There are many arts and they have a plan
My news is mostly writing-adjacent rather than writing at the moment. Also, please forgive typos; I had a medical emergency in August and a root canal two days ago, so I’m still recovering.
First, I’ve started my M.A. in Professional Media Composition at ThinkSpace (accredited via University of Arts Bournemouth in the UK)! Film/TV/game scoring. I have so much to learn but it’s thrilling to join this community!
Second, for those of you who enjoy sci-fantasy art, some of which may be Hexarchate-flavored, I now have a Displate shop! Displate sells metal posters. If you’ve ever wanted wall art of Cheris or Jedao (or dragons or fantasy birds), now’s your chance!
And this one I painted in celebration of starting the M.A. I almost titled it “Give the violas nice juicy parts OR ELSE” but wiser heads prevailed. ;)
(I’m waffling as to whether to do additional generalized sci-fantasy art, more music instrument vibes, or start work on a Tarot Major Arcana series. Feel free to email me at deuceofgearsart@gmail.com and let me know if you have a preference, or if you have requests! No guarantees…but you never know!)
FAQ (Foxily Asked Questions)
What are you working on?
I’m hard at work on Crownworld, the third book of the Moonstorm trilogy, after a break due to the aforementioned Interesting Times (in the Chinese proverb sense). But you know, the prospect of destroying readers is always energizing. ;)
What are you reading lately?
I recently inhaled Heather Fawcett’s Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries. Emily is a scholar in dryadology (study of faeries, which are very definitely real) whose superpower is LOGIC, and who has dire suspicions about the real identity of her foppish rival/friend Wendell Bambleby. When they're stranded in icy Ljosland, Emily's scholarship, Bambleby's hidden resources, and the community of villagers are all that stand between Ljosland and the rising of a faerie winter. Also there is a very good doggo.
On the nonfiction front, I’m reading Ijeoma Oluo’s So You Want to Talk About Race, which is about structural racism in the USA, its effects, and ways to address it. (It was one of the recs in the DEI video during orientation—they call it something slightly different on the other side of the pond—so I went and got it from the library!) Electrifying and lots of food for thought.
What are you listening to lately?
Surprising no one, (G)I-DLE’s recent summer release I Sway (K-pop)…and a whole bunch of film scores! As if I needed an excuse to play music whenver I’m awake. 😋
What’s a game you’re playing lately?
My husband and I tracked down a used copy of Space Hulk Death Angel from 2010! It’s Warhammer 40,000 lite - a card-based dungeon-crawler for 1 to 6 players, with abstracted tactics, positioning, formations. The mechanics are extremely elegant. The rulebook is a little confusing in places, but the rules themselves are pretty clear once we sussed them out.
Be warned that the four expansions were apparently print-on-demand, are also deeply out of print, and are wicked expensive. There appear to be a bunch of fan-made scenarios and so on, though, which I figure I’ll be exploring next!
I’ve also resumed playing the online freemium text-based one-player (usually) RPG Sryth, which is terrific fun and is satifyingly meaty both in terms of mechanics and narrative. Also, Jedao has died like a dog (fox?) more than once lololol. (There is no “newbie zone” - quests of varying difficulties can be found all over.) You can get a lot of gameplay without spending money if money is tight; I found that even a modest investment in fancy nice items gave me a LOT of boost for early levels, and I like supporting the one-man-show developer when I can!
Who’s an artist you’re enjoying lately?
If you like pretty jewelry at various price points, please let me introduce you to the Peculiarity Shop! This is a queer-staffed shop whose artists offer incredibly beautiful niche pieces. One example below; please forgive the stray catten hair in the pic.
I have a foxy question you haven’t answered here!
Sure, please email deuceofgearsart@gmail.com and I'll get back to you!
And the obligatory catten pic:
Yours in calendrical heresy,
YHL