In which we share the latest sketches and ask whether Harriet Tubman should be shown carrying a gun. Opinions very welcome.
Good evening everyone. Well, the Kickstarter made £33k in the end, which was absolutely FANTASTIC! As always, I’m Jess, and I’m your narrator.
What’s happened recently?
We all took a few days to let go of some of the relentless stress of the Kickstarter. This was my third Kickstarter (although two of them were very small) and it never ceases to amaze me just how much energy is sucked into the process…
April has also been a busy month. For me it’s busy because of the two weeks of school holidays (that’s two weeks of reduced childcare) and because my day job is in politics. The last month has seen several pieces of hugely controversial legislation go before Parliament. As I’m working directly on the Policing Bill and the Elections Bill for/with various charities and NGOs, there have been some very, very late nights. But enough about UK political process – back to games!
Yes, back to the sketches!
Sam has sketched out most of the characters now. Here’s a combination of all of the unfinished ones.
I wanted to draw out three to show you. Left to right below: the Queen of Sheba, Harriet Tubman, Ceridwen.
The Queen of Sheba appears in “Legends”. She’s referenced in multiple historic and religious texts, but no one is sure what she looked like. So in Library Labyrinth she’ll be drawn as a clearly African Queen, with rich robes.
Harriet Tubman will be drawn as a woman of action, in the prime of life. Many portraits have her as an elderly woman, and one of the cultural consultants we spoke to said that showing her as a younger woman was important. However, we have an important question — should she carry a gun? As a Brit, showing a gun feels strange, but of course Harriet Tubman was American… If you have opinions on this, we would love to hear them.
Ceridwen is a mythical sorceress from Welsh folk legends. I love this image of her stirring the cauldron. It’s so alive with expression.
What’s next?
We have also been comparing quotes from manufacturers and hope to choose one in the next week or so. And we have been preparing for UK Games Expo, which is the UK’s biggest board games convention. It’s one of the highlights of the board gaming year.
Next month we will get on with the pledge manager, organise workshops, and start the final art for the characters.
If you wanted to share some of the fabulous stuff happening on Library Labyrinth, these are the important links:
- Full playable game on Screentop: https://screentop.gg/@DissentGames/LibraryLabyrinth
- Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/416452332782608
- Website with newsletters: https://www.librarylabyrinth.com
Library Labyrinth 