Illustration for Book One, Scratching the Surface, is well under way. Here is an in-progress sequence of the work on Chapter 4. Continue reading “Illustration progress, Chapter 4”
Illustration progress, Chapter 4
We have an illustrator!
I’m thrilled to announce that Generation Mars has an illustrator! Luis Peres, master illustrator of science fiction and fantasy, will bring his vivid style to Book One: Scratching the Surface. The image above is from his existing portfolio and serves as an example of his work. The actual illustrations are currently under development. You can see more of his work by clicking the link below, and I encourage you to take a look. It’s wonderful stuff!
Logos!
We have logos!
The first is the mission badge for the colony in which the kids live. The colony calls itself Dawn, signifying the beginning of a new era in human development. The motto, “Ut melius faciat”, translates as “To do better”, a noble and ambitious sentiment for these first humans on Mars as they go about developing an entirely new culture.
The second is the official series logo. It too is a mission badge. Initially created by the younger sister as a gift to her older sibling, the parents liked the idea so much that they formalized it to be the official badge for kids born on Mars. The arms open to the sun, reflected in the helmet visor, signify this generation’s embracing of their future in this new era.
Both badges were developed by Graham Blake, illustrator extraordinaire.
Scratching the Surface
Scratching the Surface, Generation Mars: Book One, is an illustrated chapter book. Told through the eyes of two sisters, it describes the emergence, literally and figuratively, of this first generation of kids born on Mars. The colonists live underground as protection against the solar and cosmic radiation that reaches the surface of Mars. The kids have never been to the surface. The inside of the colony is all they know. And then they get their chance to step outside.
Coming soon…
Mission Badge
My youngest daughter overheard us discussing ideas for the series logo, so she got out her pencils and went to work.
What do you think?
Promo Video Update
Well, the recent rain has delayed work on the promo video. We had planned to shoot at Lordsburg Playa, New Mexico, in order to get the look of a Martian landscape. An inch of rain this week has left standing water, ’cause that’s what desert playas do.
On Mars, the atmospheric pressure at the surface is so low that liquid water would boil away immediately. Here on Earth, we’ll have to wait for the slower process of evaporation.
Promo Video
Gearing up to shoot the promo video later this month.
