Tag: dark fantasy

Remenaxice in Dreamland: Meet a New Friend of Mine

On By jccarverIn Art Showcase, upcoming bookLeave a comment

Greetings, dreamers! I’ve got something spectacular to share: a sculptural journey into the mind of Remenaxice, the enigmatic sage from my inaugural novel, Sufferborn, now stepping into the limelight of my forthcoming trilogy.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled with organic clothing and hair, and hand painted.

This isn’t your usual Gandalf-cookie cutter sage—no, Remenaxice is a tapestry of mental complexity and psychic prowess. He’s the kind of character who could turn your nightmares into lucid escapades or make you question if you’re awake at all.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled with organic clothing and hair, and hand painted.

Enter the sculpture: a captivating piece where “Rem” treads softly through a field of lilies, his floral obsession. But look closer: there’s a serpent in this garden, a subtle hint of danger that lurks in the dreamscape he navigates. This art piece captures the essence of his dreamwalking, where beauty and peril intertwine.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled with organic clothing and hair, and hand painted.

The Art of Creation:

Crafting this dreamworld began with digital magic. I modeled li’l Remmy in Daz Studio, bringing him to life in 3D before he was printed into our reality.

Remenaxice as a 3d model made in Daz Studio. An elf with blond hair and blue eyes pictured alongside the bare and bald mesh of the 3d sculpture.

After I did my digital work, Manu3DDD on Etsy fixed my model to make it printable (because I know nothing about that, hahahah!)

Remenaxice figure 3d printed and unpainted.

And then Resin3DInteractive, also on Etsy, printed it for me.

The model then received a touch of the artist’s hand. It was up to me to give him life and color. It was important that I captured the signature “spaced out” look in his eyes, I know the character to have. If you’ve read Sufferborn, you’ll know what I mean.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled with organic clothing and hair, and hand painted.

His hair? Real angora mohair, delicately formed into a wig that whispers with every slight breeze. His clothes? The pants and boots were printed, but the shirt was sculpted using fabric, sewing, and glue, tailored to his romantic and princely persona. The armband was a last-minute decision made with bound gold thread and a tiny turquoise-colored bead.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled with organic clothing and hair, and hand painted.

The stage for this dreamy elf was set with a vintage glass dome, perched on a custom wooden base. I sculpted the terrain beneath his feet from apoxie, securing him in his dreamscape.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.

The lilies, his beloved flowers, were no simple task; I designed, printed, and cut them using my graphic design skills and Cricut machine, creating a field of paper blossoms. Vines with glowing berries added a touch of mystique, and moss completed the natural, dreamlike environment.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.
Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.

I then wrapped the dome’s interior with an RGB light strip, transforming the scene into a living, breathing aquarium of lights.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.
Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.
Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.

The gold-painted rim on the glass not only hides the tech but adds a touch of decadence to this nocturnal wonder. This sculpture isn’t just art, it’s a nightlight, with lights you can program to shift and change, reflecting the ever-changing landscapes of dreams.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.
Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.

Rem’s return in 2025’s new trilogy will delve deeper into his past, his psyche, and his drama, only to graze the surface of his abilities. The second “book” in the Elves Unwelcome series (title to be announced) will highlight a brand new generation carrying the ominous Overseas Taint, a horrible curse that was introduced in A Basket of Devils. This next installment will be a little bit different, as it showcases the lives of three brothers in peril, who are driven from their home in the Norrian kingdom just because of their tainted blood. With Remenaxice in the mix, the line between reality and dreams will blur, and every step could either lead to enlightenment or peril.

Remenaxice from Sufferborn and Elves Unwelcome as a 3d printed sculpture assembled under a glass dome with paper lilies and RGB lights.

I invite you to gaze upon this sculpture, not just as a piece of art, but as a portal to the adventures that await. It’s a promise of stories where the mind is the most treacherous and wondrous landscape of all.

Stay tuned for more on how this most eccentric sage will shape the narrative of the Sufferborn universe.

Dream well and read even better!

JC

Get the Sufferborn series!

Get the Elves Unwelcome series!

See my last 3D print project: Wikshen!

Book Trailer: See A Basket of Devils come to Life!

On By jccarverIn Book TrailersLeave a comment

I just finished my first animated feature, guys!

This was something I had wanted to do for a long time. The nag to animate hit somewhere around the year 2018 but I struggled with the lack of equipment. I tried—yes—I had a little drawing tablet and had bought a software I wouldn’t recommend, and I had dipped my toe into the water of this new medium, but it just didn’t go anywhere…until now.
To make a long story short, I went on a long tech venture of building a new computer and getting a large drawing monitor for it. Obviously, I would never have been able to get the drawing tablet (it’s an Xp-Pen Artist Pro 24) without a graphics card which allows me to have more than one monitor. So it all fell into place. In getting all this new tech, I wasn’t doing it because of animation, I had plenty of more logical reasons to pull it all together, but it certainly was in the back of my mind the whole time. And I didn’t let myself down. A learning curve came next, but I really wasted no time in getting an animation done—finally!

I worked really hard on it and I’ve learned a lot from this venture, the #1 thing being that I love doing animation and want to do some more. I think this will be a hobby that sticks, something I’m doing in the background a lot of the time. This time it was logical to make a book trailer for “A Basket of Devils” because I was gearing up to launch that book. Next, I’d like to do something for Sufferborn (duh! lol), and in between I might do meme-type things for fun.

So without further ado, here’s the book trailer! Check it out! It’s only a minute long!

And you can get “A Basket of Devils” HERE!!!

Book Reveal: A Basket of Devils

On By jccarverIn upcoming bookLeave a comment

I have been busy, folks!
But it’s for a great cause, because I’d like to introduce you to…

I am thrilled to announce that my upcoming book, “A Basket of Devils,” is set to be released on November 1st, and I couldn’t be more excited to share it with you. I have been stewing this one around in my head for several years now, so I’m extremely excited to finally be able to share it.

How about that cover? I painted it in oil. It’s the first painting I’ve ever done on wood panel—my new favorite surface.

📖 About the Book:
Arson was born into the life of an assassin as one of a set of quadruplets found by a madman named Haus LinGor. They travel to the elven kingdom of Norr to discover their true heritage and purchase wives to take back home with them, but at a time when trolls are rampaging through the forest. Arson is captured by Princess Hanhelin’s entourage. Regardless, he won’t give up on his quest to obtain a wife. He sets his sights on the princess’s handmaiden–if not the princess herself.
“A Basket of Devils” is a gripping romantic fantasy that delves into a dramatic enemies-to-lovers struggle, intertwined with danger and adventure. It’s a tale of love, loyalty, and the choices that can change destinies forever. This book marks the beginning of a prequel series to the Sufferborn saga, which many of you may already be familiar with. It addresses something that is only lightly touched on in Sufferborn: the dreaded but fabled Overseas Taint.

Check out the “devils” on Amazon!

For those of you who just can’t wait until launch day to read it, you can access it on Netgalley and leave a review!

I’m immensely grateful for your continued support, and I can’t wait to hear what you think about this new adventure. Stay tuned for more updates and information as we approach the release date.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a part of this journey with me. I couldn’t do it without you.

Warm regards,
J.C.

Sufferborn is on Netgalley this Month

On By jccarverIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

If you are a reviewer and like to use Netgalley to read free books in exchange for a review, now is your chance to get your hands on a Sufferborn review copy! Not on Netgalley? That’s ok, you can create an account and start reading for free.

If all goes well with this one, I will post the following Sufferborn books in the next two months ;).

Review Sufferborn on Netgalley here!

Have a great day, y’all!

Flesh Embodied Cover Reveal and Release Date!

On By jccarverIn UncategorizedLeave a comment
Flesh Embodied dark fantasy book cover
The cover of Flesh Embodied. Oil on linen. 2021.

The long wait for Sufferborn book 3 is coming to an end!

I spent the entire year of 2021 writing “Flesh Embodied” and the entire year of 2022 editing/publishing it. The work has leaked into 2023, but that’s just because this book is HUGE—and in more ways than one! I think all of you fans will be delighted! As important as this book is to the series, it’s not even over yet. Sufferborn will most likely be, in total, 6 books long, putting “Flesh Embodied” right at the center of the action. You are NOT going to want to miss this!

March 20th 2023.

Are you ready for it?

Check out Flesh Embodied!

Calling all Sufferborn fans! If you’ve read and enjoyed “Sufferborn” and “Unwilling Deity” and would like to read “Flesh Embodied” as an ARC (advanced reader copy) reader then please send me a message through the contact tab above. I would be glad to hook you up with a free copy for your honest review. I’ll be excited to hear your thoughts on it. 🙂

Sufferborn Book 3, Fist Draft Done!

On By jccarverIn upcoming book

Merry Christmas to all! I feel compelled to write this blog right now as a way to get out of a sort of funk I’ve been suffering with. I haven’t wanted to do much of anything online, besides spend money :} . It has been a bad 2 years for me, but this Christmas season, so far, is a lovely one.

My first announcement for today is that the third installment of Sufferborn has been written! It’s only the first draft and will be followed by a long few months of editing, starting in January, but the project is halfway complete at this point. It took me 11 whole months to write it and it is nearly 230,000 words long, whew! For the first two books, it only took about 3 and a half months to write their first drafts, but this year was different. I had trouble focusing. I took on a big computer building side project, two of my relatives died, and I continued to deal with publishing-related woes that are hard to explain to those who don’t work in this business. I was spread thin, and 11 months got the job done.

I’m psyched about Sufferborn book 3! This book is VERY important in the series as it’s at the center of the entire composition and it stands as a pretty big mid-series climax. So buckle your seatbelts, Sufferborn fans. By now, you all know that I don’t write slow books, haha! My books are full of action and drama.

Since I finished the book a little later than expected (LOL), I’m, of course, having to push back the release date. So I’m hoping for mid 2022 now. It’s a very big book and shouldn’t be rushed. I’ll do my best and keep you informed.

I also finished the front cover painting for book 3! Another very big task done. There will, as always, be a back cover painting too, but I’ve yet to decide on a subject. I’m currently working to create a reference and…

Dah-da-na-naaaaahhhh! This brings me to my other bit of big news: I am writing this post on a bitchin’, badass, new custom-built computer—the first computer I’ve ever created with my own hands! It’s beautiful. I talked about this project in a previous post, you might remember, but the finished project turned out slightly different. What I have learned is that building a computer is quite a twisty-turny adventure. You really have to be in tune with what you’re doing and trying to accomplish. But I did it, and it’s just fabulous. This computer is the new center of my publishing company, and not a moment too soon. As it turned out, I wound up deciding to get a Ryzen 5950x, which has 16 cores, instead of my original plan of getting a threadripper. I made this decision after discussing it with someone online who convinced me I didn’t need a threadripper for what I was trying to do, lol. Alongside it, I wound up getting a Nvidia RTX 3070 graphics card. Obviously, I would have gotten a higher tier, but the current graphics card situation was insane, and I just decided to get the best thing I could get my hands on. To be honest, my 3070 is AWESOME. Computer people in the youtube videos act like it has to be a 3090 or you’re just not at the best level, but all that talk is silly. I’m here to tell you this if you are currently trying to get a graphics card. My computer is amazing thanks to my 3070. I managed to get it by watching the Newegg website closely, checking its stock about three times a day (so not too closely, hahahah!) When I happened to catch this 3070 in stock, from a reputable American seller, I jumped on it. Ok, I didn’t even jump on it that quickly lol. I hemmed and hawed for about an hour. I asked my mom if she thought I should get it lol. And THEN I bought it. I paid about 800 dollars more than its retail value, as these were ridiculously inflated this year. My decision was justified though, because it’s for business. I really wanted my workflow to improve. And it has.

The book and the computer were the best things to come out of 2021 for me. I’m really hoping things will be different in 2022. I’m feeling good these days. I get a winter vacation, since I’m letting the book simmer before reading it with fresh eyes. And my day job has lightened up considerably, because this is a slow season for the work I do. So finally, I’m getting some rest and feeling at peace, after a long, grueling year of deaths and penny pinching and emotions coming from places both external and internal.

I hope for now, my suffering is over. And I’m excited about Christmas. How about you?

Merry Christmas.

There’s the magnificent bastard now–my computer! XD

3D Printed Sufferborn Figurine by J.C. Hartcarver and Mixed Dimensions

On By jccarverIn Uncategorized

How’s everybody doing on this fine day in 2021? I just wanted to take a moment to show you how I like to waste my time—haha! Just kidding, I don’t actually consider it a waste. I just love doing crafty things. It’s what gives my life meaning and purpose. Truly, I live from project to project. That’s how I like it. And I’m always thinking of crazy new ways to get paint all over my hands. This time I made a figurine. Check it out…

This is Wikshen (my favorite Sufferborn character. Shhh, don’t tell the others). If you haven’t noticed already, Sufferborn is kinda about him, to be honest. He’s more than a novel character to me, though, he’s an artistic outlet. If I’m trying out a new medium—of any type—you can count on seeing Wikshen appear in that medium. Anyway, about this figurine…

The very first step was sculpting him in the Daz Studio software. I just LOVE that software! I sculpted him using various morphing tools I had to buy to get the job done. I guess you can say he was expensive even to digitally sculpt. And then I used the GamePrint plugin to send my sculpture to the printing company, Mixed Dimensions, to get my sculpture created in real life 3D. It was not cheap, I must say, hahah! This was a high-end pricy little project. He stands at about 9 inches tall and his skin color was printed as well. I only added a few painted elements of my own to enhance his eyes and add his side brand and arm bands, and etc. Some parts of his clothing didn’t print in the color I needed, so I went over those with my own black paint. Consider this post to be a glowing review of all of those services I mentioned: Daz Studio, GamePrint plugin for Daz Studio, and Mixed Dimensions—all highly recommended!

What I actually submitted for printing was an incomplete figure. He had no hair and only wore his underwear. Notice his hair and “battleshift” are both made from organic materials. I wanted this figurine to be partially a hands-on art project for my own personal joy and satisfaction. I had to create the base he is standing on—not because I wanted to, but because I had no idea how the printing process would play out—if I would get a complimentary base or not. It turned out that I was not given a base by default. He arrived as a loose figure who couldn’t stand on his own (poor fella!), so I went to all the trouble to pick out a wooden oval thing from the craft store, stain it, sculpt the rocks and soil using a two-part apoxie, paint it, and added moss for a realistic terrain effect. The finished product turned out better than expected.

And that hair! Thanks to my history of enthusing in the world of Asian ball-jointed dolls, and honing my process for creating wigs, I was able to craft this for the figurine. This part I knew would be a better option than printing his hair from the resin material he’s made of. If I had done that, the figure probably would’ve cost $100 more than it did! I did run through the shopping cart process a few times to figure out my options. So making the hair saved me money, and it looks 100 times better too. I was able to use hand-dyed suri alpaca hair that was left over from a past wig I made (because I totally made a ball-jointed doll of him in the past!). This also makes his hair removeable so I can replace it in case of damage or whatever.

Look at that dirty bastard! The last thing I applied was his battleshift which is made from a scrap of linen I had kicking around. Did I also mention I’m a seamstress? Well, I didn’t actually sew this together, I “sculpted” this garment by cutting and gluing pieces directly onto the figure, so this one is not removeable. His battleshift hides the wire that I used to stabilize the figure to the base, using nothing short of caulk to secure him down, which includes under his feet.

I’m not going to say this project was “simple” or “easy” but it probably wasn’t an expert-level project either. I was able to alleviate my chores a bit by ordering a color printed sculpture instead of primed. The tasks I did take on required a bit of planning and know-how. For instance, I also had to invent a way to let the figure stand safely on his own without facing the risk of falling and breaking off one of those gorgeous, tiny fingers while I worked on him. To do this, I glued a Styrofoam “brick” to a flat piece of cardboard, carved foot holes into the Styrofoam and, voila, he had a temporary stand to prop him up while I crafted his wig.

I have a few mixed feelings about continuing this as a hobby. 1. Yes, of course I want to do another one! He looks lonely without his Kalea to stand there being impressed (or horrified) by his antics, heehee! 2. But it was such an “extra” thing for me to juggle. It took a long time to finish just because each session was spread out across weeks and weeks. I could only work on it a little bit at a time each weekend, sometimes skipping weekends. 3. It’s an expensive hobby…But who am I kidding? I LOVE doing arts and crafts and don’t mind spending money on a project! 4. Um…there isn’t really a fourth feeling. I enjoyed doing this but it’s not very convenient. I’ll just play it by ear. Maybe you’ll see a Kalea figurine in the next year, who knows? Until then I have a Book 3 to finish and a computer to build. Yep, I’m still working on that computer. It will make my future of using Daz Studio a bright one.

Thank you for reading this! If you catch me at a convention in the future, I will most likely have this little guy on my table to make it look cool. He’s a one of a kind.

God Bless!

P.S. I did a little filming as I worked on this project, so you can expect a creation video on Youtube soon…just gotta get that new computer running (*sigh*).

Growing Pains and Sufferborn Book 3

On By jccarverIn Uncategorized

As it is close to the middle of the year, I feel it’s appropriate to give you all an update to the progress of Sufferborn book 3.

I’m expecting its release to be around early 2022—but please don’t think that sounds bad, it’s really not. For the past two years in a row, I’ve managed to release book 1, Sufferborn, and then book 2, Unwilling Deity, in the fall of each year. There is a certain rhythm I intend to keep for my book releases, and as a result, the starting and ending points of each book creation will land a little later in the year, each year (for example, Sufferborn came out in October of 2019 and Unwilling Deity came out in November 2020). After taking my annual “between books break” in 2020, I started writing book 3 (title to be announced) on January 1, 2021. So far, it is taking a bit longer to write this one than the previous two, and I think that is due to my trying to juggle it with various different things like marketing and such. But I am hopeful that the book’s first draft will be finished soon and I will proceed with its publishing tasks.

However! There is one thing in this year that could possibly delay book 3’s release, backing it up a little farther into 2022: I am building my first high-powered workstation computer.

Let’s put an emphasis on “possibly,” because I’m not entirely sure if my pc building venture will actually delay the book. I am having to work more hours at my day job to come up with the money, and my new workstation will not be cheap. As long as I can keep up my discipline and wake up extra early every morning, I shouldn’t lose any writing time. But the cost of pc building will have to be juggled with the cost of publishing (and this year I have to buy another 10 pack of ISBN numbers. Yay :[ ).

The thing about pc building is that in order to make a workstation, and not a gaming pc, I need better/faster components and lots of memory. I want to do this right, so my pc will work faster, longer, and allow me to do complex operations like 3d rendering. I’m EXTREMEMLY excited about what I will be able to do with my new pc—the art I will make—the new software and media I will try! Right now, I’m working on a pc that has a 4-core AMD processor and was the cheapest pc in Best Buy 6 or 7 years ago. I am planning to put a 24-core threadripper CPU into my new computer, so I’m expecting the difference to be like night and day.

As far as pc building goes, there are circumstantial complications for this year: a shortage of graphics cards and insanely high inflation for them in both retail and on the second hand market. As far as getting a graphics card goes, I’m biding my time as I have to save for all my other expensive pc parts, but it’s still a worry. In 2021, building a pc costs more money than ever before. Between it and my busy life, I’m estimating Sufferborn book 3 may release in February 2022. That’s my best guess-timation, but I will follow up if I foresee any developments.

I might also show a few pics of my new workstation pc when it’s complete. I think my Sufferborn art, book covers, and marketing graphics are about to get a LOT better. Art is my favorite part of life. It’s half the reason why I’m in this business. ❤

Sufferborn’s New Look!

On By jccarverIn Book Covers

Finally, it’s here! I am proud to present the brand new cover for Sufferborn (book 1)! It was a long journey, short if you consider the time frame, but a fairly smooth transition. The worst part about it has been my anxiety: what should the new cover look like? Which idea to go with? How long will it take to paint? How long will it take for the final oil glaze to dry? How long will it take to get it professionally scanned? And can I get a ride to the photoimaging company downtown Nashville?

The thing is, I needed to get it all completed before February in order to use the new cover for an ad I had already bought. Though all of those concerns ran smoothly, it was the waiting that hurt the most. When you have a big project (and OMG, yes, making a good, hand-painted book cover is a HUGE project), you just want it to be over and done right now—hahaha, know what I mean? But patience and diligence pays off. Even if it takes a long time, practicing patience and diligence will get you the narrower time frame—procrastination will draw it out for additional months and even years.

So the painting. In my haste to create and get it done, I have been completely uninspired about what to name it. Though I usually love naming paintings, this one I couldn’t quite take the time to care about what it was called—lmao! I slapped the title “Sufferborn Trio” onto the back for the benefit of identification when dropping it off at the photoimaging company and called it a day. Dusted my hands off.

Sufferborn Trio is a great one, I think. In my opinion, it’s a fine replacement for the original cover, titled “Open Heart.” Sufferborn Trio is no less complex and expertly done. I did my best to be as expressive as possible, keeping loose, while at the same time digging in hard to create the BEST possible piece I could within my personal skill boundaries.

Take notice of the two characters at the sides, Daghahen and Lamrhath, the insidious twins who will become quite the epic pillars of drama as time passes. Looking at my references, I knew that the two characters on the sides had to be foggy and recede so that the central figure, Dorhen, can clearly stand out. I had two steps for making that possible: step 1 was to paint them thinly and “coldly,” and step 2 was to go over their whole figures, after they dried, with a whitish glaze. A glaze is when you add a tiny speck of paint to a large glob of pigment-free linseed oil. Because I need my book cover paintings to dry fast, I used liquin original instead of oil for this. I especially used a lot of thin, expressive strokes for Daghahen (at left) to create his elderly appearance. A lot of his blue underpainting shows through. Lamrhath (at right) was painted similarly, but with more careful, thoughtful strokes and coverage. His colored layers are still thin, allowing the underpainting to show through, but all of him is still extremely thin and even, dare I say, underdeveloped. That’s how they both turned out looking faint and cold. It also kept my painting time short and simple, a win-win.

Dorhen, on the other hand, got all my love—as he always does. His face contains the thickest layers of paint on the whole piece, followed by the rest of his exposed skin. Any piece of clothing that appears dark, I take the liberty to keep thin and easily executed, which is something that I’ve picked up in the last decade of painting.

But I won’t bore you anymore with painting techniques. In effort to make this new cover communicate the book’s genre more clearly (dark/epic fantasy), I chose these three characters. These three are present in the prologue of Sufferborn. The twins are the root of the problems that concern the main characters, Dorhen and Kalea. And this scene depicts a moment at the middle of the book when all the elements come together to create the “real” dilemma in the Sufferborn series. This should be a fitting cover indeed.

There you have it! A brand new book cover. Hope you enjoy the book and its new look! If you are a person who misses the old cover, subscribe to this blog on the sidebar for news on when I have posters available. If you would like to get your hands on a copy with the old cover, click the “contact” tab at the top of this site to ask me directly for one. I have a few kicking around and might be able to hook you up (and I’m happy to add autographs)!

Check out Sufferborn on Amazon!