For me, writing and drawing are so deeply linked that I can't imagine doing one without the other. And also, who likes to draw their characters? For me, I can barely write someone before I draw them first. I like to know exactly who I'm dealing with
Here's the most recent of my illustrations, along with the paragraph from my novel Until We Die that inspired it:
Spoiler
His dream that night started off peaceful.
He stood in a field that stretched to the horizon. Yellow grass stood to his knees, swaying gently in the wind. The sun was hot on the back of his neck, cicadas buzzing in the late summer haze.
A single tree sat on the horizon. He waded in that direction.
As he grew nearer, he could make out someone sitting at the base. By the brown hair, he guessed it was Nole.
He climbed up the hill towards him. Nole glanced up from his book. He gave him a smile.
“Hey Wyatt. Come hang out,” he said, patting the spot next to him. Wyatt flopped down in the grass.
“It’s nice here,” he said, squinting up at the clear sky.
“Nah, it’s gonna rain,” Nole said, returning to his book. Wyatt glanced at him in confusion.
“How do you know?”
“‘Cause you’re here now,” he said, turning a page. “And you ruin everything, eventually.”
He stood in a field that stretched to the horizon. Yellow grass stood to his knees, swaying gently in the wind. The sun was hot on the back of his neck, cicadas buzzing in the late summer haze.
A single tree sat on the horizon. He waded in that direction.
As he grew nearer, he could make out someone sitting at the base. By the brown hair, he guessed it was Nole.
He climbed up the hill towards him. Nole glanced up from his book. He gave him a smile.
“Hey Wyatt. Come hang out,” he said, patting the spot next to him. Wyatt flopped down in the grass.
“It’s nice here,” he said, squinting up at the clear sky.
“Nah, it’s gonna rain,” Nole said, returning to his book. Wyatt glanced at him in confusion.
“How do you know?”
“‘Cause you’re here now,” he said, turning a page. “And you ruin everything, eventually.”
And just for fun, Wyatt's reference sheet:
