I started this blog as a way of documenting my journey to publishing my debut novel. Since Far Removed came out, the blog’s goal has been vague, and I have shared mostly reader feedback and promotions. However, I don’t want to dedicate this space to marketing. There’s enough of that on my social media channels.
So what kind of blog should this be going forwards? Something informative?
Some writing blogs offer advice to new writers. I have certainly benefitted from these, but (much like a certain introverted projectionist in Far Removed) I do not consider myself a good teacher. Writing is a very solitary, meditative experience for me. I practice it and if I improve, it is only because information is slowly sinking into my subconscious. This makes it difficult to break it down and deliver it in step-by-step guides. I do, however, feel more qualified to talk about illustration. So I will touch on that a bit later in this blog entry.
Pen Names and Transparency
Many of you know that I write under a pen name. I do this for the sake of privacy, and to avoid the Zon linking educational books illustrated under my legal name with the speculative fiction I write. So here are some facts about me: I am a South African author, but my ancestors are all from England and Wales. I do not consider myself British because my parents were born in Africa, and I am not eligible for a British passport.
The surname, “Lansdell” comes from my maternal great grandmother. I felt she deserved some recognition, and her mitochondrial DNA line ends with me since I have no children. I may one day write a whole blog post on her. The initials, C. B. are my own. I don’t use them to mask the fact that I am a female writer – if that is an issue for some readers, then they are better off staying away from my stories. I just like the way that name format appears on a cover.
Here’s Where the Illustrations come in
I started freelancing as an illustrator soon after I finished studying graphic design and completing a brief internship at a digital illustration studio. I have never worked on any famous projects; mostly illustrated material for magazines, universities and the Department of Education. I often feel like all of this isn’t real. Contacts within these organisations leave, agencies close, and many of the books I worked on do not yield any search results online.
That is why I was quite excited to find some of the first magazines I had worked on back in 2011. I thought they had been thrown out but they were just hiding in a forgotten corner of my house.
I loved Envirokids magazine, and could fully support their aim to instil an appreciation for nature in children. I worked with them for about 3 or 4 years. They eventually came under new management and had to change their design team. I don’t know if they are still around. You can have some fun with the spot-the-difference activity page.
Yesterday, author Timothy Wolff revealed a dagger I illustrated for his upcoming novella. This was such a fun project, something completely unlike what I usually do. Maybe I will soon show up as an illustrator of indie books?
For more of my illustrations and process videos, please visit my Ko-fi page. Thank you, readers for a wonderful Indie April. You helped Far Removed reach some new sales milestones this month.
C B Lansdell 