Writing high-stakes dark fantasy that keeps you on the edge of your seat and up until 3AM. Get my free prequel: www.jwweld.com/slice
Beating the Allegations
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A few days ago someone accused the cover of my first book, Disciple of Sin, of being AI. I didn't know if that was an insult or a compliment. If you've been here for a while, you know about Leraynne: the Italian artist I've been working with for years to create my covers. She is amazing at what she does and is constantly buried under project requests from repeat customers like me. She takes vacations, not to relax, but to be undisturbed as she creates masterpiece after masterpiece for one third the cost an artist of her skill deserves. To see her work being accused of being AI hurt. It is a common fear that many in the creative space have. Even I'm afraid of being accused of using AI for including one too many em dashes in my manuscript. To put the accusations to rest, I have sifted through our old messages to pull the work-in-progress artwork to show you how this cover went from a rough sketch to a beautiful, final product: First Draft: Commentary: You can see the basic composition of the image and typography. The typography was based on the Slice of Sin cover. I didn't like the use of the green so I requested a more grey colour for the spirits of the dead. Revision 1: Commentary: This is much closer to the final product. I ended up requesting more tweaks only to end up with a more polished version of this. Revision 2: Commentary: Here I requested the title to be in a more neutral steel colour. I thought the gold was a bit gaudy. Leraynne disagreed but decided to humour me. She also flipped the image to see which side I liked more. I also asked her to make Jacob's hair look more like locs (dreadlocks) and to make the fire look more like fire. Revision 3: Commentary: Almost there but I still didn't like how the fire coming out of his right hand looked. Revision 4: Commentary: I wanted to see how the pose looked without fire. Ultimately, we went back to the original pose from the first draft. And there you have it, from first draft to final product. As you can see, a lot of love was put into getting this novel ready for its October 6th release. If you want to read Disciple of Sin early, sign up to join my ARC campaign for Disciple of Sin.
Until next time,
P.S. Next week, I'm going over the first review for Disciple of Sin! Featured Story:A dead agent. A silent town. A conspiracy written in her own hand. Watcher Anselma Versen arrives in Halborg under a false name to investigate a colleague's death. The official report calls it an accident. The evidence says murder. The streets have been scrubbed clean. Witnesses repeat the same rehearsed answers. Records vanish overnight. Then Anselma finds reports bearing her signature, authorising operations she never witnessed and dated to days she cannot remember. Someone knew she was coming. Someone has already decided what she will find. The last Watcher who asked these questions is already dead. As Anselma pulls at the threads, she uncovers a truth buried at the heart of the Guardian Order itself. The rebellion she was sent to document may never have been real. And if her role in the conspiracy was written before she arrived, she may not be meant to leave Halborg alive. Silent Watcher is a standalone fantasy spy novel of secrets, deception, and institutional betrayal. For readers of Seth Dickinson, John le Carré, and K.J. Parker.
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J. W. Weld
Writing high-stakes dark fantasy that keeps you on the edge of your seat and up until 3AM. Get my free prequel: www.jwweld.com/slice
Most fantasy settings draw on real world history, popular folklore, and ancients legends to inspire their worldbuilding. While many authors focus on these more fantastical elements, I find a certain joy in grounding my worldbuilding with realism. Focusing on the small details of historical life creates immersion and increases the contrast between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Fantasy, in general, tends to be light on historical accuracy, so I've spent a great deal of time trying to be...
Last month, I received a strange email. A reader reached out to ask questions about my prequel, Slice of Sin. At first, I thought she was running a weird roundabout scam, but the more we communicated, the more I realized she was a genuine fan. She read the prequel short story while over at a friend’s house and loved it so much she tracked down my email to ask me three questions: Why did I choose to write the prequel from the villain’s perspective? Why did I name my villain Sin? And above all,...
Hey Reader, Time flies. We have 104 days until the end of the year and 19 days until the release of my debut novel, Disciple of Sin: I’m excited (and nervous), but reviews so far have been great and I have more coming down the pipeline. With only 19 days left, this is the last time I’ll bring up reading my debut novel for free. The process is simple: Log in to StoryOrigin (or create an account). Apply for my ARC. I’ll check your recent reviews and (most likely) accept your application. You’ll...