My drawing of Balaraj Yithmej started off as a sketch and an idea many years ago…
Creativity is a process. Sometimes a spark of an idea takes many years to become a full, glorious blaze. If an idea doesn’t blossom right away, give it time. If you’ve spent a while on it, it’s okay to step away and do another project until the first one is ready to develop further.
Eleanor Willow is the author of the high fantasy series Legends of Lorata, which takes place on a medieval-style world filled with elves, dragons, and faeries. There is also a fourth race, one that is rare and magical: the angelic Starr. Lorata is a distant planet watched over by four deities: good, evil, elemental, and celestial-- and there are plenty of legends about them all! One of the most important ones is the prophecy of Jenh's champion, Loracaz, who is promised to return to the realm whenever evil threatens to take hold. There are currently three books completed, and the first one can be read online. Book four is currently being written, and a fifth will most likely be in the future.
Legends of Lorata 
do you characters ever start from a sketch, or do you always have them fully visualized and written before you get to the sketching
I tend to get ideas for them as I’m drawing. Some drawing start off with more pre-conceptions than others; the ideas may or may not change as I go.