It's amazing how God uses the creativity of some to help spur the creativity of others. Hence why there are so many artistic pics on FlyingFaith's Pinterest account. What can I say? Art inspires me. I get just as stimulated visually as I get intellectually. If I could, I would draw out all the scenes and characters in my head. But I can't (at least not very well), so I won't. The angelic cast of Celestial will just have to dwell imaginary planes. Still, I've seen the artwork of others get kinda close, and that's certainly true for the prequel I'm working on.
Here are just a few art pieces from my "Celestial: Age of Silence Inspirations" Pinterest board that is helping fuel my first draft!
(And feel free to visit FlyingFaith's Pinterest account to view the rest if you're interested!)
One of the unique aspects of the original Celestial was that it was a story about a group of angels that wasn't strictly set in the United States. Thier deadly missions sent them all over the globe from France to Britain to China--(in one case within a matter of milliseconds too.) It's only natural, of course. All nations are effected by Him; not just one. Well, Celestial: Age of Silence takes this concept to the next level. God effected all nations throughout all history too! In Biblical times, God's attention wasn't so narrowed on Israel that He revealed nothing of Himself anywhere else. Just read the Bible. It's not in His nature. Thus, this prequel is set to do something I haven't yet seen done: tell a spiritual warfare story about an angel and a human that is neither set in the modern day nor set in Israel. I've got a hunch that I'm once again gonna struggle categorizing another book. (Speculative/Supernatural/Historical Fiction, anyone? Is that even a thing?)
Celestial: Age of Silence not only features a location and an era angels are seldom depicted in. There's a whole slew of new characters. Some are angels. Some are demons, but many are humans. Take our main protagonist for example. He's a bit of a lonely soul. Though not a sociatal outcast, his heart is pretty alienated from the culture he lives in. He's uncertain what to make of it either. He's frustrated with only having half the answers he seeks yet is given a task meant to change everything; perhaps even end his world. It's tough traversing life half blind. You know the truth better than your neighbors, yet you don't have the full picture. It's a tough spot everyone has been in (though likely not to the huge scale as this guy).
There's certainly new angels to meet as well. Celestial's plot featured 'covert-ops' styled action with characters who're largely unused to undercover work, but what about a seasoned pro? What about an angel so entrenched behind enemy lines, not even a ministry demon's empathic sense could detect him? The Bible says angels are encamped everywhere. Thus, somebody has to go where most can't. Somebody has to serve in the darkest spaces. Say perhaps a sly angelic sabatueor? One specifically assigned to ruin the enemy's day at any given notice? Celestial: Age of Silence speculates on that very question with one of its most unconventional new characters.
Of course, some concepts are impossible to fully capture in a single image. Sometimes it takes multiple elements from multiple art peices to garner the main idea. Take heaven for instance. It's humanly impossible to imagine, much less describe such a place, but hey, when Celestial: Age of Silence required more scenes in the heavenlies, I'm required to try anyway. At least, these gorgeous paintings and digital art have gotten my head in the general ballpark.
Even brand new concepts for Celestial as a series don't always have findable one-to-one visuals. Metaphysical animals and monsters are tricky for one thing. Wolves specifically bred for demonic possession I imagined being far larger. These fantastical horses, though close, don't quite fit the glistening, starry maned versions I aim to describe. Then beings like a rogue seraphim is especially hard to find equivilant art for. Even as close to my vision as this fiery woman is, angels and demons are obviously strictly masculine. (Seriously, I'm sick of the feminized, overtly buff, and sexualized angels. It's frustrating!) Still, at least some artists come close to getting the creative point across.
Certainly, the most important part of Celestial: Age of Silence (just like its predecesor) is it's Biblical center. Not just for its plausibly accurate portrayal of angels, but for its themes. Last time, we followed Captian Jediah's desire to understand what he can't have: Christ's salvation. This time, we're exploring side-character Akela's story. What shaped him into the loveable messenger we're familiar with? According to Scripture, being a messenger is far more difficult and deadly than it seems. It's easy for us to think of impersonal mailmen, but back in the day, messengers weren't passerbys delivering drop offs. They were the sole connection between two distant people. That's a major responsibility. It required somebody sacrificing (often at high risk) to ensure what one person had to say came through accurately and exactly how the sender intended--regardless if that message was wanted or not. So how can a messenger angel like Akela be so chipper? What makes a role as thankless (and hated) as messengership for God worth it? Well, wait until Celestial: Age of Silence comes out. Or, if you don't want to wait that long, you can always explore the Scriptures for the answers yourselves. That's the best and preferrable option anyway.
Enjoyed this look into "Celestial: Age of Silence"? Want to hear more from Hannah along with sneak peeks to her blogs, podcasts, and books? Then subscribe to FlyingFaith's free newsletter down below! And don't forget to leave a like or comment in the comments section!