Meet the Exquisite Quill Authors


Thursday, December 26, 2013

The Genesis of a Book - Matrix Crystal Hunters and Matrix Crystal Christmas by Janice Seagraves

The Artist in Me

By Janice Seagraves

I’ve been an artist since I could hold a crayon. I majored in art in HS and in college. It’s only been within the last twelve years that I’ve turned to painting with words. My favorite media is pen and ink. I can spend literally hours creating my drawings, or writing, and not realize how much time has passed. I can’t say for sure which one I love the most, drawing or writing, and it’s very rare when I can combine both of my creative sides.

I’m delighted to report that in both Matrix Crystal Hunters and Matrix Crystal Christmas, I did just that.
 
In Matrix Crystal Hunters on the title pages is a collection of crystals, one of which represents the matrix crystal that Maya and Vach are hunting for. I was lucky to find exactly what I wanted in a photo I bought from fotolia.  I took my time with the drawing and still made the release date.
 

 
Matrix Crystal Christmas has two of my pen and inks drawings, which I combined into one drawing on the inside title page and then separated them on the title page of both stories. One was of a crystal flower, which in reality was from a photo I took of a glass flower my husband gave me.
The second drawing is of a clear crystal necklace that I had given my daughter, which represents the purity of a mother’s love.  Both stories are about a husband and wife’s love for each other and for their children.

 
I spend hours on the flower, but the crystal pendent was easiest to draw with it simple lines. While I wrote, revised, then edited the stories with an editor, I had envisioned how the drawings would look. I’m very pleased with how both the stories and the pen and ink artwork turned out.
Blurb
Matrix Crystal Hunter blurb: Team Alpha Three’s spaceship is out of power after fighting a wormhole, and parking on the primitive world of Zenevieva. With half the team sick from radiation poisoning, the team commander entrusts geologist, Maya Gladstone, to find enough matrix crystals to power up their spacecraft, so they can go home to Earth.
Vach Namaste of the powerful Clan Namaste, a native of the planet, has desired the lovely Maya since she stepped off the spaceship on that astonishing day a year ago. He’s hounded her every step since. As Hymeneal Night approaches, he makes plans to take her as his bride… willing or not.

Janice Seagraves bio
 
Janice Seagraves grew up with a deep love of science fiction and adventure stories. Always the consummate artist, she traded in her paint brush for a laptop to write breathless life-affirming novels that celebrate enduring love.

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Matrix Crystal Christmas is made up of two short stories (one erotic and one sweet). I wrote this collection for the fans of my novel, Matrix Crystal Hunters, who wanted to know what happened next.
In Crystal Flower Christmas: Vach and Maya are on a mission to undam the Laonooco River for the drought stricken region. As heartache fractures their marriage, will the gift of a crystal flower mend their relationship or break it beyond repair?
In Crystal Clear Christmas: Plague has struck the village of Zama and the citizens blame the only human left on Zenevieva, Maya. Will Vach make the ultimate sacrifice to save his wife?
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You can find more of Janice Seagraves’s books and free reads on her website: http://janiceseagraves.org/



7 comments:

Janice Seagraves said...

Thank you, Jane, for having me on as a guest today.

Janice~

Kaye Spencer said...

Janice,

Your pen and ink drawings are beautiful. "I can’t say for sure which one I love the most, drawing or writing, and it’s very rare when I can combine both of my creative sides." <<<---I have to admit that I'm just a wee bit envious that your creative talents are in both realms.

What a nifty idea to include your drawings in your stories. Have you ever considered offering your drawings as numbered and signed 'posters' (not quite the right word) to accompany your books? Sort of a Limited Edtion Prints type promo.

What I love most about futuristic/SciFi stories are the unlimited 'what if' possibilities of world building, and the blurb you shared is intriguing. ;-)

Kelley Heckart said...

I like how you combine both talents. When I'm trying to envision a character, a particular weapon or piece of clothing, I wish I could draw.
Best wishes!

Melissa Keir said...

What a wonderful talent you have. My daughter and son love to draw and are quite good. I guess they must have gotten that from someone else. I can't draw worth a darn. Poor students say my dog looks like a cow. All the best!

Janice Seagraves said...

Hi Kaye,

Thank you so much. You are so kind.
I hadn't thought of offering my drawings as signed and numbered posters. Love the idea though. :) I might just do that.
Janice~

Janice Seagraves said...

Hi Celtic Chick,

Thank you. I do get a picture in my head how my hero and heroine look. If I'm lucky I can find a photo.

Janice~

Janice Seagraves said...

Hi Melissa,

My mom, sister, daughter and myself all have art talent that's a little bit different from each other.

If your children are talented then I'm sure you too have some kind of artistic or craft talent. It maybe just a little bit different too. :)

Janice~