Failing Toward Success with Corey Lansdell: Recent Episodes
Corey Lansdell
This blog is dedicated to my journey as work toward being a published children's book illustrator. It will include posts about various projects I'm working on as I move toward my creative dreams.
Rosella shares her experiences at the Punderson Manor and the Mansfield Firehouse. Rosella is a ghosthunter and paranormal thriller author of the novel 2095: Based off a True Story, and is currently writing 911 Emergency. Rosella lives in Ohio and is the writer of the well-known blog, My Haunted Travel Blog. Stay tuned and Rosella will tell you where you can find her blog at the end of the show. Rosella has years of ghost hunting and investigation experience in the paranormal field traveling around the U.S to the most haunted-historic locations and writing about them in her blog. She prides herself on telling the real story and truth regarding her experiences with spirits encountered at historic locations, as well as the legends that surround the entity.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Unintentional Consequences is a Short Story. It is also the prologue from my third book, Gorgon. All of my books start with a short story as the introduction. This prologue is set in the past and relates to the present-day setting of the main novel.
Again, I hope you enjoy hearing the story even more as I enjoyed writing it.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Unintentional Consequences is a Short Story. It is also the prologue from my third book, Gorgon. All of my books start with a short story as the introduction. This prologue is set in the past and relates to the present-day setting of the main novel.
I hope you enjoy hearing the story even more as I enjoyed writing it.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
The Hotel Galvez in Galveston, Texas, has a fascinating history--and some fascinating hauntings.
Sometimes, hauntings only occur at a specific time of year: Three discussed in the podcast appear at Christmas only.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Texas is a great tourist destination. The Jefferson Hotel and The Baker Hotel may be a perfect fit for those wanting to visit haunted destinations. The Baker Hotel is under renovation and estimated to open at the end of 2022, which may be a long wait. However, the Jefferson Hotel is in operation and a beautiful place to stay if you enjoy hauntings and spirits.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Haunted destinations seem to be numerous. Here are just two.
And, for fun, there are a few haunted painting stories thrown in to think about.
I hope you enjoy the podcast!
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Reports of haunted destinations are numerous. Here are three buildings with interesting histories. If they are in your neck of the woods, maybe you’ll get to check them out. If you do, I’d love to hear about your experiences. You can always email me at maryann@maryannpoll.com
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Rosella C. Rowe is back to share more of her paranormal adventures. At least one of these accounts may give you the shivers.
Rosella is a ghosthunter and paranormal thriller author of the novel 2095: Based off a True Story, and is currently writing 911 Emergency. Rosella lives in Ohio and is the writer of the well-known blog, My Haunted Travel Blog. Stay tuned and Rosella will tell you where you can find her blog at the end of the show.
Rosella has years of ghost hunting and investigation experience in the paranormal field traveling around the U.S to the most haunted-historic locations and writing about them in her blog. She prides herself on telling the real story and truth regarding her experiences with spirits encountered at historic locations, as well as the legends that surround the entity.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Amador Paranormal Investigations & Research's Devan Langan joins Real Ghost Chatter. He shares just a few of his many experiences as a psychic and paranormal investigator.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
The Lemp Mansion in St. Louis, Missouri, is said to be one of the ten most haunted places in America. The mansion continues to play host to the tragic Lemp family after death. The once stately home to millionaires became office space, then decayed into a run-down boarding house. Finally restored, the Lemp Mansion is now a dinner theatre, restaurant, and bed & breakfast.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
An episode for all you haunted travel buffs. Here are three of many destinations for possible haunted encounters.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
I’m deviating from interviews and sharing a short story on this episode.
It is also the prologue from my second book, Ingress. All of my books start with a short story as the prologue. The prologue is set in the past and relates to the present-day setting of the main novel.
I researched Alaska Native legends. Then I used some of the characteristics for this short story. If you enjoy tales and learning about the Alaska Native culture, may I suggest reading A Dena'ina Legacy, The Collected Writings of Peter Kalifornsky. It has been one of my go-to books when I'm creating characters for my supernatural thrillers.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Rosella C. Rowe is back to share her amazing (may I say frightening?) encounter at Benton Farm and how she uses her medium abilities.
Rosella is a ghosthunter and paranormal thriller author of the novel 2095: Based off a True Story. Rosella lives in Ohio and is the writer of the well-known blog, My Haunted Travel Blog: https://myhauntedtravelblog.blogspot.com/.
Rosella has years of ghost hunting and investigation experience in the paranormal field, traveling around the U.S to the most haunted-historic locations and writing about them in her blog. She prides herself on telling the real story and truth regarding her experiences with spirits encountered at historic locations and the legends that surround the entity.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Paul Lahm returns to chat some more about dowsing/divining rods and the supernatural residents of the Victorian House.
Paul is a founding member of the Victorian House Ghost Guild in Millersburg, Ohio. Growing up as an empath with clairvoyant abilities, he has always been interested in the paranormal. In recent years, Paul has focused on Energy Medicine and mediumship to help family and friends. You can find out more about the Victorian House here: https://www.facebook.com/VHGhostGuild on Facebook
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Rosella C. Rowe is back to share some strange and recent happenings in her home. They seem to relate to the new book she is writing, 911 Emergency. Or do they?
Rosella is a ghosthunter and paranormal thriller author of the novel 2095: Based off a True Story. Rosella lives in Ohio and is the writer of the well-known blog, My Haunted Travel Blog: https://myhauntedtravelblog.blogspot.com/.
Rosella has years of ghost hunting and investigation experience in the paranormal field, traveling around the U.S to the most haunted-historic locations and writing about them in her blog. She prides herself on telling the real story and truth regarding her experiences with spirits encountered at historic locations and the legends that surround the entity.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Harry Wilson returns to share more supernatural encounters.
Harry was unexpectedly introduced to Ghost Hunting in 2010 while organizing an art display at the Victoria House Museum in Millersburg, Ohio. He is an active and founding member of the Victorian House Ghost Guild who helps to conduct ghost tours, Halloween Events, and public as well as private investigations.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Can you see the little girl in the picture? The Victorian House Museum graciously allowed me to publish it. The Victorian House is one busy supernatural hotspot.
Harry Wilson was unexpectedly introduced to Ghost Hunting in 2010 while organizing an art display at the Victoria House Museum in Millersburg, Ohio. He is an active and founding member of the Victorian House Ghost Guild who helps to conduct ghost tours, Halloween Events, and public as well as private investigations.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Paul Lahm is a founding member of the Victorian House Ghost Guild in Millersburg, Ohio. Growing up as an empath with clairvoyant abilities, he has always been interested in the paranormal. In recent years, Paul has focused on Energy Medicine and mediumship to help family and friends.
Brent Stephens has been investigating the paranormal for ten years. Brent has been to several locations, including the Ohio State Reformatory, the Bellaire House, and the Hinsdale House. Brent took a photo (shown here). Can you see the faces in it?
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Rosella C. Rowe is a paranormal investigator, medium, and author. I am honored for her to share with us an encounter she had with her best friend (deceased), a victorious bout with an evil entity, and more.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Mary Ann Poll reports tales on 'The Wild Hunt' An ethereal cat and Big Foot
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
I didn't post the Ravens Cove Prologue well, because, it's truly dark. Then, I decided you, my listeners might enjoy the goosebumps. So, if you enjoy a CREEPY short story, then I think you'll like the Prologue to Ravens Cove.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Merry Christmas!
In this episode, Mary Ann Poll shares a Christmas Eve tale, about the Star of Bethlehem is making an appearance and two haunted destinations you may want to add to your travel list.
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
A forest stroll is usually a peaceful activity – unless you’re in Freetown-Fall River State Forest. The majority of these woods, usually referred to as Freetown State Forest, pass through Freetown's center itself. If you dare, you can meander the 50 miles of unpaved roads and trails, which cut through its 5,441-acres. Freetown State Forest regularly makes the list of “most haunted forests in the world.”
“What is a vile vortex?” You’ve heard the chilling stories about the Bermuda Triangle, right? Well, there are several other mysterious places where ships and planes seem to vanish. In fact, there are 12 places collectively called the Vile Vortices, and like their more famous sibling, they all hold some rather creepy secrets.
Sources: Mysteriousuniverse.org; The Hartford Extra Mile; Onlyinyourstate.com; Marine Insight.com; Article by Laura Allan, Rankor.com
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
On this show, Robin Barefield, host of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier Podcast joins us. Robin shares a story about disappearances in the Alaska Triangle, a type of vile vortex.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
There are some amazingly weird places and haunted destinations in America. Mary Ann Poll tells you about three locations and says they are on her wishlist to explore. After listening to this episode, maybe they will be on your haunted travel list, too.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Rosella C. Rowe is back to share more of her paranormal adventures. She is a ghosthunter of the Tri-C group in Ohio and paranormal thriller author of 2095: Based off a True Story.
Rosella has years of ghost hunting and investigation experience in the paranormal field traveling around the U.S to the most haunted-historic locations and writing about them in her blog. She prides herself on telling the real story and truth regarding her experiences with spirits encountered at historic locations, as well as the legends that surround the entity.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Ana Maria Selvaggio joins us to discuss her supernatural encounters.
Under the name Renmeleon, illustrator, author, and designer Ana Maria Selvaggio has been a working creative since 1986. Living a very eclectic, digitally-analog life, Selvaggio has a passion for writing and has worked in and around the publishing industry since the mid-90s as a book designer and editor. She and her family live in Kentucky. All three of them are writers.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome back to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Amelia Cotter joins Real Ghost Chatter for a second time to share more of her many supernatural encounters.
Amelia has appeared on various radio and television programs, including Travel Channel’s Hometown Horror, the documentaries Scary Stories, and Tinker’s Shadow: The Hidden History of Tinker Swiss Cottage. She also appeared as a regular cast member on the show The R.I.P. Files. Amelia is an author, poet, and storyteller with a special interest in the supernatural, history, and folklore.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Cil Gregoire encountered a sinister spirit wielding a knife when she was only six. Her experiences continued until she was eight and her family moved to a different home. This experience haunts her to this day. Cil asks: Who was this ghost? What happened in this house to cause a haunting? Does anyone listening to this podcast know the story?
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Amelia Cotter joins Real Ghost Chatter to share two of her many supernatural encounters. She has appeared on various radio and television programs, including Travel Channel’s Hometown Horror, the documentaries Scary Stories, and Tinker’s Shadow: The Hidden History of Tinker Swiss Cottage. She also appeared as a regular cast member on the show The R.I.P. Files. Amelia is an author, poet, and storyteller with a special interest in the supernatural, history, and folklore.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Welcome to Ravens Cove, Alaska, a tiny town nestled in a small hollow on the majestic Cook Inlet. A town familiar with storytelling - after all, Alaska abounds in rich legends. In Ravens Cove, though, legends have a tendency to come to life. . .
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Mark Spencer shares about his paranormal experiences in the Allen House and what led him to the truth of the hauntings of Allen House.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Mark Spencer shares why he went from being a non-believer to a believer in the supernatural. In this episode, he shares his encounter with not one, but two, Doppelgangers, and more.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Mary Ann shares one of her stories about a visit from the other side and about the mysterious occurrences at Scotland's Overtoun Bridge.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
According to Rosella, and the volunteers who work at the Victorian House Museum, this beautiful house is one of the most haunted places - ever. Listen to Rosella's story and, then, you decide.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Graham shares his supernatural story which spans decades, then stops. Not all encounters are friendly.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Sometimes, we wonder why we meet some people. And, sometimes we wonder why those special people are in our lives for only a short time. Listen to Rosella's heartfelt story about such an experience.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Bob Freeman is an occult detective, artist, game designer, and author whose published novels include Shadows Over Somerset, Keepers of the Dead, and Descendant.
A lifelong student of mythology, folklore, magic, and religion, Freeman has written numerous short stories, articles, and reviews for various online and print publications and is a respected lecturer on the occult and paranormal phenomena.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Mike Ricksecker is a recognized authority and celebrity in the paranormal field. In this episode of Real Ghost Chatter, Mike talks about his encounters with shadow people, beginning at the age of eight and his encounter with a child spirit. He also gives us a glimpse into his newest book, A Walk in The Shadows: A Complete Guide to Shadow People.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Rosella C. Rowe talks about how a chance encounter with a stranger gave her the answer to why a certain ghost had haunted her since childhood. She also tells us about the protective (although cranky) entity who shared her home for several years.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Holly Phillippe has seen ghosts since she was a young child; Stephen Zimmer has had supernatural experiences for years. Together, they have a house full of other worldly guests. Listen to Holly and Stephen talk about their experiences which continue to this day.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Robin Barefield, Alaska's Wilderness Mystery Author and host of Murder in the Last Frontier, tells us about two murders. Mary Ann Poll, the host of Real Ghost Chatter, will end each story with the accounts of these murder victims' ghosts who haunt Anchorage establishments to this day.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Sometimes our past comes back to haunt us. Literally.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
A tribute to all the children, young and old, who have ever felt like misfits. And this is also a story for anyone else who enjoys a supernatural yarn.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Award-winning author Jeanne shares a goosebump-producing story about her experience in a Mississippi Plantation turned Bed & Breakfast.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Human spirits aren't the only ones who visit some people. Victoria tells a story of Edna June - the guardian of her ranch.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Gordon Parker is a skeptic turned believer because of his personal experiences with the supernatural.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Lori tells us a heartwarming story of helping a spirit and shares other adventures she has had with the spirit realm.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
A place to share and discuss real-life supernatural stories and encounters.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Hey gang. I've been in the internet trenches. I've decided I'd like to consolidate everything about me into one place on the web. My portfolio, podcast, youtube, blog stuff, etc.
I've been working at getting a blog set up on my coreylansdell.com domain and boy I am rusty at web stuff. I remember now why I steered away from that path a number of years back.
I've been battling with wonky themes in wordpress, trying to wrap my head around RSS feeds and setting up my blog to run my podcast feed. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be a simple thing to do to post my podcast audio on WordPress and have iTunes pick it up.
Every platform out there wants money from you. Typically in the form of a monthly subscription and as I'm doing this on the cheap, that's not very good. I haven't yet puzzled out if I can do all this for free or not. I think I may not be able to.
Bottom line is, the thing I thought would be simple has ballooned into a three headed monster that threatens to eat all my time, money and patience!!
And I forge ahead. :)
Two weeks doing humanitarian work in a 3rd world country can give a person perspective. This podcast deals with the snares of social media. Listen at your own risk. You may want to stop using social media while you listen to it. I encourage you to stop the audio midstream and shut it down! But if you listen to the end, give some serious thought to your interaction with the media around you. Cutting down your usage may give you more time in life for more important things.
Blessings all!
https://www.patreon.com/coreylansdell
https://www.instagram.com/coreylansdell/
https://twitter.com/coreylansdell
https://www.facebook.com/coreylansdell
This long format interview is with the multi-award winning illustrator Kelly Mellings. I ask him a bunch of questions about growing in craft as an illustrator. We chat some about style and he talks about the national best selling graphic novel, The Outside Circle, which he illustrated. The graphic novel was written by Patti LaBoucane Benson and presents a sobering story of intergenerational trauma.
Find Kelly Mellings on twitter https://twitter.com/KellyMellings
Find The Outside Circle here.
https://houseofanansi.com/products/th...
https://www.amazon.ca/Outside-Circle-...
https://www.patreon.com/coreylansdell
https://www.instagram.com/coreylansdell/
https://twitter.com/coreylansdell
https://www.facebook.com/coreylansdell
Hello all! It's been an excessively long while since I touched this blog.
Last week I opened the doors on a patreon page. https://www.patreon.com/coreylansdell
It's in support of a story I'm writing. I'd be so pleased if you checked it out.
Also! I've been creating youtube content for over a year now. Please go check those videos out too! https://www.youtube.com/c/coreylansdell Thanks so much!
Last year, I faced the turning of my years from 36 to 37 with humour. How many of you recall the scene in Monty Python Quest for the Holy Grail where Arthur has a conversation with Dennis the peasant. “I’m not old, I’m 37” Dennis retorts after being called old by his King. Well. I’m now 38 and wish I could still reference that scene when confronting my age.
Awe, well time passes. I was reminded of this yesterday as I listened to Chris Oatley’s artcast where he spoke to Robert Simon’s https://chrisoatley.com/robert-simons/. One of the things that struck me was the age of these two very successful storytellers. I started to dwell on the fact that until about 7 years ago I started working more seriously at the craft side of illustrating. The fear that sprung up in my thinking is that I’ve missed so much time at the drawing board that I have missed a window in which to develop my potential as a visual creator. I think this is compounded by dwelling on the 10,000 hrs required to become masterful at something.
Age and time are against me it seems. I can’t fault myself for the choices I’ve made in where I’ve invested my time over the past 7 years. I’ve poured considerably into my children, my relationship with my wife and the other important relationships around me; to the best of my ability. Those hrs maybe matter more in the long run. They most certainly do if I consider them in relationship to my idea of what a successful life looks like. Nonetheless, the distance I feel from where I think I should be as a creator and where I am currently, stings.
Having Our 1984 closer to realization hasn’t seemed to lessen this sting any. The cold fact is that Our 1984 is one tiny piece in fulfilling the dream of one day being a full time storyteller. I need to qualify this, I do an awful lot of storytelling in my work at Pulp Studios Inc. and I’m grateful for that, but there is an unquenchable thirst to tell my own stories through children’s books, novels and graphic novels. This just won’t go away, and so, I have chosen to face it head on. Face it with the skill I currently possess, such as it is, and try to make a way to the other side of the fence one day.
In reflection and conversation with my wife and fellow creatives, I think it is highly possible that the stories I want to tell would possibly not have been feasible when I was younger. In spite of my belly aching about time, I have grown as a creator. Also, my maturity level has increased (for those who know me, you may laugh at that, I hear your mocking chuckles) and my understanding and distillation of what I want to say is far more clear.
I have resolved to just continue to push myself in spite of time, age and self doubt. Insert smart proverb about “Do or do not, there is no try.” or whatever. Bottom line, I won’t quit and I’ll continue to hold my dreams tight and water those suckers until they grow.
Blessings!
Nine weeks had come and gone, several attempts at communication went unanswered, the story had begun developing a thin layer of dust and my optimism wavered. Then, finally, on Friday last I made contact with my editor. Phew - deep exhalation. I can finally breathe again. I had a good, short, conversation with the editor who was apologetic for the lack of response to my communications. She expressed a struggle on her end to articulate her thoughts on the story in it’s current incarnation. However, she managed to put those reflections together for me over the phone. Working with an editor has been an interesting process. The story is most certainly changing and I believe for the better. The process has challenged me on many levels. I’ll try to share some of them as concisely as possible.BE FLEXIBLE - As a creator, it is sometimes hard to separate myself from my ideas. This process has pulled me away from my story and forced me to stand back from it and consider it from new perspectives. In doing so, the original vision for the piece has changed, insomuch as the delivery of the story. What I mean by that is that the nuances of the story, the events, the characters and the sequencing is evolving. At the same time the heart of the story seems to be growing. The process is pealing away cloudiness in some areas and increasing focus in others to allow the story to come through. BE PATIENT - Working in the commercial field, I am used to high pace of creativity. Often, I am working under much tighter time constraints during my day to day at Pulp Studios Inc. This process couldn’t be more different.BE OPEN - I believe I’ve mentioned before that I am a huge proponent of collaborating. I’ve been collaborating with the editor through this process and have also found my friends and family a great source of inspiration and reflection on the story. Talking through the story with people has helped me along greatly. Their ideas, input and questions help me find nuances I wouldn’t on my own and help me push it to the next level. In the end, this story will belong to many people. Not just me. That is really special.BE HUMBLE - Writing is hard. Storytelling is hard. Rewarding beyond anything I do creatively, but hard. I’ve had to take a step back, realize my shortfalls in this area and work at growing my understanding of story, character, plot, pacing, etc. etc. etc. There is so much beauty in this because at the age of 38, I feel like I’m only just beginning to grasp some of these concepts. I feel as though I have so much to look forward to learning over the years ahead. BELIEVE - I’ve had to have faith, in the story, in my ability, in God’s timing, that this can work, that I shouldn’t give up. This process has stretched my faith in many ways. It’s not easy. The work is fun but very challenging. It’s a labour above and beyond my day to day. It’s time that is already sparse and precious spent in the pursuit of a passion. It’s late nights and early mornings. It’s strategizing how to fit this all in and not lose my connection with my kids and wife. During the lack of communication over the last nine weeks my resolve has been tested and proven to posses zeal and resilience. BE PERSISTENT - I’ve proven to myself an ability to stay steadfast in the face of uncertainty. This will serve me well through this journey, I have no doubt. I’ve maintained a professional level of decorum while maintaining consistency in my attempts to connect with the editor. This has been hard but valuable. BE VULNERABLE - I am very grateful to my wife, my business partner and my family who have listened to me belly ache over the last nine months about not know what is going on. They have consistently held me up and pushed me forward.I hope these reflections prove useful to someone else starting their creative journey someday.Now, moving forward I will be reworking the manuscript and page roughs. I’ll hopefully have this done before the end of October and then see where things go from there. In regards to number 4 above, here are some resources online for you writers who may be looking for tools to help you grow. www.writingexcuses.comhttp://chrisoatley.com/category/paper-wings-show/https://www.masterclass.com/classes/james-patterson-teaches-writingP.S.In the meantime, I’ve been working at improving my drawing skills. You can see my work at my instagram account.
If I only had a ... #sketch #trainmyeye - jumped in with graphite today.
A photo posted by Corey Lansdell (@coreylansdell) on Sep 21, 2015 at 11:11pm PDT
Blessings,
Corey
http://coreylansdell.tumblr.com/post/120738945639/enjoyed-soccer-tonight-cutest-little-girl-had
It's been a great while since I posted on this blog. I just spent an hour fixing all the broken image links. So the site at least looks somewhat as it used to.
This post is going to be very short. I'm back on the horse. I'll be heading to Toronto in May with Kelly. He has recently been published through House of Anansi press for his work on the Outside Circle. A graphic novel of much import in relation to the First Nations community of Alberta and I'd say beyond. He'll be speaking at the seven cities writing conference and we intend to make use of the time there to connect with other creators as well as lean the ear of a few publishers.
My goal is to have 5 or so pages finished of my book to show them.
The push is on. We'll see what happens.
Good day!
Happy near end of summer!
| | | Hope you had some water fights this summer. |
It's been almost 2 months since the last feedback I received from the editor. Since then, I did some reworks to the book and re-submitted my script to them, which was about 5 weeks ago. I've exchanged a couple emails with them since then and the last indicated there would be further feedback. I'm finding the wait to be challenging. I really want to move forward on this book and I feel as thought time is slipping away.
My understanding is that the world of publishing operates at a slow pace. This could be an exercise in patients for me.
In the meantime, I did begin writing another story about a girl, her horse and a blizzard. I think I need to work on focusing on other projects as I wait to keep my mojo going.
I've also been working on a graphic novel script with my good friend and business partner, Kelly Mellings. It is going to be sooooo awesome! At least I think so.
Since Toronto, I feel a little bit broken. Haha. I feel as though I've seen the pasture I want to be in but between me and it there is a pack of wolves, a mountain, two raging rivers and possibly a troll under a bridge. It feels like it's going to be a good bit of work to get from here to there. I'm estimating that a full on transition from creative service work to full time work in children's books and YA literature will be about 5-7 years of HARD work.
Being 38 now, that feels rather daunting. However, if I can get there, I could have a good 20-30 years of productivity in that market.
I'm praying and struggling to be patient. I trust for the best and will keep my nose to the grind stone to do my part.
Blessings all!
P.S. If you are interested in writing fantasy novels or stories, check out this podcast. writingexcuses.com Great bits of information on writing in short 15 - 20 minute stints.
It’s been a month and a half since I was in Toronto for the Toronto Comic Arts Festival. Just over three weeks ago I delivered the rough manuscript and page roughs for SHELTER to one of the publishers we met while there.
| | | An illustration I did recently for a client. I was able to incorporate the older brother from Our 1984 - Shelter in the mix. |
Today, I received an email back. Let me just say, I am a strong believer in the collaborative process. The editor I’m in touch with didn’t jump on the work and tell me it’s the most amazing thing in the world rather, provided me with some strong constructive feedback. Here are a couple of paraphrased highlights it’s good that the book shows cooperative, imaginative play, between caring siblings rather than conflict between them. The story is structured well, the action scenes are very dynamic and kids will love them.I should delve deeper into the emotional core of the book. Provide context to the reader as to the reason for the imaginative play that the boys find themselves in. Here is a direct quote from the email. “That said, I also have some (hopefully constructive) criticism that I offer very much with an eye toward what is already on the market, and in hopes that Shelter can be a classic, too!”I’m very delighted to have received a constructive response like this. In my experience, collaboration with experts in their field yields tremendous results and in the end makes me look way better than I am on my own. haha!After receiving her email I spoke with my wife about it and she and I chatted through some possible approaches to writing in the emotional core more contextually. We both ended up in tears over it. Haha. I’m very motivated by this feedback and look forward to writing in some more meat to the story and seeing what else we can do to polish this story further. What a fun, challenging and exciting journey this is. Here are some links to stories that the editor suggested I look at as reference. I own JOURNEY (love that book) Thought you may enjoy them too. Journey by Aaron BeckerMATTLAND by Hazel Hutchins VIRGINIA WOLF by Kyo MaclearAnother quote from the editor regarding the stories above.
“…what makes each of these critically acclaimed is that—underneath it all—they're also about something else: boredom (in a digital age), community building (in soulless subdivisions), childhood depression (and creativity).”
A week and a half ago now I touched down at YEG Airport sitting in seat 25E (I think) next to a wonderful human being, talented artist and constant inspiration. We had just spent the last 4 hrs writing the script and some panel breakdowns for an Intellectual Property we’re working on. (IP if your in “the biz”) We were laughing until we cried at times, 4 hrs well spent. Kelly Mellings, my business partner had been invited to attend the Toronto Comics Arts Festival doing signings and a few speaking engagements to promote The Outside Circle, a graphic novel he illustrated in partnership with Dr. Patti Laboucane-Benson of Native Counselling Services of Alberta. I’m so proud of the work they did together and happy to have been a support as Kelly worked on the book.
TCAFI was able to make it out for the weekend as well and I filled my time taking in TCAF. What a great festival. So many people attended I got a little crowd crazed on Saturday, but I sure enjoyed perusing the creators work on display.
It was a very eclectic crowd as was the array of books and story’s available. TCAF is different than any convention I’ve attended, a sort of pool of story tellers who have produced a deluge of unique, heartfelt, meaningful, important, challenging and original stories. A large volume of creators there appeared to be promoting work they’ve been pursuing in their “spare” time apart from their day-to-day. If I could encapsulate my feelings about the Festival, it would be that it solidified the notion that this kind of work is a labour of love. This was apparent in everyone from the young novice to the master of the comic medium himself, Scott McCloud. I listened to a panel discussion featuring him, Raina Telgemeier, Professor Glen Downey and George O’Connor (which was very interesting and gave me a lengthy list of works to read). I also had the opportunity to speak with him briefly on three occasions.
He was promoting his new labour of love The Sculptor. It’s all of the descriptors I listed earlier and more. There are moments in this book where you are carried by the medium through time and emotion, in amazing ways. It’s a testament to the deep knowledge he posseses about sequential art. If you’re interested in the medium, read The Sculptor and his other books. The Sculptor does carry challenging themes around life, death and purpose and there are some sexy bits and language though their use all felt real and honest and not a "sex sells" kind of usage. I leave it to you to discern whether you read it and who you share it with. It’s extremely well done and will likely linger with me for a while. Mr. McCloud is a genuine, humble, enthusiastic creator. Meeting him and his wife Ivy was one of the highlights for me. Thank you for being a genuine, passionate creator and impacting the medium the way you have Scott McCloud.
I enjoyed listening to Patti and Kelly share about “The Outside Circle”. Couple of regular celebrities those two! In all seriousness, the audience for their talks was small but very engaged.
| | | Dr. Patti Laboucane-Benson and Kelly Mellings at the House of Anansi booth. |
This book is very impactful and full of important content. It was a delight to see them sitting at the House of Anansi table at the Festival. I also had the pleasure of meeting much of the team at Anansi as well. Tremendously talented, motivated, generous and engaged people. Overall, the festival, for me was a terrific experience. I’d definitely attend again. It was refreshing and inspiring to see so many people working so hard to promote their work.
MEETINGS WITH PUBLISHERSWe stayed on in Toronto until Wednesday and had two meetings, one with an Editorial Director and the other with a Publisher, both of whom will currently remain nameless. Oooooo mysterious, right?! Our meeting on Monday was very good. We displayed our portfolio from Pulp Studios Inc. and the response was warm. Particularly to the IP I mentioned in the opening of this post. Very exciting! We have some momentum now and purpose to make quick strides on it. I also shared Our 1984 with both Publishing Houses. One has expressed interest in seeing the manuscript and the page roughs. I presented 5 finished pages and some page roughs when we met. I also had the opportunity to express my larger vision of a series of books. It was great having someone express interest in the work. When we left the meeting on Monday I felt as though a weight had lifted. My intentions are to push this work out into the light, one way or the other but to have someone say it was lovely, or beautiful, or whatever they said in positive response to the art, (I can’t recall the precise words used now, it was kind of a sweaty palms moment) felt fantastic. They expressed that they wanted me to not complete any further pages but provide the manuscript and roughs so they can work with me on crafting something amazing. I’m very excited about what this may turn into.
| | | Our 1984 page 4 and 5 in my presentation to the publishers. |
Both meetings provided me some incite into the industry. It’s like a whole other world that we’ve only now scratched the surface of. I brought Our 1984 to the second Publishing House and was told that if the other has publisher expressed some interest, etiquette states that I offer them first right of refusal. Who knew? They stated that if I were doing a blanket submission to multiple publishers that I could choose to speak to more than one. The second publishing house also expressed interest in it and said they could see the potential for a series. There was more immediate feedback on the artwork, because they tend to publish more organic, natural feeling work. Our 1984 definitely has a more animated, cartoony feel to it. It was a great experience to get an opportunity to see a little bit about how this world works. NEXT STEPSKelly and I will be pushing more on our IP. I have already polished up the manuscript and need to complete my last page roughs to send along to the first Publisher. We’ll see what happens from there. I’m very excited about the road ahead. It’s a long road, we still need to push on Pulp while we work at completing these projects. Kelly and I both came home feeling that we had had a glimpse of the promised land and now need to work diligently to get there. The transition to shifting our revenue streams will not happen overnight, and nor should it, every thing worth doing takes some doing. Or something like that.
Blessings!
Hello! I've been doing stuff.What stuff you ask? Voila:1. I've been reading.A great read on writing - I guess I'd say it's been inspiring. I'm not sure that the progress of the writing was 100% a result of this book, however, it has given me much to think about. I'm still reading it. 2. I've completed the 32 page script for the book. That came together over the course of 2 evenings sitting in a hot bath typing away on my little 3Gs, iPhone. I've had this book on my mind for sooooo long that this process seemed to flow quite freely. Good? Bad? time will tell. 3. I've begun revisiting the style of the book. This came as a result of over a year of extra experience illustrating. In the past year I've coloured a full length comic book, created illustrations for an 11 minute motion graphic animation, built graphics and illustrations for 2 online games, had 2 illustrations featured in Applied Arts magazine. The bottom line is that in that bulk of work, I've grown. The book needs to reflect this. 4. I've now completed 5 pages of roughs for the book. The current goal is to rough the entire book and iron out any wrinkles in the story through this process. Then the work of illustrating finished pages will begin.
The wheels are back on the wagon. I'm pushing while the fire is burning. Stay tuned. In the meantime enjoy these (not so strong photographs) sneak peaks at what I've been up to.
This is a rough sketch of some stylistic exploration and costuming for the protagonists.
Here is a sneak peak at the page roughs. Blessings
Esteemed friends. It is in moments of frustration that I sometimes find so much clarity. As I worked late last night, wrestling with a challenging illustration for a very large project I'm working on, I decided it's time to get back on the Our 1984 wagon. It's been my experience that my personality type leans toward going through cycles of motivation. Especially in regards to self-initiated projects such as Our 1984. I usually start big and get a lot of ground work established. It's in this stage of my work that I fall into what I consider a bit of trap. If things are coming together well with the project I start to fantasize about all the praise and accolades that will come my way, as well as great financial reward and fame. It's much like a bad movie montage where I'm surrounded by adoring fans and doting promoters, all filmed with soft focus, warm lighting and an inspirational sound track. I seem to develop this false sense of success pretty quickly. It's great for a time and the motivation seems to flow so easily during that delusional state. Unfortunately the delusion fades pretty quickly and then slowly I fall away from my goals.
Granted, my life is far from unsaturated with work and responsibility. It's easy to see how a side project gets shelved. I sense the motivation coming back around. I'm not talking about the pie in the sky motivation though. That ship has sailed. Now I see the massive undertaking before me and feel the desire to pick up the torch and press on into the unknown. My business partner has done some reading in the area of writing for comics, film and popular media. He's a constant source of suggestions for good books and valuable information to help the creative process. The next steps for me will be to gradually reintroduce myself to my project. Take a long objective look at it and make sure I am on the right path with it. Part of this process will include doing some more reading. I'm going to familiarize myself with the books I started reading in the beginning of this process and also begin reading some more in depth books on writing.
I'm not sure there will be a lot of visual development during this stage beyond sketches and thumbnails. I'll be sure to post those as they come to fruition.
It's time to get this ball rolling again.
In other news - Pulp Studios is featured right now on the Applied Arts Website. http://www.appliedartsmag.com/profiles.php?id=26 Go read the article! It's pretty great.
Blessings everyone.
Corey
I sit here trying to work, as my 6 year old daughter, who ails with the stomach flu, asks me questions and shows me her drawings of bleeding dinosaurs. As I turn back to my monitor the 'new email' chime sounds and I go to my inbox. My work isn't flowing right now any way so I may as well check my email. It's a newsletter from goodreads. Here is what I read as I open the email.
NOTE: the image no longer exists but it told me that I started reading a book that I was reading in relation to creating my kids book over 1 year ago from the date of this post.
How discouraging. It's been more than a year since I began my mission of writing and illustrating Our 1984. I haven't done it. I have barely even scratched the surface. Where do I go from here? Where is the line where I say to my self, "you're crazy, you need to let it go." My business is getting more and more busy and family life is also increasing in demand. Perhaps it's all a naive vision that is not attainable in my present life situation. I am in the process of whittling away at my work load, re-evaluating my work flow and trying to attain balance in my life and work. If I can somehow achieve this I can perhaps refocus and apply 1 or 2 hours here and there to the project. I'm currently illustrating a small children's book for an old friend. Once that is done my extracurricular art plate will be empty and may be begging for content. Perhaps then I'll dive back in. It's hard to realize I've seen so much time go by with so little progress on something I want to do.
Anyway. Reality hurts and pisses me off.
Here's to the hope that I get my ducks in a row.
Hey everyone. It's been sooo long since I posted here. I come to you now with news of a special sort. On October first we opened our online store at (NOTE: The store no longer exists, but we are happy to take orders for prints by contacting us at service@pulpstudios.ca) www.pulpstudios.ca. The store is our portal for selling limited edition prints. The first print we are selling is Victory March, which won the Applied Arts Illustration Award this year.
The prints are $45 CAD and can be shipped to you or, if you live in the Edmonton area, you can order them with special instructions for pickup to save yourself the shipping costs.
I truly hope we will sell out of this limited edition run of 228 prints and would like to ask you to look at the site, consider a purchase and if not, pass the site on to someone you think would like the print. This is the first of many Pulp Studios Limited Edition prints to come and as such, I believe, it will one day be a collector item.
So visit the site and pass on the site. Thank you for your time.
Hey everybody,
It's been over a month since my last post. It's been a busy month! I haven't had opportunity to work on Our 1984 but have instead been tremendously busy getting Pulp Studios off the ground with Kelly while managing client work for my other business Live Pixel Design. I've also had the opportunity over the past month to do some painting in live venues. Once for a local musicians cd release party and once for a fund raising function at a local church. The work for Live Pixel Design has included a very fun animation project. Three animated shorts designed to help students in grade 2 learn some Math concepts. I thought it would be fun to share some of the concept work for that here.
I've been setting the characters up in Flash and created a few test animations to see how the process will work. I thought it'd be fun to share those with you here as well.
In the next month I will be making time for Our 1984, I've neglected this passion project far too much and haven't created dedicated time for it. I am again inspired to move forward with the project by the very person who initially inspired me to take it on.
Nate Simpson, the illustrator and author behind the awesome looking comic book he's been working on this past year. Instead of being disappointed by my lack of commitment I want to encourage you to check out his blog. He is one of the most fan appreciative people I've ever seen and has a great knack for writing. His blog posts on the process of writing, illustrating and pimping his comic book are absolutely entertaining. Check out his blog. You won't be disappointed!
http://projectwaldo.blogspot.com/
Peace.
I'll be in touch soon.
Corey
He's so cute! Behold the mighty Troll. As you may know already, a few months back my hard drive was wiped clean during an attempted install of windows xp on my mac. In that tragedy was lost two concept paintings of a troll. Well here, back from the dead or re-illustrated I guess you could say, is the mighty troll. Below are a few concept sketches and notes about the design both esthetically and conceptually.
The silhouettes on the page above were instrumental in coming to the final design seen in the painting of the troll.
Esthetically, the troll lends from a few contemporary sources. The trolls of the Lord of the Rings films and the Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. I find the designs in the Zelda games to always very successfully walk the line between cute and scary. I'm trying to achieve that balance and found looking back at The Wind Waker in particular very helpful.
Below you can see the real strength in the concept of the troll. I'm excited because the troll will be used in the story to carry the idea that sometimes life's challenges can seem larger and more potent than they truly are. Trolls are actually little potato shaped creatures who drive an exo-skeleton. By nature trolls are fearful and cowardly, they drive these large bodies to give themselves strength and to intimidate those who would threaten them. This design feature will be used as a vehicle to convey concepts around courage, fear, bullying and anxiety. It has become increasingly important to me, as I think about Our 1984, to understand how creating this story is allowing me to reflect on my own life experiences, and how the story could be used to encourage children facing similar experiences.
I'm very pleased with the design of the troll, both esthetically and conceptually. It occurs to me that finding new ways to explore classic mythological creatures is both challenging and rewarding. Next up, Goblins. I've got a few ideas for them sketched out already. Until next time then!
Hey everyone. No, I haven't abandoned ship. I've just been rowing in a different direction for over a month. Unfortunately, I have nothing new to share with you regarding Our 1984. In light of that fact I thought I'd welcome you back on board with me by sharing with you what has caused this recent temporal anomaly that has eaten the last 2 months without even a thank you.
We'll start with the most recent events and work our way backwards. Today, no more than a mere 5 minutes ago in fact, well maybe 15, my son was howling in his room (inappropriate for 12 am on a Monday morning, but then...he's 2 so what does he know, as far as he's concerned he is the world around which we all orbit.) Anyway, I digress. No more than a mere 20 minutes ago I posted a blog entry on Pulp Studios blog regarding the process I used to create my first ad for our new company. "Whoah, whoah wait a minute ... company? Pulp Studios? ad?" you may be saying. Ok, I've been blessed with a great opportunity to connect with a good friend of mine from high school who is an outstanding, incredible illustrator and artist. For the past 2 years we have worked on contract together at Alberta Education and decided in recent months to form an illustration studio together - yes, Pulp Studios. We are placing ads in Applied Arts in 2010, one in July and one in October.
It fell on me to create the first ad. Well, I'm done... early... the deadline for submission isn't until April. At any rate, you can read that blog post here if you wish. In the interim, below is said illustration. It will be printed at 3.5" by 5.25" or so, but I've built it at 300dpi at a size of 15" x 19" because we've discussed the possibility of creating prints of our self promo illustrations. This piece was largely inspired, stylistically speaking by the work of Jon Foster, whom I've touted the praises of often in this blog. The great thing about this is that I will no doubt bring techniques that I have learned during this process into my work for Our 1984 as well. Please feel free to comment on the piece. I love feedback, constructive or otherwise.
UPDATE: this piece won an Applied Arts Award in the 2010 Illustration Annual as a Self Promotion entry.
Moving on, Kelly and I recently finished a large project for Alberta Education. It set us back some in our timelines, I blame this beast for the scourging of my time, the previously displayed work was like a cooing dove perched in a cage of gold plated metal. Below are a few images from this piece so you can see a little of what went into it. The finished product won't be live online for a few more months.
My business partner Kelly did a majority of the work on the GUI... all the buttons and stuff. The shots here contain still frames from a 2.5 minute long orientation animation that I built for it.
That was fun, challenging and took a very long time.
Well, there you have it. I do hope to get back to Our 1984 soon. First there is the small matter of finding work for the next few months. I'm not worried, consider the lilies of the field and the birds of the air, they always have what they need, God loves us so much more than they... why shouldn't I believe He will keep providing for us.
Blessings. Forge ahead. Keep looking up ... unless you're driving ... or walking for that matter.
Corey
Welcome back!
I've completed the character turnaround for the younger brother. As well as a comparison sheet so you can see the brothers side by side to scale. I'll share those here as well as a character snap shot similar to the image of the older brother fleeing from the killer bee I posted earlier. I feel that I am becoming familiar with the process I'm implementing for the work. I am apprehensively pleased with that. The familiarity means the work flow is tighter and quicker I just need to be conscious as I work or in that familiarity the work may become stale. I need to be purposefully pushing myself in that familiarity of design and work flow to try and develop sound, interesting and lasting images. What a wonderful, wearying and enriching process this has proven to be, and I haven't even broke ground on the finished content of the book yet.
Before I post the character designs here are a few images of my process. I begin with rough sketches and use my makeshift light table to create cleaner line drawings. I then ink those line drawings using brushes. The brushes are taking some getting used to and I think I may need to make another trip to the art store to expand my tool set. Right now I am using two brushes. One for line and the other for tonal washes.
NOTE: the images listed below are missing from the interwebs currently.
Not sure where they are in all my old folders files etc. :(
My makeshift light table. Two fluorescent compact bulbs on an extension cord in our coffee table.
On the light table.
Transferred to the BFK Reeves paper.
Finished ink line work. Prior to adding tones.
Here are the character turnarounds.
I've been reading Illustrating Children's Books: Creating Pictures for Publication by Martin Salisbury (Course director for the first school in the UK to offer an MA in Children's Book Illustration). Being new to the world of Children's Book Illustrations is great! I've discovered many new illustrators and have enjoyed learning about the history of the craft. One such illustrator who I came across is Winsor McCay. His work stuck out to me because he broke ground in the way in which he used sequence in his work. The following is an excerpt from the aforementioned book:
Winsor McCay's contribution to the development of sequential art for children is immeasurable. His Little Nemo in Slumberland is widely recognized as a work of genius that paved the way for much subsequent invention in comics and children's books. The strip first appeared in the New York Herald in 1905, and over the years McCay became increasingly daring with its design, structure, and content.
The above image sequence was included with the text in Salisbury's book. My story will include some sequential elements, many of which are narrow and vertical, very similar in size ratio to the panels in this sequence. Needless to say I was excited when I came across this work. It's so imaginative and such a joy to read (the image included here has dialogue in an Asian dialect sorry). I love how the final panel acts as a period to the sequence, being 1/3 the size of the other panels and a shade of colour closer to the first six panels. It ties the sequence together visually and punctuates the story perfectly.
I'll be posting more of my own work in the near future but just wanted to share a small chunk of the info that I have been absorbing during this process.
Blessings.
My, how time flies. It's been 19 days since my most recent post. My apologies, life has been very busy, but that's not why you are all here so I will spare you all the wonderful details. This post will take you through a very quick breakdown of some of the processes I've gone through with backgrounds.
It occurred to me the other day, as I wrestle feverishly with a test background for Our 1984, that I am approaching part of the layout of the book in a similar fashion one would an animation. This has not occurred by any planning on my part. Which leads me to believe I'm either relying on my previous experiences with animation or it's an indication of the desires of my inner creative core. Like a pack of renegade toddlers ambushing me from the thicket, this took me by surprise because I have tried to approach this whole project with a great deal of intent. When I realized I had been ambushed, I stopped production for a brief moment to look at some of the illustrated stories we own. It seems that many illustrators create images on one surface, providing a very unified and cohesive feel to the work. Look at the work of David Small for example, in The Money Tree, he uses watercolour to create some beautiful and coherent images. No trickery or composing digitally included (I assume). He's so good... drool! Anyways... I digress. After looking through some books I began to question my approach and I engaged in an internal dialogue that went something like this:
corey: Perhaps I should be painting the characters completely in so they match the backgrounds entirely?
Corey: No no, I'm way too happy with the way the characters are rendering using digital and analog techniques.
corey: You don't even know what you're talking about. Look at David Small... Hello!
Corey: I know ... gee maybe I'm right.
corey: Exactly. You're right.
Corey: I am?
corey: Yah.
Corey: Yah I'm right. Just follow my instincts. My gut tells me this is the right path. Thanks!
corey: You're welcome.
This whole conversation reminded of the inspirational interview with Greg Manchess where he discussed the importance of authenticity. (See previous post Sept 26)
Forging on, after realizing that I had unconsciously begun working on the backgrounds, I embraced the idea of integrating the characters (rendered using ink and digital colouring) into backgrounds which feel reminiscent of those found in animated films or cartoons (completely painted in photoshop). I'm aware of challenges this may create in relation to perspective and scale but welcome them wholeheartedly.
Without further adieu I give you "background test 1". (Click it to enlarge the image)
This test background was painted digitally in Photoshop using my 12" Wacom Cintiq screen. I can't recall at this moment if I have mentioned I will be doing a portion of the book in Black and White and the other portion in colour. Well now I have for sure. Keep in mind this was the first crack at the background cat and although the image may not feature in the finished book; it has given me some solid building blocks for illustrating the backgrounds.
1. As I worked on the image I continually asked myself the question, "How far can I push the fantasy in the coloured backgrounds?" (The coloured sections of the book are the sections where the brothers are in their imagined play time) I was making conscious choices as I went along to keep the image on the border of fantasy and reality. I feel it will be important to the story for the boys imagined play time to still be grounded to reality.
2. Because of the setting of this story it is important for the backgrounds to reference rural Alberta. Thus you see rolling hills, a large sky, and mountains in the distance. Even though the rocky mountains were not visible from the acreage we grew up on, they have always held a magical and fantastic quality for me. As a child, they were ever on the horizon of my mind.
3. For this book, Shelter, the imagined part of the story takes place in a medieval land where wizardry, dragons and the like exist. The castle in the background gives indication of this as does perhaps the stature of the tree and path on the left hand side of the image.
4. It will be of utmost importance to me as I create this book to be very mindful of composition. In this image I have tried to create an engaging composition using light, colour, object placement and atmospheric perspective. I recently came across an interview with comic artist Phil Jimenez in which he discusses composition and storytelling. He describes the process of creating panels for comic books as "choreographing my own movie; part of it, I guess, is imagining if I was the director who had to shoot this film or cartoon, how would I do it? What shots would I pick? What angles? How would i tell the story and have it make sense to anyone?" Great thoughts! I'm going to hold on to those as I go through this process.
5. The storm in the top right hand corner will also feature in the story. I'm not telling how ... you need to buy the finished book for that little bit of info. wink, wink
There you have it. A quick glimpse into backgrounds. I've been working on more of the character designs as well and will have more for you on that next time around. As I mentioned at the outset of this post, life is very busy, so I will have more content up here asap.
Blessings
Corey
Hey there gang! Buckle up! In this post you'll see early concept work for the characters in the book as well as some finished concept items.
The sketches helped me immensely with the process of arriving at the final style for the illustrations in the book. You can probably notice a struggle in this series of sketches to maintain conformity across the rendering of the character. It wasn't my intention during this exercise of drawing expressions to vary the style...it just happened. It took me a while to realize that perhaps I should begin with creating model sheets for the characters. The sketches below were done after having finished half of the model sheet for the younger brother. They took me a fraction of the time the above sketches did... not only because of the lower amount of rendering on them but because I had a character model sheet to reference. Too much logic for me.
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The character turnaround for the older brother in the story (seen above) is one of the building blocks for consistent character rendering throughout the story. This is one portion of the finished concept work. I will be doing the remaining angles so I have a view of him from his right side as well and I will also be doing a close up of his head in the same fashion. These will act as my primary model sheets for the design of the characters which I will reference throughout the creation of the rest of the book.
The following images are examples of some of the experimentation I've been doing with different mediums. I believe I've set my mind to doing the book using India Ink brushing lines and washes to define the character. I'm still experiment with how I will render the backgrounds and hope to have something done in that area soon. Some really exciting things going on there... I can't wait to share them with you.
The image of the older brother running in utter terror from a pursuing bumble bee is a finished example of how I intend to render the characters. The process marries ink and ink wash analog illustrations with colours done in photoshop on my Cintiq tablet. It's a very fun and interesting process and I love that fact that it combines elements of my fine arts roots with my more recent digital career.
Well, there you go. I hope that you've found this interesting enough to come back for my next post. Until then I'll be finishing the character model sheets and playing some more with background rendering. T-T-F-N... Ta ta for now.
Hello everyone. It's been an interesting week. I've been diligently working away at a 3 minute animation piece for Alberta Education. I'm very busy with this and have been unable to do any work beyond a few small sketches and making some notes for concept work for Our 1984. I wanted to share my dismay with you at the events of the early part of this week. I won't bore you with the graphic details but instead will cut to the chase and spill the nasty conclusion untempered by warning or lead in. So...my hard drive on my computer crashed. I had most of my data backed up but lost some concept work for Our 1984. Booooo! I lost the raw files for my background works and two concept paintings I was working on for my trolls in the story.
Such a shame. I was very excited about the direction those painting were taking. I guess... I can do it over again and apply what I learned the first time I did it, and I have all my notes and analog sketches. So I haven't lost a lot of conceptual ground, just work time.
On a more positive note. I spent a good part of today taking part in an online seminar with Mr. Jon Foster, one of the most amazing contemporary illustrators. He is an excellent teacher and the seminar was really informative. I'm hoping I can apply some of the tidbits I received during this awesome event. His work always blows my mind. I have a link for his work under the illustrators/artists I admire heading in the right column of this page.
I'm still on hiatus due to my current workload, but will be getting back at this book in the new year. I hope you are all well.
Blessings
Hey everyone,
Just a few thoughts I wanted to share.
I'm still going through Illustrating Children's Books by Martin Salisbury. One section of the book deals with creating a sense of place in your images. The focus here is on using location drawing to inform your studio drawing. This has caused me to consider the spaces in which my characters will dwell. There are three main environments in Our 1984: Shelter.
1. The interior of their house - bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, living room.
2. The exterior of their house and the countryside.
3. The countryside and grasslands of the imagined space they explore during their playing.
It's always been my desire, right from the moment I conceived of this story, that the environments in these books would be just as rich in character as the children. I have a feeling that task may be more challenging than I currently perceive it to be. Martin Salisbury writes about the benefits of location drawing in developing environments:
"The benefits of location work range from the primarily technical (namely, the ability to draw many things and from many angles) to less tangible ones associated with inspiration and atmosphere."
I think I may need to try and carve out some time to go to the country and do some sketches in order to better acquaint myself with the Alberta countryside. The downside of this is that winter is approaching and my story is set in Summer. I suppose even if I can get a handle on aspects of form, depth and perspective I can translate a fall scene into a summer scene by way of colour and some research into summer photos of Alberta.
Though I am very familiar with the Alberta countryside I want to be careful not to slip into a place of drawing from my memory completely. I believe in order for the character of the environments to come forth I will need to examine and include plant life native to the prairies.
As for the interior of the house. This will prove a little more tricky as the story is set 25 years ago. The house that I remember as a child has been greatly renovated and, though very beautiful now, has none of its former eightiesness. I will likely have to rely on memory and photographs to achieve a sense time and place for those scenes inside the house.
I'm so excited to get back to my book in full force, it appears as though that won't happen until the new year. For now I will continue to do some small amounts of reading and continue to sketch and work out concepts for some of the supporting characters. I had a major breakthrough the other day on the design of the trolls for this story. I won't go into detail here right now because it's something I want to share when the concept visuals are complete. It's very exciting though as it gives the trolls a few layers of interpretation and metaphors for story telling.
Well. That's all I've got for you today. Until next time, love large and dwell in the light.
Corey
Hello friends. As I am on a forced hiatus due to work commitments I felt the need to include a quick post here on some of the learning I've been doing related to style and character concepts.
In the book, The Skillful Huntsman: visual development of a Grimm tale at Art Center College of Design, three concept artists chronicle their approach to concept work for the main characters in the Grimm tale The Skillful Huntsman. It's a great book for anyone who is learning about concept art and design. There are many very good points of learning in this book. One that stuck out to me, and I feel applies to the antagonists in my story, is to be conscious of the balance between familiarity and strangeness. I'm in the middle of concept work on some of the fairytale creatures that the two boys will be facing in the story. My first concepts are feeling too "grown up" and perhaps too familiar as well. Because this story is meant for a younger audience I need to be carefully considering this balance. The creatures must be strange enough to be interesting and familiar enough to be believable and imposing, but not overly frightening. Their purpose in the story is to represent danger, fear, anxiety and the unknown, but that needs to be conveyed without bruising any little peaches. I certainly wouldn't want any children having nightmares because of this book.
In regards to the familiarity of the creatures:
1. I don't want to completely rely on my experiences of what I've seen and enjoyed of fairytale creatures. For example, I'm working on a concept for a troll right now and as I watched The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings last night I realized that I had scooped the trolls hands and feet straight from that film. I have a large bank of fairytale creatures stored up in this old head of mine. I want to be careful not to default, even subconsciously, to that bank. If in the process I see the value in keeping something familiar then yes, I'll keep it that way, I just want to be careful to be aware of that choice in my designs.
2. I want to be sensitive to the need for some familiarity in terms of keeping to basic tenets of fairytale creature design, insomuch as the kind of creatures they face. The basic fairytale baddies: trolls, goblins, wolfs, spiders, etc.
While working on these concepts I have again come back to thinking about style. This recurring theme in my learning has proven to be of great encouragement to me as I let go of my old thinking on the subject. I used to look at artists work whom I admired and strive to illustrate in an identical manner to them, believing that if I could achieve that "look" then I'd be successful. I realize now that this is not the key to my work being strong and memorable. It lies in the strength of the drawing itself. I feel a release to be true to my self in my work and pursue visions and images in which way feels most natural to me. I keep coming back to Martin Salisbury's book Illustrating Children's Books in my posts. When his students query him on the subject of style he informs them that they won't be learning about "style." In his words,
"Style is a word that other people use when talking about your work. If your drawing is to develop naturally, with integrity, it is vital that you do not consciously pursue a "style." The process of working honestly, and with a passion for your subject matter, will allow your work to evolve and develop its own identity."
Easily read, but not as easily done, especially when I've spent most of my life wanting to be able to draw like so and so. Fact is, there are a great many artists who's work I love and am inspired by. I don't think those inspirations and influences will fall null and void in the visual language of my work, but I find myself feeling motivated to just develop my drawing and observational skills and allow the feel and look of my work to take shape more naturally.
In the next month and a bit my work demands will continue to limit my time to work on Our 1984. I will be fitting time in here and there and will continue to share my thoughts with you until I can present you with some content of a more visually compelling flavour.
Blessings and health to you all.
This post will address a burning question which seems to be on the minds of a few interested followers.
Is the 1984 in the title a reference to Orwell?
The short answer is no, there is no reference to Orwell.
The "however's" are as follows:
1. I am aware of the fact that people will probably have a recall of Orwell's work upon reading the title.
2. I am not concerned by this because my story sits in a completely different realm to his work.
3. I am by no means trying to say that my piece should sit in the same echelon of literary prowess by using the date in the title.
4. I am, in one sense, counting on people to find curiosity about my book by recalling Orwell's work when they read the title. The more curiosity the better, I figure. When people who read the story because of a curiosity with the title they will find Our 1984 very different from Orwell's work and would be hard pressed to find any intentional similarities.
So what does the title mean?
It is chronological, I was 7 in 1984 and my brother was 9. As I stated in a previous post, the story is somewhat autobiographical...1984 was a year of great significance in our lives. I find it much easier to write about what I know so I'm writing from my experiences as I relate them to that year. The book is about these two boys and how they journey through life together in their waking, sleeping, eating, playing, fighting, imagining ... everything. (Obviously not everything will be touched on in one book -- thus the hope that the first book is successful so I can continue the series beyond Shelter)
There is a second tier to the meaning of the title that I hope people will connect with. It is my intention to invite those of my generation to relate to the title through their own experiences of that year and era. I hope to strengthen this by way of the references, styling of clothing, background objects and spaces. It's my desire that some of us with young children today can pick up the book and feel elated to have an artifact which we can share with them. An artifact that speaks to our experiences from that era. I hope that when they read the title Our 1984, they feel in part it is Their 1984.
I hope that takes a little of the mud off your windshields. Thanks for asking, let's keep the conversation going.