written and illustrated by Maddie Dearman

The fox watched the dodo as he journeyed alone in the terrible storm looking for shelter and rest. The sly fox couldn't help but invite him in for a drink and a little proposition. The gullible dodo thanked him for his hospitality, and quickly stepped into the shelter of the fox's den. Inside the den was not a home, but instead a magician's lair. Everything in the den had been cursed and therefore alive or dead. The fox was almost out of time, and this silly dodo would be his last chance to free himself.

The dodo took his seat next to the fox at the glowing table. As soon as the dodo sat, the den began to spin. It started slowly and gradually got faster….except nothing moved. The dodo never noticed. And so the fox began his rhyme. He began speaking another language, and the dodo listened with glistening eyes.

Under the table, the fox summoned his colleague and old friend, who had been turned into a snake for his wrongdoings. The dodo began to lose control of his mind.

The fox so obsessed with his spell, never noticed as I took my place in the shadows. I had finally found his lair only after so many souls had been sacrificed. He played tricks on us from afar so that we may never find his true whereabouts.

I watched only for a moment, and the snake had almost gotten the dodo. Just before he took his strike, the lights flickered off. The crystal ball went dark. The dodo stared blankly in the dark unaware of where he was. The fox slipped out of his seat and tried to make a getaway and I called him to a hault. He turned to face me in the darkness, smiling back at me. I knew this was the moment in which we would both fulfill our purposes.
END SCENE
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This illustration was a personal project I completed over summer break as my first character study. Some of my goals for this illustration were:

creating and referencing as many characters as I could without being obnoxious or superfluous
adding various unique details
challenging myself to create an extremely detailed background with an apparent aesthetic
using a rich, vibrant color palette throughout
taking my time and not rushing anything, regardless of time spent
writing an excerpt of the story, keeping it open ended for future stories

PROCESS
This was the most extensive illustration study/work I have made to date. Here's how I did it:

brainstorm ideas for characters
research possible animals for characters
research places, settings, interior design
research magical spells, hyponsis techniques, fortune teller/magician behavior/personality traits
begin basic thumbnail sketches for each important part of the story
in-depth sketches of specific details and elements that will be transferred to the master copy drawing
draw original master copy to scale using in-depth sketches
use a light box or window to trace master copy on the other side for transfer
practice inking each element on the back of the master copy after tracing (optional)
transfer new copy of the drawing on Bristol using the back of the master copy
paint (beginning with the background) the new copy using watercolor paint: create depth by adding several layers
ink the finished painting using a micron pen set and a JellyRoll white pen for subtle highlights
cut away excess paper when dry

DIGITAL

use a scanner to get the highest resolution and detail possible (I had to scan mine four times because it would not fit in the scanner. Just stitch the images back together in Photoshop)
save as a .psd and export to Dropbox (or preferred file hosting service)
with the Dropbox app loaded to your smartphone, screenshot the file to save to camera roll
share work on website and social media

FORMATTING AS AN ARTICLE

using InDesign, create a new file and place .psd
research typefaces (Typekit) for header
trial and error typeface pairing between header, subheader, body type, and website reference
enter the header and sub header
enter story excerpt in two columns at the bottom of the page
format illustration so that it sits in the center of the page, as large as possible without getting cramped
massage body type to comfortably fit below illustration
add color and other character styles to type as needed
save as .ind
export a copy as a PDF
print using a high quality printer with fresh ink and premium matte paper (I recommend Red River Paper)
be sure in the print dialogue box that you select Quality & Media and then High Quality print

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I think that more artists should share their processes just as openly as they share their work. Many times we only get to see the finished product, but what I'm most interested in is learning how it happened. By sharing this knowledge, we are allowed the opportunity to inspire others to make works, to try something new, and to not be ashamed of those basic thumbnail sketches! No work is going to be good until it is finished. I'm making a conscious effort to not be guarded when it comes to sharing a work in progress- there is beauty in raw, imperfect work. Explaining the process shows that a work does not just appear out of thin air, but instead was created using step-by-step processes, various techniques, and strengths in both graphic design and studio art practices.

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The Fox and the Dodo