Yana Gojin
Background
In the summer of 2024, I was invited to join a friend’s D&D campaign, where I created a character named Yana Kidjur—a monk from a land called the Stromlands. I loved the concept so much that I adapted it into my own campaign, where Kidjur’s adopted son, Yana Gojin, became my go-to character.
Character Bio
Gojin Yana is a 12-year-old apeling monk from the Monastery of the Stormwardens, a mountain temple devoted to preserving the teachings of the storm gods. Blessed with storm and lightning-infused martial arts, Gojin travels the world on his flying cloud, protecting the weak with his bo staff and childlike determination. Standing 4’6”, he is honest, loyal, and a bit chaotic—fond of fighting, exploring, fishing, and collecting shiny things. Though a full adult by apeling standards, his playful nature still shines through, especially when goat (his favorite food) is on the menu.
Gojin's Influence
Gojin was a huge influence on me as an artist. Around the time I started drawing him, I was beginning to develop a style I was proud of—but one big question remained: how do I draw clothing? Gojin became my style dummy, and his dynamic nature pushed me to experiment with cloth folds, color, and movement, helping me grow more confident in my art.
The Nameless Knight
Backround
I could give a whole history lecture about this guy. This was my day 1 character. In 5th grade, a friend of mine was teaching me how to draw comic books, and we came up with this idea of a time traveling cat, who uses a porta-potty as a time machine (a joke to Bill & Ted and Dr. Who). But as time went on so did the story, which I now adopted as my own and it formed into a story called "VOID!"
I forgot to name the main character so as a joke I left him nameless :D
Character Bio
Nameless is a 20-year-old from San Francisco who is suddenly isekai-ed when a space warrior and a wizard clash over a mystical artifact capable of transcending spacetime. Swept into a galactic conflict, he rises to become the Nameless Knight—a sword-wielding hero shaped by destiny. Standing 5’6”, Nameless balances his astrophysics doctorate with sharp combat skills, a love for burritos, and a journey that spans worlds.
Nameless' Influence
As you can probably tell from the information I’ve shared, this character pushed me to develop countless skills—finding an art style, drawing perspectives, understanding color theory, designing characters, writing stories (including storyboards, drafts, arcs, concept art, and comic formats), shading, dialogue, and much more. This character became the foundation of my art, storytelling, and creativity.
Cartography
Backround
After binge-watching The Lord of the Rings, I felt inspired to write a fantasy story of my own. I spent days creating a document that captured everything I wanted in a world of my own, but I struggled to truly visualize it. One day, I decided to draw a map to go along with my ideas—and that map grew into what is now my Dungeons & Dragons world. The original document has since expanded to over 100 pages, alongside a 10+ page academic paper and a book I am currently writing
Cartography's Influence
Over my two-plus years of mapmaking, I’ve aimed to create the most accurate maps possible. Through independent study, I’ve taught myself geography, cartography, and how to estimate climates and biomes based on hemispheres. This process has also taught me how to improve my maps over time—for example, the map above is one of my earliest, while the map to the right is one of my most recent.