by Staff Writer
A local senior and bachelor of arts interdisciplinary studies student, Cline Dement, has released a new fantasy adventure book that blends imagination, Christian values and holiday cheer. The book, “Journey to the Red Wizard,” which debuted in May 2025, functions as an advent calendar countdown for Christmas, and features illustrations by Abigail Ryan, a senior art major, and is available for purchase on Amazon.
Dement explained that the project began as a writing exercise in 2023 and drew inspiration from his own family.
“The three main characters are based on me and my brothers. Advent gave me a set number of short story chapters,” he said.
The book follows three protagonists, with each story focusing on one character. One notable chapter in the middle of the book is a poem glorifying Jesus, fitting for its Christmas theme.
“They are going to go meet the red wizard, which is just a stand-in for Santa. Totally happy with the result,” Dement said.
Illustrations were a collaborative effort.
“I went down to the art building and I met with professor Joshua Brunet, and I had a preliminary idea for how I wanted the illustrations to look, and Brunet immediately said Abigail [Ryan] had a similar style. She was excited about the prospect. I think it turned out great. We didn’t illustrate the entire book, but there are eight illustrations inside,” Dement said.
Ryan shared her excitement about the project.
“Yes! I’m very passionate about telling stories with my art and working with others, and I absolutely love working with fantasy settings and characters like those in Journey to the Red Wizard. This was such an incredible opportunity to do what I love for others!”
On her creative process, Ryan said this project was collaborative.
“Cline and I worked a lot together to come up with what compositions would best tell the story and get the right feelings across, and we spent a while working through thumbnail sketches and roughs! Fantastical settings have always been some of my favorite to draw, and I’m very inspired in this realm by things like “Dungeons and Dragons” and movies. I’m also constantly being inspired by the work of concept artists in the animation industry and my fellow art majors here at OBU!”
This is Ryan’s first full-book illustration project.
“I’d done commission work before, but they were mostly single illustration pieces, and this was a great opportunity to try something new and expand my horizons!”
She added that she and Dement are already discussing teaming up for a second book.
“I’m super excited to see how it all goes and to work with some new characters! I also want to continue working with more complex illustrations and to further improve my skills in that realm. Concept art for animation is my big dream, so I’m definitely looking to tell more stories through illustration!”
Ryan expressed satisfaction with the final product.
“I’m pretty happy with my illustrations, and Cline’s stories are so charming! I had so much fun bringing some of them to life, and I definitely learned a lot through the process! Keeping characters consistent and working with more complex scenes are things I’ve been needing to practice, and this project really pushed me outside of my comfort zone, and I couldn’t be happier about it.”
Dement also discussed his publishing approach. He used Draft 2 Digital, an online platform with no upfront fees.
“They earn their money via taking a percentage from potential profits. The more of their products you use, the more percentage they take. For an eBook, they will take generally 10 percent. As paperback, they take about 50 percent. No upfront fees,” he said.
Already thinking ahead, Dement revealed that the story is far from finished.
“I already have the first draft of the sequel. Another 24 stories following one character from this work,” he said, hinting at a continuing series.
With engaging fantasy elements and approachable Christian themes, Dement’s debut promises to be a hit with families looking for imaginative stories with positive values, while Ryan’s illustrations bring the world to life in visually striking ways.
If you’d like to purchase a copy of the text, feel free to use the QR Code below:
