#the understudy project

#StoriesFromSarant, including my flagship books #TurningPointTrilogy, of which the first one #Wolfen'sRage is self-published and the second #TrialsOfYouth is (in theory) close to following suit

High fantasy, LOTS of worldbuilding and multiple magic systems + divine pantheons, most of which hasn't yet made it into the main plots so of course I decided to make a tabletop roleplaying game to cover the gap, #Wolfen&Warlocks Someday might also be an MMORPG, I've got the notes for it...

#TheUnderstudies, technically my first Big Project, began as procrastination from homework in 7th grade via designing superheroes based on me and my friends, my sketchbook was very popular at the lunch table each week

Also have a 'trading' card game in the works called #Understudies:HomefieldAdvantage which I couldn't resist including, it's been fun to fiddle with the numbers and bonuses and whatnot even if a proper deck with art will be a while in coming

#BirdsofLegend, more superheroes, but like. Adapted. Look, when a piece of Batman fanfic gets so large you have five generations of mostly original characters, you can't NOT decide to do Something Else with them.

(I'm currently re-editing the Birds family tree(s) just to make DAMN SURE I know when/where everyone is for time travel shenanigans, those are a big plot device in this story)

Hard Facts, Simple Truths, another piece of fan fic that went in the opposite direction, HUGE cast of all canon characters, but I completely changed up the world they were in and the war they were fighting and so on and so forth, and at the end of the day. I couldn't let the maps go to waste

#BlackSheep is a fun supers story that in typical fashion *is* about family overcoming steep odds together, But Also getting fed up with your older siblings and being petty in how you handle that - in this case, making up a villain persona to give them constant headaches >:3

(Brief sidenote from @ratshag who watched this madness unfold over the past couple of hours:

I will always be proud of your creativity and your persistence.

and my response

First thought: aw, thanks dad, I really appreciate that 2nd thought: I should damn well hope so, at least half the blame for all this is via your side of the family in general and you with the comicbooks in particular x'D

shared with y'all because I'm still chuckling)

#SunAndMoon is a small thing, really my first college-era foray into "okay what if I at least *try* writing a romantic story" but of course with superheroes and secret identity issues Just occurred to me I could also be sharing art with these:

#PatronofFeathers I just came up with last month and I'm looking forward to building it out more, with regards to high fantasy rangers doing the work of divine patrons to keep a balance between the natural land and growing civilization

#FosterWitch OKAY SO this one's kinda like. My dream life. Financially independent, a house and small farm just out of town, adopting a teenager or three - but livened up a bit with the presence of magic. Just for fun. As a treat. Main character gets to learn to drive both a car and broomstick

#OmneBomb is a post-apocalyptic exploration of "the big name team of superheroes lost, now a couple of their former sidekicks have to raise their orphaned children in a wasteland while hiding from angry survivors", but with some extra mystery elements thrown in

So the #Ancestrals story has undergone a few revisions over the years, but the current idea is essentially modern day kids dream of past lives, and find themselves able to access those same fighting skills/magic spells, and have to grapple with "if we CAN help others, SHOULD we" morality

(Plus, they maybe accidentally catch the attention of an immortal alchemist currently running a mad scientist organization, because life isn't complicated enough already when you're a teenager who can suddenly make your science fair project start singing and dancing)

#ElleryElements, siblings born with the forces of nature at their beck and call, but who wind up being scattered into foster care as kids and don't get a chance to reunite until they're young adults abruptly being called upon the save the world

#QuestionofClaws, essentially, in the pursuit of typical "dragon kidnaps princess, knight defeats dragon" type role fulfillment, said dragon and princess bond and realize they both have a shared dream; upon arrival the baffled knight gains a pair of new, highly unusual squires...

#HearthAndBlade, another knight-themed story, but no dragons; this one features a much broader definition of knighthood and their duties to civilians, to their squires, and to each other, with some fun worldbuilding behind it

#Throwback is sci-fi, set way in the future days of space travel, to a point where humanity has LOTS of internal circuitry and cybernetic advancements to help with everything from adjusting their jumpsuit A/C to piloting mecha starfighters...

(…except for our main character, found as a little kid inside a cryo-pod at least two centuries old, who gets a few post-natal implants just to make living aboard a space station possible, but not easy

But of course they end up turning that weakness into strength when war comes calling)

#MidlightLogs, another sci-fi story but HEAVY emphasis on alien cultures; this galaxy is split between multiple empires constantly vying for power and territory, making the main cast of outsiders from these different territories who've found solace with one another a major oddity

(This one's a bit of a media mix in that I'm writing the backstories for how the alien cast come together aboard their ship, the Midlight Stormfront, but it's intended to end with a human joining the crew, and setting up a farming simulator video game I'm also designing)

#RealmsOfAhdil pure worldbuilding. Multiple 'planes' of reality arranged in more-or-less ladder order with a golden city at the top, and our main character has to navigate his way up there to warn of an invading army from the lowest realms

#TavAndTheSolarKnights back to superheroes again, with a 'current organization still rebuilding after forcing out bad actors and corrupt officials' slant. Oh, and the team leader's adopted kid turns out to be a supervillain's heir, which is always fun

(Like Midlight, I've got a game designed for this project too, but specifically a fighting simulator that starts out 'oh, we're giving the kids some sparring practice', but then Wait Something's Wrong and oh shit now the grown-up heroes aren't going easy on us anymore, we need to ACTUALLY beat them-)

#HeirsApparent I started this story with the premise "oldest girl inherits first" because you KNOW the baby a woman gives birth to is her own, and in a world where magical heirlooms Can Tell if your son went and sired a child out of wedlock it's *very* important to keep that magic in the family

(Now we do branch beyond that, one generation down from a recent political upheaval around the throne, all the scions of the nation's heroes training together with their magic heirlooms, and inevitably here comes new trouble for them to sort out)

#Ignition is. Technically sci-fi, but also modern superheroes, in that genetically manufactured teens with various powers are sent back in time to avoid being arrested and unmade, and in trying to navigate this technologically backwards community they accidentally save the day and alter history

#The7Colors again a bit of a genre blend: high fantasy world for sure, but with the Knights of the Seven Colors essentially serving as their superheroes, preventing agents of a renegade goddess from inflicting chaos across the various regions

#BallisticsDivision look. LOOK. I was given a book on how to build potato cannons, my mind went to 'aliens invade and take mental control of the adult population, so kids have to run the rebellion with homemade weaponry' and here we are over a decade later

#MetalAndFeathers a true foray into steampunk, but also magic on the side. Humans don't play nice with other sentient races and combat spells with advanced firepower. Their crown prince has a loyal bodyguard who flies via mechanical wings... except no, those are exo-wings, hiding real feathers...

#Emberkin so gods can hold grudges for centuries, but the reasons for those grudges aren't always properly recorded, meaning that several generations removed it can take a young fellow quite by surprise to find himself targeted by a curse upon his bloodline and suddenly setting everything on fire

#MatrixMage starting college can be daunting enough, but *magical* college, at an institution founded by your family? Plus the fact you've been in an enchanted sleep for fifteen years and all your friends are long-since graduated? Insert "That's rough, buddy" meme here xD

#TriColorTheory started as doodles, which turned into "ooh extra costume ideas" and next thing you know there's a trio of interdimensional Professional Problem Solvers having adventures and staying on the run from their mind-controlling transphobic 'mother'

#FivefoldPatrol now this one starts with a prologue of the end of a five-way war in the solar system, but the rest of the story continues with the next generation, who discover a plot to kickstart fresh conflict and have to step up to save the day

#FamilyatArms another genre-blend of modern day heroics, courtesy of ancient pieces of semi-sentient enchanted armor that would really prefer to be fighting *each other*, except the people wearing them are family members firmly insisting "NOPE NOT HAPPENING"

#TheKnackeries are a found family clan of people who each "have a Knack" for something - one has a Knack for opening items, locked or otherwise, while another's got a Knack for finding what's lost. Unfortunately, they're either ostracized for these powers, or snatched up by the local government...

(…at least until the day revolution comes knocking, and suddenly the Knackery family is the only hope for survival a bunch of people in the city can cling to)

#TalesOfTheBloodfeather a mysterious archer, keeping loggers out of the forest. A bounty hunter who seems to know more than he should. A kid dragged into this mess who'd really just like to make it out alive, and all manner of odd beasts hiding in the trees...

#FreefireComets rich kids and royal heirs and political pawns, all deposited on the same out-of-the-way asteroid base for some tactical training and practical lessons - what could *possibly* go wrong?

Oh, well, maybe a starship crashing the party with unwanted guests.

#Hopepunks time traveling superhero kids attempting to prevent the Unmaking of the Universe. And sampling any kind of cool food they can lay hands on. Maybe also giving skateboards a try when they land in the 21st century.

#FickleLightSteadyShadow featuring gods with divine domains a bit out of the normal channels, plus a Highly Stressed mortal trying to help mediate a dispute between them, and maybe finding out that people are still people at their core

#ErrorsInTranslation so this one is. It's an homage to my first dog. Who I lost in very traumatic circumstances which make working on this one hard, but someday I'll finish it.0 Plot involves a small crew of alien freight handlers who stumble across an abandoned ship, and two unknown lifeforms

(Now, unlike a lot of sci-fi, I'm building this specifically on the language barrier problems, while also incorporating a lot of fun ways humans can be Extremely Useful on your spaceship, plus bonus canine shenanigans, and eventually feline too once they actually find Earth's return address)

(Eleven year old me holding Buffy the pug, Mom kneeling with my Athena, the golden retriever; kittens were named Snowfall and Chewy, rabbit was Marshmallow the 2nd, bird was a sun conure named Rainbow)

AND TO FINISH UP I'm circling back to #SwordStaffandBow, which is, technically, my oldest story on this project list, dating back to when I was, oh, four? Five years old? Somewhere around there. It is *of course* a lot more advanced now, but I've still got the original art in a box somewhere

One princess wields a sword, the other casts spells with her staff, little brother uses a bow from a distance, y'all get the idea. Political intrigue and plots, other people scheming on behalf of these royals who'd really prefer they didn't, etc etc

So I COULD call this sheet ~23 years worth of creative endeavors, but let's be honest, I didn't really hit my serious "I want to Be A Writer" phase until middle school, so 16 years is more accurate.

Anywho, THAT'S A WRAP, if y'all made it all the way to the end of this you have both my respect and applause xD