Reality Skimming

Stephanie Johanson has been doing her art for over thirty years. Unfortunately, life has been getting in the way. Lately other projects and considerations have kept her from her painting and soapstone carving, but she certainly couldn't say no to the chance of doing the cover for the next Okal Rel anthology, Opus 6.

Stephanie's painting style is usually realism with a hint of fantasy. She often prefers painting landscapes with the fantasy elements visible, but not obtrusive. Stephanie's soapstone carving style is organic with polished curves. Examples of her work can be viewed on the Neo-opsis Science Fiction Magazine website at www.neo-opsis.ca/art. Stephanie is the art director, assistant editor, and co-owner of Neo-opsis Science Fiction Magazine, publishing since 2003. She is proud of the fact that some people have called her a “science fiction activist,” referring to her strong desire to encourage others to enjoy the genre.

Stephanie's first introduction to the Okal Rel universe was when she was given a copy of Throne Price at the science fiction convention Con-Version, held in Calgary. She was almost given two copies, with the enthusiastic hope that she would review the novel for Neo-opsis magazine. Her original review was published in Neo-opsis Science Fiction Magazine issue 3, and can be found online. Stephanie has since reviewed several of the Okal Rel novels and anthologies, and the reviews can be read on the Neo-opsis reviews page. Stephanie is an avid fan of the Okal Rel Universe stories, and always tries to make time in her reading schedule to slip between the pages, and tag along with the characters in the latest Okal Rel adventures.

Richard Bartrop got involved in the Okal Rel Universe when a friend mentioned that Lynda was looking for artists for a project. He contacted her, they got to talking, and the rest, as they say, is history. He has been involved with Opus 3 through 5 so far, supplying interior art for all three, as well as cover art for Opus 3. He also created cover art for the Okal Rel Legacy Novellas Mekan’stan and Horth in Killing Reach. Next up is interior art for the upcoming Okal Rel Anthology, Opus 6 (cover by Stephanie Ann Johanson).

When Richard receives each story for an anthology, he starts with deciding which scene to illustrate:

“I like to read through the story a couple of times to get a feel for the characters, and the world they live in. I also try to look for a scene that sums up what the story is about, while not spoiling any important plot points.

“I still like to use pencil and paper for working out the image. I keep the sketches fairly loose at first, trying to get a nice flow to the piece rather than sweating details. The interior illustrations for the Opus series keep this sketchy feel, though for the covers, I feed the sketch into the scanner, then work it up in Photoshop.”

Richard has done some illustrations for other books and magazines over the years. This past year, he did a pair of covers for Copperwood Press, for a revival of the “Ace Double” concept. As for personal projects, he’s been working on the script for a graphic novel.

The upcoming Opus 6 anthology is currently in its writing stages, so Richard hasn’t received any stories yet, but he says, “I’m looking forward to seeing what they come up with.”

Photo credit: Lila Kladreau of Froghaven Photography

Paula Johanson has been writing since finishing her BA in writing. While she’s had a few science fiction stories published, and one fantasy novel from Bundoran Press (Tower in the Crooked Wood, 2010), the majority of her published work is nonfiction books on science, health, and literature for education presses distributing to school libraries. Her favourite editing project so far was co-editing the anthology Tesseracts 7 with Jean-Louis Trudel, but since then she’s edited some memoirs and history books for a couple of publishers. She’s written in a number of genres, from poetry to radio commentaries, and she teaches writing workshops.

Paula is the editor of the upcoming Opus 6 anthology (Absolute Xpress), a collection of Okal Rel short stories written by guest authors. Because of the nature of the shared universe, origin author Lynda Williams remains involved as a continuity editor. “The process,” says Paula, “reminds me of the Merovingen Nights series more than Star Trek fanzine writing. It's great to have Lynda in the loop. Everyone involved in the Opus anthologies can be confident we're working on canonical material, rather than going off on a tangent.”

The Okal Rel Universe caught Paula’s attention when the first few books were released and she read them. “It’s important to keep up on everything Tesseract/Edge releases!” she says. Okal Rel co-writer, Alison Sinclair, also happens to be a fellow kayaker. When their paddling group is on the water, Paula and Alison have discussed Okal Rel, Alison’s own novels, and some projects Paula has been working on. The discussions have also led to comments both interesting and distressing, such as a sentence that begins by commenting on natural disarticulation (of the floating feet found in the Salish Sea three years ago) and ends by pointing out the weather front howling in out of the south-east.

Kayaking doesn’t just provide an excellent venue for discussion, however. The sport has become a valuable pastime when Paula is not at the editor’s desk: “I've found that taking up kayaking has increased my sense of proprioception and muscle awareness--almost enough to make up for losing my sense of balance when I had a hearing loss. The things I've read about neurology and genetics really help me with this editing project. At least I understand a little of the genetic changes Lynda postulates!”

Opus 6 is currently in its writing stages, so look forward to it as a future release from Absolute Xpress.