| "THE SAGA OF BEOWULF" |
| ©2008 Fantasy Castle Books All Rights Reserved |
| PUBLISHERS OF HISTORICAL & FANTASY FICTION |
| ARTWORK DEVELOPMENT |
| Initial Ship Sketch (Pencil on Paper) |
| Ship Detail Development (Corel Painter Essentials) |
| The overall ship construction and prow carving detail is based on the Oseberg ship (c.800 AD), while the headstock is loosely patterned after one found in a riverbed in Holland, dating from the 5th century. It was initially conceived as a dragon prow, but evolved more into a serpent of the seas. The original inspiration came from seeing Frank Frazetta's painting titled "Kane on the Golden Sea." It seemed to evoke the ideal mood and atmosphere for the crew of Beowulf's seafaring ship. |
| Near-Final Composition (Corel Painter Essentials & Adobe Photoshop) |
| The horn concept for the dragon prow changed after contemplating how a Nordic shipwright might have constructed them. Ultimately, I decided they might be made in much the same manner as the brass or gold weather vanes sometimes found on later Viking-era ships. |
| First Beowulf Concept Sketch (Pencil on Paper) |
| Final Art Comp Before Titles (Cropped for use as Wallpaper) |
| Finished Book Jacket Layout |
| Original Title Art Composition |
| The title logo was created in Photoshop from hand-designed letters which were inked and scanned, then modeled using over fifteen layers for the letters alone. The original backing plate concept was later abandoned as too obtrusive to the cover design. |
| Right-click above images to save hi-resolution wallpaper. |
| Originally I had intended The Saga of Beowulf to be a graphic novel. Not the kind that resembles an overgrown comic book, but an actual novel with a heavy dose of illustrations in the manner of those early 1900’s pen and inks by Arthur Rackham and Howard Pyle, with a heavy dose of Frank Frazetta thrown in for good measure. I’ve always loved artwork, almost as much as I love books, and seeing the two together is sheer bliss for me. |
| But as my composition grew, taking on the epic scale of the story it retells, there was less room left for art and more reliance on the imagination of the reader. Perhaps this is as it should be, for there is much to be said for letting the reader’s own mind fill in the subtle details, allowing them to shape the characters and settings to their own peculiar tastes. So it was that of all the many sketches I had done, intending them to grace the pages of my published novel, in the end only one found its way into print. I did this pen & ink initially in pencil, which I then scanned into my computer and inked in Corel Painter using a new digital pen tablet I bought for the purpose. |
I had done one test version in actual pen & ink, but
discovered while adding in the text that I needed to
alter the size and layout of the composition to make it
fit. This proved to be one of the many advantages of
digital over actual ink. Each of these elements were
created on a separate layer, so that I could move them
about and manipulate their size and shape. The
manuscript, by the way, is an accurate facsimile of the
actual Beowulf manuscript (on which the novel is
based), in its original Old English hand. That
document, our sole source for this oldest of English
epics, was penned in two different hands, the belief
being generally held that the first scribe died before he
could complete the tale, hence the symbolism of the
snuffed out candle and spilled ink jar.
discovered while adding in the text that I needed to
alter the size and layout of the composition to make it
fit. This proved to be one of the many advantages of
digital over actual ink. Each of these elements were
created on a separate layer, so that I could move them
about and manipulate their size and shape. The
manuscript, by the way, is an accurate facsimile of the
actual Beowulf manuscript (on which the novel is
based), in its original Old English hand. That
document, our sole source for this oldest of English
epics, was penned in two different hands, the belief
being generally held that the first scribe died before he
could complete the tale, hence the symbolism of the
snuffed out candle and spilled ink jar.
But all books must have at least one major piece of
full-color art, that which will grace its cover, and
fantasy fiction is not the least conspicuous in this
regard. I knew I wanted something fairly bright and
bold, and my basic inspiration was drawn from a
painting by Frazetta called Kane on the Golden Sea,
which featured the muscular hero staring out across
the bow of a Viking-style warship as they sail toward
some unseen shore.
full-color art, that which will grace its cover, and
fantasy fiction is not the least conspicuous in this
regard. I knew I wanted something fairly bright and
bold, and my basic inspiration was drawn from a
painting by Frazetta called Kane on the Golden Sea,
which featured the muscular hero staring out across
the bow of a Viking-style warship as they sail toward
some unseen shore.
Starting with a quick rough pencil sketch, again I
scanned this into Painter and with my digital pen set to
a light graphite I worked out the basic shape and
perspective, roughing in the detail taken from the
famous Oseberg Viking ship housed in the Oslo Ship
Museum. The headstock was based, albeit rather
loosely on a 5th century example found in a Dutch
riverbed (below).
scanned this into Painter and with my digital pen set to
a light graphite I worked out the basic shape and
perspective, roughing in the detail taken from the
famous Oseberg Viking ship housed in the Oslo Ship
Museum. The headstock was based, albeit rather
loosely on a 5th century example found in a Dutch
riverbed (below).
| Oseberg Ship (c.800 A.D.) |
| Ship Head Stock (c.500 A.D.) |
| Frank Frazetta, Kane On The Golden Sea |
| Prologue Illustration (Digital Pen) |
After finalizing the details, I started in on the painting,
using simulated oils with a fine camel-hair brush,
working meticulously over the course of several weeks
to build up texture and detail in layers. Again I created
each element on a separate layer, ultimately reaching
nearly fifty layers, including the background image.
The overall process required roughly 300 hours over
the course of more than six weeks of long daily
sessions. In the end I ran short on both time and
energy, as my prospective publication date drew ever
nearer and my summer vacation came to an end.
using simulated oils with a fine camel-hair brush,
working meticulously over the course of several weeks
to build up texture and detail in layers. Again I created
each element on a separate layer, ultimately reaching
nearly fifty layers, including the background image.
The overall process required roughly 300 hours over
the course of more than six weeks of long daily
sessions. In the end I ran short on both time and
energy, as my prospective publication date drew ever
nearer and my summer vacation came to an end.
For the titles I had originally created this header plaque, due to the fact that I had
initially thought to use the dragon battle scene for the cover, with the fire-drake
emerging from its cave. The logo lettering was drawn and inked by hand, in both a
solid fill and outline version, then scanned into Photoshop, where I modeled it
with over forty layers to create the jewel-inlaid-in-gold appearance. At this point
you can see I was still considering it as an illustrated novel.
However, for the final layout I dropped the faux-stone background and only used
the letters, in order to balance the composition and show the background better.
Here I’ve added a variation of the lettering for the spine, my publisher’s logo, and
a blurb on the back, although the final ISBN block has not yet been comped in on
this image.
Fantasy art has always played a major role in the initial impact a fantasy novel
makes upon the reader, from prompting them to pick up the book in the first
place to establishing the tone and imagery which sets them off upon their voyage.
It was with that in mind that I decided upon the image of Beowulf and his men
setting out across the roiling sea beneath a thunderous, brooding sky. It is my
hope that in viewing the cover, the reader will know they’re headed for an
adventure.
initially thought to use the dragon battle scene for the cover, with the fire-drake
emerging from its cave. The logo lettering was drawn and inked by hand, in both a
solid fill and outline version, then scanned into Photoshop, where I modeled it
with over forty layers to create the jewel-inlaid-in-gold appearance. At this point
you can see I was still considering it as an illustrated novel.
However, for the final layout I dropped the faux-stone background and only used
the letters, in order to balance the composition and show the background better.
Here I’ve added a variation of the lettering for the spine, my publisher’s logo, and
a blurb on the back, although the final ISBN block has not yet been comped in on
this image.
Fantasy art has always played a major role in the initial impact a fantasy novel
makes upon the reader, from prompting them to pick up the book in the first
place to establishing the tone and imagery which sets them off upon their voyage.
It was with that in mind that I decided upon the image of Beowulf and his men
setting out across the roiling sea beneath a thunderous, brooding sky. It is my
hope that in viewing the cover, the reader will know they’re headed for an
adventure.