Vanishing Ink

by Scott Wiser

A "fantastical adventure" about Von Gold, a washed-up Magician, who has to save the world from disappearing.

216 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2015

About the author

Scott Wiser is a filmmaker and character animator for films, games, television, commercials, and four self-published books. His books and animated shorts all double as feature film pitches, and he has pitched them to studios and executives throughout the animation industry. He has several more such properties in the works!

Find out more about the author and his work at scottwiser.com

Reviews

[Isaac · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those stories where when I describe it as ‘family friendly’, this is in no way demeaning or denigrating. There is a strong moral, an adventure plot, and genuine character growth wrapped in illustrations and a magical story I can only describe as ‘warm’.

There's struggle and pain here. Don't go in expecting a washed out saccharine story. That said, I enjoyed reading it for myself as much as my niece enjoyed my reading it to her.

[Teodor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Precious book!

I loved how we could get snippets of the main characters' past, see how they are in the moment of the chapter we are reading, and especially how those characters evolve and change in time. The ending of Vanishing Ink was very touching to me. The last few chapters were quite intense in terms of emotion and I really loved the traversal in time. And all those real and emotional moments between Von, Lucy and Max, and those little twists at the end.. my goodness! It was really touching and it spoke to me deeply. It made me think about life and stuff, and what I love the most about stories is when they are meaningful and this one totally is.

To be honest, my eyes went wet and it got me thinking about my parents, my family and closed ones as a whole, and how we should cherish every moment we share with the people we love.
I've always had talks with friends about stories (especially in films) and how for me it was important to have that sort of meaning, that learning curve and that something that will touch us and that we can learn from. And we often discuss how nowadays most movies for kids/family are only there for the easy laughs and that there is this lack of meaning and learning that I would get from watching movies or series when I was a kid (movies that were for kids once and that nowadays they won't be allowed showing or talking about some topics because they think it'd be bad for today's children/audience). So I'm always looking for these "lessons" in the stories and Vanishing Ink's got that. It moved me!

A book about willpower, love, forgiveness, and how we are ready to do anything for the people we hold dearly in our hearts.

[Francesco Tehrani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another lovely story from Scott Wiser. I am baffled as to why none of the animation companies would pick up this pitch, or any of his pitches! The way he describes the settings and characters allow me to vividly picture how things look! And his illustrations help with that! Because of that, everything about this story, (like Cirque De Solitude), felt real, especially the characters! The plot was very original and intriguing! I was hooked once I realized there was more going on then what was initially introduced. Overall, this was an excellent and enjoyable read!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought the story was cool but wanted more for the transitions and character development

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully imaginative and beautifully illustrated. I'm dying to see what it would look like as an animated movie!

[E · Rating 2 out of 5]

It took me 3 years to finish reading this book.

It breaks my heart to say anything bad about someone’s dream, and after Kickstarting this book, I was excited to read it. And yet here we are, 3 years later I have finished it and it is leaving my house and my mind straight away.

First of all, the font was so difficult to read, I was basically reading 2 pages at a time and then putting it aside.

Then on, the fact that we are following adults in a kids book, it was weird, uncharacteristic for this genre and therefore making it a harder read than necessary.

It had good potential, interesting premise and Max was by far the BEST character!!

A shame to give it such low rating, I’m sorry Scott.

[Monica H at The Readathon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun, imaginative, and creative book. The illustrations are amazing, and there are a lot of them. The characters are well developed and come to life on the page. I especially liked Von Gold, Max, and Lucy. The story is cute, and there are some very good lessons taught: honesty, integrity, a good work ethic, and love are just a few. There are a few grammatical errors, but not enough to detract from the story. It is clean (yay!); there is no profanity, "intimacy" (except maybe a small kiss), and no violence. I think it's a great middle-grader read, and would recommend it for 3rd to 4th grade and up. It would also make a great read-aloud. You may read my full review on my book blog: www.the-readathon.blogspot.com.

[Arsenic Lime · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book from start to finish in one afternoon and I must say I liked it. it's not an intricate web of storylines but I wouldn't call it a light read either. some small grammatical errors but as pointed out in other reviews nothing that big that it would distract. A great read for a casual reader, maybe a bit thin for a heavy reader. All in all I liked it a lot as a casual in between book. Big fan of the character Max! The only character that I would have loved to see a bit more backstory for was Franz... so maybe an idea for a sequel revolving around Franz? :)

[Scott S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciate the morals encouraged and that it was clean.