Writer’s Journal: Character Sketches 01
There are many different ways into a new story. This time I decided to draw the main characters and some of their items for a fantastic new tale. Hunter and Bain feature in a number of stories, but this one is the end of a linear time sequence, so I’m trying to keep the exposition down to a bare minimum which helps the mystery of the narrative and allows a swifter flow of action.
I’ve been exploring some horror and steampunk themes recently so discovering a Venetian flintlock set me onto a new path. At some point I hope to make some images available as part of the promotion for the books, or integrated into the books themselves. I’m undecided because I prefer to build word pictures and engage with readers to create worlds together rather than be overtly prescriptive.
Anyway, here’s a simple infographic on how to turn a pencil sketch into a simple digital painting. It’s helped me clarify my approach and might be of some interest.
Writing Tips
From The New York Times, an interesting article on character development, here.
From onceuponasketch, Joss Wheedon’s top writing tips for movie writers but useful for all writers, here.
And some other posts on this site you might be interested in:
Writer’s Journal: The Struggle to Write
Writer’s Journal: The Time vs equality Equation.
Other writing links in These Fantastic Worlds can be found here.
Do you have any other strategies for creating characters? I’d be interested in your comments.
Filed under: Fiction, General, Writer's Advice Tagged: Dark fantasy, digital art, Horror, infographic, steampunk
