Recent Sketches and Gestures for Infinite Spiral

First off, news, "Infinite Spiral" is officially live.  Explore the worlds here!  You can also enter the Spiral on Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter, and DeviantArt. dA showcase pages 1-10 (though edits are made as necessary before they are posted to the main site).  Page 04 will go live on the homepage on Friday.

In the past two weeks, I've been working through a ton of gestures and rapid sketches just getting to know possible characters and planned characters in "Infinite Spiral".  I shared these on the Infinite Spiral Tumblr, but want to compile them here for those that follow this blog. 

This piece is simply working through body language and poses of main characters, mostly Christian and James.  Christian is more open and gregarious, while James is more timid and protective.  I want to be careful to convey that through postures and movements, as well as facial expressions as they are introduced.  This gives room for this to change as the characters develop.

How to Make a Spiral Page Layout in Adobe Illustrator

An unconventional layout such as I'm working with for page 09 of Infinite Spiral might seem intimidating to some artists.  However, by using a few of Illustrator's tools, creating a spiral layout like the thumbnail below is a much simpler task than you'd think.

Let's walk through the process.

Words in the Air

James Hartwell is one of the main characters in "Infinite Spiral".  He is called Wicked or Named One, and no one knows much about them.  Most in his world with that qualification are part or mostly human. His past is a mystery, and he cannot remember before the age of 11.  He's brothers in Name with Christian, who drags him into trouble more often than that.

Early after Illumination (when Wicked Children get their 'Wickedness') James sees words in the air (which is part of what I'm illustrating here) ... what that turns into would be spoilers.  He also has the ability to heal, which is a rare and dangerous ability.  What other skills will illuminate as he enters the Spiral.