Posts Tagged ‘art’
thank you!
A huge thank you to purchasers of my books. From June 1 -5 I ran a free book promotion on Amazon for the Kindle edition of South from Sintha. I gave away 41 free ebooks and sold a few Kindle editions of the first book Crossing The Churn. Also, thanks to anyone who bought ebooks or paperbacks! I am so pleased to know my stories and words and characters are getting out there!
~
my concept of the Meniscus planet’s solar system
~
I have found my audience for the Meniscus series is unique … people who love science fiction are most interested. For this reason, I have decided to run a new blog, dedicated to my interests in science fiction and fantasy. I will also put updates about my Meniscus books there.
~
Anyone who likes science fiction and would like to follow my new blog, have a look at www.offplanet.blog. I would be happy to see you there! I will still publish the highlights about my Meniscus books here and, of course, continue to post about my interests in prose and poetry, and in natural and community history.
~
This week I am working on edits for the next two Meniscus books: Winter at the Water-climb and The Village at Themble Hill. Here are a few drawings for these new books! The books will follow the continuing story of Odymn and the Slain, but new characters arrive, as the result of a transport crash.
~
~
~
~
Copyright Jane (a.k.a. Alexandra) Tims 2017
Free Book
Meniscus: South from Sintha is FREE on Amazon (worldwide) for the next five days (June 1 to June 5). Odymn wants the Slain to return his ‘acquisitions’ (a wolf-like Kotildi, a Grell-swallow chick, a beautiful human woman, a Dock-winder child and another genetically-enhanced Slain) to their homes. The Slain wants to try, to make Odymn happy, but the task might not be so easy!
South from Sintha
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1544103018
~
Copyright Jane Tims (aka Alexandra) 2017
song of the Hermit thrush
Every morning I listen at my window for the morning bird chorus. This morning, my first Hermit thrush of the year! It is my favorite of the bird songs, melodic and heavenly, phrases repeated in different keys. A year ago, I heard the song and wrote the following poem. For the process I followed in writing this poem, see this.
Hermit thrush
~
Catharus guttatus
~
neither visceral nor guttural, ethereal
tip-toe in tree tops
air pulled into taffy thread
a flute in the forest
froth on a wave
~
rain trembles on leaf tips
guttation drops on strawberry
a lifted curtain of mayflower
~
I saw you there
hidden in the thicket
and I followed
~
climb the ladder and sing
then step to the rung below
heads up, thoughts of the new day
parting of the beak
pulse at the throat
hairs lift
at the nape
of the neck, fingers
warble the keys
between middle and ring
catharsis
~
~
Published at http://www.janetims.com July 1, 2016
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2016
morning birdcalls – Northern Parula
After a hot day, a cool night. This morning, our windows are wide open and a Northern Parula is busy in our grey woods.
~
His distinctive call – ‘whirrrr-zip’ – has an upward lilt at the end. I can catch only a glimpse of him, certainly not long enough for a photograph.
~
The Northern Parula is a small warbler with a bright orangy-yellow upper breast. He builds his nests of Old Man’s Beard lichen (Usnea spp.) – there is lots of this lichen hanging from the trees in our grey woods, so of course he is here! This is a watercolour I did of him last year.
~
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2017
spring flowers – service berry bushes
At this time of year, many ditches and fields in New Brunswick are filled with Serviceberry bushes in bloom. Their delicate white flowers only last a short while but later, in summer, we will be able to pick sweet Serviceberries.
~
~
the shad are running
~
after hard rain
and thin wind
between cold front and warm
riverbanks overflow
and for dinner we have fiddleheads
potatoes and shad, served
with last summer’s Serviceberry jam
~
Serviceberry bushes are torn fish nets
holes poked through with fingers
white petals scattered over mossy stones
on the river shore
~
~
Published as ‘the shad are running’ in within easy reach, 2016, Chapel Street Editions
~
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2017
making stand-ups for my book launch
On Thursday evening at 7PM, I will be reading at Westminster Books in Fredericton, with Zach Hapeman, poet-for-the-young-at-heart and author of ‘A Crack in the Door’ (Amazon books).
~
I’ll read from my new book ‘Meniscus: Crossing The Churn’. I have a few surprises for my audience, including life-sized stand-up cardboard aliens. I also did a set of smaller aliens to include in the Westminster Books display window.
~
First step: Obtain the cardboard. My very helpful husband brought home two big cardboard boxes from Leons Furniture in Fredericton. A big thank you to Leons! The boxes, originally used to protect table tops were the perfect size (6′ by 4′)!
~
~
Second step: Select a couple of drawings of the Gel-head and Dock-winder aliens from my book. Gel-heads are named since their skin is a transparent green gel – muscles, skeleton bits and even some organs can be seen through their skin! The Dock-winders have very long necks, tattooed to keep track of their exploits. They are called Dock-winders because when they invaded earth, they attacked from the sea and their necks resembled the dock piers sailors use to tie up their boats!
~
~
Third step: Transfer the drawing outlines to the cardboard. To do this I created a grid on the drawing and a scaled grid on the cardboard. Then I just drew a scaled outline using the grid-lines.
~
~
Fourth step: Paint the cardboard figures. Manipulating the cardboard during painting was the hard part. I just used my exercise ball to elevate and steady the figure. I was afraid the cardboard would bend, but no mishaps occurred!
~
~
had to add pants to my Gel-head alien … even on planet Meniscus, you need clothing!
~
Fifth step: Cut out the figure. I used a skill knife and carved away small segments at a time. Then I touched up the edges with black paint.
~
Sixth step: Reinforce the back of the figure, especially bendy parts like arms legs and necks, with wooden skewers and glue.
~
The Results: Here is a photo of the smaller stand-ups in the window of our local bookstore Westminster Books, Fredericton. Janet North (owner) and staff have been so good to me. The store is hosting the launch of my book on Thursday May 18, 2017 at 7 PM. If you live in the Fredericton area, Zach Hapeman and I would love to see you there!!!! My aliens would love to see you too!!!!
~
~
Copyright Jane Tims (a.k.a. Alexandra Tims) 2017
Authors Coffee House – a reading by poet Shari Andrews
Hi Everyone. Our church (Holy Trinity, Nasonworth) is holding the third in our series of Authors Coffee Houses next Thursday evening (March 23, 2017) at 7:00 PM.
~
~
Our author this month is Shari Andrews, award-winning poet and a resident of New Maryland. Shari will be reading from her books “Crucible” and “First Thin Light”.
~
~
“Crucible” is a tribute to St. Catherine of Siena who lived in the Middle Ages, and a dramatic imagining of the people and events in her life.
~
~
“First Thin Light” is about the ties that bind our past to our present.
~
Shari’s writing is steeped in history and many of her poems are responses to works of art. Her poems ponder women’s experience —
From her poem ‘Where She Laid Her Body Down’ (After “The Walk to Work” by Jean-François Millet, 1851) in “First Thin Light”:
“She wears the withy basket,
she will fill again and again with potatoes,
upside down
like an over-sized hat,
a roof she wants to keep over her head …”
~
There will be a free-will offering to benefit the Fredericton Food Bank.
Dessert, tea and coffee and good company!
Hope to see you there if you are in the Fredericton area!
~
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2017
Meniscus: Crossing The Churn … on Kindle soon!
I have had a frustrating week. However, I have accomplished what I set out to do. I have pressed the publish button on the Kindle edition of my book. It should be available in a couple of days.
~
Say hello to Odymn and the Slain. My big problem was to get them from postage-stamp size to fill-the-page size.
~
What an effort! My main challenge was putting my 25 drawings into the various types of e-book at a proper size.
~
I googled for help for almost two weeks and tried every suggestion without luck. And at last I found the answer. I purchased a book by Aaron Shepard ( Pictures on Kindle – Self-Publishing Your Kindle Book with Photos, Art, or Graphics, or Tips on Formatting Your Ebook’s Images to Make Them Look Great (Shepard Publications, Friday Harbor, Washington, 2013-2016) available as an e-book from Amazon for $4.03 … the key was to switch on and off all the right boxes in Word ! You have no idea how deep the Word rabbit-hole goes!
~
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2017
Meniscus: Crossing The Churn …. published!
I am so proud to announce that my new science-fiction book Meniscus: Crossing The Churn is now available in paperback through Amazon. The book is written in the form of a long poem and includes my pencil drawings.
~
To quote the book cover:
On the alien planet Meniscus, Humans are slaves. Every twilight, Odymn runs through the forests of Meniscus, practicing the art of parkour. Her runs give her strength, flexibility and endurance, and a way to survive a life of servitude under the oppressive Dock-winders. When the silent Slain rescues her from a brutal encounter with a gang of Gel-heads, Odymn believes she has reached the end of her search for freedom. In their travels through the Prell’nan District of Meniscus, she and the Slain encounter dangerous woodlands, dramatic water-climbs and an impassable water churn. Odymn and the Slain work together to evade the Gel-heads and overcome the dangers of the landscape. But is Odymn really free or is she caught in a cycle of trying to escape the inevitable?
In the first of the Meniscus series, Crossing the Churn tells the story of the meeting of a young woman and a genetically-engineered Slain whose kindness may not be consistent with his purpose.
~
~
This is the first book in a series of five, all in various stages of completion. I aim to publish a new book in the series every couple of months during 2017.
~
I have published this book under my first name Alexandra so be sure to look for it under Alexandra Tims. Hope you will come with me for a run through the landscapes of the planet Meniscus.
~
or for Canadian customers:
~
If you buy my book, please leave a short review on Amazon!!!
~
True to my botany training, part of the story reveals how to stay fed on an alien planet with no grocery store nearby! If you want to stay fed on this planet, have a look at the poems in my other book within easy reach (Chapel Street Editions, 2016), also available on Amazon.
~
Odymn and the Slain
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2017
The “proof” arrives!
A knock on the door yesterday afternoon brought the “proof” of my new book Meniscus: Crossing The Churn”. So exciting!
~
~
The proofing with CreateSpace takes a while if you follow their process. At the suggestion of one of my blog readers, I sent for the hard copy “proof” and I am so glad I did! I am also reviewing a virtual book and a PDF version, both provided by CreateSpace.
~
I know from my read of the virtual book, there are several things I want to fix. But having the proof makes publication of the book more “real”. Also, a read of the real pages will probably point out other edits … there always seems to be a difference between my perception of paper and screen versions!
~
~
It will take a few hours to read the “proof”, make any changes and go through the process of downloading the new version to CreateSpace. Then, a repeat of the proofing process. Nevertheless, I am that much closer to the publication of my book on Amazon!
~
Copyright Jane Tims 2017
nichepoetryandprose 