7@7 with Catharina Steel
Issue April 7, 2025
Article— On The 5 Things You Need to Be a Successful Author or Writer
Kristen Marquet interviewed me for Authority Magazine. Check out the member only article on Medium at: https://medium.com/authority-magazine/catharina-steel-on-the-5-things-you-need-to-be-a-successful-author-or-writer-3332c34c9278.
My Five Things to be a Successful Author or Writer Video is available on my YouTube Channel at:
Author Five by Five with Citywide Blackout
Max Bowen sent through some written interview questions about Vanishings. Check out the article here: http://citywideblackout.blogspot.com/2025/04/five-by-five-debut-author-kicks-off.html
My Sketches and Paintings—Before and After AI
My drawing and painting abilities aren’t that great because I haven’t taken enough time to work on this particular skill although I’ve taken several courses. Two in drawing and one, more recently, in painting. The problem I have is that I want to draw the images in my head, which means I don’t have much of a visual reference to use for light and shade and so on.
While I would love to have the time to work on this skill, my focus is on my writing. However, I wanted to create images of the magical homes on Opa’s property, Clayton Forest, so that it I could get a good feel for them, and also share them on newsletters and social media.
Wilber the kid gnome’s twin mushroom house
Left image, Catharina Steel painting edited with BeCasso (December 2019)
Right image, Catharina Steel, AI and Photoshop (July 2024)
To get the above image was not so easy. AI simply didn’t have anything to refer to for it to even remotely generate something close to what I wanted. I used a scanned in image of my own painting to get it to produce multiple images until I have several that had sections that were usable. I pulled these elements into a photoshop file and used the AI feature in Photoshop to make the “joins” between the collage of images seamless. I kept working with this image and additional AI images until I finally had something close to what I wanted. I added the wooden bench later, to fit in with the story.
The Gnome Village
Left image, Catharina Steel, reworked sketch in Photoshop (April 2024)
Right image, Catharina Steel, A mix of AI and Photoshop (April 2024)
It took a lot of work, going between several AI platforms to get my sketch into color images that I could use parts of in Photoshop to create something closer to what wanted to achieve. I then took this image and reran it with another AI generator to get something more like what I wanted.
The final image still required extensive editing in Photoshop because I had to add all the stairs, some of the doors and windows, and (if you look closely) add in the swing hanging from one of the mushroom caps. I also added several lighting effects to the final result.
Jenny’s Home Inside a Tree Trunk
Left image, Catharina Steel painting edited with BeCasso (January 2020)
Middle image, Catharina Steel painting (June 2023)
Right image, Catharina Steel AI generated image (October 2023)
As you can see, the first image I drew is fairly basic and doesn’t include the colors of the new bark showing through.
Several years later I attempted to create a version with the colors of the bark, but I struggled to create the right colors.
Even the AI image I generated from my painting didn’t include the vibrant bark colors I wanted. Still, this image is a good depiction of the fairy, Jenny’s, home within the trunk of a tree.
I have a few internal drawings of her place, but I hope to spend more time on this (one day) before I share them as I hope to draw something that more closely resembles her magical home.
Whitney’s Boothouse
Left image, Catharina Steel painting edited with BeCasso (January 2020)
Right image, Catharina Steel mix of AI using the left image with extensive Photoshop editing (October 2023)
To get the right image took quite a bit of to-ing and fro-ing between AI image generating platforms and Photoshop. This was one of those images that AI simply didn’t have the imagination to comprehend—even with providing my painted image (above) to guide the results.
Frustratingly, all the AI image generation platforms kept insisting on removing the door and windows from the boot. In the end, I decided it would be easier to add these in Photoshop. I also added the fence.
To get the final image I took sections of the boot and background that I liked from various images and collaged them together in Photoshop, using the AI generating tool to create seamless “joins” between the sections.
I had to rework the balcony door and balcony extensively, slowly combining several images to get the final result.
Kristy’s Treehouse
Kristy was a fairy that originally came into the story in the first book. However, this character now first appears in the second instalment.
Left image, Catharina Steel painting edited with BeCasso (January 2020)
Right image, Catharina Steel mix of AI using the left image and edited in Photoshop (July 2024)
This tree has a lift within its trunk which takes visitors (who can’t fly) from the ground to the house way up in the treetop. There are stairs that lead from the lift door to the front door of Kristy’s treehouse.
Mort, a good goblin’s, Fort
Left image, Catharina Steel painting edited with BeCasso (January 2020)
Middle image, Catharina Steel painting (June 2023)
Right image, Catharina Steel, AI generated and collaged/extensive edits in Photoshop (October 2023)
After failing to paint the external view of the fort, I turned to AI for help. After running multiple AI text prompts, this image was impossible to generate, so I ended up switching things up and generating an image of the internal grounds of the fort. This image isn’t what I imagine though, so when I have more time, I will give this one another go—I can be stubborn in my pursuit when I want to achieve something!
Next month’s 7@7 with Catharina Steel
I’ll share information about my characters—what their interests are, the type of being they are, etcetera.
The OutCast – Alpha Readers Wanted
If you, or someone you know, is interested in reading my novella: The OutCast. Please leave a comment or share this newsletter with them.
Genre: Young Adult (YA), Adventure Fantasy, Coming of Age
Description: Molly, a young female mixling (half human, half kinesis—people with kinetic powers) struggles to fit into the human realm with her telepathic powers because humans hate kinesis. Her life is threatened several times, forcing her and her mother to move and later live a nomadic life before they eventually travel back to her birthplace—near the kinesis realm’s border. One of the kinesises Queens senses a powerful, but out-of-control, young kinesis and sends several royal army men to find her. Molly must learn to control her powers so she can safely live in the human realm, but who are the men following her and what do they want?
WWOW, Women Writing Other Worlds writing group
To find out more go to: www.womenwritingotherworlds.com
Follow Catharina Steel on Social Media:
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