“Mistress of the Winds” is officially on the Aurora Awards ballot, in the Best Graphic Novel category. This is good news for the English version of Echofictions’ first ever graphic novel. The Aurora Awards celebrate the excellence of Science fiction and fantasy published in Canada.
There will be a voter package compiled, and downloadable. Shortly after it is released, voting will open mid-June. Members are able to download selections from the works under consideration so that they can inform their votes. More information on our voting process can be found here.
Only current members of CSFFA can vote in the Aurora Awards. To register as a CSFFA member, you pay 10$ to the association.
Writers and artists have a lot to do to complete their tax return, as self-employed workers. So if you finished, have a cheery laugh at this page showing my plight. You may see by the year that it is not from yesterday… with all the paper forms. The webcomic was originally published in French, so I translated it fast to get it to you!
(For the non-Canadians, RRSP is a bit like a 401-k account)
I think 2022 has been my best publishing year so far, with a new graphic novel and publications in Asimov’s and Analog. Go check the Echofictions website for more info.
I have been very involved in family affairs and caring fo my dear mother (who is well by now, fingers crossed) so I lacked free time to promote my works, and the Kickstarter fundraising for a special edition of my new graphic novel.
This Kickstarter will land you a solid 6″ x 9″ hardcover edition of Mistress of the Winds, printed in Canada by real nice people. At 92 B&W pages, it will include many sketches and behind-the-scenes extracts. The digital and paperback editions are already out.
Genre: SF, Planet-opera, YA Length: 92 pages Interior pages in B&W All ages
Why a campaign?
Crowdfunding does help authors to bring visibility to their creations. A practical aspect is that the category publication/fiction draws lots of new readers, eager to find new books.
As an artist, I supported many of my creative colleagues’ projects, not only on Kickstarter, but on GoFundMe, Indigogo, Ulule… and I ended up with more books than I can possibly read!
So I discovered formidable writers, whose careers I am avidly following, thanks to their campaigns.
Why in English, if I am French-speaking?
That first campaign is in English because of my writer friends living in the US, who have encouraged me to pursue my writing and get better. really, without them, I would have cease to be a writer… and a comic artist!
Some digital and paper rewards will be in French as add-ons. I point to my friend and colleague Frank Fournier who did the colors of my cover. And I will eventually prep a campaign for a French hardcover edition, too.
When does it start?
On March 28. I do not have a very high ask, but it is essential that each participant to make a contribution in the first hours! A campaign that reaches its goal fast shines more brightly on the Kickstarter website.
Producing the intro video ! Reading a text in front of a camera doesn’t look natural. So I did my best to explain, share my project, without hiding my French accent. It took about six tries to find the right tone.
The project
With Mistress of the Winds, you will discover a richly-developed world populated with vivid and endearing characters. Follow young Adalou as she struggles against powerful foes and her own body’s limits in the most prestigious kite contest of the planet!
This YA graphic novel kidnaps you into an alien civilization so out of this world that you will want to know more about it… and zoom through the pages to devour this delicious coming-of-age story!
It’s a date: my first Kickstarter campaign
To know more about the le graphic novel, here are some news about Maîtresse des vents.
Feast yer eyes! A mock-up of the book. I am waiting for my author copies…
I am emerging from a frenzy of art events in Montréal and the complexity of putting up a graphic novel with *Vellum* of all things. Now I can proudly boast my latest publication : Maîtresse des vents, a 92-page graphic novel in French, from my own SF universe. My cover pic has been put into magnificent colors by my talented colleague Frank Fournier.
It is my first graphic novel published since a few years. I published with my own indie house because I was tired of waiting after various French publishers all hoping for the next popular thing.
I had a blast drawing 16 new pages and sketches to complete the story, and will work to distribute the paperback version in some outlets. Here’s one of those recent additions.
There is a section with various sketches at the end of the book. It will be a small pocket book format. The electronic copies are available on various platforms.
If you are patient, I will get the English version done as soon as possible. After all, the computer technology and Clip Studio make this endeavor less painful.
…
Useful infos
Title: Maîtresse des vents, Un récit de l’univers des Jardiniers
You’re invited to step aboard my Patreon galleon and sail to new uncharted territories!
I came to Patreon at first to support my fellow artists friends. And I am still supporting them via this fantastic system.
But now a flurry of new projects are claiming for existence:
Windmistress, YA SF, 43 finished pages on 50.
Honor Road, manga, 200 pages, 22 finished
Joys of the Signing Table, 100 gags published on my blog, meaning a 250-page album in manga format. I need at least thirty hours to convert the graphic files to the publication format.
I am currently working on two SF novels ( Azuras and Grasshoppers), and planning for more.
Your kind support on Patreon will make a difference for my writing and drawing fiction, especially as I write in both English and French. It will allow me to hire help for translation and design, and to get the formation I need to hone my craft. Because I am always learning.
It will make a difference for you, as your pledge will reap rewards: free reading, behind-the-scene sketches, ex-libris, ebooks…
(Honor Road, sketch)
Some of my recent English titles (ebooks and comic books) can be found below.
Ma Patreon page contains a short and funny video presentation. Enjoy its nice musical score and share it among potentials fans !
This October is such a busy month that I am lagging behing my posts.
So here is a placeholder post while I organize the mailing of my SF novels overseas, make frenetic preparations for my depart for the Utopiales festival, and put up new e-books, tinker with websites, recuperate from my Oakville half marathon race… and run to a scout camp this week-end!
So the next Signing table comics will have to wait a little!
What is trendy today… will have cooled down tomorrow! Don’t lose time chasing the latest fads!
As for the publishing delays, the new realities of the writing world have reduced them. Nevertheless, that advice stays: better write/draw what you love!
Running at daybreak on August 11, I had the occasion to observe a strange meteorological phenomenon.
I was running on a small side road, making 3 km circuits. The morning mist floated above the hay fields, a large open space. Then the sun rose, and I had the wonderful surprise! Continue reading →
That I am working on, hence the delay in getting new gags uploaded on this blog. A few writing and illustration contracts landed in the same week, a rare event.
Echoes of a Sunday artist 