Not long ago, I started getting into 3D computer graphics. It started, quite innocently, with a free copy of Poser, at the time being given away by a site called Content Paradise. A year down the road, I am the proud owner of thousands of dollars worth of software and content, more knowledge about graphics than I ever thought I’d accumulate, and a collection of images that blow my mind every time I look at them.

My biggest accomplishment is the creation of a series called Warped Dreams, which you can enjoy right here on Novelspot. In the tradition of Gary Larson’s “The Far Side”, Warped Dreams is a collection of single frame, sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant, always off-kilter comics, created, for the most part, with 3d graphics software. While much of the content has been purchased, there are individual items I’ve created from scratch. I’m learning more about doing so as time progresses.

More recently, I’ve moved into creating character portraits for my novels and short stories, and even illustrating scenes from them. This, for me, is the reason I first got into 3D graphics, though I never suspected it would overtake me quite the way it has. I LOVE creating scenes from my stories, and it helps me to have a character I can picture.

That may seem strange to a lot of people, because many authors can see their characters, but I am not a visual person. The hardest part of learning how to write for me, was learning how to describe things. I think in words, not pictures. I’ve even dreamt in words, which is really odd from what I understand, but then, this is me.

My stories tend to be very strong on dialogue and plot. I had to play catch up with description. That’s changed. My newest work sees description as more prominent though, happily, I’ve kept the interesting dialogue and the twisted plots.

I’m including with this blog an illustration I’ve only recently created. The character is Tanrif from A Leaf in the Wind. Though he is actually wounded, not all the blood on his hand is his. Some belongs to Galith, the Sarithan Assassin who had attacked him. Tanrif’s severe wound is not visible from this angle.

The perspective is deliberately chosen. Tanrif’s outstretched hand is reaching for help that isn’t there. He stares at the blood, not only because he’s injured, but because he isn’t sure whether Galith has survived. Tanrif is not sure whether or not he has “blood on his hands”. For that same reason, I elected to place a gentle reddish glow to flavor the scene.

All the blood, including that on his sleeve, I painted on manually on a separate layer in Paint Shop Pro. I even used an eraser brush to make the cuticle on one of his fingers visible. This is the kind of attention to detail I wouldn’t have considered a year ago. It’s the kind of thing I’m learning to do better and better.

My next step is to get myself into animated book trailers, which takes a lot of time and energy, but who knows where it might lead.

In truth, I consider myself more of a director than an artist. I get the idea for the scene first, then I hold a casting call, and characters show up. I tell them where to stand, how to “act”, what they need to show with their body language and facial expressions. I send them to wardrobe to dress them, and work with the set designer on creating the look I want for the scene. I choose camera angles, lighting and image composition, which I consider of paramount importance.

All the actors have to do is sit there and look pretty.

Is this type of image art? I’m guessing that it is. It is certainly a creative process, and I’ve seen an awful lot of 3d graphics that are deficient in any number of ways, though some people might say that about my images as well. Even I do about some of them.

It’s like writing, I guess. Anyone can sit down and write a story and post it to the web, but not everyone is an author. Anyone can pick up the software I use, but not all will be equal in using it.

Am I an artist? I don’t think so. I’m a writer developing a new set of creative skills to support my writing. But who knows how I might see myself in the year to come.