The Dastardly Duo (also a quick check-in) · 5:20pm March 28th
Recently, I realized that I needed to get some art for the less noble side of Set Sail. Our main villain has existed for years now as nothing more than words on a page and ideas in my head, but now we've got photographic evidence that he exists!
Meet Captain Sternclaw! A bad, bad birdie who is very adept at shooting, pillaging, and plundering. Unlike most of his other pirate peers, he's after something bigger than booty. And he'll stop at nothing to get it, even if he has to take down the entire hippogriff navy in the process.
And no villain is complete without a sidekick!
In steps Vitali. She's a recent addition to the cast of Set Sail, having made her first appearance in Chapter 15. Mechanical engineer extraordinaire, she's the one who can make things happen. If it moves, she can fix it. Or take it apart to see how it works. If only she knew what her old friend Artemis—who now goes by the name Sternclaw for reasons he hasn't explained to her yet—is getting her into when he suddenly reappeared in her life after years of no contact.
I commissioned these arts from Kazmuun on DA (check out their stuff, they are very good!) not just to finally see what these two look like, but also as an exercise in spurring myself to write things again. So far it seems to be working, as I've suddenly leapt toward progress faster in the past two days than I had in the prior two months.
Don't let the 9 month long hiatus between chapters fool you. I am still here, still writing, still obsessing over the finer details of why horses with beaks and talons are so inconceivably adorable. It's just happening at a reduced rate. Life is busy, many other hobbies and interests are constantly jockeying for the limited free time I have available.
I still want to finish Set Sail. I still love the ideas, and it's a fairly reachable goal since so much of the story has already been established. There is an endpoint in mind. I am slowly closing in on finishing this next chapter.
I dunno, what would y'all think if I started aiming for shorter chapters from here on out? I've pushed for three scenes a chapter or somewhere in the 6-10k range, but that has made my update schedule get painfully spread out lately. What if I shot for 2 scenes a chapter, on the order of 4-6k? It'd make those updates happen a lot more frequently, but I'm not totally sold on a stylistic shift halfway through. Let me know.
First off, FINALLY. Secondly, art is great. Third, it isn't a stylistic change, just a word count/scene amount change. I think you're totally valid in posting shorter chapters, as long as it helps you get to the finish line.
Good to know you're still working on the fic and that you're getting somewhere with it.
Dude, these are very cool!
Do whatever works best for you
more bord and zebra 🙏🙏🙏 lets get that next chapter