Television Reflection in All New Pop Colour - Artwork by Daniel Grant Newton

Comic for YOU! Merry Christmas from Daniel Grant Newton, the lost Reindeer Herder, Cyborg Santa and the Alien Elves

A 'Merry Christmas Comic' from Daniel Grant Newton

Merry Christmas from Daniel Grant Newton, Cyborg Santa and the Alien Elves. :-)

Superman Painting Photo Diary by Daniel Grant Newton

Hey again,

One fine member of our blog family sent me a note to say that they liked seeing the process of a painting I previously did (always love emails from readers PS!).  So I thought I'd post another one.

This painting is one I did for my nephew as a birthday gift.  It's of Superman, who I obviously do not have any rights to, otherwise I'd be laughing in the bank with the bank manager, and taking cheesy photos of me cutting ribbons to new theme parks I had built with my mountains of money.

Anyway, here is my photo diary of my painting.

Stage One: the sketching it all out.

Stage Two: the under work.

Stage Three: allowing it to slowly take form, and coffee staining it for effect.

Finally, the Superman painting by Daniel Grant Newton. 

Note: After taking this photo I had to change the copy under 'BREAKING NEWS' to be more child-friendly, but this is essentially what it looks like.

Close up of the face in Daniel Grant Newton's Superman painting.

The Progress of a Painting (in pictures)

'Love at the Gallery' by Daniel Grant Newton 

Ancient Aliens iPad cover

Hey there.  Quick note for the day.  I have designed an iPad cover for those who like something a little different.  Check it out at the Red Bubble store:

http://www.redbubble.com/people/danielnewton/works/10966279-ancient-aliens-and-cats?ref=work_main_nav

Hope you love it in all its quirkiness!

UPDATE!  This was a limited offer and now all available covers have been snapped up, but below is the art I created for the cover.  Thanks to everyone who snapped them up like hungry hippos.

A quirky, creepy picture for the Month of Halloween

Massacre of the Tennis Ball Heads by Daniel Grant Newton

Sak Pase friends and citizens of Shambhala!

Today I was thinking about the fun and eye opening time I had in Haiti.  One of the fun things that happened was that we were living in a little place which had a number of families living in very close quarters nearby, and as I couldn't speak much Creole, I decided to draw a few pictures for the children there.

I drew pictures of fairies, dancers, children riding animals and birds (see right - I will perhaps colour this in and post it on my blog some time), gardens, and mermaids - among other things.  Oh, and a whole lot of Dora the Explorers on request!  (Got pretty good at drawing her by the end.)

They all loved the pictures I drew for them, and I loved drawing the pictures for them.  But what I loved more was watching them play with drawings and create conversations with the drawings, as if they were dolls.  Only one of the little girls had a doll I learned later.

They also had someone else write below the drawings (as they were not old enough to write) that it was them that drew the pictures!

If I am the next Picasso, that may have just devalued the pictures substantially!  I kid of course.  Because there is nothing worth more than the fun of a child.

Anyway, in honour of those kids, and all the fantastic people and places I had the pleasure of knowing, I have done a quick art piece below.

That is all for today.  Just wanted to share.  Hope you are having a great day too!  Feel free to post this on your Facebook wall if you like.  Sak pase is a greeting in Haitian Creole.

Great Ideas Spread Like Mating Rabbits ... Just saying.

So today has been just awesome.  I've really been seeing "power to the independents" ... whether they are independent writers, artists, comic book creators, musicians, etc!

The Internet has facilitated artists of all types with different things to say, and different ways to say it.  So big it up people.

No more do we need to buy the same old stuff produced by the big corporations.  Now we can choose to digest work with the highest creative merit from every corner of the world, and not necessarily just the work with supposed 'commercial viability'.

In fact, the world is so big that talented independents who would previously die unnoticed with their awesome work can now be commercial viable.  So cheers to that!

I am sure Van Gogh would not have died today with selling just one piece of artwork and having only one ear.

Anyway, I created an artwork above to celebrate this!  And to celebrate you, my favourite people, who support me and make my dreams of being an artist, comic book creator and writer real!

Peace and long live the Kings of Shambhala.

Daniel

Art piece a day review by Daniel Grant Newton: the first week and a bit

Hey there Shambhalan,

Oh ... my ... goodness.

I have now completed week one and a bit of my art piece a day, and I can tell you, it is harder than I imagined.  Sure, the 'just do a quick drawing, Dan, nobody will notice' excuse has been in my head, but I want to deliver you - one of my favourite people because you follow my blog - the best possible work, and so I can't cheat with a 'that's good enough' drawing.  It's like doing a walk-through cheat in God mode.  That just would not be Zelda of me.

Anyway, here are three digital pieces from my first week and a bit: one spiritual guardian protecting a family from bad spirits, one band rocking the suburbs like Michael Jackson did except that he was talented, and one Goddess of the Ocean overturning a ship like a boss.  You'll notice the Mami Wata piece is a pic I drew back in Haiti, but I coloured it in to look cool and so included it for your visual ecstasy.

All artwork done by Daniel Grant Newton, naturally.  That's me, for those playing at home!

Alien Baby Close to Death in Mother's Arms While Alien Father Races Against the Clock to Bring Him the Herb that will Hopefully Save Him ... By Daniel Grant Newton

Created by Daniel Grant Newton

Another new piece of art for my wonderful readers!  The title tells the story.  As of September 1 I will be attempting my art piece a day for a year challenge.  Quite a considerable challenge considering all the other projects I have on the go, so quite a number may only be conceptual ideas and sketches in my book.  Still, I am excited to really push my creativity to the next level.

And then, at the end of each week, I will post some/all of the week's art for your viewing pleasure.  At the same time I am working on a comic for a client, illustrating a very interesting collection of children's stories, as well as The Aleksandra Adventures (my comic that is a prequel to The Last King of Shambhala), The Mysteries of the Black Sun (the novel sequel to my The Last King of Shambhala), and a book that currently has no working title but uses myth and history of Ethiopia.

Glad we could catch up.  So look out for my first attempt at a week's worth of art.  I'll let you know how it goes!

Your friend and fellow citizen of Shambhala, Daniel

My Hero, Fan Expo, and one for the kids!

(F.Y.I. New picture at the bottom) ... 

Hello again, I am so excited.  Why Daniel? I hear you ask with a chorus of school kids.

Why?  I think the better question is why are you with school kids.

Anyway, to answer your question and the class of 2B, Fan Expo is tomorrow and I will be meeting my hero Richard Dean Anderson.  That's right, the guy from my three favourite TV shows - Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis and Macgyver.  If he were in the Ninja Turtles and Avatar: The Last Airbender too, then he would be in my top five and the universe as we know it could not handle it and would end, not with a whimper but a freakin' huge ass boom (sorry T. S. Eliot).

Plus he seems like an all-round great guy who does lots of great work in the community and around the world.  So BOOM!

I am over the moon excited, literally.  I am going to die of no oxygen if someone does not retrieve me.  

And, also, if you are in Toronto tomorrow, and you come to Fan Expo (like, as if you wouldn't!), and you see me, come and say hello.  I'd love to chat.

I am not in a booth or anything (this time), just walking around with some stupid smile on my face.

I should really have put this update earlier to give you time to find a cosplay outfit and get your hair spiked like Goku.  Do not use the toaster in the bath as a short cut P.S., that only works in Looney Tunes cartoons!

So yes, that is the news about my absolute top hero, and Fan Expo, so that only leaves "one for the kids" ... See below my new art piece that pretty much every single kid in the entire world (no, universe!) would love and think is the best thing their eyes have ever seen, and thereby go blind as they would not want to spoil the image with anything hereafter.*

*This is very much an overstatement.

What monster casts this shadow?  That, my friend, is for you to conjure in your mind.

Warrior on a Bridge by Daniel Grant Newton

More warm up for my art piece a day challenge (which, it should be noted, will not take away from the usual programming).

This picture I feel should be from some future epic I write. It looks very ethereal and 'Jet Li your ass' at the same time.

Mami Wata and Mani (Thoth) from Akashic Records Series

My depictions of my characters from the Akashic Records, and of course from Myths around the world. You may remember that Mani is the moon djinn that Ariella-Maria channels.

Proof that Ninjas tried to attack my blog

Bam!  Just dodged a flying kick.  Why?  Blog ninjas.  That is why.

Don't believe me.  See below.

It's a drawing inspired by the very first article I ever wrote on this blog ... and the ninjas that clearly attacked it with ninja skills (as proven by my subsequent drawing).

:-)

Girl looking through library shelves...

New drawing for a new day for my favourite blog reader - YOU.

Wasn't 100% happy with yesterday's pic, so I will post this one up, wiggle my fingers, and everything can all be well again... And the munchkins can finally sing again.

Tears of the First Nation - A sketch from my pad

As promised, I am going to begin sharing some drawings I have done, which is a 'warm up' to a big challenge I am going to set myself starting next month: to create an art piece everyday for a year!

Here is the first 'warm up' piece I am sharing.

DJ Panda - The World's First 'Beat Painting'

Before I went to Haiti, I teamed up with a producer Lazy Beatz in Toronto, and we created what we are currently calling a 'Beat Painting'.  Essentially he created a beat whilst I painted, and because neither of us had any hard and fast planning beforehand, we influenced each other's expression.  

We taped this expression, and the recording is what can only be described as a unique 'Beat Painting'.  This time we were in the same room, but our future plans are to do it via Skype from different and interesting parts of the world.

The video is in post production, but for those interested, here is the painting I did in those two hours.

Superman vs. Batman (Dark Knight)

Hi my favourite blog friend, 

Hope you have been well, or super duper fantastic.  As you will not know unless you are part of the CIA, for the last number of weeks I have been in Haiti, and while I have been working on some interesting ideas, I have not had the internet connection to share them with you.  

As a result, I have scoured the mountainous lands for an illusive internet point, and only now, after climbing to a summit and speaking with a wise blind goat herder, have been able to post (this is utterly completely true except for the part about the climbing the mountain to speak to a wise blind goat herder).  

Anyway, now here we are.  And...  Here is a picture I drew in my pad and taken with my phone.  I will share more when I get back to Canada.

Highest salute!

Daniel

Two Characters from the Kingdom of Shambhala (in Daniel Grant Newton's 'Akashic Records Series' and 'The Aleksandra Adventures' series)

Tashi Tseringma, Snow Leopard Sorcereress and Chief Advisor to King Cyan

Guardian of the Kingdom Gates

Thinking Behind a Painting

Friends, Shambhalans, countrymen (and countrywomen), lend me your eyes...

Actually, not your eyes, but your _'s.  _ am m_ss_ng some, and could do with borrow_ng your _'s (sounds l_ke eyes but _s a letter).

Cool, I found them again!

Anyway, I thought I'd give you a little insight into how I create paintings.  I'd love to hear about your art or books by the way, and also how you go about your creativity.  You can email me at danielgrantnewton (AT) gmail (DOT) com

Step 1: I come up with a scene and rough it out (see below).  The scenes I choose usually come into my head from the Unicorn Keepers of Imagination, but they are more than just a picture.  They are part of a larger story that invite the viewer to co-create the story with me.  Kind of like what I was talking about last blog article in regards to books and comics.

It's on a train, with two commuters in the background, and two police/soldiers with flashlights checking passengers. One of them spots the man in the foreground with a flashlight. The context of what the men are looking for, and why the man in the foreground is going to get in trouble, and will he be caught or escape, and what happened up to this point and after this point, and where the train is heading, and who they all are, is for you, the viewer, to create.  He will be however holding a bible, which means he could be just worried and praying, or that he is being targeted for his religion, and the flashlight will have a double meaning as being touched by the Holy Ghost.

In this picture I planned to create a boy who perhaps lost his kite and found it by a group of mysterious Romani people camped out in a field, or was catching bugs that led him there.  Although the rest of the camp do not spot him, he and a young girl the same age catch each other's gaze, and destiny awaits them.  However, the adults are packing up camp so there is the question of whether this would be a fleeting moment, or whether one will approach the other and begin a relationship, or whether their destinies are intertwined in ways greater than a chance meeting.  As you will see, this idea was expanded on greater when the paint hit the canvas.

Step 2: Keep the basic composition, but ignore the details, and let my personal unicorn painter and I expand upon the seed of an idea.  See the results below.

As you can see here, the basic premise did not change much.  I added graphic elements, such as foreshortening, but the main story line has not changed.  That said, in my original conception I made the character more of an Indiana Jones type character, concealing a gun under his coat, whereas this man looks more 'ordinary', but with his mind visibly racing through different scenarios and reactions, and his jacket under his arm ready to run perhaps.

In this painting however, a lot has changed.  Most noticeably, the characters have grown up, the girl now has her eyes closed and has a tear sliding down her cheek as she looks back at the boy, and the characters around the camp seem ghostly (perhaps they are apparitions rather than alive people).  The expression of the girl implies that they were romantically involved, but she is leaving either against her will or because of what had happened between them (the wind dramatizes these feelings).  Also, the boy now appears to have ridden his bike to come see her go, rather than having just found her by chance.  And so as the characters in the scene have grown and become more colourful, so has the story and emotion.

My Secret to giving Character to my Characters

Co-create the Character with your Reader

One mistake I believe writers make when they are creating a character is they tell you everything you need to know about the character.  But that isn't the way we meet people and get to know people, and it is NOT the way we ignite the imagination.

In fact, the closest we get to a character description in real life is a friend telling us about a person before we meet them.  Instead, most of us pride ourselves on not jumping to conclusions about people before we meet them.  

We wait until at least we see their tattoos, eyebrow piercing and the scar running down their snarl before knowing they are exactly the type of person our parents will reject, and therefore the perfect life partner.

(On a side note, what a character says about another character tells us just as much about the character talking, as it does the character he/she is talking about.)

A more effective way in your writing is to lead the reader to judge a character for themselves through their actions or in clues, like appearance.  That way a more authentic and deeper bond is fostered between the reader and character as it is THEIR judgement, not you telling them.

A word of warning here, do not describe the character's appearance in too much detail either.  (I sometimes do a little too much, but I know that I really shouldn't!)

As with letting the reader co-create the persona of our characters, let the reader fill in the details of a character's appearance.  Ignite the reader's own imagination by picking a few 'touchpoints' that infer the personality or status or background etc., and that can be employed later to reintroduce the character throughout the book.

The retired general with one squinting eye and a giant mole with luscious hair cascading from it as if it were a separate living entity, will connect better with a reader than a shopping list of wardrobe pieces and a police profile description.


WHAM! BAM! POW! ... Bonus Tip for COMICS!

When you are creating characters for comics, you can use these same 'touchpoints' in your drawings too.  Below are some ideas I have had for the new comic I am working on 'Paint the Town Red'.

You can see how a character's head shape, eyes and accessories, for example, help the reader know straight away which character is which.  Beside the first three I have included some original conceptuals of the character before I 'cartoonised' them.

'A Fisherman's Tail' pt.3 by Daniel Grant Newton ... You won't believe what happens next!

If you've missed them due to recovering from seasickness, here are parts one and two.

And now for the unbelievable finale to 'A Fisherman's Tail' ...

With a pained gasp, the struggling fish was landed with a heavy thud on the unforgiving dry boards of the jetty.

Grandpa drew out a wickedly gleaming knife from his tackle box.

‘Well Samuel, I think it’s about time we take this fish home to your little mother,’ Grandpa said to his grandson.

Samuel shook his head with a shocked expression and grabbed his grandpa’s shaking hand as it held the knife poised for the killing slice. ‘What are you doing to the fish? What happened to Ethan?’

‘Well, Ethan was turned into a fish, and a willing fish was turned into Ethan. The soldier crabs carried Ethan down the beach and threw him into the sea from this very jetty.’

‘And then what happened?’

‘The fish that became Ethan began enjoying his life as a human, so he vowed to catch Ethan and spent most of his life looking for the fish that was Ethan. If he caught Ethan, then he would never have to return to the sea as a fish.’

Without warning, Samuel grabbed the silver fish in his small determined hands and threw it back into the water.

He smiled triumphantly.

‘Now Ethan can be a human once more,’ said Samuel.

Grandpa swallowed a gasp as he gazed wistfully at the widening ripples. He ran a scaly hand through his silver hair. ‘We have to go,’ he whispered.  ‘Let’s get home before your mother gets worried.’

'A Fisherman's Tail' pt.2 by Daniel Grant Newton

Click here for part 1...

Ethan settled back against the slimy rock wall waiting patiently for the Admiral’s return. The floor towards the back of the cave seemed to pulse, although in the oppressing darkness he thought perhaps his imagination had conjured up a nightmarish fantasy.

His heart rate rose and his palms leaked as he was hit by a wave of anxiety. Maybe squadrons of soldier crabs paraded there he decided pragmatically.

Ethan’s mind and adrenalin raced as what seemed to be hours passed, the complete absence of light disorientating him to time and direction.

Suddenly, Ethan heard the Admiral’s multi-jointed legs clicking back towards him.

The crab solemnly inspected Ethan before announcing, ‘By order of the high judge, you will be tried on one count of attempted murder.’

‘I don’t understand. You have me mixed up with someone else,’ said Ethan as he stumbled backwards.

‘There is no mistake. There is a definite violation of the 45th Amendment section C. You must proceed to the defendant’s stand to plead your lost cause of a case, you littering…’ The Admiral couldn’t think of a noun insulting enough to express his disgust with the boy.

Ethan hesitated before creeping after the scratching march. He had been deprived of choice, the pit of darkness cloaking any hope of exit. As they crawled deeper into the cave Ethan could hear echoing scritching and creaking, muffled voices, and sharp drifting.

Finally Ethan emerged into a courtroom lit by phosphorescent plankton in swinging baskets hung from the low ceiling. These baskets cast a dim sickly-green glow over the cave walls and revealed prying crustaceans, molluscs, amphibians and reptiles crammed into makeshift stands. These creatures whispered viciously with narrowed eyes gleaming at Ethan as he cautiously inched into the courtroom. Perched on a large stone adjacent to Ethan was a slimy slug with seaweed dumped on its head. Ethan pivoted around wildly seeking a glimpse of the sky, his promise of escape, but around and above him he only saw carpets of moss caressing the limestone.

The Admiral kowtowed three times to the poised slug before scuttling into the crowded stands. All sense of Ethan’s safety vanished with him. A crinkly turtle arrogantly pushed through the audience and hobbled towards the centre stage.

The court opened the case. ‘Ethan versus The Ocean,’ droned the slug on his limestone throne. ‘Counsel, would you enter your appearances starting with counsel for the plaintiffs.’

‘Yes, good morning, Your Honour. Pascal Turtle, Atlantic Ocean, for the plaintiffs,’ said the turtle.

The courtroom fell silent and all eyes peered at the strange two-legged being clasping the sandy UFO.

‘Will you please state your name for the court?’ the judge ordered.

‘Ethan Thomas.’

‘Good morning to both of you. Pascal, are you ready to open?’

‘I am ready, Your Honour.’

‘Proceed.’

‘Good morning, Your Honour. I represent The Ocean and all who reside in or by The Ocean,’ said the turtle as he swaggered belligerently towards Ethan. ‘Ethan Thomas attempted to murder a brother or sister of The Ocean.’

The crowd gasped, enjoying the spectacle.

‘That’s not true. The turtle is lying,’ Ethan protested. ‘I would never do that.’

‘Ethan Thomas, what happened before you were arrested by the sea’s finest admiral?’

‘Well, I was gazing out at the ocean and eating…’ Ethan stopped short. His words caught in his throat.

‘What were you eating?’ smirked the turtle. ‘Was it plankton? Was it seaweed? Were you munching on seaweed Ethan?’

‘No.’

‘No?’

‘No, Mister Turtle. I was eating fish and chips,’ mumbled Ethan.

‘Fish and chips by the ocean ladies and gentlemen,’ repeated the turtle in such a loud voice that no creature was uncertain of what was said. ‘This animal ate fish in front of other fish. You gobbled someone’s daughter or son, mother or father, friend or sibling – flaunting your behaviour to the victim’s family. What kind of sadistic ghoul would do that ladies and gentlemen?’

Pascal Turtle was a conductor of an emotive orchestra, as he waved his flippers about and hyped the crowd into a hysterical crescendo. The amphibians and lizards kicked sand and snarled. The old turtles in the crowd shook their heads whilst the little ones hid in their shells. Angry crabs and lobsters snapped their claws in the air. And a sea cucumber even spat at Ethan.

‘He can’t say that,’ Ethan objected.

‘On what basis?’ asked the Judge, attempting fairness.

‘The fish were already dead – that isn’t attempted murder.’

‘Objection sustained. Eating dead fish makes you a forager not a felon. Please get to your point Pascal.’

‘I’m sorry, Your Honour.’ Pascal grinned a toothless smile at Ethan. ‘You were eating the fish Ethan, then what happened?’

‘Well, the wind came and blew the plastic bag down the beach. So I ran to catch it.’

‘I rest my case Your Honour. Releasing a UFO into the ocean, or littering as the human species call it, is one of the major killers of us sea creatures.’

‘I didn’t know,’ protested Ethan desperately.

‘Ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law.’

The judge shrewdly stared at Ethan. ‘Taking the boy’s age and apparent ignorance into account, I only see fit to give him the minimum sentence.’ The amphibian puffed out his chest. ‘I hereby sentence you, by order of The Ocean, to sixty years as a fish. After that time period has elapsed, provided you are still alive, you will be granted your human body once more.’

Catch the final twist of this curious short story by clicking here!

Short Story - "A Fisherman's Tail" pt.1

Here is a kid's story I once wrote and thought I'd share with those that are kids at heart.

I wrote it for a creative writing subject at university ten years ago. I clearly was the innocent one in class as many of my classmates were writing about prostitutes, drugs and explicit mindless sex. Meanwhile I was writing about talking sea creatures.

Daniel 

A Fisherman’s Tail

By Daniel Grant Newton

Samuel reckons that his grandpa must know every fish in the ocean – even the ugly toadfish.

Most afternoons when Samuel gets home from school, he and Grandpa go fishing at the creaky wooden jetty. Each time grandpa brings up a fish he animatedly tells Samuel a fantastic story about that very fish before releasing it back into the sea.

One day, grandpa and Samuel were sitting at the end of the jetty with their legs dangling over the side. Grandpa had only just dropped his line into the grey-blue water when a fish bit his line. It was big!

The old man’s scaly hands worked nimbly as he furiously tried to reel the fish in. The fish thrashed around in the water and put up quite a fight.

‘Wow, that’s a big fish,’ Samuel exclaimed.

Grandpa beamed with delight. ‘Yes it is a big fish Samuel, and also a very special fish.’

‘Is it a magic fish? Was it friends with the Loch Ness Monster?’ Samuel’s face lit up.

Grandpa laughed, ‘No, not this fish. This fish was part of a much more intriguing story.’ Samuel’s eyes widened and he fell silent. Grandpa ruffled the small boy’s hair.

‘Your mother told me I can’t keep telling you these stories and fill your head with my rubbish. You’re going to be a big Grade Fourer soon.’

‘Please tell me, Grandpa,’ Samuel whined.

Grandpa smiled and leant over to Samuel. ‘Okay Sammy, but you can’t tell your mum I told you this story.’ Samuel nodded his head eagerly and Grandpa kept battling with the fish as he told the story.

#

This story doesn’t start with a fish, but with a boy about your age named Ethan.

One day, Ethan sat on the sandy bank just over there and watched the afternoon sun caress the violet sea before him. He felt around for the plastic bag by his side, not diverting his attention from the peace he found in the waves. He dragged his dinner out of the bag and his sandy fingers worked abstractedly to pull free the battered fish and soggy chips inside. Ethan screwed up his face as he felt the grease coat his fingers.

A strong gust of wind belted across the beach, stinging his arms with a hail of sand and broken shells. Ethan turned and watched the trees waving their branches like mothers crammed in a train station watching their sons being taken off to war.

Suddenly the plastic bag beside Ethan was snatched by the wind and cartwheeled down the beach. Ethan instantly dropped his fish and chips onto the newspaper, and leapt up to chase the bag.

Each time the bag was at his fingertips, however, the wind stole it again, and the bag would dive and wheel another direction, until finally Ethan stomped on the runaway.

As Ethan did so, a soldier crab boldly sidled out from a hole near Ethan’s foot. The crab stared with polished beady eyes. His vibrant blue armor and long spidery legs were beautiful to Ethan’s eyes.

Ethan dropped to a squat. ‘Hello there.’

The soldier crab seemed to inspect Ethan before marching over to the plastic bag.

‘What is this?’ barked a thin, reedy voice.

Ethan whirled about in surprise.

‘You, the big oaf there, what is this?’ came the voice again.

‘What is what?’ questioned Ethan as his forehead creased. ‘Who’s there?’

‘Are you blind? I’m talking to you,’ the rude voice blasted from bellow. ‘I am a soldier crab. Certainly no grunt. See all the purple stripes on my legs – I’m a well-decorated officer. I am an admiral to be precise, as was my father, his father and his father before him. Of course the father before that never made it to admiral – he was eaten by a seagull before he ever reached admiral, but I’m sure he would’ve made a great leader from what I’ve been told.’ The crab awkwardly gestured at Ethan. ‘So, from now on, I would adjure you to address me as Sir, Admiral, Sir.’

‘Oh, I – I’m sorry,’ Ethan stuttered, ‘I mean, I’m sorry, Sir, Admiral, Sir.’ Ethan paused to re-gather his wits. ‘I’m Ethan.’

‘Don’t bother me with pleasantries, or with whatever else you had in mind to say,’ the Admiral ordered. ‘It is my duty to inform you we have a situation 45-C here, and you are the sole suspect, defendant and guilty party.’

‘A situation what?’

‘Section 45-C of the Underwater Code of Conduct defines this evidence as an Unidentified Floating Object – a UFO.’

‘The plastic bag? It’s a plastic bag, not a UFO.’

‘Tell that to the judge, you lowly land-lover.’ The crab trust a claw at Ethan authoritatively. ‘Follow me.’

Ethan curiously followed the crab as it scuttled up over the sand dunes. The regal crustacean crawled up onto the weathered rocks and into a narrow crevice. Ethan was small for his age, and with some twisting and turning, managed to squeeze into the space too.

‘Wait here while I inform the court,’ the Admiral demanded. Ethan settled himself on the wet floor of the cave, left alone in the darkening shadows.

Click here to continue reading, and to discover whether Ethan is found innocent or... oh, I shan't dare think of the alternative...

"HOLD THE PHONE RANDOM MANGA CHARACTER, DANIEL GRANT NEWTON HAS A NEW STORY FOR HIS AWESOME READERS!"

Exclusive first look at two paintings for my upcoming gallery

Hey my most wonderful fan, just took a few very blurry photos of the paintings I have done and thought I'd share it with my Shambhalan blog readers - that's you!

The two portraits were painted for special people, and although they grace your beautiful eyes and dance alluringly upon your imagination, they will not be shown to the public.

But the other two I am especially proud of, and will be part of a much larger collection that will be featured in an upcoming gallery. Despite the dreadful photos I took, I thought I would show you all first as you are my special peeps.

You know you are!

Enjoy! (Again, apologies for the photo quality. Next time I will not take my iPad into the studio but a real camera.)

Woman at the Wharf by Daniel Grant Newton

Wisdom from Odin, the god who inspired Buddha and the Wizard of Oz (unofficially)

Hello. Bet you are wondering why you have the pleasure - nay the ultimate earth-shattering ecstasy - to be visited by yours truly, king of the gods of Asgard, Odin.

Ummm... Good question! Why would I take time out of my busy day, in between all the being godly, doing godly type things, and all round godly stuff you couldn't comprehend in your mortal mind? It's a little thing that goes above all other powers. A little something called friendship.

That's right. I am an almighty king and a god, which makes me doubly important. But Daniel's away, not able to blog, and so he asked me to take over for today. And I didn't even think about it for a year. I just said yes almost straight away. (Time is naturally relative between worlds, so a year for you is like thirty seconds for me.)

That's what I do for a friend.

And any friend of Daniel's is a friend of mine. And so since you are a friend of his, consequently, you can call Odin a friend. Or an acquaintance. Actually, since I don't know you too well, I mean we have just met over this blog entry and all, perhaps let's keep that between us and your nearest of kin.

Actually, on second thoughts, tell everyone. I just saw this great video for some other guy of importance.

I now want you my loyal subject to go on national TV and sing me a song. Or on YouTube. You could show your utter admiration for your godly friend by writing a song like the one below about said other guy of importance:



I will wait. Are you done writing and performing your song? Feel free to send me the link.

Anyway, I am aware that some of you may not know who I am if you are a little slow, were raised by wolves and have no way of communicating with anything, and have no friends or family who could gush about me to you. So those of you who don't know me, firstly I would like to howl a greeting to you in your own tongue, and then bark that I am one of the main characters in Daniel's book The Last King of Shambhala, as well as Thor's father, Loki's lover, and a Nordic God (not in that order however).

I am the most famous god ever, probably. If you didn't know me, and you were not once one with the wolves, a hairless pup, then you are no doubt trying to deceive a god who knows all. Pretty much everything there is to know, anyway.

Well, you know, not ALL, because I have so much other important godly information to keep in my head and cannot include trivia. I am no king of trivia. I may not win Jeopardy or Who Wants To Be The Owner of Many a Rune Stone, but I do control the known and unknown universe, so I am kind of a big deal.

Okay. I admit it. Not all information in my head is important. And not all important information is in my head. And not all important heads are in information. We have advisors for that sort of thing.

But point being, if you didn't realise I was in The Last King of Shambhala, then call up the Guinness Book of Records because you were the last one in Midgard. Either that or buy the book The Last King of Shambhala on Amazon for $9.99 and educate yourself. Believe me, it is a great book, your life will be blown and your mind will be changed.

Wait a second, or about three weeks in my time. I have just been informed by my quiet advisor and watchman god, Heimdall, that what I just said was wrong.

I should have said your mind will be blown and your life will be changed. The Last King of Shambhala is both mind blowing and life changing.

Naturally, although what I previously said was wrong, gods cannot actually be wrong, especially the king of the gods, and so it is actually a flaw in your language.

When English was being developed by your primitive mortal race, perhaps so that you could express your admiration for you know who, you got it wrong. You know who is me by the way.

Anyway, from now on, changed means blown, and blown means changed. I have now blown the English language forever. As what should've been done previously.

Wisdom on my part. Wisdom to make the right changes (or blows rather) in the right places at the right time when the people are ready. Like only a boss knows how.

So now that I have introduced you to me, although let's face it, no introduction was needed. Although perhaps a barrage of trumpets and a marching band would not have gone astray, just saying.

Of course, I didn't want to make your eardrums changed by the millions of trumpeters and drummers, so I decided against that. I blew that decision. Hope you are keeping up with your new language blessed upon you by the handsomest and most charming of gods. Again, wisdom.

So wisdom, what is it? Great question. Wisdom is something mortals can never really have because they are innately stupid. But that can be blown.

Your grasp of wisdom and knowledge can be blown by continuing to read the words I am about to boom from the sky... And then type on this blog.

Buddha once said, "with our thoughts, we can change the world."

That's deep. Of course he was repeating something I told him, but good on him for recognising the importance of my words.

Another piece of wisdom: "A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others."

Who do you think said that? It was the Wizard of Oz. Haven't met the wizard, but sounds like a wise guy.

So Buddha and the Wizard of Oz. Philosophers.

But where did philosophy come from. Who invented it? I will give you a clue. It was me.

Was that too hard a clue for little human minds? It has been a long time since I have come to the land of Midgard as some of you have smelly feet.

You should know though that I created philosophy, geography, anthropology, psychology, and dinosaurs among other things for a laugh.

Anyway lessons for your head.

I will return to my world now, and let you ponder words from king of the gods of Asgard.

Peace be upon the generations that come from your lineage, and their cattle.

Odin.

'Paint the Town Red' with Aleksandra! The New Comic I am Creating Has a Name! Here are some sample pics of what I am doing right now for the comic :-)