Duality

ELEVATOR PITCH:

There was always a reason that myths and legends involving dragons and unicorns existed across so many cultures. About a hundred years ago, a veil existed between the human realm and the magical one. Now destroyed, humanity fights to coexist with creatures they previously thought of as complete fantasy. Out of this chaos comes the story of a young woman named Kaelin Caraway, and her fight to save her home from impending darkness. It’s a story where loyalties are tested, and characters are allowed to be complicated.

A WRITER’S JOURNEY:

There is one thing I’ve known for a very long time. —I will write a book that gets turned into a movie or tv show … and I’ll have an acting role in said endeavor. I’ve visualized and manifested this dream since I was probably 4 … writing scripts for my parents to act out with me. When I was choosing a major, I jokingly told my parents that I wanted to major in design because I already knew how to write. It’s one of those things that I feel I am allowed to be cocky about. Creative writing and coming up with characters is something I’ve never stopped loving. And so far this book concept has been in my head since … maybe 2011. It’s shaping up to be a trilogy, with the possibility of another saga that I’ll lay the groundwork for in the first three books.

CHARACTER MOODBOARDS:

For a good long while, I was stuck with how to really flesh out building my world and orchestrating the plot. I was focusing WAY too much on the actors and actresses I’d like to have embody my favorite characters. There’s only one character who I’ve had cast in my mind since the beginning (and I’m totally okay with it) … and that character is Lock. The actor? Woody Harrelson. To get myself out of that funk, I came up with some preliminary moodboards for a few of my main characters. My goal was to get a vibe of the character, and not worry about specific faces or features. *Click to see each image larger.

Kaelin — [Human]. She is my main protagonist and despite her hard edges, she’s a dreamer at her core.
Emellia — [Elf]. The daughter of an Elven assassin. She’s a woman of action, and probably the sweetest soul you’ll meet.
Valrynth — [Elf]. Toeing the line between “good” and “evil”, he isn’t your typical Elf. He harbors very powerful darkness magic.
Graham — [Shapeshifter]. While intimidating because of his musculature and presence in a room, Graham is actually a healer.

FIRST DRAWING OF KAELIN:

I’d love to show off all the bio’s, world, and species descriptions I’ve worked on for this book … but that’s waiting for me to publish it first. Until then? Below is the first drawing of Kaelin Caraway. Both Kaelin, and my story are in a much different place than they were back in 2011. But it’s fun to see the progression of my own characters. I spend so much time getting into their heads … it’s good to reflect on where they started.

Fun Fact: The book’s first title was “Dichotomous”.

LATEST DRAWING OF KAELIN:

She’s come a long way … and since this drawing, I’ve changed her even more. My lesson here is never stop evolving. Eventually everything will start to click into place, and it’s okay that it doesn’t in the beginning.