How Lorian Began

I’ve always been fascinated by worldbuilding, but it’s only recently that I decided to really go for it. Lately, with everything going on, I’ve been feeling restless—like I should be doing something, anything, that actually matters.

So, like any artist would, I turned to creating. That’s how Lorian came to me.

Actually, it really started during a chat with a friend. We’re both creatives, and I just threw the idea out there: What if we each worked on our dream projects and supported each other, or at least kept each other updated along the way?

This project ended up feeling really important to me. I often feel like I’m not doing enough, or giving enough to the causes I care about. And then it hit me—what better way to use my skills than to make a story that explores the things I believe in, the things that frustrate me, and the ways I hope to heal, both personally and in the world?

I’m being intentionally vague for now—you’ll get the full story in Part 2. But one thing I can say is that I couldn’t decide between a novel or a comic. So… I’m doing both.

This post, and the ones that follow, will take you through my process of building Lorian from the ground up.

The Unexpected Switch

The sudden shift from a female lead to a male main character completely surprised me.

I didn’t plan this nor was it expected.But I write best when I let go of expectations, so I decided to lean into it.

I think this will be a great learning experience, not just in writing, but in art. So, I’m especially excited (and a little nervous) to practice drawing male expressions, which is something I rarely do.

Experimenting with Silas

After that, I started drawing a bunch of different versions of Silas. I didn’t really have his personality or story figured out yet—I was figuring that out as I went. Over the past few weeks, I just let ideas come while I sketched, trying different looks and seeing what fit.

Finding Silas’ Look

When I first started figuring out how Silas would look, I imagined him as a black man. I went on Pinterest and collected references of different black men, picking people based on the vibes they gave off. The reference for M1 had this serious, cool, strict energy, while M2 felt kind and warm.

This time, I also tried something new: drawing in grayscale first to focus on values before adding color. I think it’s really working for me and helping me shape the character in a way that feels more intentional.

Trying New Styles

I read a lot of manga, manhwa, and manhua, and recently I came across a comic that really blew me away: Return of the King of Hell on Webtoon. The environments were drawn so well—it honestly felt like I was savoring a delicious meal just looking at the art.

That’s part of why I didn’t want to give up on the idea of making a comic for this story while I was writing it. I was inspired by the art.

Still, I’d never tried a manhwa style before, so I was a little intimidated. I gave it a shot, and it turned out fine, but I realized I still prefer my own approach. So the characters will end up looking more like M2 than any of the other Silas iterations.