for Star Awakened.

I know it wasn't the one you guys voted on, but I couldn't help myself to finish it. 

Until tomorrow!

Yours in art,
Therena

Greetings Star Travellers!

You did it! You unlocked the next stretch goal! All backers will now be credited in a special thank you page in Star Awakened. (You will have the option to choose what I use as far as names go in the survey post campaign)

You have travelled down the stretch goal path, and are close to unlocking the next one! A digital art package featuring 4 NSFW art illustrations & 4 SFW illustrations. These will be two separate PDF's as I know not everyone will want the NSFW versions.


I'll be honest, I get a certain sense of satisfaction watching the little ship travel down the map of the Great Sea ^_^ And I am excited to see how far we can travel in the final 10 days!

You can help us sail faster by sharing the campaign with friends and family! In fact, I have made these nifty little backer badges just for my backers! You can find the .png files in the backer section below!


Star Awakened Lore:

One of the things you will find in this series is a world rich with lore and a long complicated history. In a previous update I mentioned that I have written volumes of journals, well it hasn't all gone to waste. In fact, having all those journals, have given me a solid knowledge of events which have shaped the world!

But one thing which have become more abundantly clear has been the lore around the gods and goddesses. One such goddess is Izanami, whom you will meet in Star Awakened. Her character has been one of those instances where the art defined the character. And inspired events in the book!

I can't get into too much details about her as I don't want to spoil events from the book, but she has quickly become one of my favourite characters. And I can't wait to write more of her in the next book!  So, without further ado, here is Izanami:
 


Izanami was another character which wasn't in the first draft. But she has revealed herself as a pivotal character when I rewrote Star Awakened. And the plot line with her is critical to the integrity of the story. She is also the cause of much anguish due to the complexity she has introduced to my story! Knots and twists I now need to somehow solve and unravel. But that is next years problem when I write book three. I am sure future-me will thank me...or curse me. We'll see.

Anyways, what do you think of the art? I apologize for the censorship, but I need to keep this PG13.

For today's poll, tell me which of these you prefer!


Have a wonderful Monday!

Yours in art,
Therena

Don't miss adding these books to your collection! Back Star Awakened today!



Save the date: Haunted Dragons pins coming to Backerkit October 7th, 2024! (You may recognize Izanami's dragon as a pin!)

Greetings Star Seekers!

Happy Saturday! Today I wanted to share with you two other Booktopia campaigns, which I think you may like, especially if you enjoy my art. But first:

Which tropes do you like more? I know, it's rather unfair to make you choose just one, possibly borderline evil, but I am genuinely curious. Do you prefer soulmates & found family, or do you prefer enemies-to-lovers & forbidden romance? Vote in today's poll to let me know!

I love both (see, I am evil for making you pick!) and I have both elements in my books! (Because why choose?) 

While my books are definately more high epic fantasy, romance does play a major role in the books and characters' lives. Love is a powerful motivator, and often makes us do stupid things (which makes for wonderful conflicts and tension in stories!) And, I am a bit of a romantic. Okay, I am a total romantic at heart no matter how much *cough* I put my characters through. I want them to end up with a hard-earned HEA (Happily Ever After). So be sure to vote in today's poll...and if you want to argue the case for both, let me know in the comments!

More campaigns to check out!

Speaking of Romance, the campaign I wanted to share today is all about the romance. Presenting, the Ruthless Wolves! 

I met Georgina, oh probably close to two years ago now as well. She has hired me for a lot of character art illustrations over the past year and a bit for her upcoming campaigns (which will launch later this year on Kickstarter). And when the opportunity to join Booktopia came along, she asked if I could make her some covers and other art! Of course, I said yes! I mean, why wouldn't I when I get to draw spicy character art and skulls? I mean a biker tattoo emblem?

As a reader, I love PNR (Paranormal Romance), and being able to draw in my favourite genre's are always a treat. Not only did I illustrate her covers, but I also designed her pins! Both for her cross collab pin set (Which you can get Free when you back her and her partner - another author I have had the honour of working with) as well as the one she has for her campaign! 

Now, I would be remiss if I didn't mention her partner's campaign. Cara has been another author I have created several illustrations for over the past two years. Which is why they both came to me for their pin design. And while I didn't do as much for this campaign for her in terms of art, I did illustrate both Cara and Georgina's oracle cards. 

So there you have it. Two more campaigns featuring some of my art, if not my writing ^_^.
I always feel really honoured when authors hire me. As a young artist, my dream has always been to have my art on book covers. And these amazing ladies are making my dream a reality. So, go check these campaigns out! 

I will be working on the next illustration for Star Awakened this weekend, so hopefully I can share it with you soon!

Have a wonderful weekend!
Yours in art,
Therena

Greetings Star Seekers,

I am thrilled to finally reveal the Gabriel & Nisha interior illustration for Star Awakened!

The full colour version will be in the deluxe edition & my online store editions, the black and white will be in retail versions.

I figured that this is the perfect time to talk about my art process as well.
This illustration took me 10.5 hrs, which is a little longer than typical character art which usually range between 6-8 hours. But my own illustrations hover between 9.5 - 13.5 hours. Probably because I'm not afraid of spending extra time on miniscule details only I will ever see. Things like arm hair, scar details or wing feathers. Or just really detailed gothic outfits with lots of little details 😅.

I also take the time to experiment and try new things with my own art, which I can eventually incorporate into commissions. And I usually create NSFW versions for my Patreons.

I love the process of creating art for my books. Sometimes art will inspire scenes & characters (Izanami was such an illustration - I'll share her in a future update), and other times the book inspires the art (like this scene). Regardless which comes first, both often help me get past writers or artist block. 

My illustrations always start with a line art, and then I start shading it as if it was a pencil sketch. Once I finish the greyscale art, I add colour. Though it's only recently where I started creating art with colour in mind. 

I started as a traditional artist with my favourite medium being pencils. And eventually taught myself digital art.

I use Photoshop and a Wacom mobile studio pro, which is very similar to drawing on a sketchbook.

I often get lost when I draw & write, losing all sense of time. And it's one of the few things I can hyperfocus on with my ADHD (other than reading).

My writing is very similar in my approach. I started handwriting my stories in journals (this series was written in journals) before I transcribe them. I love the flow of a pen on paper. The motion awakens a sense of creativity I can't find elsewhere.

I didn't like transcribing as it took way too long. So last year I bought myself a remarkable 2. I can still handwrite, and convert to digital text without retyping everything.

It's sped my process significantly.

Not that it helps me publish faster, mind you. I integrate my art too much into my novels to ever do quick releases. It's why I love crowdfunding. It allows me to bring my art and writing together in a way that wouldn't be possible if I only did retail editions.

It gives me so much satisfaction to create an experience both imaginatively and visually for my readers. To be able to transport them through worlds and offer a glimpse into the visions of my dreams along the way.

And, once the series is finished, I will have enough art to create an artbook of all the illustrations! And create a world artbook.

Creating these special editions bring me an incredible amount of joy. I love holding my finished art in my hands at the end of the day. Having something tangible to appreciate and admire is the ultimate reward after the hundreds of hours invested into these books. And knowing that you all are out there, holding the same book or displaying it on your shelves, is one of the most gratifying feelings as an artist. So thank you for your support and for being here.

At this point I have finished half of the illustrations for Star Awakened, and I only have 4 more to go. (An end paper, 3 interior illustrations, and a family bloodline tree) The editor is well on his way through the manuscript and tip ins are on their way to me!

Tomorrow I will share about another Booktopia campaign which heavily features my art. And I can't wait to show it to you guys!

Until tomorrow, have a wonderful day!

Yours in art,
Therena



Be a part of the journey, back today!


Coming this October: save the date, Haunted Dragons is coming to Backerkit this October!