Interview with James Cole

James S.Cole

Game Designer, Illustrator & Droduct Developer

One of my earliest drawing inspirations was my Grandmother Augusta. Anytime she talked on the phone she would doodle some of the most lovely and intricate patterns. I was always amazed, sadly when she knew I was watching she would make them more childlike which I found far less exciting.

The earliest art piece that I still have is my childhood teddy bear. It always bugged me that deep inside of his ears was not the same color as his body fur. So I mixed up a perfect color match to his fur and painted the center of his ears in. To this day I still have that bear and his ears are still a perfect color match.

I try to find inspiration in the small details. A rusty doorknob, an old sign peaking through a paper billboard or mural painted in an alley whose most frequent admirers are the sanction workers.

Besides creating, world travel is my next passion. When traveling I can not resist going into old churches, making friends with locals over a pint, and eating in places that my new friends suggest. However one of my favorite places on the planet is just a few miles away from my hometown, the rock flats by the rapids just downstream of Niagara Falls on the US side.

As a child I enjoyed games, which doesn’t at that age, however, it was an artist that truly drove me to games. In 1993 a friend brought over his D&D (red box) Basic boxed set. The second I saw Larry Elmore’s art I knew I was hooked and what I wanted to do with my life. At my first Gen Con I attended as an artist I received an Artist’s Choice Award and landed several Freelance jobs in the gaming industry. I had made it.

Years late when I was left go from a Toxic 9-5 job in an office I knew what I had to do. Get back to my original plan of mixing art and games.

By day I work as a product developer and create art for RPG Maps & Miniatures at ArcKnight. By night I design games, the first of which Thrown Under the Bus is currently on Kickstarter...