Artsy-Fartsy discussion

How have you incorporated art into your writing?

Creating a map for my Sons of Avalon: Merlin's Prophecy novel, was both time consuming and frustrating. Maps are hard to draw, especially when it depicts an actual places. It is so important to get the tiniest details correct. Having a coastline slightly off, or marking a town a fraction of an inch to the left was not an option.

Nearly all of my readers have thanked me for the maps inclusion; however, there were days that I wished I had commissioned someone else to draw it.

Dee Marie

Hi Teri,

I put off creating the map until a month before the novel went to the print. I tend to put off detailed work until the very end (which is never a good thing), and then I become myopic and work around-the-clock to make my deadlines. Not sure why, but I seem to do my best work under pressure, which is a huge personality flaw.

Do you work best under pressure; or are you more of a planner than a procrastinator?

Have you gone over to the "dark side" and delved into CG art (as in working with Poser, or Vue), or do you prefer the more traditional artistic route while working in Photoshop?

Do you use Photoshop to create original images, or do you use it for photographic enhancements?

Dee Marie

Hey Teri,

Not a strange bag at all. Art is the purest form of storytelling. I am constantly pushing the boundaries of Photoshop, mixing original artwork, with scans, photography, and words. There is not a single day that I do not open Photoshop.

Basically, Poser is a shortcut to creating 3D figures. I use it as a modeling tool, or when I am too lazy to draw from scratch, or I am up against a deadline.

It can be impossible to find a model who will come over to your house and pose for a drawing after midnight...especially when the model in question is a dragon. That is when Poser comes into play. It is not unlike a grown-up playing with virtual three-dimensional paper dolls.

Poser is one of the easier CG programs to master, and it can also be the most expensive in way of purchasing add-ons. There are actual online storefronts that deal exclusively in Poser items (characters, clothes, props, backgrounds).

Where Poser is pre-modeled and geared to the novice CG artist, Vue is geared to the advanced digital artist. The creation of complex environmental scenes can take hours to render. I have no patience for Vue, but I love the images created by those who do.

I would imagine that your husband is more familiar with LightWave, Maya, and 3dsMax.

I personally, love my Photoshop. Which of course is not a 3D program (although the newer version allow you to work in 3D mode). Long rendering times just strain my patience. I tend to fidget too much :]

Many graphic novels are an excellent artsy-fartsy blend of Poser and writing.

Do you have any of your artwork posted to the web?