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I've been told by my amazing editor, Erica, that what I'm going through is not exactly normal. In fact, she says I don't think I know how abnormal my luck is for a debut author. I suppose she is right, for I really don't know anything about this business except that I love to write. End of story.
But maybe, just maybe, it's the beginning of one. I got yet another request for the full manuscript of Cold Stone & Ivy. She's a New York agent who has read the first three chapters and was 'delighted' to read the rest. That makes me delighted. And when I sit back and take stock of my 6 month foray into the landscape of publishing, I must admit I've done rather well. Both Lion and Tiger are making money on Kindle. Enough to be considered a small second part-time job. Not too bad considering I've spent nothing on advertising, and that the readership is growing due to word of mouth recommendations. (Oh yes, and wonderful unsolicited reviews!) Both books are at two small publishers for consideration, and one of those publishers has several award-winners under it's belt. I would be excited to see them there... And Cold Stone & Ivy is out on partials with four agents and out on full with two. It is out on full at a small Canadian publisher and a large New York (Big Five) firm. I have very high hopes in that regard. All of this in the span of six months. So, no, I really don't have any idea what 'normal' authors go through. I read blogs by authors who freely admit they've never made a dime from their work, so for me, making enough to renovate my bathroom ain't so shabby. And with Songs from the Year of the Cat well underway, a third book will soon be available on Amazon and the sales will only get better. So, CS&I is out in Full-Force and I am experiencing a Surge of confidence. Hmm, maybe you'll get a chuckle out of me yet...=)
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Some words just do me in.
"Surge" is one of them. Waves surge. Power surges. People do not surge. "Full-force" is another. What the heck is full-force? All the Power Rangers in one go? It is not an adjective nor an adverb. People never do anything 'full force.' It is a made up word and as such, should live in the nebulous land of our subconscious, like unicorns and Nessie. Such a thing does not exist. And Chuckle. I can't believe how many times I read chuckle. Who chuckles? People don't "chuckle." They laugh, snigger, snicker, snort, squeal, squeak, hoot, howl - any manner of strange onomatopoetic words that can substitute for the sounds made during a bout of happy laughter, even chortle but chuckle? What would that sound like? Honestly, when flipping through a book at Chapters or Barnes & Noble or even Amazon, the moment I read "chuckle," I'm outta there. Seriously. Put it down and walk away. My sense of quality has already been hurt. Chuckle is a cliche, an indicator of a standard of writing that is just a little lower than my time is worth, so sorry, no chuckling for me. I'd rather have a good snort and be done with it. But I promise you and myself that my characters will never, ever, ever chuckle. Unless of course they're the smooth, squeaky-clean bad guy and I want you to hate them because of their squeaky-cleanness. Oooh, now there's a Batman villain for you. The Chuckler. Off to write it. Holy Halapalooza Batman! Got goose bumps just thinking of it... At least I didn't surge.. One of the most important elements of a book is its cover. In fact, it is the very first thing a potential reader sees and we all know the importance of first impressions. I saw John Connell's work on deviantart (check him out at http://browse.deviantart.com/?q=nightrhino) and knew I just had to beg him to illustrate the cover for To Journey in the Year of the Tiger. It was a fascinating experience - he asked me what I was looking for, sent two concept sketches and once I'd chosen, he got to work. All along the way, he'd send thumbnails to make sure he was on the right track, adding elements, changing and layering and tweaking until it was perfect.Just watching the evolution of the cover was exciting and I am floored by his talent. He graciously agreed to let me interview him for the blog, so here he is, the Night Rhino himself, illustrator John Connell! Were you an artist growing up? Did you go to school to develop your talent or are you self-taught? And have you always been an illustrator by profession or is this something that has developed over time? I liked to draw and sketch when I was a kid. My parents encouraged me to pursue art education after high school. I attended Art Institute of Boston and studied to be a fine artist. I am very fortunate to have steady work as a professional working illustrator for over 20 years now. Your work seems to be a combination of digital and traditional techniques. Can you share a little bit about how a piece comes together? Well at first I was dead set against working digitally because when I started my illustration career digital wasn’t around but now I approach all of my digital work as if I was doing a painting on an easel. I build up the design with layers like I would with layers of paint on canvas. I try not to use filters or blurs in Photoshop and I try to have brush strokes visible in the design. You have a Graphic novel series on Amazon called “Carnal.” What inspired you to create the anthropomorphic culture that you have going on in that series? It actually started 10 years ago from a nightmare I had of a Humanistic Rhino fighting off a clan of Humanistic Hyenas. The Hyenas were clawing at the rhinos back. The rhino had black war paint striped across his body and he was throwing hyenas into the air. When I woke I thought what a cool painting that would make. I kept building off that original imagery of the rhino and broadened it and over the years and the world of Carnal revealed it’s self to me. For me, my work on “To Journey in the Year of the Tiger” and “To Walk in the Way of Lions” draws from my experience with predators as a zoologist. What prepared you for the civilizations of the differing species in “Carnal?” I have a huge love for animals. For Carnal I have been researching Lions Hyenas rhinos and Cape buffalo along with Massai tribes and other African tribes and cultures. I also watch a whole lot of National Geographic and Animal Planet. I’ve read that your fan base on Deviant Art were instrumental in getting you to develop “Carnal” from your paintings into the graphic novels. How has the feedback been since doing that? The Deviant fan base is what keeps me going. The fans base actually got the attention of my publisher. The fans are extremely supportive. I really enjoy reading the comments either good or bad and I can tell what the majority of people are responding to and I can lead my story and art in that direction. I see that “Carnal” is coming out in print via Sea Lion Books, a relatively new publishing house. What was your experience with them – ie, did you contact them, did they seek you out, etc? Sea Lion Books actually sought me out like I mentioned, through my deviant attention. I have a great relationship with them. I have total creative control over the series. They are very supportive of the artist vision. What was the last really good book you’ve read? (graphic novels DO count!) By Far Life of Pi was one of the greatest books I have ever read Purely selfish question. Mac or PC? Mac all the way (Right answer, John...)  From that to this...  The current cover, with mane extensions and a little impressive lens flare... Thank you again, John! Best of luck with Carnal. I know it'll be fantastic! http://www.amazon.com/Carnal-Pride-Lions-Jason-Bergenstock/dp/0983613168
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H. Leighton DicksonAuthor. Zoologist. Imaginary Genius. Engineer of Fantastical Worlds. Master of None.
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