Sounds to me like you did a LOT of thinking before posting this! 😁 all I know is we're so grateful for everything you show us, it's all so fascinating and exciting - the designs are 👌 I just can't wait for the stories to get going now! Thanks again, take care and don't work too hard!
😯😯😯 Not sure which character has me the most intrigued. Might be Romu just on abilities alone because there's a lot of fun to be had there, but you KNOW I gotta stan Nida already because us science misfit ladies gotta stick together (seriously, nothing kills a conversation like telling someone you're a biology major). And of course already loving that lil furry guy, Mister Starlight!
Thanks for sharing Kelly! Hope you had a relaxing holiday weekend with your loved ones!
Those are all good picks. Shifters are incredibly cool in idea. It's always the most fun to play at the edges of these things isn't it? Like for all our trolls and fairies and elves...I find myself extra excited by Shifters and Dracona and such. The biggest problem so far in working with Meredith on this is that every new design she turns in I decide I want to scrap the book and make it a new book about THAT character instead - they're all so good! Never more true than when she turned in pages for a flashback sequence this week with Young Phaedra and a Young Freyal (you guys haven't met him yet). I was like okay this is just an adorable kids book now, forget the murders and intrigue! lol
Hope you enjoyed your weekend Kelly, and good luck with the workload! (Maybe I missed it, but I'm curious, where are all the Black cloaks in Black Cloak?)
Ha. Sorry. Went right over my head. I think I'm too used to the confrontational nature of twitter and not our lovely community here!
But it's something I haven't actually talked about much on here yet - I definitely think of Black Cloak being a title inspired a bit by Blade Runner - and the rarity of the person that can be a Blade Runner. That's definitely very true of Black Cloaks - they are very rare as there aren't many capable or willing to do the job. INTRIGUE!
I'm one of those folks who wasn't able to check out this post until today but I'm super glad you posted it! (And super-appreciate the thought you put into the decision *whether* to post it.) These designs are faboo! I am typically not drawn to the fantasy genre unless there is some other kind of hook to intrigue me. (I'm a superfan of the Dresden Files, which is full of wizards, vampires, werewolves, fairies, etc. but I never would have started it if it hadn't been focused on a wizard/private detective in Chicago.) I'm psyched for Black Cloak because of the mixture of magic and science, designs like these, and my complete confidence based on your past work that you're gonna make me fall in love with the characters (even the jerks like Jessup).
Anyway, hope you were able to enjoy your holiday and I can't wait for Black Cloak specifically and just more stuff from you, in general!
Thanks, Rob! And I'm really glad you're into what we're showing off here - always good to hear that!
I love The Dresden Files. I got into it in such a backwards way - listening to an audiobook of book 1 simply because I was a fan of James Marsters (and his voice!) and I needed something for a long commute (I also am obviously super into Detective stories as well as supernatural/fantasy/sci-fi stuff too - so thought the content might be a good fit too) - and I think I listened to a dozen of them? Really got into them, actually. I only stopped because my commute ended and I lost that time I could devote to audio books and podcasts.
What a coinky-dink! I *literally* started listening to a James Marsters-voiced Dresden Files story YESTERDAY. I had read all of the Dresden Files novels until Jim Butcher took a hiatus or something back in 2014. But I had never read any of the short stories. I had a bit of a road trip yesterday, so I started listening to a collection of short stories called Brief Cases. And, you're right. James Marsters rocks as Dresden!
One more thing and then I'll shut up about the Dresden Files. Butcher's writing new books again! There are two new ones, I believe. So, I'm slowly but surely re-reading the entire series to be completely fresh 'n' ready for the new stuff. OK, byyyyeeeee!
Sounds to me like you did a LOT of thinking before posting this! 😁 all I know is we're so grateful for everything you show us, it's all so fascinating and exciting - the designs are 👌 I just can't wait for the stories to get going now! Thanks again, take care and don't work too hard!
This is all so cool! Thanks for sharing, Kelly! Very much looking forward to this!
😯😯😯 Not sure which character has me the most intrigued. Might be Romu just on abilities alone because there's a lot of fun to be had there, but you KNOW I gotta stan Nida already because us science misfit ladies gotta stick together (seriously, nothing kills a conversation like telling someone you're a biology major). And of course already loving that lil furry guy, Mister Starlight!
Thanks for sharing Kelly! Hope you had a relaxing holiday weekend with your loved ones!
Those are all good picks. Shifters are incredibly cool in idea. It's always the most fun to play at the edges of these things isn't it? Like for all our trolls and fairies and elves...I find myself extra excited by Shifters and Dracona and such. The biggest problem so far in working with Meredith on this is that every new design she turns in I decide I want to scrap the book and make it a new book about THAT character instead - they're all so good! Never more true than when she turned in pages for a flashback sequence this week with Young Phaedra and a Young Freyal (you guys haven't met him yet). I was like okay this is just an adorable kids book now, forget the murders and intrigue! lol
Honestly, I love a side of sweetness, like some adorable kiddos, mixed in with my murder and intrigue so it totally works! 😜
Ah the character designs look great! Looking forward to this!
Hope you enjoyed your weekend Kelly, and good luck with the workload! (Maybe I missed it, but I'm curious, where are all the Black cloaks in Black Cloak?)
I...am not sure I understand the question? The Essex and Pax designs have them wearing their Black Cloaks? https://1979semifinalist.substack.com/p/black-cloak-behind-the-scenes-1
Yeah it was mostly a joke because no one in the preview you shared today had a black cloak on
Ha. Sorry. Went right over my head. I think I'm too used to the confrontational nature of twitter and not our lovely community here!
But it's something I haven't actually talked about much on here yet - I definitely think of Black Cloak being a title inspired a bit by Blade Runner - and the rarity of the person that can be a Blade Runner. That's definitely very true of Black Cloaks - they are very rare as there aren't many capable or willing to do the job. INTRIGUE!
I'm one of those folks who wasn't able to check out this post until today but I'm super glad you posted it! (And super-appreciate the thought you put into the decision *whether* to post it.) These designs are faboo! I am typically not drawn to the fantasy genre unless there is some other kind of hook to intrigue me. (I'm a superfan of the Dresden Files, which is full of wizards, vampires, werewolves, fairies, etc. but I never would have started it if it hadn't been focused on a wizard/private detective in Chicago.) I'm psyched for Black Cloak because of the mixture of magic and science, designs like these, and my complete confidence based on your past work that you're gonna make me fall in love with the characters (even the jerks like Jessup).
Anyway, hope you were able to enjoy your holiday and I can't wait for Black Cloak specifically and just more stuff from you, in general!
Thanks, Rob! And I'm really glad you're into what we're showing off here - always good to hear that!
I love The Dresden Files. I got into it in such a backwards way - listening to an audiobook of book 1 simply because I was a fan of James Marsters (and his voice!) and I needed something for a long commute (I also am obviously super into Detective stories as well as supernatural/fantasy/sci-fi stuff too - so thought the content might be a good fit too) - and I think I listened to a dozen of them? Really got into them, actually. I only stopped because my commute ended and I lost that time I could devote to audio books and podcasts.
What a coinky-dink! I *literally* started listening to a James Marsters-voiced Dresden Files story YESTERDAY. I had read all of the Dresden Files novels until Jim Butcher took a hiatus or something back in 2014. But I had never read any of the short stories. I had a bit of a road trip yesterday, so I started listening to a collection of short stories called Brief Cases. And, you're right. James Marsters rocks as Dresden!
One more thing and then I'll shut up about the Dresden Files. Butcher's writing new books again! There are two new ones, I believe. So, I'm slowly but surely re-reading the entire series to be completely fresh 'n' ready for the new stuff. OK, byyyyeeeee!