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| "The Arrival" Periapsis Concept Art by John Krissilas |
This is a piece that I sketched out by hand on an art pad using an ink pen before I had begun writing my first draft of the novel. It was more for my own inspiration, really! But I knew putting the images that I had in my head onto paper would help not only to visualize "The Arrival" but also set the mood and tone for the novel's first scene and opening.
For now, this scene is how the first draft opens — our hero, 17-year-old Jason Starboard, has hiked up to the top of one of the plateaus that surround Illyria's capital, Volos, on the first night of the Periapsis. There he awaits for the Ambassador I, a ship full of dignitaries and aristocrats arriving from the planet Colchis. Also on board the ship, he hopes, is his long lost father, Aeson, whom he has never met. Here's the piece of text I wrote to go along with this sketch at the time:
Day 1. Ambassador Ship I approaches the planet on the 1st day of Periapsis. Its flight path appears... strange. It wobbles in the light of our sacred moon. Smoke fills the air behind its tail. Danger? What could it be. I've waited all my life... all 17 years... for this moment.As you can see, the arrival of the Ambassador I from the mysterious planet in the sky doesn't go as expected, and what happens next will set events in motion that will lead to Jason's great adventure on Colchis.
Stay tuned for more great concept art!