‘These illustrations look like the inside of my own head’

In this blog, Becky Chambers, author of The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, shares her reaction to seeing some of Zoë van Dijk’s vivid illustrations for the Folio edition of her incredible novel.

 

The Folio limited edition of The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

 

I come from a theater background, and with that comes an understanding that the look of a story changes with every person who touches it. You will never see two productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream or Into the Woods that are anything alike, even though the script is the same. I find that sort of creative malleability intoxicating, and one of the things I’ve loved in the years since the Wayfarer books first hit the shelves is seeing all the different artistic permutations of the characters and species within. I’ve seen everything from digital renderings to gorgeous pastels to pencil doodles in notebook margins. I have some of them framed on my office walls at home. It never gets old. There’s always a thrill in seeing other people’s takes on something that started in me.

Given that, I was very excited when I finally got the email containing Zoë van Dijk’s artwork for this edition of The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet. What I was not expecting, however, was for my jaw to hit the floor as soon as I opened the file. I shot out of my chair, ran for my office door, and called down the stairs. ‘Hey!’ I yelled to my wife. ‘You gotta come see this right now.’

She hurried up, and she stared at the monitor. ‘Whoa,’ she said.

‘I know,’ I said.

‘Whoa,’ she said.

‘I know,’ I said.

Dear reader, I know it’s the nature of promotional materials to be hyperbolic, so I need you to understand – I’m being thoroughly, utterly, hand-on-a-stack-of-stardust honest here.

These illustrations look like the inside of my own head. 

 

Blind punch

I feel 12 years younger looking at this picture. I grew up on space adventures, and it was pure joy to write my own for the first time. This view into the Wayfarer’s control room gives me such a rush of nostalgia and excitement. It’s indescribably cool to be reconnected with my work by taking in somebody else’s.

The Fishbowl

I feel 12 years younger looking at this picture. I grew up on space adventures, and it was pure joy to write my own for the first time. This view into the Wayfarer’s control room gives me such a rush of nostalgia and excitement. It’s indescribably cool to be reconnected with my work by taking in somebody else’s.

© Zoë van Dijk 2023

Ashby & Pei

© Zoë van Dijk 2023

Nowhere in the text do I say that Ashby is jacked. I am so glad Zoë understood, intuitively, that Ashby is jacked. I mean, come on. Pei’s a woman of good taste. 

Also, I love this depiction of an Aeluon body. I sometimes see fanart of Pei that is more traditionally feminine by human standards, and while that’s all good, I can really tell that Zoë paid a lot of attention to how I described Aeluons and Pei in particular.

Rosemary and the Akaraks

The way Rosemary is surrounded and towered over in this image sums up the tension of this scene to a T. Here’s an overwhelming crisis two seconds from getting very ugly, and all you’ve got are foreign-language skills and a college semester of semi-relevant cultural studies. Go. 

Jenks and Lovey

I don’t know what to say other than: it’s perfect. I’m so glad his boots are at the door.

Rosemary on Cricket

The thing I like most about this one is Jenks walking up in the background. Because up front, you’ve got all that pain and angst and noise, and it’s raw and it’s real, but at the same time … she’s not alone. Someone is coming to help. That’s exactly what this series is, to me.

Kizzy and the mines

© Zoë van Dijk 2023

Once again, I’m floored by how well Zoë managed to capture the shot in my head. That slow crane upwards, the dawning realization of ‘oh no.’ I had trouble writing this chapter, for reasons I can’t remember now, and this gives me such an incredible feeling of oh wow, I managed to get it out, apparently.

Sissix and her hatch family

This might be my favorite one – but then, I’m hugely biased towards Aandrisks. Sissix and her species were the very first idle daydream that ended up turning into Wayfarers. The tenderness and the relief here are palpable. I love this one so much.

The Toremi attack

© Zoë van Dijk 2023

It’s a requirement of my profession that I am a sucker for brightly colored spaceship art. This is some damn fine brightly colored spaceship art.

Injecting Ohan

Oh, brava. The trifecta of agony, neutrality, and alarm here is this chapter in a nutshell. The awful little details are just wonderful: the injection mark, the spit, the subtext of the stars reflected in Ohan’s eyes. It makes me shiver, in a good way.

The Folio limited edition of The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet