Maps

One of the coolest things about getting my books published is the artwork that goes along with it. I've spoken at great length of the awesomeness that are the covers of Promise of Blood and The Crimson Campaign but I haven't said enough about the maps at the beginning of each book. Not only did Orbit not blink when I asked for three separate maps at the beginning of Promise of Blood, but they let me choose my own artist. I nabbed my friend Isaac Stewart, who has done quite a lot of art work for Brandon Sanderson (among many other very cool projects). Once we had Isaac on board, it was my job to create the basic sketches. I worked in very light pencil and then wifey traced over it all with pen and added some of the detail. You can see the results below:

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As you can see there is nothing particularly special going on. But here's where it gets fun. I handed them over to Isaac and he turned them into this:

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That work is just superb. I love that Isaac designed them to look like a map you might find in the early 1800's. I love the borders and the details and, well, everything about them.

When we got to The Crimson Campaign, my editor asked me if we needed any additional maps and I asked if I could have Isaac edit two of the maps (with new locations) for book two, and create one new one. And she said that would be great! So what I'm going to do now is show you the edited Adro map that you'll find in The Crimson Campaign. As a warning, it does contain spoilers (if you examine it closely) for Promise of Blood.

The Crimson Campaign is due out February 18th, 2014. Pre-orders are open on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and wherever fine books are sold.