CASTLING ART: Designing Characters for a Dark Fantasy World

Oh yes, oh yes, yes, we are going to be geeking out over fantasy art! Who doesn't love sweeping castle vistas, epic spell-casting battles, and romantic gestures of chivalry?

Except there isn't much of that in my novel, CASTLING...

There is a castle in the main setting, yes, but instead of a sweeping landscape, it is rocky, dark, cold, and claustrophobic.

Spell-casting battles aren't really a thing in this world either. You won't see wizards sending lightning bolts at each other, and no giant great swords imbued with the souls of the fallen bashing enemy skulls in. There are miracles, blessings, and curses brought on through prayer and ritual, and a couple of demons, but it doesn't make for great epic fantasy art...( or does it?? )

So what does that leave me - the author - with, whenever I'm attempting to bring this world to life?

The characters and how the world-building dictates their designs.

Characters are the lifeblood of any story, and that's even more true when your bringing that story to life through art. You won't always get it right on the first go ( especially if you are working with an artist whose aesthetic clashes with your world-building ) but if you know how to weave your characters and your world-building together, you can almost always come out the other side with visual media that just feels right.

So let's use Aislinn, my main character, as an example of how I go about designing my characters ( and show off some crazy talented artists along the way)!

If you've read my previous article about CASTLING, you would remember that I based Aislinn's design off of another character ( Amira ) from an animated show called Rage of Bahamut: Genesis. This wasn't done off-handedly, as I knew from the story and world-building that Aislinn was going to have some demonic features, whether that be as subtle as black veins, or as obvious as horns.

How did I know this? Well, like with most characters, I start with either their backstory or appearance first, and build the other off of it. In this instance, Aislinn's backstory came first.

Appearances can be tricky. Characters, like real people, can use clothing and makeup to keep scars, birthmarks, and other physical traits suppressed or hidden. In the end though, all choices tell a story about who a person is, and what their history might entail.

For Aislinn I knew that:

1. she was a princess in hiding, and

2. that she struggled with a very real internal darkness.

So how do I represent that in her design?

Well, at least to me, making her appear as 'normal' as possible on the outside was important. She was born blind, which that in itself aids to her being able to hide as many people her age ( 16 to ~ 20 ) were blinded by the previous king in a fit of madness and paranoia.

On top of this, at least starting out, she prefers wearing loose clothing with little flair. This was made easier by where her mother chose to hide her: an Abbey full of nuns!

Her hair too was considered; depicting her with long, wavy locks that aren't tucked away with braids or jeweled clips of any kind aided both to her youth and outward appearance of being a commoner.

As for this inner darkness she carries around, that was something that would be less present physically until later on in the novel when she is forced to reveal that for REASONS. ( spoilers! )

And what's cool about this is all of these preferences slowly change throughout the novel which coincides with her journey as a character!

At the end of the day, unless you are the artist yourself, requesting any commission is going to be a collaborative endeavor. To me, this is almost more exciting that coming up with the design myself, as seeing someone else's interpretation of what you describe can tell you a lot more about how close ( or far ) you are to what you want!

I've only worked with four other artists to bring parts of Castling to life. Please do me a favor and check out their work, as each are incredible in their own right.

@art_bearu on Twitter was the first person I approached. They haven't been active since 2022 as they were diagnosed with cancer, so sadly I have no idea if they are with us anymore. I can't find any other sites they are on either. Please let me know if anyone finds anything!

I really enjoyed their whimsical art style, and while it clashed with the dark fantasy vibe I was going for, I thought that seeing my characters in this style would be a cool way to see how they would hold up in other artists hands! I was totally unprepared for how cute they would turn out to be...I mean LOOK AT THEM!! <3 <3

Then we have Zazu! I had already made contact with Zazu prior to me embarking on this new draft, so it was a no-brainer to bring them on for creature design for CASTLING!

Their creature design is out of this world, and their painterly style is so eye-catching. Shading, coloring, and posing on their work is top-tier. If you haven't seen their work before, I highly recommend browsing their deviantart page!! ( You will also see our collaboration on my Earathskins!! )

Then there was clevermagpie on Twitch, who was a surprise find while I was browsing the site!! Watching them sketch my ideas live was a really cool experience, and interacting with his community was a true treat. If you think his quick sketches are impressive already, just look up their fully realized work!

Magpie's art has helped me cement these characters personalities in my draft immensely. There's something about the subtle details he adds to poses and expressions on commissions that brings so much life to his art. The work below is one of my favorites to this day and hangs up on my inspiration board for CASTLING.

And finally I commissioned Zull Kharn, who did this incredible head shot of Aislinn. This is the 'newest' rendition of Aislinn, and the closest to her appearance in the book. The crown was a huge thing to see illustrated as it's not only a massive religious symbol in the world-building, but also an important symbol and goal for Aislinn's character as well!

Zull is an incredibly professional and kind person to work with, so if you're looking for someone to commission some work of your characters, I highly recommend her!

That's it from me! Again, PLEASE give these artists a follow on their social media if you are so inclined. It would mean a lot to me and to them as each is very deserving of praise for their incredible skill!

Enjoyed what you read?

Curious to learn more? Keep an eye out for more CASTLING inspired articles in various communities on Vocal! Subscribe to my page to be alerted when more stories drop. ( Shout out to Rachel Deeming for inspiring my take on her community challenge!! )

You can also read more in the world of CASTLING in my collection below!