@hannahmccaffery It's a really cool book! Definitely worth a read. I couldn't really rework the pose because I was in too deep (pun totally intended 😛 ). I did have time to rough the water up a bit in the final though. Thanks.

@nyrrylcadiz Thanks for the feedback! The scene is more symbolic than a literal interpretation of any one scene. Chip said to capture the "feel of the story" so I went for a properly epic battle of the gods.

Here's the final I submitted:

Odyssey.png

Here is my final (?) piece but I'm trying to decide on cropping. The first is the full thung and the second is cropped. Any thoughts?
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I like the colors, looks good 🙂

@burvantill
Oh gosh - I’m so happy! - and thank you for the feedback - all I have is my boyfriend in the back saying “yes the color is good” or “add more detail to the nose” - so it’s nice to get a full look through from you, finally!!!
I used gouache - which was fun - but while I planned out values and color I did a lot of experimenting on the work itself, which was a long process and used up a lot of paint. Also recharging gouache with water to make it useful again is OMG not as easy as they’d make you believe in tutorials. Wow - gripe much Kaitlin? 😛

@hannahmccaffery Thanks. The sorting hat was a good moment in the story though so I will keep it. 🙂

@Taigyo thanks for the feedback, i agree, to be honest i dont like the figures at all.... a rework is needed i think.... i like the buildings though!

This is what my Adobe Illustrator art file looks like right now lol

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Demetrius, thanks for your critique. I think these are all really great ideas, especially the uplighting and some kind of reflection on the glass. The cakes were a bit opaque, except for the chocolate one, which must be a kind of sacher. But that's not to say I can't change them.

Mostly, I was trying to decide about a style issue. I wanted a look almost like cut paper or printmaking, with as much rich, flat color as the situation would allow, and I was going for high contrast to draw attention to the boy, and mostly just the one cake. But now that I've finished this version, I can try others as well. In fact, I was already thinking of doing so. So I'll probably give this a try!

@Marsha-Kay-Ottum-Owen oh thank you! You have no idea how much i hate drawing ripples after this! Although I must admit I got better at it after this.

@mag Hi Mag. I used to work in web & UI design. Here's my feedback.

Positives:
Clean, simple, easy to navigate. It will allow potential agents / publishers to quickly browse through your work without any fuss. Clean background doesn't detract from your work. Works well on a mobile as well as desktop / laptop. All links pointing to the right info.

Negatives:
Like some others have pointed out, some information about who you are, what you have done in the past and what led you to do what you're doing. Or may be something about how long you've been in the industry and your accomplishments thus far. I was at a recent SCBWI conference and they recommended that our About section is written in from a third person perspective. This allows agents / publishers to cut and paste when they need to promote you or talk about you.

I think this can flesh out your Contact page. So no need to add an additional page and further complicate a beautifully succinct site.

I personally feel a recent photo of yourself on that page is a good idea. This is not comfortable for me either but people like having a face to put to a name.

I hope this was helpful. Best wishes for everything 💕
Cindy

@Whitney-Simms - I love your patterns, beautiful!

@Annemieke Oh yeah that is right! 😃 Didn`t notice it at all.. Thanks ! !

@Heather-Boyd I totally understand where you are coming from, I have been there more than once. I really do love your design, but it is definitely a complex and difficult one to paint.

@hannahmccaffery Thank you Hannah! Good idea, the freckles :)!
I think the little boy speaks to me more too 🙂

@eddysage I think your about section is a bit of a mashup between a biography and an artist statement. I think these two things are better kept separate. The reason being you can then write a biography in 3rd person - which contains historical data about education and professional practice. That allows you to write an artist statement in 1st person, that helps the reader connect with you as an artist. Also vision statements can be adjusted and changed depending on what project you are working on or if your style changes. Where your biography can just be added to as you gain more experience or skills.

I say this coming from working for newspapers/mags and when writing articles, captioning photos or doing research on people. Its better to be able to distinguish between what is historical/background data and what is opinion or a person's viewpoint.

I'm also not a fan of a pop-up as soon as I land on a page. It can have the effect of making me want to bounce. I prefer a newsletter sign-up box in the footer.

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@Susan-Marks Thanks Susan! I really appreciate the encouragement! :smiling_face_with_open_mouth_smiling_eyes:

Hi, everyone! I’m going to share some updates. After thinking the about the project a little bit more, I decide not to go with the papers flying in between the pilot and the Little Prince. I think I’ve seen that approach done in a lot of posters already. So instead, I thought why not incorporate Antoine de-Saint Exupery’s original illustrations from his book. I really think his simplistic style has its own unique charm and innocence to it. I was planning to fit in his illustrations in the flying papers but now, i’m planning to make them more prominent in my piece.

Here are some of his illustrations.

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Anyway, here’s some new sketch. Though, I plan to incorporate Antoine’s illustrations, I wanted to make my own version of his work. While sketching this, I was making this story up in my head that in an alternate reality, after the pilot survived his ordeal in the desert, he held on to the sketches he drew for and of the Little Prince. He went on to write a book about his experience but as he is painting the “book cover”, he questions himself if the Little Prince was ever real. That is why his sketches are strewn all over the painting while he is contemplating if whether he should include the Little Prince. He’s not sure if the boy was just a figment of his imagination due to his delirium in the wilderness but one thing’s for sure, he is forever changed by his encounter. In a way this story mirrors my dilema with this book cover. Lol😅 maybe i’m just sketching my own experience.

Please let me know if you have any critiques or suggestions. I am open to all of your input. I’m still at the planning stage. nothing is set in stone. Thank you so much!

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@Chip-Valecek Ok cool thanks!

This looks great @saciia_ ! I wonder if making the boy smaller might add a bit more interest. If you want to try that I would suggest thickening the tree beside him to keep the visual balance. It looks great as is though. This style really suits the book. Good work!