ThursdayTurnOut

Thursday Turn Out - 1/22/2026

Pete Shumate

Pete Shumate

— 2 min read
Thursday Turn Out - 1/22/2026

I said I would work on a tileset for the Place Just Beneath, and that’s exactly what I did. I don’t have a whole lot to show for it at this point, just this:

A black-and-white drawing of a top-down environment, showcasing a mountain, a shrub, a plateau, a creek, and a pond.
You have any idea how long it took to draw the grass? I've not even started on boulders, let alone pebbles.

I’m drawing and coloring this scene to determine which specific tiles I’ll need for the tileset. I’ve settled on a sickly purple-and-green palette with just enough brown to make it feel like the Place Just Beneath was once organic. Once.

I used PureRef to make a mood board that serves as a reference for the scene and the finished tileset. “Spooky Appalachia” isn’t a hard mood to pull off, but goodness I’m going to have to figure out how to do a fog effect.

A collage of Appalachian scenery, including trees, mountains, and owls.
Yes, owls are an omen of ill portent. They're also beautiful.

I didn’t spend the entire week on art, however. I realized some of the gaps I’d left in Just Beneath the Holler’s narrative and completed a first rewrite of the entire story. I’d like to let it be until the prototype is finished and then come back to it with fresh eyes and a strong desire to edit it to be even more weird. Here’s a small taste which doesn’t give away too much:

A paragraph which reads: "The game begins as Zel goes into the woods to fish. She finds her friend Jay surrounded and being threatened by a group of boys. Zel beats one of them and she and Jay flee. As they run away, Zel trips and falls through the ground (there’s something strange about that patch of ground) and into a world she’s never seen. It looks like the mountains, but darker, slightly out-of-proportion, and interspersed with unidentifiable technological constructs. The sky is dark purple. More confused than scared, she begins looking for a way out."
It's not polished, but it shouldn't be at this point.

Oooh, spooky, isn’t it?

I put in a lot of time this week, but the thing with art is that (for me) it’s a slow process. As a result, I don’t have a whole lot to show for it. I’m not disappointed by that fact, mind you: honestly, I’m pleased with my determination. The work will be done when it’s done, but only if I keep at it.

Oh, I do have another surprise for you: a sort-of-daily podcast! Go give it a listen! But only after you subscribe to the newsletter!

Thanks, and I’ll see you Sunday!

 

 

 

 

 

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