Shock! The Illustrations are Back on Track...

Friday last, my illustrator Aek, contacted my wife to make an appointment to bring the remaining 12 paintings to our home. After recovering from my shock I said yes; he came at 4 the following Sunday.
Glory be! They were everything I had hoped for (and given up on) and more.
Just as his quitting was out of the blue; so was this phone call of his renewed efforts to finish his job.
Now, they're not 100% finished; however they are about 80% (all) and I gave the final approval for the finishing details as we had discussed. Aek indicated everything would be done by the end of this month.

I have considered deleting my previous post, but have thought the better of that; this blog is about writing, editing, printing, and publishing from beginning to end with all its joys, disappointments, failures, and mistakes; the entire process unvarnished; exposed for all to see.
So it will stay.
There are some lessons here and not wanting to push the river; I'll let those gems of life soak in over the next few months.

May your coming new year be as positive as mine. Cheers.

Bad News; Very, Very Bad News for Me...

After more than 3 years; "my artist" has decided he cannot do the job.
I'm left with 6 of 18 illustrations I needed. This is a style not easily found in today's Thai artists. Obviously I was mislead by him and his intent.
To say I'm upset is a gross understatement! It doesn't begin to describe my feelings, anger, and disappointment. He has failed me, himself, and his fiance' and nearly my own will to continue.
I've no idea how I will do the illustrations at this point and it inclines me to never count on anybody again.
What I will do is; regroup, rethink, re-evaluate and find a way forward.

Last of the Illustrations

Not dead yet... ;)
I finally received the last 6 illustrations for final approval, so Aek can finish them. Oddly enough he has a genuine problem with drawing a female face. This was a problem for rendering Khun Ya as described in the story.
Not really much more to report; except this has been a major set-back for my expectations.
I can handle it... :)

Wow, has it really been that long?

Fun or not; time flies. I'm sort of stuck: The book is finished and edited for the umpteenth time, but "my" artist is slow to finish. I considered just printing the book without pictures, but have been soundly rebuffed by those who have read the manuscript.
So, I guess I'll wait for the pictures...

Update: There are now 6 completed pictures...

...for Phra Jan. They are stunningly beautiful in the same style as the one below of Mew.
I've been really busy growing Capsicum chinense (Habaneros, Dorset Nagas, and Bhut Jolokias) while waiting for Aek to finish the rest of the illustrations. I'm hoping to be at the printers by the end of the year. Cheers.

Happy Birthday Aung San Suu Kyi; June 19, 2010

Illustrations and Illustrators; Part 2

Mew at the Firefly Cave

For my second book, Phra Jan, I needed an artist skilled in traditional Thai art. The story is set far in the past in Kanchanaburi; a mountainous province bordering Burma. Serendipity played a big part in my finding such an artist. The well known Thai artists are very expensive even by western standards, so I needed somebody who hasn't been "discovered".
While I was teaching at a Thai high school I went to the art department and my wife checked at her school as well. Some of the kids were very good but not quite what I wanted. I asked at every chance everybody I knew, but no luck. I had even considered printing my book sans illustrations.
About 6 months ago I accompanied my wife into Bangkok for her annual physical at Siriraj Hospital and an ex-student of hers who worked there led us through the maze of departments. We took her to lunch and in the course of the conversation my wife told her I write books and gave her a copy of my first one. I told her I wanted to publish my second book but couldn't find an artist.
"My boyfriend is an artist",  said Koi.
Koi e-mailed me some examples of his work; it knocked my socks off, so to speak.
Longer story short, her boyfriend is indeed an artist and exactly what I was looking for. He works professionally painting murals in Buddhist Temples. I printed out a copy of the story, Koi read it and translated it to her boyfriend Aek. Koi said she absolutely loved the story and couldn't put it down, which of course put a big smile on my face.  He's done 8 sketches and I now have one completed picture and it's gorgeous, as you can see, above.
Unfortunately he is very slow and I'm going to see if things can be sped up a bit, because at the rate he's going, it'll be years before he's finished. I hate to push a true artist so I'll have to be very diplomatic, LOL.