How Sigrún leapt from ink to icon—wild variations, close calls, and the one image that owns the night
Step into the making of Sigrún Lioness Magwar from “The Great Blue Huntress“—and the journey that led to the final portrait you see here. I want to invite you into that very process—the intimate, magical journey behind the illustrations for “The Mourner, the Hunter, and the Watcher“, the 2024 Illustrated Edition of my book, Kenomitian Chronicle Volume I, specifically the chronicle of “The Great Blue Huntress“.
It all began with a spark—a single, powerful vision from the text that demanded to be seen:
“She rose from the underworld like a tide-turned blade—horns lacquered with warlight, abyssal skin banded in scars and runes, hair salt-bright and storm-tossed. She did not walk; she hunted”.
She starred in an action-horror chronicle of a monster hunter descending into an underworld of dangerous beasts, bizarre vistas, hazardous realms, bloodthirsty predators, mutated terrors, magical enslavement, everlasting darkness, ruthless lessons, and extradimensional influence. One frame had to carry all of that. I explored wide, then narrowed with intent: stance variations, horn geometry, rune grammars, light angles (fogged dawn vs. eclipse burn), and armor wear. From the myriad of creations, only the most evocative and true to Sigrún were selected for the final rendition.
Three pillars were crucial:
- Character truth (hunter before heroics)
- Narrative clarity (the world reads at a glance)
- Atmospheric charge (the image hums even without text).
In the Making: Variations From the Hunt
In the creation process, several images were generated—each one a different heartbeat of Sigrún. They’re shown below:
- Concept I: “Mistwalker” — A cooler palette and softer stance; Sigrún as a patient tracker emerging from sea fog.
- Concept II: “Oathfire” — Brighter reds and blazing runes; the moment just before a pact is sealed.
- Concept III: “Steel & Salt” — Weathered armor, ocean-scarred leather, and a wary side-glance; the veteran on her guard.
- Concept IV: “Abyss Crown” — Majestic horns and a rising blood-sun; Sigrún as underworld royalty, equal parts warning and wonder.
Each version asked a question: How fierce? How mythic? How human? We listened—and kept only what felt true.
The Final Pick
The Final Pick (2024)
The Final Pick (Update August 2025)
Finally, this image was selected—and here’s why:
- An iconic silhouette. The ramlike horns, tusk glint, and spiked pauldron read instantly—even small. In a world of noise, Sigrún remains unmistakable.
- A palette that tells the story. Abyssal blues for the descent; arterial reds for cost and hunger; the red halo sun as an omen that refuses the night.
- Lore stitched into the details. Rune-etched metal and lock-plates hint at pacts, debts, and magical enslavement—story threads you can feel without a single caption.
- The right attitude. Chest forward, gaze steady, jaw relaxed before the pounce: not a berserker, a hunter with rules.
- A world beyond the frame. Power lines crossing the scarlet horizon suggest paths through hostile realms—civilization’s ghost scaffolding in a myth-industrial underworld.
This portrait isn’t just decoration—it’s a threshold. It asks you to enter Sigrún’s descent: the held breath before the roar, the ethics of the hunt, and the fierce calm of one who walks the border between human and horror.
Watch de Video on Youtube
It’s also available on Amazon along with the chronicles of: Eddy & Jas: Love & Undeath and The Song of Longing, also illustrated, in different versions: Kindle (available on Kindle Unlimited), Paperback and Hardcover. I’ll provide the links.
