Light Children Interview at Planet of the Books! March 18, 2008 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY Light Children creators, Kyle and Andy were recently interviewed on the webiste, Planet of the Books. To read the full interview, click here! Light Children Booth at Heroes Con 2008 March 1, 2008 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY Light Children will have a shiny new booth at Heroes Con 2008! Come and visit us at this great show in Charlotte, NC. Comic Addiction reviews Light Children January 31, 2008 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY Thanks to Chris at Comic Addiction for reviewing Light Children! See the review here: Comic Addiction Review of Light Children. Version 1.2 of LC Site Live January 17, 2008 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY After hearing from some of the LC fans that there were technical issues with our teaser site, we have launched version 1.2. Please let us know if you experience any problems with this new version - we made every effort to make the site as user-friendly as possible, especially for those of you who are viewing on a small screen. Hard at Work on Chapter Art September 2, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY One of the fun things about this website is letting the world see how things change and evolve as we develop the Light Children story. We have posted new chapter art and those of you who have been following the story since day one will notice that a few small things have changed (Maud's dress, for instance...). We hope you like the way things are shaping up and, as always, we welcome your comments. Chapter 1 will be complete and posted up next week - we will be sure and send out a newsletter announcing this, and we are already onto Chapters 2 and 3. Back from Heroes Con and Ready to Rock June 25, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY We had a blast at the Con. We want to again thank all of our neighbors for being so friendly and fun - it made three days of sitting in a crowded convention center extremely pleasurable! We must, of course, give a special thanks to the many, many people who stopped by to learn more about Light Children. We gave all 400 of our information/ art cards away to new fans, 80 signed posters were snapped up like hotcakes, and we had over 125 new people sign up for the newsletter! It was fantastic. Most importantly, a firm deadline was set for the release of Book 1, Part 1. This full-color, full-length graphic novel will be available for pre-ordering in early December and the books will start shipping in January. We are burning the midnight oil to deliver a stellar first book to everybody and we can't wait to see what you think. Light Children is an independently produced book in every sense, from sketches to final art, from web design to printing, from proofing to shipping - if anybody wants to make this a little easier for us, please show your support by purchasing a T-shirt or one of the upcoming sketchbooks (November 2007). Again, we appreciate all the kind words, the emails, and the press - every bit helps! Stay tuned as we get closer to version 2.0 of this site and much more... Heroes Con 2007 Update and New Light Children Shirts June 8, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY We will be in the INDIE ISLAND section of the convention floor at Heroes Con from June 15-17. Also, we now have a selection of shirts available at our new store! The designs are shown on the right. Check them out here. We will build a bigger, better store after we launch the new version of our website. We hope to see some of you at the Con! Heroes Con 2007: Come meet the Light Children creators...and snag some freebies! April 25, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY Be sure to check out our table at the Heroes Convention, June 15-17, in Charlotte, North Carolina. We will have some limited edition, signed posters for sale, along with some great freebies. Kyle will be available for Light Children sketch commissions, as well. We hope to see everybody there. And, don't forget to check out the upcoming issues of ImagineFX and Advanced Photoshop for Light Children features. New Concept Art: The Orphanage April 13, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY After a lot of concept sketches and conversations, we have settled on the final design for the orphanage. It was a great experience figuring out exactly how the orphans would live, down to the last detail. Throughout the process, we were able to learn a lot more about the world we are creating - building materials, natural resources, the lay of the land, etc. Overall, we feel that this environment is now exactly the way it was originally envisioned by Andy years ago. It is definitely exciting to see ideas that only existed in our minds start to come to life on paper. Click on the thumbnail to the right to see the full rendering of the orphanage. For an in-depth description of life at the orphanage, please sign up for the newsletter on the homepage. New Concept Art: The Burrsak April 5, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY Here is a sneak peek at a section of rough page art that is being developed with the Burrsak character. We can't reveal too much, but the real action is coming soon - remember to sign up for the newsletter for more behind-the-scenes information. And, check back for the first few finished pages April 22nd. We will be posting an introduction art page for chapter one shortly, as well, and we hope it will be enough to hold you over until the first story pages are launched. We would like to also take this opportunity to thank ImagineFX magazine and Advanced Photoshop magazine for the interviews that will be published in their upcoming issues. We feel honored to be featured in these fine publications! New Concept Art: The Burrsak April 4, 2007 | Posted by KYLE and ANDY Burrsak (bur-sak) // noun (pl.-s |saks|) Any of the various long-furred, carnivorous animals of the Falkenae family, having long ears and tails; indigenous to the grasslands of the southeastern Terra, with a divided upper lip and sharp teeth. Burrsaks are usually smaller than Fourdes, but have the same luminous forehead protrusion, which is used to aid their poor eye sight, especially during hunting. Light Children Receiving Accolades - Creators Grateful! March 26, 2007 | Posted by KYLE Many, many thanks to the following sites for featuring Light Children: Inkblurt, E-motional Design, Tag Society, Altpick, The Best Designs, and ConceptArt.Org. We are pleased to also announce that after one month online, we have received an average of 250 unique visitors per day! Needless to say, this positive response to our story is overwhelming. Thanks, also, to those of you who have been voting in our poll- we are just trying to figure out the best way to deliver content to everybody and many of you have emailed questions about online subscriptions and book release dates. Since the book won't be published for a while, we wanted to give folks the option of subscribing online for a very small fee, so that they can read each chapter as it is finished! The first chapter will still be free, as promised, of course. And remember to check back here on April 15th for the first few pages... Dwellings on the Outskirts of the Terra March 19, 2007 | Posted by KYLE Allumen farmers who live on the outskirts of the Terra build their dwellings from large roots clusters that break from the surface. This rough sketch shows a typical dwelling of a microfarmer. We will be posting more sketches like this in the next newsletter, along with much more! Eli Concept Art and First Look at the Orphanage March 15, 2007 | Posted by KYLE Here is a recent concept illustration of Eli sitting on the front steps of the orphanage at Westover Lake (click on thumbnail for full-size image). The little snail-like creatures by his feet are described in detail in the first Light Children newsletter, 'Descender.' If you are not receiving the newsletter, you can sign up on the homepage by simply entering your email address. Dark Descents in Mythology March 15, 2007 | Posted by ANDY The 'Dark Descents' theme in fiction is a popular story telling mechanism that goes back to ancient mythology and beyond. A prize is stolen and locked in the depths of hell. How far will its desperate owner go to regain it? What terrors will he willingly face to recapture that which he holds more dear than his own life? If he chooses not to descend, life has no meaning. If he goes and succeeds, he lives again, but will everything be the same? Or will his knowledge of what's in the darkness change him forever. This is the terrible predicament of the Light Children orphans, who follow in the literary footsteps of many other legendary heroes. Inspired By Freyja The tragic Norse mythological anti-hero and goddess Freyja was a key inspiration for the descent in the Light Children story. Freyja, unmatched in radiant beauty, traded her marriage and heavenly status for her obsession with Brisingamen, a priceless, renowned necklace. She valued it more than anything on heaven or earth. When it was stolen from her, Freyja's journeyed down into the lascivious dwarves' dark forest to retrieve her priceless possession, no matter the cost. The dwarves demanded one night with her as the price for Brisingamen. She gave them what they asked and returned to heaven with her precious jewels. She thought all would be well, but her husband soon discovered what she had done. He left her, Brisingamen was removed from her neck, and she was exhiled from heaven forever. Though Freyja was an anti-heroine, her myth catalyzed the powerful concept of a dark descent for Light Children. At some point in life, everyone must choose to march willingly into a place of unthinkable fear to recapture a stolen prize held more dear than life itself. Origins of Descent As the Light Children story was being conceived, Freyja's descent led me to other legends for inspiration and guidance. The well-known Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice emerged from the shadows of research. Orpheus was a Thracian poet and minstrel. The music of his lyre was so moving that even trees, rocks and animals were compelled to dance. The death of his beloved wife Eurydice, killed by a venomous snake, convinced him to descend into the underworld. Though souls are never to return from Hades, Orpheus all but succeeded in rescuing her. In an unprecedented act by man or god, Orpheus coaxed the powers of the lower world, Hades and Persephone, to release her soul. It was the heavenly melodies of his lyre that persuaded them. Hades only condition for Eurydice's release was for Orpheus to walk in front of her and never look back as they returned to the land of living. As they reached the gates of the upper world, Orpheus became anxious and gazed back at Eurydice, who vanished from his sight forever. These myths and others, including Dante's Inferno, have directly inspired the darkest moments in the Light Children story. These fictional tales of descent are metaphors of human dreads; the unthinkable fears we wish or pray away each night. Whether it is a life changing disease, a lost love, a consuming terror, a relentless thorn in the flesh, or a provoking adversary, everyone must face their own 'descent'– for this reason, readers will easily be able to identify with the seemingly insurmountable challenges facing the orphans of Westover Lake. LightChildren.com Awarded a Spot on CoolHomePages.com March 12, 2007 | Posted by Kyle and Andy We are thrilled to have been selected for three categories on coolhomepages.com: flash, illustration, and entertainment. LightChildren.com Featured on Several Showcase Sites March 4, 2007 | Posted by Kyle and Andy Thanks to the following sites for featuring Light Children: K10K, Pixelsurgeon, Internet Vibes, and News Today. We have also received a bronze medal on the Mowsnet Web Awards site! Off and Running with International Support March 1, 2007 | Posted by Kyle and Andy After only four days online, we are pleased to announce that we have had over 700 visitors to the site from around the globe. Thank you for your support and your kind words about the site. Remember to sign up for the newsletter to receive special news and artwork as we ramp up to the release of the first chapter! LightChildren.com is Officially Launched...The Descent Begins February 25, 2007 | Posted by Kyle and Andy Welcome, one and all, to LightChildren.com! We have launched the official Light Children™ site and are working hard on creating the first chapter! Stay tuned to this blog for special notes on our progress, along with other Light Children news. We have added some L.C. wallpapers for your desktop in the 'Free Extras' section of the site. The first chapter of the book will be released on this site at no charge in a few months; this is a never-before-seen online method of introducing an illustrated novel to the public before the first page is even printed. Enjoy the ride as we invite you into the epic story of the Orphans of Westover Lake. If you would like to be notified when the first chapter is online, please sign up for news and updates on the homepage. People who sign up will also receive exclusive Light Children content, such as behind-the-scenes news, concept art, and some story teasers.