Joel Quote Series

April 20, 2023 by Karlissa Koop in Comics and Storyboards

Written by Karlissa J.

I like to meditate on the Biblical book of Joel.

Climate change has been on my mind lately - it’s been a topic of concern for World Vision (see their articles on poverty and climate migrants) - and the pictures in the book of Joel seem relevant to a climate change affected world.

The book describes a land ravaged by locusts, a wilderness fire, and war. Both locusts and wildfires make me think of climate change. (Locust populations soar as a result of unusual weather conditions, meaning climate change may create more locust swarms).

Joel focuses on God’s sovereignty, and turning to Him when disaster hits. It’s a reminder that He is the one who provides nature with what it needs to thrive. It reminds me to pray, to dwell on Him.

Of course, the book of Joel is about spiritual as well as earthly renewal, with verses foreshadowing Pentacost and Jesus’ sacrifice. The final two designs highlight these prophecies.

Bible Quotes Comic Designs

December 01, 2022 by Karlissa Koop in Comics and Storyboards

Post by Karlissa J

The latest Bible quote designs I’ve done are based around the desire to encompass more than just one verse. So, I made a few comics/storyboards.

One of my favourite design series I’ve created has been the set on the book of Joel; so the first comic design I made - using some of the same images - was for Joel 1-2.

My other favourite design series has been my take on Lamentations, so I took scattered passages from the book and created this.

Finally, here’s my design around the Lord’s Prayer!

Sixty Six Designs

March 31, 2022 by Karlissa Koop in Comics and Storyboards

Post by Karlissa J

I have created over 200 Bible quote designs! Not only that, but I’ve created designs featuring each of the 66 books of the Protestant Christian Bible! Take a look at some of the highlights!

Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)

New Testament

Concept: Awareness

May 21, 2020 by Karlissa Koop in Designs and Art, Comics and Storyboards, Sneak Peaks

For my ‘entry’ for the art contest, I decided to do a simple sketch.

So… SPOILER WARNING!

In The Loss, Jair becomes aware of his insanity, and has to face it. Though maybe it isn’t a major plot point in that book, it is significant to me. I decided to represent his moment of awareness, adding a mirror to reflect what’s going on inside him: how he now sees his mind as cracked and broken.

You could say the concept represented is “Mental Illness.” However, I think of it more as “Awareness.” Throughout Tales of the Diversity, various characters become more aware of their weaknesses, who they are, and where they want their lives to go.

It’s a theme that continues into the third book, which I’m still busily writing.

The art contest is open for submissions until June 15th: create an art piece (it can be a photograph, painting, model, whatever!) representing a concept from Tales of the Diversity, and send it in to author@karlissaj.com.

Looking Back: Art

December 27, 2019 by Karlissa Koop in Designs and Art, Comics and Storyboards

I happened to be going through some old notebooks, and I discovered these: early concept art for the different races in “Tales of the Diversity”!

First of all, some context: the concepts, stories, and races now found in “Tales of the Diversity” have been on my mind for a long time, and therefore, been through many changes.

At one point, the stories were set in space, across multiple planets. I’ve had alternate races. And many of the creatures have changed over time.

This concept art, then, is a look at how I’ve imagined these races in the past… not necessarily how I picture them now.

Above is a few attempts I made at drawing Scavgans. That second image, labeled “MaiX,” was probably my inspiration for Jair’s current look (though I don’t imagine him quite like that).

I’ve never drawn a Scavgan that fully satisfied me. I’ve made lots of attempts over the years, but never really settled on a final look. I always knew I wanted them to look alien, but to what degree, I still haven’t decided.

I actually came up with the design for the Athai as part of a school project. For a later art assignment, I invented the Reea as their adversaries. In the books, I described the Athai as “lizard-squirrel people,” which is the best summary I could come up with for the design I’d chosen.

Above: this was an old concept for the Mocjoa… I certainly don’t imagine them this way anymore, though I do find this picture cute!

And finally, these are some Kamai sketches. The one on the left is mine. After giving some concept art to an artistic brother-in-law, he came up with the middle image. And the one on the right is one that I drew and he shaded.

All this to say… feel free to image and draw these races as you see fit for the art contest! You just might inspire me to reimagine the looks of the different characters once again!