I am an artist in the Nashville, Tennessee, USA, area. I am a passionate roleplaying gamer and avid reader, and all the art I make is a labor of love to further these hobbies! I adore tales of mystery and imagination that send the adrenaline flowing and the heart racing, whether they be ancient folk tales, classic science fiction, or modern urban fantasy! I tend to gush and use a lot of exclamation points when excited, and illustrating the things I love excites me a lot!!!
I studied painting as an undergraduate at the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee, but I am a very slow learner and thus all my illustration skills were absorbed on the job as I have gone along! I feel I have so much more to learn, and my goal is to be a lifelong student, always observing, always pushing the boundaries of my artistic comfort zone (which is very small, so I tend to push it constantly).
I am extremely shy, but I really love talking to people and meeting other gamers and artists and writers, so if you see me at a show, please come talk to me! I rarely bite strangers. If you see me at a gaming table at a convention, definitely sit down and play.
Companies I have worked for include:
Apex Press - Cover painting for Apex Magazine, Spring 2011; cover paintings and interior illustrations for Convent of the Pure, Labyrinth of the Dead, Tower of the Forgotten, and Introduction To Penemue by Sara Harvey; cover painting for Webs of Discord by Jason Sizemore; cover painting and interior plate for HebrewPunk by Lavie Tidhar
DOJ/Hero Games - Hero System 6th edition, Hero Bestiary, Book of Dragons, Fantasy Hero, by Stephen S. Long.
Evil Hat - The Dresden Files Roleplaying Game and Our World sourcebook.
Frontiers, Nashville, Inc. - Logo and publicity paintings for Hypericon, 2004-2012.
Llewellyn Worldwide - Interior illustrations for Magical Almanac, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010; interiors for Plantas Para Triunfar by Octavio Deniz; interiors for Whispers From the Woods by Sandra Kynes; interiors for Jude's Herbal Home Remedies by Jude C. Todd.
Minigame Magazine - Cover illustration for Issue #4, 2004, "The Undying Lands," by Colin Fredericks.
Mythopoeic Press - Cover paintings for Past Watchful Dragons by Amy Sturgis and for The Intersection Of Fantasy and Native America, Amy H. Sturgis and David D. Oberhelman, eds.
Phage Press - Interior illustrations for Amberzine #12-15, Eric Wujick, Michael Kucharski and Pierre-Alexandre Sicart, eds.
Rising Image Productions, Inc. - Commission painting, "Aslan Speaks," for stage production of C.S. Lewis's The Magician's Nephew; t-shirt design.
Third Eye Games - Cover painting and interior illustrations for Part-Time Gods by Eloy Lasanta; Spirituals sourcebook for Apocalypse Prevention Inc. by Eloy Lasanta.
If I have left anyone off this list, it is only due to my poor ability to chronicle my life's milestones, and not because I am anything less than beamishly grateful to all of you who have taken a chance on me and my work. I am so very thankful to each and every one of you!
Private commissions are always welcome, scheduling permitting. If you are interested in commissioning a piece or interested in hiring me for a project, please use the contact form on the sidebar of the site, or feel welcome to email me at gay dot melissa AT gmail dot com. Spambots will be summarily disintegrated.