Princess Astel believes she's flying in her dreams. Until the morning when a dragon shows up and tells her she's the Chosen One to be taught magic by the dragons.The castle wizard, Sangdanee, sees things differently. He's been telling the young princess that dragons no longer exist and she must be protected. He locks her in the castle to begin her training in the sciences.Not knowing who is right, she does what she thinks best instead. She gathers her handmaidens and an unwilling suitor and flees the castle.Can the runaway princess save herself before a choice she doesn't want is pushed on her?

As artists, we have choices. There are very few rules that apply across the board. We can create highly realistic paintings, or perhaps more expressive paintings, or paintings that have very little basis in reality, including those that are totally non-representational. We can record color as we see it or as we’d like it to be. As pastel artists, we have even more choices. We can use a wide variety of pastels, strokes, surfaces, and techniques to create many different looks. The choices we make form the framework of our individual style, our signature as artists. Any subscriber to The Pastel Journal realizes how varied the medium of pastel can be. For the experienced artist, these articles are stimulating, offering possible ways to experiment with alternative approaches. For the beginner, the panoply of choices can be overwhelming. Painting is primarily an intuitive process. But intuition is gained through study and experience. Part of my impetus in writing this book has been to create a more structured approach to help those fairly new to the medium understand its many possibilities. The book is aimed at all levels of pastel artists. Beginners will find a wealth of helpful information and intermediate artists will gain insight into how to take their work to another level and develop a style. Many advanced artists teach pastel; the organization of ideas and the exercises included should be of assistance. I offer a variety of suggested approaches and sometimes make up terminology to describe my experiences with the medium. The instructions in the book are based on my preferences and the guidance that I offer my students. The diversity of styles and techniques evident in the paintings of contributing artists should make it clear, however, that there are many ways to successfully work in pastel. Having acknowledged the many possibilities, I want to note a few musts. Representational paintings must be well-drawn. Poor drawing skills cannot be overcome with lovely color or great technique. Likewise, paintings must have strong compositions, regardless of whether they are realistic, abstracted, or non-representational. Values must be properly interpreted to produce strong compositions and to use pastel to its full effect. And finally, pastel paintings must sing! Whether the applications are light and airy, or rich and painterly, it should be clear that the artist is in control of the medium and is using it to produce his or her desired look. For years I have resisted suggestions that I write a book. As a landscape painter, I knew that there were more authoritative books already available. And the growing popularity of pastel has led to so many resources, including online blogs, a biennial convention, and the wonderful Pastel Journal, mentioned above. What could I add to this? My personal training in pastel has been from weeklong landscape workshops with some of the leading pastel painters in the country. As a teacher in a community college, I am not teaching a particular style nor focusing on specific subject matter. Some of my students work with the landscape, but others do portraits or figurative work, while others prefer still life, or work abstractly. In dealing with this mixture, I’ve realized that there are different ways to approach one’s use of color, and this formed my first idea for creating a book. Furthermore, as a teacher, I’ve spent time experimenting with different surfaces, pastel brands, and techniques in order to make suggestions to students to help them find the look they want to achieve. I do not teach students to paint the way I do, but instead, try to share my experience and help them develop their own individual style.

From America’s top courtroom sketch artist, a penetrating, compulsively readable memoir about her dramatic four-decade career For over forty years, Jane Rosenberg has been at the heart of the news cycle, covering almost every major trial that has passed through the New York justice system as a courtroom sketch artist, including the most recent Donald Trump hush money trial. In Drawn Testimony, Rosenberg brings us into the dramatic high-stakes world of her craft, where art, psychology and courtroom drama collide. Over the course of her legendary career, Jane has had a front-row seat to some of the most iconic and notorious moments in our nation’s recent history, including cases pertaining to: • Mick Jagger • Martha Stewart • Tom Brady's "Deflategate" scandal • John Lennon’s murder trial • Ghislaine Maxwell • John Gotti • Harvey Weinstein • The Boston Marathon bomber • Donald Trump Readers will learn how she has honed her unique powers of perception and also what her portraits reveal, not only about her subjects, but about the human condition in general. Fearless, fascinating and gorgeously written, Drawn Testimony captures the unique career of an artist whose body of work depicts history as it’s happening.

Environmental modelling has enjoyed a long tradition, but there is a defined need to continually address both the power and the limitations of such models, as well as their quantitative assessment. This book showcases modern environmental modelling methods, the basic theory behind them and their incorporation into complex environmental investigations. It highlights advanced computing technologies and how they have led to unprecedented and adaptive modelling, simulation and decision-support tools to study complex environmental systems, and how they can be applied to current environmental concerns. This volume is essential reading for researchers in academia, industry and government-related bodies who have a vested interest in all aspects of environmental modelling. Features include: A range of modern environmental modelling techniques are described by experts from around the world, including the USA, Canada, Australia, Europe and Thailand; many examples from air, water, soil/sediment and biological matrices are covered in detail throughout the book; key chapters are included on modelling uncertainty and sensitivity analysis; and, a selection of figures are provided in full colour to enable greater comprehension of the topics discussed.

The Startling Sequel to The MoonQuest! Travel Back in Time to the Q'ntana Before The MoonQuest. Here, in the midst of a brutal tyranny, a legend would not die...of the Heart of the Star and of the Fair One who would rekindle it to bring peace to the land. Book 2 of Mark David Gerson's epic, time-twisting True Fantasy series

The Definitive Edition includes the original, award-winning novel “Myracles in the Void” and a 27-chapter bonus story called “The Intervening” About Myracles in the Void: This is the story of the Izz Family from the forgotten, floating port town of Hop. The family's home, and indeed all of Hop, is made from repurposed ships, signs, barrels and boxes. The eldest child, Gai, is known for his ability to fix things, and he uses his talent to create a fiddle for his sister Lynd's thirteenth birthday. Lynd, on the other hand, is known to have objects suddenly break around her as if by magic. When Lynd suddenly disappears in a flash of destructive fury, all of Hop turns against the Izz family, accusing them of being cursed. Their father, Stav, had disappeared under strange circumstances as well. In his desperation, Gai discovers he can do more than just fix things with his hands, he also has a certain magic — one that seems to bring things back together. He also learns more about his father's disappearance and an ‘illness’ he had before he left. He worries for his sister, wondering if the same thing plagued her. With the help of a giant turtle named Emilie, Gai sets out from Hop to clear his family’s name, vowing to bring them all back together. Along his journey across the sea, he encounters a tech-city of gnomes, a Pocket Realm inside a beautiful painting, a tree that grants everlasting youth at a price, and of course answers to the nature of his powers — and his sister’s. They are not the only ones. In the world of Esa, all hearts posses a magic called myra that either bonds or breaks, creates or destroys. The use of this power, called a myracle, can be used to manipulate reality, such as creating or destroying objects, healing injuries, or altering the environment. However, they are not without their consequences; using the destructive power, called Ruin, can eventually turn that person into a Void — a monster with an unstoppable appetite for destruction that will engulf the entire world. Will Gai be able to find the source of the Ruin that has torn his family apart and save his sister and father before it’s too late? Massachusetts Center for the Book Must-Read List, 2023 Eric Hoffer Awards Science Fiction/Fantasy Winner, 2023 Forward INDIES Book of the Year Award Nominee, Fantasy, 2023 About The Intervening: Lynd, Kal, Kabbage are all back in this exciting set of interweaving stories from Esa! After you’ve read the original Myracles in the Void, dive right back into the action with more epic battles, more twists, more wild myracles, and of course new friends and new enemies. Set during the intervening years we didn’t get to see in the original story, witness the rise of a new Commandress of Carpè and the war that started it all; come inside the sacred and secretive ceremony of the Safar, the terrifying final test to becoming a true Heartbrand; experience the exhilarating Myracles Akademy sport called “Conjua!” where students create creatures from their wildest imaginations and battle them in an arena of shifting elements; and get on the streets of Electri City with Kabbage in a hilarious adventure to become the ultimate Thinker.