I write high-speed, strategy-driven Military Sci-Fi & Space Opera, where cunning commanders, elite soldiers, and alien warlords fight for survival on the fringes of space. Subscribe to my newsletter for my latest updates!
Designing the Galaxy
Designing the GalaxyScience fiction lives or dies by imagination, and nowhere is that more visible than on its covers. Before a reader even turns a page, the art has already whispered a promise of adventure, danger, and wonder. Few artists capture that better than Tom Edwards, whose work has become the visual signature of modern space opera and military science fiction. Over the past decade, Tom has designed hundreds of covers for some of the biggest names in the genre, from vast fleet battles and alien worlds to intimate portraits of lone heroes against the void. His art doesn’t just illustrate; it invites. It’s that rare fusion of painterly realism and cinematic light that makes you feel the hum of engines and the chill of deep space. To celebrate his contribution to the worlds we write, and you love to read, a group of us, Craig Martelle, M.R. Forbes, D.J. Holmes, and BA Gillies, have come together to showcase some of our favourite covers by Tom and to ask him how he brings galaxies to life. 1. What first inspired you to become a cover artist, and how did that journey begin?My journey started after I got my first job in the games industry. I worked with a great illustrator called Fred Gambino, he’d worked on some big covers in the 80s and 90s, including Isaac Asimov’s Foundation. He was a fantastic mentor, and I started working on cover artwork while I was still at the games company with him. After a few years, I was able to leave and start my own business, mainly working on book covers, but also concept art and board game art. Without Fred, I doubt I’d be working in cover art at all. Learn more about the author: https://craigmartelle.com/ 2. How would you describe your artistic style, and how has it evolved over the years?I’d describe it as painterly realism. I enjoy a painterly approach while maintaining a semi-photorealistic look. I like a gritty feel, especially in sci-fi, but lighting is always my main focus. Lighting can completely change the mood and atmosphere of a piece, and I enjoy experimenting with different times of day and colour palettes, especially during the rough sketch stage. Learn more about the author: https://www.mrforbes.com/
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BA Gillies
I write high-speed, strategy-driven Military Sci-Fi & Space Opera, where cunning commanders, elite soldiers, and alien warlords fight for survival on the fringes of space. Subscribe to my newsletter for my latest updates!
Till Life Us Do Part (3-4 minute read) Readers of Wild Prince at the Starfighter Academy may remember the moment when Tovas explains Saret relationships to Beryn. Saret live for centuries, and because of that, no one expects a single bond to last a lifetime. Partnerships form, change, and sometimes end without shame or scandal. What unsettles Beryn is not betrayal, but the idea that permanence itself becomes unrealistic when time stretches too long. That conversation feels increasingly...
The Next Century: Technologies That May Reshape What It Means to Be Human (4-5 minute read) Rather than talking about science fiction this week, I want to look at something slightly different: likely and potential scientific developments that may change the human condition over the next century. Not miracles. Not magic. Just technologies that serious researchers are already working on, with varying degrees of confidence, controversy, and momentum. I’ve broken this into three time horizons....
The Long Game (4-5 minute read) Over the last couple of weeks, a lot of commentators have been focusing on what we might expect to see happening in 2026. I decided to go long instead and look at what we might see by the end of this century. Not in a science-fiction sense. No flying cars or immortality treatments. But in terms of real, observable trends that are already locked in. The kind that unfold slowly, attract little attention, and massively reshape the world. If you fast-forward...