A Peek at the Future!
Hey, two weeks on time! Go me! Welcome back to yet another one of my long, rambling blogposts where I talk about things that haven’t happened yet to both excite my readers and motivate me to get off my rear to get things done! Hooray for multitasking! This week, I’ve got some fun things locked in the barrel along with a few updates that will be incoming to the website before the next blogpost is out. So, without further ado, let’s just jump right into it!
Spiritmarsh
I keep talking about it, I know, but that’s because it NEEDS to be talked about! Spiritmarsh is written and is currently being edited. I should be done with that tomorrow, so Spiritmarsh will be dropping before the next blogpost guaranteed! Hooray for sticking to a schedule kinda sorta! Now, what is the Spiritmarsh exactly? Well, let me tell you!
The Spiritmarsh is a vast westland occupying the northeastern corner of the continent, and is known for being quite treacherous! Most of the landscape is dominated by small islands completely ringed by murky waters. Bridges are a very common site here, and it’s very easy to lose one’s way if they don’t have a map to guide them. Between the dark fog and the creatures lurking in the swampy waters, it’s hard to imagine why anyone would ever want to go to this place, but, in spite of the name, it wasn’t dubbed ‘spiritmarsh’ because of its lethality! Instead, it was named after the glowbugs that dominate the region! These bugs flutter around in droves at night like little glimmering orbs, or spirits, and combined with the songbell plants that inhabit the swamp’s waters, it’s very easy to see how anyone could mistake such a place as a gathering site for restless spirits!
Serving as the second entry for Tearna’s journal, her dossier entry for the marsh will cover numerous aspects of the strange wetland. We’ll cover the famous glowbugs and their interaction with the environment, a few interesting plants with strange characteristics, methods of travel through such watery terrain, and the first hints of the scars left behind from the Crisis that nearly shook the world! While the terrain is treacherous, Tearna’s journey will shed light on the more positive aspects of the marsh and setup for the next stage of her adventure!
The Next Stage?
That’s right! I can go ahead and announce what the next journal entry will be! In roughly a month’s time, we will shove off and leave the shores of the continent that Tearna knows so well. Our destination, the continent of Falador, famous for its towering mountains and golden plains, but… that’s NOT what the next short story will cover! Before we can get to the other continent, we have to traverse Rustfall, the vast sea that separates the two continents! The entirety of this entry will take place within the confines of a massive supply galleon, the only ship big enough to carry Tearna’s expedition, but that doesn’t mean the journey will be boring or small in scope! We’ll deal with the culture of Krysheek sailing ships, explore some culinary items, and, most importantly, discover many of the awesome creatures living within the ocean’s depths, such as the feared Murktreader and the mystifying neo manta! Although the bookmark for this entry isn’t yet complete, you can expect it to appear within a week’s time, and then it’s onwards to the next stage of our journey across the Krysheek homeworld!
More?!
More? There’s more to show off?! Yes! As it turns out, vacation is great for getting things done! What I have to show off today is something a little different! It’s not yet complete, so bear that in mind, but it is complete enough to reveal! It is my pleasure to show off an early conceptual piece for the Sapphire Verdict’s book cover! TA DA!
This piece has taken an immense amount of time. I’ve had to learn a lot to get it even this far, but I do not regret a single second of it! I’ve learned all sorts of principles for my art pieces, and I’m becoming a lot more familiar with the tools available to me! Each piece I do pushes me further and further, and I think this new art style I’m working with is a lot more fitting for how I see things in my head!
All in all, this piece represents a pivotal moment in the first book. In this cover, you can see the Archon’s Sanctum, the place where he will select his replacement, getting assaulted by a barrage of lightning while a strange, sapphire eye gazes down upon the dark landscape. What in the world caused this eye? Why is his Sanctum being targeted? Who could be behind all of this? All will be explained in time! In terms of this art piece though, it is not entirely complete. It’s missing vegetation on the rock, a lighting pass on the structure, and the entirety of its foreground element. What is that element you ask? Wait and find out!
Website Updates!
There are a few updates coming down the pipeline, though it’s nothing extreme. The world map will be getting an update soon to give names to the various ports littered across the map and name a few locations more specifically. I am in the process of editing the third Sapphire Verdict book, the book where these locations are named, and locking them down, so I feel confident putting their names on media. Spiritmarsh will also be getting added at the same time, so expect all of this early next week.
Brief Twitch Update
This past weekend saw a large amount of growth for my account! Got numerous followers, had 40 unique views, and people chatting ALL DAY! It was a HUGE step in the right direction, and it’s given me motivation to pursue it more seriously. You can expect more legit streams in the coming weeks, both for ark and other things, and I hope to grow my number of followers even more! Additionally, I am going to be looking into dual streaming to youtube to see if I can further my growth even faster! For anyone reading this who happens to watch my twitch, THANK YOU! IT HELPS A LOT!
Cheers?
That’s all I have for updates this week! A whole lot of things coming down the pipeline, and a lot of relaxing on this long vacation. That being said, vacation has to have an endpoint! I’m looking forward to hitting everything as hard as I can in the coming weeks and see what finally begins to budge on any front I can get my hands on! For those of you who follow my socials, I’ll be seeing you around! For the rest of you, you know what time it is…
CHEERS!
The Flying Fennec