The Luminary: Character Focus

ABOUT THE PROJECT

We are seeking an artist for our mythopoeic dark fantasy novel series. We are currently producing a full cast audiobook, featuring recognizable talent, original music, and sound effects. Once complete, we plan to release five minute visual episodes on YouTube. Each episode will feature a stylized text box with character portraits, expressions, voice acted dialogue, and background artwork to set the tone of each scene. Those of you that remember old school RPG character text boxes will understand what we are trying to go for. In addition we will be producing documentary style lore videos for our channel as well that also require artwork.

The primary focus of this role is character work. You will be creating and refining character portraits and multiple expressions for each character. There will be some environment and background work as needed, but character portrayal and acting through expressions is the priority.

PROCESS

In most cases you will not be starting from scratch. We will provide a reference image to guide you, usually a generated base image created using AI bashing (or AI form sketch) or real photography. Either way, these images will be thoughtfully and carefully produced and will be delivered in 2K to 4K resolution. We understand that some artists use references differently. You can paint directly over them (most common) or use them as a separate reference, whichever you prefer. The final result just must show clear artistic output.

Most base character images we provide will already have the right lighting and mood. Your job will be to fix visual problems, sharpen and clarify the design, push the personality of the character, and add new elements as required. For many characters, you’ll create additional facial expressions from the same base character, usually three to four expressions per character. We will provide the expression reference images on most cases, but may require you to adjust them as needed. Finished work must be submitted as layered files for efficient reuse. On images with environments, foreground, middle ground, and background should be separated where possible and applicable. This allows us to apply basic after effects like parallax or light flicker during editing. If you offer this as well, please let us know as it would be considered an advantage and may lead to additional pay.

Over the next 6-10 months we have approximately 68 characters that need to be overpainted with multiple expressions. The world of this series is massive, with many more characters and locations beyond this first wave, so there is plenty of work available as the project grows.

TONE AND STYLE

This is a mythopoeic dark fantasy book series, so tone would be along the lines of an Elden Ring and perhaps Game of Thrones. A darker version of Lord of the Rings if you will. Realistic, mysterious, but contrastingly beautiful at times. As far as style we would ideally like to go semi-realistic.

You must be working with a professional tools. You must be comfortable with color, lighting, composition, and visual storytelling. Clean brushwork and consistency across scenes and characters are important.

PAY STRUCTURE AND MEETINGS

We pay $60 dollars for each base character image, plus $15 dollars for each additional expression for that character. Most characters will need around four expressions total. If environments are needed we compensate extra for that.

We currently estimate that this role could provide somewhere in the range of $8,000 to $12,000 dollars of work over the next 6-10 months. This is a courtesy estimate only and not a guarantee of any specific amount of work or income as it depends on the speed of the artist, amongst other variables. As the project evolves and if you can show steady high quality work, there is the possibility of additional assignments and thus additional pay beyond this initial scope.

This role is for an artist who is creative, efficient and able to deliver artwork consistent with the author’s vision. Bonuses are available based on individual performance and team milestones. Pay increases are possible over time based on consistency, reliability, and quality.

This is an independent contractor position, allowing you to set your own schedule to accomplish projects. Aside from our team retreat meetings and special events, you are free to work at the location of your choice. No taxes will be taken from your pay, you will be responsible for your own taxes and benefits.

This job can be remote or hybrid, with team retreat meetings taking place in Salt Lake City that typically last about a week, with the business portions of the retreat being compensated. We do this primarily for team building and creative synergy. Regardless of where you are in the world, we will cover all of your travel and accommodations for these retreats if we deem it necessary or beneficial for you to be present. If you are outside the USA, this would usually be no more than once per year, if that. However, we may present the opportunity for you to travel to the USA for special events where fans might want your autograph or to meet you in person. For those events, all travel, lodging, and related compensation will also be fully covered.

RIGHTS AND OWNERSHIP

We retain full ownership and copyright of all artwork upon final payment. You may display the work in your portfolio or on non-commercial sites like ArtStation, with proper credit after management approval. You may not resell, reuse, or repurpose the artwork for any commercial use.

GROWTH POTENTIAL

This is a long term project with significant expansion plans. As our series grows in popularity, more work will become available across episodes, lore content, promotional materials, and other media. The world itself is very large with many cultures, factions, and regions, so there is ample opportunity for recurring work and increasing creative scope. This is a rare opportunity to get in at the ground level of a developing IP with recurring work and a growing universe.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Our hiring process consists of two rounds, with candidates being narrowed down at each stage. Applications will be taken until Dec 15th, 2025, but we may end it sooner if we find the right candidates. You will be notified if you have made it to the second round. Additional details about our fantasy series and specific projects will be shared with candidates who advance to the second round. If you are not contacted by the 17th then you did not make the second round.

HOW TO APPLY

Please apply here: https://brightstonebooks.com/the-luminary-application

If you have any issues with uploading your resume, please simply email us at careers@brightstonebooks.com with the subject being “The Luminary Application”. Please note, due to the number of applicants, we will only respond if you have made the second round.