Previously, in An Alchemy of Dragons, Erran Fox was forced to realize that the Divines of the Grand Temple had been right, and he must do at last what he should have done at first.
It’s time to hire a bard.
As he said to Sister Kathil and Brother Godre in Ch. 5, bards follow money, money flows through cities, and the nearest city to Chesny is Lorondrias.
Lorondrias, the City of Emerald Spires, capitol of the Duchy of Lorond, commanded the Bay of Jewels from a promontory above the Reed Lands, the vast delta where the Pontyd River flowed into the ocean, and trade flowed across Bodhael and the Sea of Llyr.
I had fun with the illustrations for Ch. 6. As we travel farther abroad with Erran, we are getting to see more of the world of Aeldreth and its magic. We even get our first glimpse of Erran himself.
The view of Lorondrias in the Chapter initial is inspired by the woodcut engravings of the Nuremberg Chronicle, an illustrated encyclopedia published in 1493, establishing the general style of this part of the story’s world.
Erran’s clothes and the building ornament around the owls hint at the style of magic as well. Protection is less a matter of armor to deflect blows and bars to keep out intruders, and more about eye circles, colors, and complicated patterns to control the energies. So expect things to continue fancy as we progress.
And let me know in comments or on the Community page if you recognize the species of owls hanging out at the Golden Owl theater.
I have posted my very first online poll. It’s on my shiny, new, barely scuffed Patreon, and I would like very much if you would check it out. If I’ve done it right, you should be able to vote for free, without setting up a new account or becoming a patron. You can see it here: Jen’s Patreon – Public Poll.
It’s kind of a focus-group thing. An Alchemy of Dragons is my biggest current project and the one I’ll be talking about the most on Patreon – and increasingly here, too, fair warning. So to help me get organized, I’m tapping all you fans of writing, fantasy, and world-building to let me know which parts of the process you’re most curious or enthusiastic about. The options are:
World Building
Character Design
Magic System
Art and Illustration
Choose as many as you like.
Becoming a patron, aka a Friend of the Studio, is entirely optional.
Some content will be reserved for patrons only, such as video projects, podcasts, tutorials, etc. Those kinds of projects are high on my future plans list, but they cost quite a lot to make in both money and time, so I really can’t do them on spec, as it were. They will need to be paid for. And there will be other thank-you perks for people who like my work enough to want to support my studio with a monthly pledge.
But I’m about selling finished work – art, books, poems, etc. That’s how I would ideally like to earn my living. So this site will always be a place where people can keep up with me and enjoy what I do and have the option to make a purchase.
But if you would like to become a Friend of the Studio by supporting me, you can sign up for a monthly subscription via Patreon, or make a one-time donation via Paypal, using the buttons in the website footer.
For now, though, please check out what should be a free poll, especially if you are a fan of An Alchemy of Dragons.
…woke Erran in the early dawn on his second day in Chesny Wold.
His meeting with the wyvern the day before had been brief, dominated by beak and teeth, colorful head frills, huge eyes rising above him on a snake-ish neck, and shrieks like a hundred raging harpies. Finding the human amongst the leftovers of its meal, the wyvern had sought no introduction, but lunged straightaway. Erran instinctively dropped down among the deer bones, rolled under the trunk of a fallen tree, and froze behind it.
The massive head did not appear above him, and after about a minute of listening to angry thrashing and growling, Erran took a deep breath and a chance. He jumped up and shot his arrow into the bushes. The beast’s head whipped around after the sound, and Erran took off in the opposite direction, leaving the wyvern entangled in brambles.
It had been encounter enough, though, and he had spent most of that night in the caravan in the stable yard of the Old Ram, going through his books and crafting spells.
Now, summoned by the incessant knocking, he climbed from his bed, shaking papers from the blankets, and stepped out to find most of the Chesny Council with more questions and complaints.
He could at least tell them what kind of dragon it was.
“It’s a blood wyvern,” he said, rubbing his eyes.
“A what?” was the chorused response.
Things go downhill from there for Erran Fox, Ranger of the Beast Goddess.
The illustrations for An Alchemy of Dragons draw on traditional Celtic patterns and Medieval illuminations. I got on a bit of a roll this month, and also added another illustration to Chapter 2, along with ornamental section separators in all the chapters, copied from 14th century French manuscripts.
Please click on the shiny new Writing & Books tab.
At long last, the Letters half of the classic Arts & Letters combo has arrived. Wait until you see – omg, I’m so happy about it.
Writing & Books is the index page to my written works. You can read the stuff, comment on the stuff, follow the stuff. Eventually, you will be able to order print editions via that page. At some point, I will likely add artist books and zines as well. Basically, anything bookish goes under Writing & Books.
So what is it, exactly, that I do write?
Well, similar to my visual arts, I like to switch and blend genres. You may choose among fantasies, mysteries, romances, or thrillers, but they are all linked by certain common themes. Just as nature, memory, and dreams run through all my artworks, so I think you’ll find most of my writing deals with emotions, relationships, and wild, sometimes dangerous landscapes, both external and internal.
Right now, you can dive into four of my 50-word micro-stories: “To the New World,” “The Runaways,” “A Lot of Frogs to Kiss,” and “Faith.”
Some of you may remember my 50-word story challenges, based on a surrealist word game, in which a complete story had to be told in precisely fifty words, no more, no less. I liked to raise the ante by randomly pre-selecting five of the words, which every participant had to use in their stories. It’s actually quite a lot of fun.
You can also read the very first poem I feel brave enough to show to anyone, “Night, April.”
Inspired by the American-style haiku of such intimidating giants as Ezra Pound and Allen Ginsberg, I decided to experiment with this form because why the hell not? To me, this is such a perfect and basic form of expression – to capture the essence of a moment, to make a picture in words of ephemeral experience – I really think everyone should try their hand at something haiku-esque, just to get the feel of it – the feel of one’s feelings. Go and take a look, and let me know what you think of my effort.
Finally, there’s the big project. Oh, boy, this is the one that’ll have you saying “Wow, Jen, you really went off the edge this time.”
Yeah, you’re damn right. I’m going straight off the edge – of the map – where there be dragons. A whole alchemy of them, in fact.
An Alchemy of Dragons
One peace-loving ranger with a past. One audacious bard with an agenda. And one deadly conspiracy – with dragons.
You’re not hallucinating. It is, indeed, a fantasy novel. What’s more, it’s a serialized web novel, which means it will be a hell of a lot longer than a haiku or some fifty words. It will be posted on this site by chapters, as they are written. It will probably be illustrated, too.
Now granted, fantasy is not everyone’s cup of tea, but we don’t drink tea here at the Jen Fries Arts studio – we spill it. (Actually, we do drink tea, every day, but you get what I mean.)
Yes, An Alchemy of Dragons will feature both swords and sorcery. It will have creatures and fancy outfits and very high stakes, but this is not going to be that Dungeons and Dragons or Lord of the Rings type stuff.
This is a Jen Fries project.
So check out the stories and poetry, reacquaint yourselves with the artwork, and you’ll get a sense of what you’ll be in for. I think you might enjoy it, and I hope you’ll give it a try. Be sure to sign up for the newsletter, if you haven’t already, to get email notifications when chapters are posted.
In other news, it’s spring time. And yes, a lot of shit is happening in the world, but the trees and bulbs are flowering and the birds are courting, and that’s what I’ve decided to focus on. Look for an upcoming blog post about spring time artwork, soon. Also please visit the Shop for seasonal works available now.
Jen Fries Arts 