I met the coolest guy today. Stop laughing! I’m serious! (Pip, you’re a punk, and I everything your little mind is thinking. Everything!)
So I ran into this... problem... with my top secret project. I’ve been trying to find this... component... and it has been eluding me. I was starting to feel a little bit hopeless, I must admit. It didn’t help when I sent an image (without the component) to my publisher and held the phone up to her daughter. Sweetie Faith said, “I like your picture very much. It’s quite good.” Thank you, I told her with a big smile. Then she added, “I especially like the hat!”
There was no hat.
A few days later (once I’d stopped crying), I called Cris (Remember her? My editor?) and begged for her help. She didn’t miss a beat: “Email Kevin Radthorne.”
Okay. If you are an epic-fantasy fan and you don’t know who I’m talking about then you need to sell your signed, first edition of “The Hobbit” to someone who deserves it. Kevin writes rich fantasy set in a world that has a decidedly Asian flavor. The books (there are two, divided into four thick parts) are so engaging you’d forget that it all isn’t real if it weren’t for the gorgeous magick. They are worthy reads, by far.
Oh, but that’s not all, no, that’s not all!
Kevin also did all four of his book covers. I know, I know. How do I know all this cool insidery stuff? Well, I’m just kick-butt that way. And Kevin says he does his covers on the Biography page of his website (www.kevinradthorne.com). Actually, I know about Kevin because, as an intern at Windstorm back in the day, I unpacked boxes of his books as one of my first duties. I feel in love with his artwork then and have been thrilled (and often breathless!) with his growing collection of artwork at his website.
I *could* have emailed Kevin ages ago, of course. I mean, I’m allowed to be a fangrrl because that only proves that I’m human (which you already know so well). But I never have because... I don’t know... I just never have. But now I not only had permission to write Kevin but a REASON!
Yeah, “Hey, you’re so cool, I love your books and artwork,” is a reason but he probably gets, like someone else I know, forty million fan messages and even though I *love* hearing from folks, I also sometimes feel overwhelmed. I want to answer everyone but, if I do, I will seriously run out of time to design anything new... let alone more MG3K expansions. I hate even saying that because I truly *do* love hearing from all the players. I haven’t heard a complaint in forever and there have been no more proposals of marriage (see what reprinting emails in my blog does?) and so I do feel a little thrill when my inbox fills up... but I also feel bad that folks have to wait so long to just get a little “Hey, thanks!” from pokey me.
Where was I?
Got it. So now I had a reason to write to Kevin and... I... did! Yay, me! Now here’s for the shocker: Kevin wrote back. Yes! I proposed a solution to my missing component problems and he graciously and gracefully told me, uh, that my solution sucked, basically. No, seriously, he actually just told me about this other way of getting what I needed—and tons of them in a handful of variants! It was so awesome.
Have you ever had a deal where you write to a stranger and they’re an ass? I mean, like they’re rude, brusk and heartless? Goodness knows, I’ve had this happen. Heck, I’ve had this happen with people I know! LOL! Writing Kevin was the exact OPPOSITE of that. He was helpful, patient, and articulate. But now for the kicker:
Kevin might (just might!) work with me on the new, top secret, super cool, totally amazing, international team project! OMG!
...
...
...
Wow. I just fainted. Hey, he might be too busy for a CCG (which can be draining and overwhelming in itself) but just the *idea* of working with him is amazing.
I must go to sleep now and dream of kick-butt characters all rendered in Radthorne style.
Hii-yahh! ;)
E.J.
