TIM HOLTROP: Five Things Learned Illustrating the TRANSPORT Interiors

Specialist Eddie Mulholland, Rear Gunner of the M213 HTV HURON

I met Tim Holtrop about 20 years ago (my, how time flies) while pursuing a local illustrated digest thingie called PETRUS COMICS PRESENTS. I got lucky enough to know this very talented guy, and ran into him again a year or so back when I was writing another Grand Rapids-based post-apoc tale entitled FINAL RIGHTS. Tim did some sketches for that story, just for my eyes, just for the fun of it.

 

When my idea for a post-apoc military/zombie action-adventure series came about, I told him about it, and next thing he was working on little illustrations to visualize things.

 

And then I got him REALLY involved, paying job-wise, in doing real deal B&W illustrations for the TRANSPORT series. (Thank you, Stephen Zimmer.)

 

Tim is a great guy, a truly blessed artist, and a friend.

 

Take it away, Tim...

 

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When Pete asked me to write "5 Things I Learned..." doing the interior illustrations for TRANSPORT, I had to take a moment or so to think.

I wonder if it would count toward the five things if I mentioned the renovations to the fallout shelter, adding extra rooms (secured, separated from the rest of the unit) in case some of my loved ones were zombified and needed a safe place to stay near us in a nuclear war...or my recent investment in developing and stockpiling MORG (doped meat by product used to feed the local zombies in the book series--PJW) for the pantry, so they'd have something proper to eat.

 

Hmmm...maybe that's not what Pete wanted me to write about. (Nope--PJW)

 

I guess I'll move on with things related to doing the art for his books.

 

1. I still enjoy helping others put their imaginative vision on paper.

 

I've drawn a lot of pictures for a lot of people over, well...A LOT of years. When people want me to draw something for them, they usually have some idea of what they want me to draw. Some folks have a very particular vision, and I have to work diligently, using the skills I've been given, to meet their high demands. Other folks have more of a general "subject matter" in mind, and are willing to allow me to craft the art as I see fit, trusting that I'll do something cool. Most folks that I've worked with fall in between, having varying degrees of clarity about what they want drawn, allowing me some freedom to explore and help them bring their idea to light.

Tim Holtrop early sketch of the M213 HTV HURON

 

Pete Welmerink had some ideas in mind for the TRANSPORT art he wanted, and he provided me with good reference material, including some of his own stick figure sketches to help communicate his ideas to me. (That's about the best I can do. Stick figures.--PJW) He also gave me the freedom to explore the characters, settings, and action of each scene within the boundaries of his vision for it. I was able to help him explore possibilities for actions, poses, shots and angles in the concept stage of the art, and he provided me with good feedback and decisions that helped keep us on-track all the way to the finished art. I think we worked well together. (Yes!--PJW)

 

For many years, God has blessed me with the ability to enjoy working with and serving people. My job as an artist has been less about "art", and more about helping others with the skills I've been given. I had a great time working with Pete on the TRANSPORT illustrations. After all this time, I still enjoy what I've been given to do, and for that I'm very thankful.

 

2. In a world full of bleak doomsday scenarios, Pete's approach to Zombies is interesting and refreshing.

 

We seem to be fascinated by death and destruction in our culture, and that's reflected in a lot of our entertainment, especially the Zombie stories that I've seen (I may have missed something, of course...I can't read books or watch TV and movies all the time...I'd never get work done!).  Pete brings in a very interesting human element to the post apocalyptic world as he shows that people still care about their loved ones despite the horrifying condition they're in. They care so much that they've developed a way to keep them fed and docile, and given them places to "live" in the community. Zombies have been integrated into this speculative future society as they rebuild and deal with other danger and the politics of life in this new world. I like what he's doing...I think it provides us with a sense of hope...perhaps the future isn't going to be completely ruined after all.

 

I also like how Pete made use of real places in this speculative, fictitious future. I enjoyed drawing what some of those places might look like in that setting: the Westside Apostolate, the old Marathon station, the city of Grand Rapids itself...wonderful tie-ins to this real world we live in. Some interesting fictitious characters like Sister Mary Mirose, Bob the zombie gas station attendant, and the Huron's crew, coupled with a good story, gave me a lot of interesting things to draw.

Tim Holtrop sketch of the M213 HTV HURON with its 25mm cannon turret.

 

3. I enjoyed researching and drawing military equipment and vehicles.

 

Some folks may think artists have to have everything already memorized to be able to do their work on a job...but that just ain't so. Artists get to research their subject matter before they draw it. They tackle assignments involving things they already know and things they have yet to learn about (although, some clients might prefer that an artist already know the subject matter to some degree, especially on a tight deadline with little to no time for research!). As an artist, I am blessed with the opportunity to learn new things frequently as I do my research for a project. Even though clients provide visual reference for the things they want rendered in a particular way, I still have to explore the reference, and I come away learning something about what I'm about to draw.

Tim Holtrop does action figures...illustrative-wise!

 

I knew a little bit about military equipment and vehicles from past work, but working on TRANSPORT helped me learn a whole lot more, which is something I definitely enjoyed. The future world Pete has crafted isn't so far removed from our own, and the military items in use are still pretty close to the things we use in our present world. Even though it's a bit more time intensive to draw military gear than normal day-to-day civilian items, the researching and sketching taught me more about the things our brave men and women in uniform have to use to protect us and our interests in today's troubled world, and helped me apply them to a speculative world of tomorrow. 

 

4. Digital inking takes a bit more time for me than traditional pen & ink, but I like the results...it's worth doing.

 

It's been a while since I've smelled the odor emanating from an open bottle of black ink, or felt the sensation of my #102 dip pen nib through it's plastic handle as I moved it across a sheet of bristol. It's also been a while since I've felt the disappointment of having to white out a stray ink line, or patch in an element I've had to make changes to after it was already finished in ink. I miss these things, but at this point in my life I don't have the studio space to accommodate all the art tools I love to use...Instead of buying a bigger house, I chose to use the digital tools being offered these days.

 

Driver of the M213 HTV HURON, Spc. Loutonia Phelps, laying down the law.

Although I drew the interior illustrations for TRANSPORT in pencil (on paper), I used a combination of Manga Studio EX 4 and Photoshop to handle the inking chores. After scanning the pencils and making any adjustments necessary in PS, I imported them into MS (yes, I like to abbreviate!), turned 'em into bluelines, and set up my layers. From here onward, I inked the art with some of the wide variety of tools available to me. I don't even come close to using all that's available, but it's always good to have more than enough. Later, I exported the inked art to be able to do any final work or effect in PS.

 

I'm used to using triangles, french curves, and other physical tools when I draw and ink, but in the digital world, things are a little different. Inking in MS provides some cool tools with the special rulers like the perspective rulers, the parallel lines ruler, and the custom rulers I can make when I need to ink a special shape. It's different from traditional inking, but it's actually pretty fun to use. It takes me a bit more time than traditional inking at this point, but there's a lot to explore and the effects that I can produce digitally are much easier for me than when using pen/brush & ink. As for making corrections...well, I still need to make 'em sometimes (ok, a lot more than I'd like to admit), but now, it's a whole lot easier, and involves a lot less disappointment.

 

5. I still enjoy drawing zombies.

 

I've always loved drawing action-packed and adventurous material, but back in my "artistic youth" I loved to draw wild and gritty subject matter too, like zombies, violent battles, and destruction. What other fantasy-loving heavy metal music fan wouldn't love stuff like that? But God had other plans for me, and brought me through a lot of experiences over many years changing my life and helping me broaden my artistic range to be able to enjoy working on everything from sci-fi to children's subjects.  (Once God gave us some kids, I couldn't help but start working on softer, friendlier material...who wouldn't do the same?)

A Feral Zombie and not-so-Feral, but local Grand Rapids undead citizen BOB the 1950's gas station attendant zombie

 

I've worked as an artist on projects in all sorts of media, drawing fantasy creatures, cute cartoon animals, cars, food, and normal everyday folks. I didn't draw much of the gritty, violent stuff anymore...and, oddly, I didn't mind.

 

Over the past few years, I've been given opportunities to draw the undead again, and I've realized that I'm approaching it from a different standpoint. I've grown a lot in my personal life and as an artist. I was a little apprehensive at first about drawing zombies again, but I gave it a shot, and found that even though my heart and my life have changed, I still enjoy drawing a wormy, walking corpse from time to time. I think Pete's approach to zombies (as I mentioned above) has helped me ease back into this, as he really has added something significant and mature to the direction of post-apocalyptic zombie lore.

 

Well, I guess these would be the "appropriate" 5 things I learned working on TRANSPORT. I should probably wrap it up now, as there's still a lot of work to be done if I'm ever going to get a 15-foot tall, heavily armored family transport ready to roll so I can run errands safely when the world falls apart.

 

Hmmm...I think I'll need to build a bigger garage, too.

 

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BIO:

Tim Holtrop always has loved drawing and telling stories. He’s very thankful that God has blessed him with the ability to do both professionally. Over the years, he’s been given work in publishing, film, television, advertising, web, and other entertainment related arenas drawing comics, storyboards, comps, concept sketches and illustrations. He’s spent some time working in Los Angeles before moving his family back home to West Michigan, where he currently provides his services by working from home and delivering art to clients via e-mail / internet.

Web Sites:

Portfolio: www.timholtrop.com

More samples: https://www.facebook.com/TimHoltrop.Art

For the whole family (I told ya'...I do more than zombies):

            Cute cartoon animal designs: www.cuddlycritters.net

            Free printable activities and books: www.cybercrayon.net

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You can find Interior Artist Tim Holtrop and Cover Artist Jason Conley's work upon and within Peter Welmerink's military/zombie series: TRANSPORT.

 

TRANSPORT Book One available now at all booksellers. Ask for it by name if they do not have it on the shelf.

 

 

 

 

IMAGINARIUM Convention next week in Louisville KY

Special thanks to D. R. Acula for his awesome no-nonsensery blog post on same topic and the cool promo piece below

 

 

 

September 19-21, 2014

Crowne Plaza

Louisville KY

 

 

 

What is this IMAGINARIUM?

 

The Imaginarium Convention  is a writers convention that offers, panels, workshops, art, a film festival, a masquerade ball that hosts an costume/cosplay contest. It is a melting pot for writers, aspiring writers, publishers, readers, and anyone in the creative writing business to meet and network and learn.

 

Cost:

$55 for a full weekend pass

$25 for a day

A group of 8 or more: $35 per person for the entire weekend

 

You can register here:

http://www.entertheimaginarium.com/attendee-registration/

Main IMAGINARIUM site here:

http://www.entertheimaginarium.com/

 

The IMAGINARIUM On Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imaginariumconvention

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ImaginariumCon

 

Other informative posts about the IMAGINARIUM:

 

The Quote below is from the awesome website 'I Smell Sheep' concerning a 6 part post series... links are below.

 

 

"Ever wonder what goes into creating a convention? Stephen Zimmer has agreed to take us through the steps. He has agreed to do a six week series about what it took to put together Imaginarium which will make its debut this September." - From I Smell Sheep

 

 

The Genesis of The Imaginarium Convention- Part I: concept and venue

http://www.ismellsheep.com/2014/08/the-genesis-of-imaginarium-convention.html

 

The Genesis of The Imaginarium Convention- Part II: The Building of a Guest List

 http://www.ismellsheep.com/2014/08/the-genesis-of-imaginarium-convention_17.html

 

The Genesis of The Imaginarium Convention- Part III: The Programming (part 1)

http://www.ismellsheep.com/2014/08/the-genesis-of-imaginarium-convention_24.html

 

The Genesis of The Imaginarium Convention- Part III: The Programming  (part 2)

http://www.ismellsheep.com/2014/08/the-genesis-of-imaginarium-convention_31.html

 

The Genesis of The Imaginarium Convention- Part IV: Convention vs Conference

http://www.ismellsheep.com/2014/09/the-genesis-of-imaginarium-convention.html

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There is also the excellent Blog of Selah Janel:

http://selahjanel.wordpress.com/2014/09/10/why-imaginarium/

The HURON...LEGO Style

Yesterday I showed a sketch of the HURON (drawn by the talented Tim Holtrop way back in the early days of TRANSPORT's conception) to my son Matthew, and challenged him to create a LEGO rendition of the big M213 Heavy Transport Vehicle. The M213 Ridgerunner-Class HURON is the prevailing military vehicle in my post-apoc military/zombie action-adventure series, TRANSPORT.

 

Matthew accepted the challenge and began building.

 

And here, for your viewing pleasure, are the results.

 

Matthew and his creation

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hmmm... pretty darn cloe to cover perfection. :)

 

HURON front gunner Sgt. James Stokes??

 

It took Matthew roughly an hour and a half to dig through LEGO parts and put the whole thing together.

 

Yes, it is not Army green or beige. It is not an exact front, back, sides, duallie front wheel model as depicted in book series or illustrations...BUT IT IS DANG COOL!

 

Thanks son!

 

 

 

 

JASON C CONLEY: Five Things Learned Illustrating the TRANSPORT Covers

1.  Zombies are just as freakin' cool to draw as they are to watch. 

 

My first encounter with the undead was the 1968 George Romero classic, Night of the Living Dead.  I wasn’t even born until 78’ so it was on cable where I was introduced to this slowly-built-up dread that beat its way through your boarded up window.  Talk about suspenseful!  To be not really all that gruesome, it’s never really been beat to this day as far as zombie flicks go.  Its restraint is what is appealing and it’s exactly that restraint in gore that I brought to this piece.  Our over-saturation in violence has deadened (pun intended) our response to it.  I could have just as easily drawn entrails and eyeballs and blood spraying like a MMA fight.  But that would be like everything else we see today, and that just ain’t me punk!

 

2.  Military vehicles COMBINED with zombies are a cool way to go, baby! 

I remember when Peter and I were going over the cover concept together and he talked about this giant armored beast called the HURON.  I thought, “Cool!  I’ve never tackled a military unit before.  This will be fun!”  And then I start thinking…the engines churned and fire blew out my tailpipe like an old Tex Avery cartoon.  He said he had three covers.  This was a series.  So I thought, “why not make them connect like some of the comics from the 90’s use to?”  I pitched the idea to Peter and his publisher, not really caring if they said no, I was doing it anyways!  I already had the image in my head of what to draw, they just had to sit back and wait.  I did a rough draft, sent it out and then went full steam ahead.

 

 

3.  I almost bit off more than I could chew.  

 

Not only did the three covers have to work together, they also had to work as separate pieces when broken apart for their respective books.  No small task!  The HURON was the centerpiece of this story, so I wanted it on the first book to introduce the character of sorts.  Peter said he wanted a car crushed underneath it, zombies scattered throughout, and the Grand Rapids city skyline in the background.  But if this story was about military strike vehicles taking on the zombie apocalypse then why not add some really killer beasts of BOOM to go with it??  So along came the tank and helicopter, crowds of zombies, attacking military squads and crawling creatures of the undead.  Each cover now focused on a particular vehicle that wrecked carnage with brains to spare.

 

 

4.  Color ties things together nicely. 

I wanted a grimy, used, stepped upon and drug across look for this piece.  Zombies aren’t the cleanest things, and life gets a little messy when they’re being crushed or blown to pieces.  So I used an Earth tone color scheme, set at dusk, and went to work adding all sorts of cruddy textures to ground the piece in reality. 

 

 

5. Special effects rule! 

 

Sparks, flames, spotlights, broken glass, motion blur, all used where needed to really sell the work and make it interesting.  Photoshop was used for this entire cover from start to finish.  But what really sold it was a professional set of filters I used called Knoll Light Factory.  If you’ve seen a blockbuster movie in the past decade, then you’ve seen Knoll Light Factory at work.  It’s a highly customizable collection of light filters, lens flares, sparkles, etc. that can really transform a piece if used correctly. 

 

 

So there you have it.  Easy enough, right?  Whatever the subject matter, you have to tackle the piece with your own style, viewpoint, and skill set available.  It helps if you have killer subject matter to work with, too!  Thanks for that part Peter!

 

 

 

[No. Thank YOU, Jason. Your TRANSPORT covers ROCK! I couldn't be more fortunate working with a great talent like yourself. I can draw a mean stick figure, but nothing compared to you and the other TRANSPORT artist, Tim Holtrop. You guys hit it out of the park...which is probably good, because John Ball Park (Grand Rapids Michigan) in my TRANSPORT World is home of both the undead and some, er, strange mutations yet to be discovered.]

 

 

 

 

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BIO:

Jason Conley lives in Chattanooga, TN with his wonderful wife and daughter.  He is a writer and illustrator, currently doing cover art/illustration work for Seventh Star Press.  His novel, The Kingdom of Vosh, was published in 2013 by Dark Oak Publishing.

http://www.thekingdomofvosh.com/

http://www.pinterest.com/jconley78/artwork-of-jason-c-conley/

Kingdom of Vosh on Amazon

Kingdom of Vosh on Barnes & Noble

 

Copyright 2013-2014 Jason Conley

Copyright 2013-2014 Jason Conley

 

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TRANSPORT (Book One), with cover art by Jason Conley and interior art by Tim Holtrop, can be found here:

 

 

AMAZON

Paperback

Kindle

BARNES & NOBLE

SCHULER BOOKS

Paperback

 

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Uncaptioned art on this page copyright 2014 Jason Conley, Peter Welmerink

Werewolf Zombie wanders the streets of Grand Rapids

From the GRAND RAPIDS HERALD Sunday August 30 2026

 

 

"Something has been tearing into Grand Rapidians, both living and undead, causing a wave of panic among the surviving denizens of Grand Rapids and surrounding countryside.

 

"It is NOT the work of a horde of FZ's (Feral Zombies) or some sort of marauding band of violent Loyalists or any other group," Mayor Dennis Honeywell was reported saying.

 

The Mayor's statement was based on medical staff, escorted by Grand Rapids Central Command, looking at the remains of both living and unliving civilians found torn to literal shreds on the city's southwest side and bodies found severely mutilated in the UCRA.

 

"There have been no reports of Ferals within the city or within the Urban Civilian Retention Area. However, we haven't ruled out that something from the old John Ball Park Zoo hasn't emerged and escaped," Honeywell said.

 

The John Ball Park Zoo, on the city's west side and contained within its own protective fence line, was cordoned off years ago after it was found geneticists of Valley State University had been using its occupants for mutation experiments.

 

"We will continue to follow this story as more details come to light."

 

 

TRANSPORT to IMAGINARIUM

My panelist and moderator schedule for the forthcoming IMAGINARIUM Convention in Louisville KY this September is here!

I am looking forward to meeting the Seventh Star Press team (my publisher) and SSP authors, other writers and all sorts of new people and new friends.

My IMAGINARIUM Schedule:

Saturday      11:00 AM     Cover Lovin'

Saturday      7:00 PM        The Zombie Horde

Sunday        9:00 AM        Lone Hero Vs. Heroic Group

Sunday        11:00 AM      Into the Wastelands (M)

I will also be at the Seventh Star Press table/booth, hanging with the SSP crew and signing books.

Hope to see you there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 19-21 2014 Louisville, KY

at the Crowne Plaza Hotel

The Imaginarium offers a wealth of programming, events, and all kinds of fun for those who enjoy the world of creative writing!

The Imaginarium is open to all genres, and explores all kinds of creative writing, from books, to comics/graphic novels, screenplays, blogging, and much more!

The convention opens to the public at 4pm on Friday and runs through ...the close of the Awards Banquet on Sunday (which starts at 5pm). Programming begins at 9am on Saturday and Sunday, and for the most part panels end by 9pm on Friday and Saturday.

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TRANSPORT (Book One) can be found here:

AMAZON

Paperback

Kindle

BARNES & NOBLE

SCHULER BOOKS

Paperback

  

Stranger in a Strange Place

Yeah, I can be a little weird at times. Fuck it. Go crazy!

 

 

Admittedly, I can be a little strange, a little bizarre, a little too intense, a little too wrapped up in my work. It is not a bad thing I suppose.

 

Not a bad thing, but sometimes I feel like I am all alone out there, in my crazy little writing world.

 

I spend my early morning hours with a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of coffee before me, with the computer on and current manuscript pulled up on the screen, writing some, thinking more, trying to keep myself away from loading up MINECRAFT and playing for a bit...because I am subconsciously, or perhaps, very consciously, trying to avoid writing the words that I know are in me and wanting to come out, perhaps a little afraid of putting down that next written line, if it is good enough, if I am even pursuing something that is legit and worth reading let alone worth writing.

 

I think sometimes, when friends and family ask WHAT ARE YOU WRITING, and I tell them, I get the approving nod but also can see a glimmer of WHAT THE HELL? I don't expect anyone to GET IT, be you a reader of specific, Fantasy, whathaveyou. I know we all do not share the same interests (Thank God) and THAT can be what makes things work with this whole machine called living and life.

 

Whoever said WRITING CAN BE A LONELY PLACE wasn't kidding.

 

But, you know what, on the positive side, I am doing something I have ALWAYS ALWAYS enjoyed doing. It has always been therapeutic for a kid and guy trying to figure out the world on the outside, having a place to go on the inside and a means (talent?) to put it back on the outside (writing) and, wow! even being published and read. A dream come true? Hell yes. Being able to write and be read, hell yeah, a dream come true.

 

Not sure why the deep thoughts, maybe due to remembering my dad (Donald Welmerink 1933-2004), the passing of comedic artist Robin Williams, a full moon, some exciting good things in my life making me anxious, some stressful bullshit stuff making me anxious, the anniversary of a major anxiety attack which was NO FUCKING FUN at the time...I don't why the deep thoughts.

 

I'm going to turn this thing around now.

 

Life is good. It is big and good.

 

I got family, friends, a job, a writing gig. Got opportunities if I want to be a little crazy and pursue them.

 

And like the music artist SEAL sings: How we ever gonna survive unless we get a little crazy?