I recently became acquainted with the
work of Dianne Lynn Gardner, author of a YA/middle-grade adventure fantasy saga titled
Ian’s Realm. The three books in the
series include: Deception Peak, TheDragon Shield, and the soon to be released Rubies and Robbers. The stories chronicle the coming of age of a
boy, Ian Wilson, who follows his father through a portal into an alternate
world where he is kidnapped by a tribe of dragon worshippers.
What amazes me about Dianne, is that besides
being an imaginative writer, she’s also a fantastic artist. She created the
illustrations for all of her books, including the cover art. In a recent communication with her regarding
the work on her series, Dianne said, ”My research is extensive, including
sailing on a tall ship, walking a mile into a lava tube and constructing a
yurt, all of which I talk about with photos, videos and narrative on my blog.” Dianne's blog is presented as a scrapbook, a
visual journey into the mind of a writer and artist. The interactive elements 
Dianne lives and works in the
Pacific Northwest. Among her other
artistic pursuits, she served as a portrait painter for the Washington
Renaissance Fantasy Fair for several years.
For that gig she was required to produce quality oil paintings in just
twenty minutes. Some people thrive on
working under pressure, but that is just amazing!
More recently Dianne has taken on a
fund-raising project through Kickstarter, a popular website that allows
creative entities to raise the necessary funds to see their projects through to
completion. In the interview below, Dianne talks about her books, her art, and
how readers can become partners in her own creative saga through Kickstarter.
Interview with Dianne Lynn Gardner
MCW:
I understand you did the illustrations for your Ian's Realm Saga books,
including the covers. Which came first, the images or the words?
DIANNE: Normally, now, I write first and then paint
the illustrations for my books. But before I started writing the Ian’s Realm
series I began painting the dragon. I knew I was going to write a fantasy book
and I had wanted to paint a dragon for years. I guess I needed an excuse to
begin. Once the dragon took form the story came alive in my mind. From then on
I wore a footpath from my house to my studio painting and writing all in the
same day.
MCW:
Why dragons? And what do they represent in your books?
DIANNE:
There’s only one dragon in the Ian’s Realm story. He is somewhat iconic,
representing an all-powerful evil that has mankind confused. However, if you
read the short story Meneka, you’ll discover where this dragon came from and
why there are dragon worshipers in the Realm. Oftentimes the real evil isn’t
what’s outside of us, but rather what is inside.
MCW:
What age kids are drawn to your books and what kinds of reactions are
you getting from them about your stories?
DIANNE: I targeted my books for boys 9 to 14 but I’m
discovering that my readers range from ages 9 to 90. Just as many adults are
reading them and enjoying them as the youngsters. What I really love is the
reaction that the boys are having. “Awesome” “Better than Harry Potter” “When’s
the third book coming out?” are quotes from some of my young readers. It’s
thrilling to hear that boys who don’t normally read are staying glued to my
book until they finish it.
MCW:
Have you illustrated anything other than your own books? Or would
you like to?
DIANNE: I’ve been an artist ever since I was young. I
primarily paint portraits and have done many commissioned pieces that are in
collections all over the world including J.R.R. Tolkein’s grandsons, the former
owner of the WA Renaissance Fantasy Faire and others. I used to be the resident
artist at the Faire in Gig Harbor. I also paint with Plein Air Washington, have
been a member of several organizations such as Oil Painters of America, The
Portrait Society of America and several local groups.
MCW:
How did you begin/learn to do the kind of art that you do?
DIANNE: I started with sculpture when I was young,
studied art in college and have studied under several master painters such as
Internationally known plein air painter Ned Mueller, Master Sculptor John Henry
Waddell, and Nationally known official portrait artist Michelle Rushworth and
others.
MCW: Do you have other books in the planning
stages? What's next for you?
DIANNE: I’m currently working on Cassandra’s Castle, a sequel to the Ian’s Realm Trilogy, which will be published after Rubies and Robbers. It’s a historical
fantasy that takes place in the Realm with a little different flavor than the
other three books. The main character is Ian’s daughter, and she stumbles into
the same world her father did but in a different location and finds herself
wrapped up in a political uprising. The story was inspired by the Portuguese revolution
of 1908 and by the compelling character of Manuel II, the last king of
Portugal. It’s a little bit of a soft-love romance.
MCW:
Explain how the Kickstarter promotion works and why people might want to
take part in it.
DIANNE: There is a cutting edge crowd funding
movement going on right now that has sparked the formation of several very
successful entities such as Kickstarter, Indiegogo and several other websites.
The idea behind crowd funding is to introduce a project and ask for funding,
offering the donors certain levels of ‘perks’ for their donations. The artist
or author sets a goal, in my case $3000 and if the project is funded, the
pledges are collected and everyone gets their perks. If there aren’t enough
pledges, then nothing happens.
Many
creative projects are being funded this way. It’s pretty amazing to see the
amount of money that is being offered to get projects off the ground. It’s well
becoming the replacement of grants especially in the field of the arts, literature,
music, gaming and video.
Since
I have so much artwork, I decided to offer the original oil paintings that were
used for the first book Deception Peak, plus the cover illustrations for the
four short stories in the A Tale of the Four Wizards series as perks for this project.
There
are also smaller level rewards such as eBook and print book packages and signed
posters. There’s something for everyone, actually.
MCW: Dianne, thank you so much for taking the time
to chat with me regarding your work.
I
encourage my readers to check out the Ian’s
Realm Trilogy and to visit Kickstarter to see what you are offering to those
who wish to participate. But you’ll want to act quickly! The Kickstarter campaign
lasts only through April 13.
Deception Peak and TheDragon Shield are both available through Amazon.
