This character pose study was created as part of my visual development work for City of Stolen Magic, a middle grade fantasy novel and the focus of a Penguin Random House book cover competition. While the competition centered on cover design, I was compelled to explore Chompa’s character more deeply through gesture and movement, drawing inspiration directly from events in the story.

Each pose reflects a specific moment from the narrative, capturing Chompa’s emotional and physical responses as she navigates her journey. The illustrations depict her being defiant, stealthy, and secretive; learning new languages; missing her mother and wondering where she is; and using her magic to help a young plant grow. These studies allowed me to explore her personality through body language, reinforcing her role as a curious, determined, and emotionally complex protagonist.

Created entirely in Procreate on an iPad Pro with a second-generation Apple Pencil, this piece showcases my ability to translate story beats into expressive character design, and to support narrative depth through visual nuance tailored for middle grade audiences.