her instruments 03 - laisrathera (44 page)

Gold (joyful)
– The best is always assumed of everything in the Gold mood, and all words take on that flavor.

Black (dark)
– Black, the foil of Gold, tends to violent, angry, or morose connotations of words. Whole groups of words radically change definition when referred to in the Black.

White (ephemeral/holy)
– Whitened words refer to the spirit, to the holy and pure. You often find this mood used for weddings and in the priesthood, and in the schools that teach the handling of esper abilities.

Crimson (sensual)
– The carnal mood gives words a sensual implication, and inflect speech to refer to things of passions and things of the body.

It's typical for me to do sketches while writing, a sort of mental doodling as I work out events and character arcs. These sketches are not intended to be the final word on what the characters look like! In fact, I usually have trouble pinning down people's looks (Irine and Sascha are particularly bad in that regard; I've never gotten a picture of them I liked!) But I find I work better when I'm thinking with a pencil as well as a keyboard. I've selected a few of the sketches I've done while working on this series, and hope you enjoy the peek into the artist brain.

1.
Laisrathera:
This was the last group portrait I did of the crew of the Earthrise after I completed the trilogy, and while I got almost none of their faces right, I think the relationships come through.

2.
Soly's Hold:
This quick sketch I did of Soly's people helped me keep track of them...maybe it'll help you with their names too!

3.
Reese with the Paintings:
A scene from book one I always liked because of the implied detail of the drawings: this is Reese studying the portraits of Fasianyl and Sellelvi while on Harat-Sharii.

4.
Bryer Carrying Hirianthial:
Bryer deserved to be seen in all his glory.

5.
Hirianthial the Mage:
A shot I always liked because it somehow encapsulated for me all of Hirianthial's ambivalence about his abilities.

6.
Young Kis'eh't:
It's hard to imagine Glaseahn bodies, so I fished up this picture of young (probably adolescent!) Kis'eh't.

7.
Young Liolesa:
The best sketch I've done of Liolesa, I think. From when she was heir.

8.
The Married Couple:
Finally, a look into the future of older Reese and Hirianthial (and all Allacazam's children! Because I doubt Reese's stomach problems vanished completely.

Dear Readers,

There are several series and interlocking storylines set in the universe of the Pelted. Most of these involve the long lead-up to the conflict with the Chatcaava, which Reese and Hirianthial were--believe it or not!--only indirectly involved in. Many other Eldritch are also involved with the Pelted; one of them, referenced in this series as the "heir to the Seni who made one of the Glaseah family," is the star of another, more pastoral series, the Dreamhealers saga, which begins on the campus of a Pelted university with the novel
Mindtouch
. If coming-of-age college novels that flirt with asexual romance/eternal friendship themes are your speed, you'll enjoy Jahir and Vasiht'h. Or, if you prefer short fiction, you can take a side-tour and pick up my collection of Pelted short fiction,
Claws and Starships
.

For those of you who want darker fare,
Even the Wingless
goes straight into the Chatcaavan Empire itself to show us the iniquity that the Alliance will be facing, and pits Lisinthir Nase Galare, an Eldritch ambassador, against an entire court of torturers and sociopaths. It is a tense, bloody, and violent book, and sets up the events that will affect the course of intergalactic history. It is, however, full of triggers; readers, beware!
Even the Wingless
is only the first in the new Princes' Game series, which will intertwine many of the plotlines from disparate novels as we discover what's in store for the Alliance, the Eldritch, and all their allies, new and old.

I also write other novels; if you want to try some fantasy, romance, or military science fiction, please drop by
my website and have a look at what I have to offer!
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