Yesterday and the day before yesterday I showed you some of my illustrations, drawn to illustrate some of my stories! Here are another five for you to enjoy!
Many of these pictures were included in a number of multimedia projects related to my writing, such as book trailer videos I used to promote my books!
Just a little necessary repetition here – the process of completing these illustrations was quite a lengthy one – before I even got to the making of the book trailers! First I had to sketch each image out in pencil, then in thick or thin markers. Then I had to scan them in digitally and edited out little blemishes or other flaws on my computer. Sometimes I’d add glow effects or other refinements. After that, I’d save the black and white images to use in future coloring-book projects – and used a graphics app to color them in digitally!
Again, I realize I’m no Michelangelo – I know my limitations, but at least I didn’t make a couple of stick figures with speech bubbles and call it “art” – so save the criticism! Otherwise, enjoy! 😉 Comments welcome as always.
“Dr. Cove, Dead” (from Panic! Horror In Space #2, “Life Signs“)
One of the first mysterious deaths aboard the luxury deep-space liner Demeter involves Dr. Cove, discovered one morning in the medical lab, dead in his wheelie-chair – with a large chunk of his neck blown out by the Corsair blaster found at his feet. Ship’s security isn’t too sure what to make of it, since Dr. Cove – nicknamed ‘Creepy Dr. Goth’ by some of his co-workers due to his morbid fascination with disease and death – didn’t appear to be suicidal around the time of his death… so for a while his death is ruled accidental… but there are far too many questions…
I tried to show a pretty ordinary brightly lit futuristic medical lab aboard a well-appointed space liner – clean, sterile, neat and organized – sharply contrasted with the horror of the body of a colleague, and blood and tissue splatter on the nice clean fittings! This death of course, is only the first of many to follow…
“Crazy Lady’s Last Flight” (from “Best Served Cold“)
By the end of my novel “Best Served Cold”, things have become rather busy! At the peak of the battle between the invading Ruminarii and Earth forces near Pluto, the enormous warship Sekhmet has become disabled – somehow the damage has engaged the untested stardrive, which is powering up for an unstoppable hyperdrive jump… at a time when Humanity has never left its home starsystem – at least, not on purpose!
Two of the main characters – Alex Nikolls, a destroyer pilot, and Marian Mureau – a woman out for revenge against the Earth Defense Force officer who murdered her parents years before when she was a child – are aboard the Sekhmet at that time. Alex and his crew are in the midst of the panic-gripped crew of the huge ship as they scurry to abandon it! With everyone bailing out in every small shuttle or ship that could carry them – some even jumping into space in viro-suits, Alex and Marian are soon facing the reality that they may be stranded on the ship as it builds up to go into hyperspace – to be destroyed or lost somewhere in the unknown! As a last resort, Alex drags Marian with her – back to her own destroyer, which they had crash-landed in one of the landing bays – and may still help them leave the Sekhmet in time! Badly damaged and largely inoperable, the Crazy Lady’s retro thrusters are about all that will still work – but it’s enough!
The image shows the Crazy Lady reversing out of the open hangar bay, through the energy shield covering the door meant to seal the air inside! Scrapes and gouge-marks are visible on the deck plating where the ruined ship has impacted and has dragged itself back out again.
“Paritinian” (from Panic! Horror In Space #3 “Dust“)
In “Dust“, a long-lost starship that disappeared three months into a mission of deep-space exploration more than 60 years ago, turns up out of the black at a starbase, leaving a lot of questions unanswered. What happened to the crew? If they’d left the ship, why had they apparently taken nothing with them? Why was there still food on the tables in the mess? Why was a shower left running?
In the ship’s shuttle bay, a word is discovered carved into the wall near the airlock. “Paritinian”. Was it a name? A planet perhaps? Or a warning? And everywhere onboard, dust.
I wanted to convey an impression of mystery and underlying fear and abandonment with this image.
“On The Bridge Of The Mercury” (from Panic! Horror In Space #2 “Life Signs“)
Aboard the Pioneer Fleet starship “Mercury”, things happen at their own strange pace! This image shows the Captain of the Mercury, Stuart Flane seated at his station on the bridge, sipping coffee from his favorite mug! Beside him, his best friend and executive officer, Commander Vic Chapman, gets excited about the sensor readings of Brigid 4.4 – an apparently lifeless planet they’ve been scanning!
“Satan’s Wheelie-chair!” (from Panic! Horror In Space #1 “Static“)
While the “Specter Adventures” team are filming their paranormal lockdown inside the abandoned mining complex on Floridia-7, justifiably called the most haunted abandoned Terran outpost in the galaxy, the team leader Mak Sagans is chased down the deserted, dusty, dark corridors by an apparently possessed wheelie-chair! He’d rested his camera on the seat just moments before – and it remains there – the seat turning as though to keep the camera on the action!
If you’re a fan of the real-life paranormal investigation series “Ghost Adventures” you might recognize some parallels between the characters of part 4 of “Static”, since they are all loosely based on them! I would call “Dead Center” a well-intentioned parody of their series!
I thought this scene in the story was very funny actually, and had a great deal of mirth while drawing it!
Well, I’ll leave it there for this time! Now you have seen 5 more images that should give you a little insight into the stories I write!
P.S.
I included links to the titles these illustrations appear in, in the headings – leading directly to the books pages on Smashwords, where they are all currently available at massive discounts (up to 60%) during the lockdown season. 😉
More to follow soon!
Stay home and stay safe!
Cheers!
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All material copyright © Christina Engela, 2020.