College Projects

Senior Project

This is my senior project. It’s an illustrated short story that I wrote. It technically functions as the prologue to a larger piece I’m working on, but it is also its own complete piece.

“Annika, tell me a story.”

“Alright, little brother, but only if you sit still and promise to go to sleep when I’m done. Can you do that Nic?”

“Yes, Anni.”

“Alright then, I’ll tell you the story of the defeat of the evil sorcerer Coalus …”

Once, long ago, there was a sorcerer named Coalus. He had once been an ordinary man, but he had extraordinary powers. The king at the time was impressed by him, and he invited Coalus to join his court. So, Coalus was summoned to the palace and made an advisor to the king.

For a time, he was happy just to be of use to the king, but before too long he began to hate his position within the court. You see, Coalus longed for power, and he hated just being a tool for the king. Instead, he began to desire to rule in the king’s stead, and he had a plan to take the throne.

His plan was to use mind control. Normally, as you know, mind control is beyond the means of magic; however, Coalus was no ordinary sorcerer. Before becoming an advisor to the throne, he had been a craftsman of magical technology. He was very skilled, which was what led to him being noticed by the king in the first place. Now he would put his skills to a new use.

Using knowledge that has long since passed from memory, he crafted a crown and three gemstones that fit into it. Together they surpassed the limits of magic and technology and allowed him to control the minds of others.

With this crown, he quickly usurped the throne. No one seemed to be in a position to be able to stop him, and it appeared that Coalus would get away with his evil plan.

However, the crown wasn’t all-powerful. It had few weaknesses, but they were there if you knew where to look. Firstly, the crown only worked on people within in the direct presence of the wearer. It could also only control so many people, and as that limit grew closer, it required more and more concentration. However, the crown had one more, far more fatal, flaw, and that was the work of Coalus himself.

For Coalus was incredibly paranoid, and rightly so. He worried that someone would manage to steal the crown and use it against him. To prevent this, Coalus also created a sword. It created a field around the user that prevented that user from being controlled.

However, Coalus recognized that this also posed great danger for him, so he always kept the sword with him, and told no one what it did. Well, he told no one except for one man.

Daniel Fitz was one of the king’s knights, and while Coalus was still advising the king, the two had become friends. Most importantly, Coalus trusted Fitz, and he told him things that he had told no one else.

While the two had been close, Fitz saw the danger of allowing Coalus to continue unopposed. Not only did he worry about the kingdom, but also for his wife and child. Fitz didn’t want his family to live in a world where they would have to worry about being controlled. However, he also knew it was too dangerous to oppose Coalus openly. So, he worked from within the court to subvert Coalus’ plans.

Eventually, Coalus told him of the sword, and Fitz knew that was the only sure way to stop him. So, he bid his time until an opportunity arose for him to stop Coalus.

He knew that he needed to wait for an event that would bring many people into the palace. While Coalus would never attempt to exceed the crown’s limit completely, he was arrogant enough to host events that came very close. Eventually, Fitz found his opportunity in the form of the Autumn Harvest Festival.

During this season of the festival, all the noble families would visit the court, and elaborate parties would be thrown. Fitz knew this would be his best chance. Not only would the crown be near its limit, but Coalus would also want someone near him that he trusted, and there was no one he trusted more than Fitz.

Fitz turned out to be correct. On the day of the festival, Coalus assigned him to be his personal guard, and so Fitz waited. He waited for a moment where Coalus was especially distracted, and then he struck.

He stole the sword from Coalus, pulled back, and thrust it forward with all his might into Coalus’ chest. With that, the great evil had been overcome, but that’s not the end of the story.

Fitz recognized the danger that the continued existence of the crown posed, and he sought to destroy it. However, no matter who he took it to, no one could destroy it. In the end, he had to settle for dismantling it instead.

So, he removed the gems and hid both them and the crown itself separately. He also arranged for beings to guard their locations, and then finally, he went to hide the sword which was powerful enough in its own right.

After this final task, he returned home, hoping for some peace and quiet. However, when he returned, he was greeted with much joy and admiration. Fitz had never had an interest in being any sort of hero and just wanted to return and be with his family. So, he went back to the king and asked to be a knight again. The king wouldn’t hear of it. He insisted on rewarding Fitz in some way.

“And so little brother, Daniel Fitz was made a noble by the king, and so his family has been ever since.”

“Wait, our last name is Fitz too!”

“Yes, it is, for we are descendants of that very hero.”

“That’s so cool!”

“Indeed, it is. However, many consider it to be some made-up story, but our family has always held it to be true.”

Magazine Illustrations

This is a series of illustrations for a magazine article about fall festivals. It consists of one main illustration and six spot illustrations.

Coffee Subscription Box

This project is a mock-up of a pop culture coffee subscription box that I designed. The theme is around pop culture, this box, in particular, being a fantasy-themed box. Each coffee is inspired by a different fantasy series as well as a different art style/period. The series and styles are Lord of the Rings and art nouveau, Eragon and art deco, and The Adventure Zone: Amnesty and pop art. The actual packing was designed digitally in Illustrator and the designs on the box were wood burned into it.

Promotional Postcards

This project is a series of promotional postcards for a fake bakery that I created. It has a pastel punk aesthetic. Each postcard has a front and back, and there are six designs in total.