Centernia: Building a Castle

Bond: West with the Night Album: Play 2012 No secret, I have an obsession with string players.  Bond's music gets me every time.  West with the Night was the music that inspired Chapter 50 of Return to the Castle (which...technically was a chapter about flying north into the night...buuuuuuut close enough). As a bonus, this is Bond playing Winter from Vivaldi's Four Seasons.

I'm really excited to have a  short story ready for a Christmas release! 2014 has been crazy and amazing.  I say this over and over again, but I am so grateful to everyone who purchased a copy of Centernia, and completely humbled by the people who took the time to reach out, say hi, post a like, or follow Centernia on a social network.  I have been living with this tiny universe for almost two decades, and it was terrifying to share it with the world.  The fact that there are people who enjoyed the story enough to want to know more is so motivating. I wanted to start releasing short stories because there will be nearly a year between each full novel.   To go so long without sharing a tale seems a terrible waste of the internet.  Short stories are also fun because I can reveal more about each character.  The story belongs to Jessi and Nico, but there are too many interesting people around them to not take the time to explore. In high school I enjoyed creating little poems and

Note: To best view these images, open this article in the stand-alone blog: here The images used are sourced from retail outlets and fashion articles. I've cited all links in the captions.  Basic Centernian Fashion http://www.indianattire.com/ I'm happily in the process of drawing comprehensive character designs for Centernia. In order to do so, I've assembled an array of references which I've been asked to share. :-) Centernian clothing is a combination of styles, the most common influences are Indian and Art Nouveau .  Clothing is often governed by asymmetrical lines, displayed in either cut, pattern or decoration. Nature is the inspiration for patterns, which are often based on fish, feathers, and flowers .   Laces and buttons are common and zippers are very rare. Jewelry is popular among all classes, and earnings are worn by both genders. Color vibrancy and class are connected.  Low-class citizens, such as the people of Rockwood, typically wear

I was poking around Tumblr and discovered my friend Cat Razim drew Centernia art, (and she was nice enough to throw my book in the photo).  All her sketches are nice, but I LOVE her Kaity design, especially the hair.  It captures Kaity so well.  I find it hilarious that artists who draw my characters often create depictions closer to what exists in my mind.  It's like my brain can't seem to communicate with my hand.