Rob Heinsoo: Monster Art +13 Contest Winners

13 True Ways Mantis vs MantisRob Heinsoo crashed through the window in our Seattle offices, locked in deadly combat with a ninja, to deliver this update on 13 True Ways before vanishing along with his foe in a flash of fire and a puff of concealing smoke.

I’m pleased to announce the thirteen winners of the Monster Art +13 contest, Kickstarter backers whose 130 word suggestions will inspire monster images that will appear in 13 True Ways.

I’ll list the winners below. Then I’ll reveal the monsters they suggested one at a time, as the thumbnail art is developed. In a couple of cases the winners suggested two monsters, so they won’t be certain which of their creatures was the winning entry until they see the thumbnail. I’m probably enjoying this delayed revelation stuff too much, aren’t I?

(And speaking of delayed revelations, the votes are in for the I Hate This Town art — but we’re waiting to announce it until we have a possibly-funny little piece of art to accompany the note.)

The 13 winners of Monster Art +13 are….

  • Timothy Baker
  • Ryan Blackstock
  • Martin Dickson
  • Pablo Dominguez
  • The Dormouse
  • Mark Ferguson
  • Evan Franke
  • Marc Hertogh
  • David Kaehler
  • TS Luikhart
  • Matthew Nelson
  • Dennis Newcomb
  • Christopher Tatro

Our thanks to everyone who contributed. Reading your essays was a lot of fun.

We won’t be printing all the winning entries in their entirety, since some are being modified quite a bit to generate the images we’d like. But I’ll leave you with the text by the Dormouse that inspired Mantis vs. Mantis, a scene we’ll probably run in the monk chapter.

My friend has a tendency to capture praying mantids and keep them in small aquariums, hand feeding them crickets with loving care until they reach the end of their insectoid life. Whenever a cricket is delivered, or the creature otherwise deigns to notice her, the standard reaction is a display of threat and dominance, a graceful pantomime of those scythe-like forearms which conveys:

Hello, human. If our positions were reversed, I would not keep you in a cage and feed you tasty things. I would eat you. 

You have to admit, this sort of directness is worthy of respect. What better way to immortalize it than to illustrate it with a praying mantis who is, in fact, large enough to reverse those positions?

Entomologically,

Rob

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