Thank you very much for being too young to be too old for fantastical fictitious worlds, Meredith, and for your kind words. They honor me and keep me in work ethic.

It's true that the Septimus Heap art hasn't yet been formally posted for sale, but several originals have sold nonetheless, via private e-mail. Drop me a line and we can talk price, always. The Cerys is a design I had not known of before called a barquentine -- it should be noted in passing that Angie Sage is a sailor and sailing enthusiast who knows something of boats and charts. The nautical flavor of Syren engaged me right away, and is probably for that reason my favorite Heap book so far. Not to give anything away, but it's got everything a Treasure Island cum Jules Verne fantasy could promise -- plus girls.

I am also adding some Septimus Heap prints to the roster in response to another request, so keep an eye out for those, too.

Thank you, Leanne -- Jenna is extraordinarily vivid for me; with no models but subconscious ones. And to Allie, who left an e-mail that appears to be from an inactive address, I'm happy to respond in thanks, to your enthusiasm. For me there's no time spent better than drawing what I imagine. If you have as much passion for it as your letter suggests, then with the oblivion of long and happy practice, you *will* build your own exceptional style.

Best wishes, all.
Mark Z

That you are making a Halloween costume of Jenna thrills me no end, Isis. Now that's long-range-planning!

Mark Z.

Camilla, if you are viewing this after randomly wandering back to this neglected thread, my apologies for being absent. But like a Tolkein character, though I wander I am never really gone. :) I saw your question, realized what a huge subject had ben broached, and filed it away for a little later. Little in tree time, that is.

Any time I need to draw a character, that personality has my complete devotion -- I "really like" drawing him or her no mattter who or what they are. Sometimes I imitate their voices, or make facial expressions or gestures I think characteristic of them. I'm wrapped up in that person while I draw. My favorites tend to be very beautiful women, or rugged-looking men; though as you can see from the Heap stories, I'm not penned in by my favorites. It's just that when I get to draw (for instance) Syrah, Skipper Fry, Milo Banda or Jenna, I'm eating extra chocolate cake.

As for some things being easier to draw than others, that's definitely true. The difficult subjects include: Architecture, for all the remorseless straight lines and perspective that must add up correctly; domesticated animals, because all viewers know what they look like, but it's easy for an artist to neglect studying them closely; vehicles; because they require all the rigor of architecture but must also look like they can move (vehicles are also a favorite of mine); and lastly and mostly, the human figure. Whether nude or clothed, if something is off about a figure, everyone can see it, and that ruins its personality, which in turn ruins his or her role in the story. The human figure is the most demanding and needs life-long study; you can never be *too good* at drawing it.

So I hope this little tid of bits has been worth your wait.

And Alexandria -- do keep trying. It's the only way!

Best wishes,
Mark

Abby, I'm sorry that I don't have a tutorial book covering my technique, nor the space to treat the subject here. It's not complicated to learn though, because my oil painting technique is "classical" -- that is to say, its methods are tried-and-true over centuries and are well known. Many art books cover classical oil technique; "underpainting," "fat over lean," "broken color" are a few terms to look for. They describe the best ways of applying oil paint to render a scene with realism.

Painting is built upon drawing, though -- and you must own the basics of rendering bulk, shadow, and perspective in black and white, if you want to create a decent color image. I didn't get serious about painting until I was 25 -- but by then I was thoroughly familiar with the discipline of drawing. I'm not advising that anyone else wait that long, I just mean that drawing skill is crucial, and that extra time spent drawing is never wasted.

Here, then, are a couple brief tips about oil painting that I wish I'd known at the very start:

Odorless solvent and linseed oil, are all the mediums you will ever need.

Brushes can be dry.

Gessoed paper is a great ground to work on.

Happy painting to you, Abby, and to all.
Mark