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Hi, Smiley.
Thanks for the nice comments. I'd be happy to share the process...
So, sometimes, it is completely willy-nilly and all I have going for me are bursts of colors that are floating around in my head. When that happens, I just go for it. But I still do tons of sketching. Sometimes the sketches are unrelated to what I end up doing and these simply serve to loosen me up. And it sharpens my skills. Other times I very purposefully make several thumbnails for a specific painting I want to achieve. I say "achieve" because that doesn't always happen, newbie that I am. OK, to be more specific - first I lay down a watercolor wash, without a sketch on the surface (I work from a thumbnail instead - I like the freedom). Then I lay down the contour lines for the shapes/figures in india ink. I may go back and forth between watercolor and ink before I lay in the pastel values and shapes. Lately, I've been experimenting with layering quite a bit. In fact, the other day, I accidentally laid some watercolor on top of pastel and the accident had such a satisfying effect, that I'll be using it again. Pastel is a very difficult medium to master and I really love the challenge.

Well, there's a saga for you. Hope that answers your questions. Have a great day.

This definitely sparks my curiosity. I'll check out the book at Amazon for reviews. Sounds cool. ;-)