Tuesday, October 4, 2022

The Rema Chronicles update

  


Hello! I noticed a lot of people landing on this page, searching for news on The Rema Chronicles Book 2: The Kingdom Of Water. All I can offer you is the above image from book 2, which features yet another story from the Reman religious and historical book, The Remanora.

I've been working hard on book 2 every day, and I cannot wait to share it with everyone! I'm roughly halfway done, so there is no release date yet. Once I have a solid release date, I will announce it loudly on my TwitterInstagram, and at Boltcity Productions.


The reception for book 1 of The Rema Chronicles was greater than I expected for my dorky little fantasy story, especially considering this is a brand new series that is just starting. It stayed on the Indie Bestseller list for roughly six weeks! You all are incredible! I'm so grateful to anyone who gave it read and shared it with friends and family. The idea that this story I carried for forty years is out there in the world, being enjoyed by people who were the same age I was when I first dreamed it up...well it means more than I can say.


For those who do not follow any of my socials, I also want to share these Rema Chronicles coloring pages. They feature actual linework from the book (plus 1 random illustration.) Yes, this is what the inks look like before I lay down color, with help from assistant Audra Furuichi. So, if you want some coloring practice, have at it! Simply click on the thumbnail of your choosing to open the hi-res version in a new window. Make sure to print in landscape mode. All of these are also archived over at Boltcity Productions under "activities", where you can find an FAQ and a Rema Chronicles pronunciation guide.


And of course, I can't update you all without mentioning the Realm Of The Blue Mist book trailer, animated by none other than good friend Denver Jackson. He did an amazing job bringing Tabby and Philip to life, and I know it helped signal boost The Rema Chronicles a lot! Follow his incredible work over at Cloudrise Pictures.


A special word of thanks to those of you who followed this blog for several years, who were there as I posted chapters back when this was just a prose novel. I lost hope for this story for a long time, but your feedback and encouragement really helped keep the dream alive. I met a handful of you while signing books on the road. Every time I do, I lack the words to express my deep gratitude. Just know it is there, and I carry your encouragement with me as I dive into the last half of book 2 which features some of the most challenging pages I ever had to draw.

I hope if you find the graphic novel version that you enjoy it, and it brings back memories of those fleeting years. For now, it's time for me to get back to the drawing board (or Photoshop, in this case!) I hope to see you again when I have updates on book 2. Until then, I wish you peace, love, and prosperity.

Wednesday, July 14, 2021

The Rema Chronicles


I am so pleased to announce Rema's new title and release date. There were some hiccups due to technical issues, but it looks like March 1, 2022 is the final release date. This means the first book in the new The Rema Chronicles graphic novel series, Realm Of The Blue Mist, is available for pre-order. The cover is still being finalized, but if you'd like, you can order from your favorite independent bookstore (like Brick & Mortar Bookstore in Redmond), IndieboundBarnes & Noble, or Amazon.

It feels so good to finally type that, to have a place where these characters actually have a home. This is truly the book it was always meant to be, and I can't wait to share it with everyone! Hope you are well, whoever reads this, and life is treating you kindly! <3


Tuesday, February 11, 2020

Rema Graphic Novel Update


Hello, 2.5 years later and I am still working on Rema. I think my last update said the first book would be released in 2019, but obviously that has not happened. I mentioned the reasons in replies on my twitter page, but I'm posting here for anyone wondering what happened. I'm sorry it took so long for me to get around to it!

Book 1 is fully colored at 249 pages, with book 2 roughly 50 pages into pencils. Even with book 1 colored, my team and I decided it's best to wait until book 2 is nearly complete before setting a publishing date for the series. Part of this decision is due to books 1 and 2 being two halves of a single novel, and part of it is due to the unknown nature of how long it takes me to make a full color graphic novel. The timeline is especially up in the air considering the scope of the project, and the fact that I have two school-aged kids that still need me.

This means there is no official release date for the series, but it is actively being completed in the background. When a release date is solid without any chance of it being changed again, I will update everyone here and on my twitter page. I'm doing my best to make sure it isn't too too far in the future.

I had incredible help from two talented artists for book 1 -- Audra Furuichi and Emmy Toyonaga. Together we made the colors for book 1 really shine. There is no way I would've been able to do this without them.

I still have to pinch myself sometimes when I see the finished pages, because it feels like seeing an actual dream of mine come to life. It gives me the strange feeling that these characters aren't "mine" anymore, they are slowly leaving my hands and my head to become someone else's. It's hard to describe, but it's definitely a good feeling. In fact, it's the feeling I've been waiting for my entire life, carrying these characters and this world with me these last 27 years. It's why the project had so many false starts in the past -- I wasn't getting the sense the story was ready to leave.

In summary, keep an eye on this page for an update on the final release date. I obviously can't wait to share all of this hard work with any of Rema's readers that still remain! I just want to be sure I do it right.

I'll be posting my usual sporadic check-ins on my twitter page. If there are any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments. Until then, I wish whoever is reading this love, peace, and happiness.


Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Inktober 2015 archives

Hello! I recently finished the complete roughs for Rema book 1, so I have a bit of time and am finally taking care of things I've been putting off forever. One of them was to have all my Inktober sketches from 2015 in one post (click "read more" for all the images, and click images to see larger versions). Doing these drawings really reminded me how much I loved to draw, so I'm glad to archive them at last.

We're still in the middle of Inktober 2016, but I'll post all of those here as well, once we're finished. In the mean time, you can follow my posts on Twitter, as always. Hope you all are well and taking care of yourselves!

Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Rema: The Graphic Novel Series






















Hello! It’s been a long time since I blogged, but I might as well get right to it...

I’m so happy to announce Rema will be a YA graphic novel series put out by Scholastic Graphix, starting in 2019! I am directly adapting the novel I serialized online a few years ago, art and all, and I’m so proud of the work I’ve put into it so far.





















Some quick facts: The series is currently untitled, and I only use REMA as a work-in-progress title. The book is planned to be in color, but I will not color it. Colorist is to be announced. The first prose novel, for those few who read it, is being divided into two parts. I’m about halfway through the roughs and can say for the first time in a decade it truly feels Rema is in its destined final form. As an author, it is such an amazing relief!!! Every page drawn is like “yes! Finally!!” Is anyone really surprised Rema is ending up being a GN series, given my history? Well, I guess I am a bit surprised, but here I am!
The journey to complete this puzzling story is far from over, but many micro steps were taken to get Rema here, pulled along by many friendly forces. I’m compelled to give some thanks! 

First, I have so much gratitude to my agent Judy Hansen, whose patience with me knows no bounds. Many thanks also to the wise, talented editors who gently rejected the novel version so I could find my way to THIS version, and to my colleagues, friends, and family who always had faith in me (especially Kazu, who was hinting at Rema’s comics potential way back when it was an online novel). I'm so grateful to Rema's new editor, the brilliant Cassandra Pelham, who gave this story more chances than I can count. I know for sure this book is in good hands. :)
 
Developing Rema has been such a long, intuitively-guided journey, I have so many people to thank that it would require an entire book in and of itself. More than anyone though, I want to thank the handful of readers who have followed Rema’s progress through the years – from when it was a webcomic in 2003, to when it was an online novel in 2012, and through its quiet travel home to Scholastic. Your enthusiasm for Rema’s characters and world have carried it through many rough spots, and part of the reason I’m so passionate to work on it is because of you. So many times when I felt down about Rema’s progress, I would get a message or an email from a Rema reader, and every time it was like my energy was revived. 

I haven’t met many of you, but I feel we share this world in this imaginary space, and I never felt alone while creating it. As I illustrate the action and romance in comics form, I think of how you might feel about the pages and I can’t wait to share them with you. 2019 seems so far away, but it will be here before we know it. I truly hope the graphic novel series will be, finally, worth the long, long wait!

In the mean time, I will be posting WIP snippets on my twitter account, and you can add the temporarily titled Tabby Charon #1 to your goodreads list, if you’re so inclined. Until next time, I hope your days are filled with love and peace!

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Third First Kiss

Today is Kazu and my 8th anniversary, and what better way to celebrate than with comics? I drew this back in 2007 for the Bloomsbury anthology, "First Kiss, Then Tell" but it has always been the best version of how Kazu and I fell in love.

Needless to say, Kazu is my other half and I will be telling the story of how we fell in love for the rest of my days. I love you, darling. <3

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Recent Drawings

I looked at my blog and saw I haven't updated in almost a year! How time flies.

Life has been passing at a slow but steady clip without much blog-worthy news, unless you want to read about my hectic trips to the grocery store, the endlessly regenerating laundry pile, or how tasty my weekly batch of pork and apple curry turned out! My children are growing, Rema is continuing to develop behind the scenes (a painfully slow but worthy and enlightening process), and writing on book 2 has started. New projects have been percolating, but I'm currently letting my brain rest for a bit and absorb as much media as it can - books, movies, games, anything. (With that in mind if anyone has any recommendations please leave it in the comments!)

I'm pretty sure everyone who reads this blog follows me on Twitter, but I've done a couple pieces and sketches since the last post so consider this a sketch dump.


Some work-in-progress snapshots:


And that's all from my neck of the woods! Until next time, Amy out. :)