In Memoriam: Brian Williams

(c. 1956–4 October 2010)

Brian Williams worked as an illustrator, but he was such a private, humble person that some of his friends were unaware of his profession. His masterful artwork has brought to life the Lone Wolf books since Joe Dever asked him to illustrate The Cauldron of Fear. He was Joe Dever's first choice to take over from Gary Chalk, and for good reason. He brought a sense of realism to Lone Wolf that has immersed millions of readers worldwide into the world of Magnamund. Despite his modesty, he left a substantial legacy to the world. To the readers of Lone Wolf he left the illustrations for twenty-three books, more than any other illustrator.^*

We will always be grateful for his generosity in giving us his blessing to distribute his illustrations freely through Project Aon. That would have been enough, but he went out of his way to help our project. When we wrote to him asking for his permission, we did not expect his written response to come accompanied by a package of high-quality copies of all his Lone Wolf artwork. It was obvious that he made the copies with great care. We regret that he did not live to see the day when all of his work for the books would be available to the public through Project Aon.

Given how much he gave to us, it seems odd that we know so little about Brian. When asked by Project Aon for an interview, he demurred that the details of his life were uninteresting. We disagreed with his assessment but respected his wish for privacy.

Brian John Williams passed from this world unexpectedly at his home on October 4, 2010. We mourn his loss and vow that his memory will live on forever in the annals of the Kai. May Ishir and Kai watch over him in his final journey and soften the loss of those he left behind.