just something to lush and transporting about their music. I also listen to a lot of instrumental stuff, from musicians like Amethystium, Blue Stone, Delerium... things that create soundscapes and actually stimulate my mind into imagining entire worlds. Do you have a certain food or drink that gets you in the mood to create? Ha!! Oh... if you had asked this of me a year ago? I would have said cupcakes and caffeine!!!! Today? I make sure I have a stash of dark chocolate on hand for a nibble now and then. Decaf coffee, or hot apple cider. Those things tend to do the trick, and then I get so wrapped up in working, that I often forget to eat. Oh who am I kidding, if someone showed up with a plate full of perfectly frosted and sprinkled sugar cookies, I'd be fueled for an entire night of art. :) If you could create a dream world to live in, what would be in it and who would you take with you? My own dream world? Well, imagine a labyrinthine world full of twisty-turny cobbled streets of old English towns, that happen to be decorated in the most lavish and exotic of Moroccan finery and pirate treasures from around the world. Libraries, music rooms, art havens where people could go create on a whim, sumptuous coffee and chocolate shops (priorities, right?!) and then sprawling, magical woodlands to lose track of all time in. Venetian waterways. Moorish castles. Fairytale cottages. Impossible medieval houses 200 feet tall with spiral staircases that let you slide UP the banister. Dirigibles driven by friendly pandas. Passwords into secret and wonderful clubs that involve tongue twisters and a decent knowledge of obscure limericks. Heh. But truthfully, there is, in fact, two castles in Wales that I've had the pleasure of visiting, that capture this feel and look wonderfully. Cardiff Castle, and it's summer 'cottage' - Castell Coch. Look both of those up sometime. Fairytale magic as good as it gets. I have a miniature Castell Coch that sits in my curio cabinet by my desk. The walls of one room were hand painted entirely in Aesop's Fables. How cool is that?? When was the first time you had your name publicly mentioned for your work and where was it mentioned? Hmm, the very first large scale mentioning was a feature in Advanced Photoshop Magazine, a UK based digital art magazine. There was a small write-up about a couple of my Steampunk pieces that I had sent in to their "Readers Submissions" section. Out of all the pieces they get sent every month, they selected
mine, which was a huge honor! It quickly went from there, to them asking me if I would write tutorials for them. Some have described you as a fun personality with a great sense of humor. What is the funniest thing you can think of that you have done, or have had done to you? The funniest thing I can think of can't possibly be written here, but must only be told in person after imbibing a fair amount of 80 proof alcohol. Heh. But I will tell you this, it involves being in the middle of nowhere, a pair of indestructible Spanx, gummy worms... and it will keep me humble for the rest of my livelong life. Do you have a secret you can share with us? If the first publisher I submitted my children's book to decides to sign me? I'll have something in common with JK Rowling. ;) If you had to say, what would you say is the key to happiness? Do what you love without ever expecting anything in return, and do the rest with as much passion as you can muster. Truly. If you have to work a day job, do it with good humor and gusto... because for the most part, we all have to work day jobs, and the cause & effect of approaching anything with as good of humor as you can bring to it is that it WILL make it better. But make SURE you leave room to do what you love, with no strings attached. Do it for the pure joy you find in it. Whether that is being an artist, a musician, or someone who just loves the mechanics of a good car... do it. Just like you should feed your body with good food, you must feed your soul with what makes it sing. That is what nourishes it, and allows you to get through the more drab areas of life. And you would be surprised at how happy it makes you, and what kind of ripple effect it will cause. And then? When good things do come your way from it? It's always a pleasant surprise. If you do get into a position of being able to make money off of what you love doing? Always approach the situation with grace, humility, and the ability to laugh at absurd situations that will always without fail - come your way. Where did your inspiration for the 2013 Steampunk Calendar come from? In all honesty, I wanted one to hang on my wall!!! Heheh. I wanted something that looked as if Page 9