Sketch: Phoenix Fan Art

If you haven't heard, Cindy Pon got a box of ARCs for Fury of the Phoenix, the sequel to her debut novel. Now she's holding a contest to giveaway at least one of those ARCs. I read Cindy's debut last year and really enjoyed it, so I had to do my best on this one.

So what do I love about Silver Phoenix? The action, yes, but mostly the Asian setting and mythos (I wanted to draw the gods or immortals, but this scene was hard enough as it was).

I don't know why, but rice fields make me happy.

I tried a lot of new things with this (I really want that ARC!), so I screwed up a lot of things too. But watercolor pencils? My new favorite. I found a pack (Disney brand?) with the stuff that came with our four newest kids. They don't know how to use them, so I figured I'd learn.

They're so cool. Like painting, but without the abject fear that I'll get it wrong (because I can pencil everything in first). If I keep fiddling, I'm going to have to get my own high quality pack.

Anyway, there you go, Cindy. Congratulations on getting not one, but two novels published, and thank you for writing them. If any of you guys want to get in on the contest, there's still time. It doesn't close until December 1st (and you don't have to draw to win).

9 comments:

Matthew MacNish said...

Wow. Awesome. I too love anything related to Asian culture, especially Japanese.

Susan Kaye Quinn said...

I love the drawing and the rice fields ARE especially cool. But watercolor pencils? That kind of made my brain go sideways. How does that work?

I've got a crazy long TBR list, which Silver Phoenix has been on for a long time, but I bumped it up to the Christmas Wish List, so that perhaps Santa will put it in my stocking. :)

I'm going to check out the contest (as long as I don't have to draw!).

fairyhedgehog said...

Nice work!

L. T. Host said...

Great. How am I going to beat this with WORDS??

Good job, Adam! :)

Adam Heine said...

Susan: They're water soluble pencils (I didn't know what that meant either until I looked up how to use them). Basically, they draw exactly like regular colored pencils, but when you brush over them with water, the colors turn into watercolor paint!

LT: I understand Cindy is partial to flattery ;-)

Susan Kaye Quinn said...

@Adam That is brilliance! I've never heard of such a thing. Not that I know anything about art, but still ... cool.

Adam Heine said...

I'd never heard of them either. I had to find how-to videos to even figure them out.

A.L. Sonnichsen said...

I absolutely cannot live without watercolor pencils. I discovered them in Asia, too. Maybe they're not really an American thing?

Silver Phoenix is one of those books I've been meaning to read!

Amy

Adam Heine said...

That's possible, Amy. The how-to videos I found were done by British folks (Britain has a bigger cultural footprint in Asia than in America).