I’ve not been much of a blogger lately, or much of a writer. End of summer is always such a transition, and not one that I do well. But we’re finally starting to settle into the new routine. This week I meant to do lots of writing, but instead I did lots of cover designing. I know that I’m not enough of a designer to make a living at design, but it really is awfully fun.
Well, sometimes it’s fun, I suppose. The first cover of Thought never made me very happy. But I went to a meeting of the Orlando Independent Writers this week and a fellow author inspired me to do a redesign. I didn’t even stick to my own cover principles with that cover. I do know what I was thinking with the decisions I made, but, eh, better to stick with cover rules. So, new cover for Thought, first cover for Time (unfinished, since I have no quote for it yet), minor re-design on Ghosts for consistency. Let’s see how they look at small sizes!
Updated: Immediate changes. Rejected the first round, let’s try a second!
Nice. I like the consistencies. Especially the lightening bolts.
Thanks! I tweaked the third one a little more, so that they look even more like a set, but I really like them. I've been admiring my own work all weekend!
Those look great. I wonder if a bit of dark silhouette at the base of the third one would tie it in even better?
Thanks for the suggestion, fairyhedgehog. (I love your name, BTW–it brings images to mind of luminescent hedgehogs, possibly pastel, with their cute little poky noses, beady eyes and spikes–I want one. In light blue. That gives off a shower of sparkles when it spikes out…okay, end of digression.) You're right, another black silhouette photo would tie the three together better. I really liked the green of the grass photo — it's so healthy and alive, it fits very well with an underlying theme of the book. But I'll think about changing it. So far I seem to have to finish the book, wait three months, and then know what the cover should look like, so maybe I'll have something entirely different by next spring!
I love my name too! I wish I'd invented it but in fact I lifted it from a Terry Pratchett book when I first started playing on the internet. (The book was Witches Abroad, and it's my Desert Island book.)
Ah, I'm surprised I didn't recognize it, then. Although I'm going to have to take another look at that book because it's not ringing bells and I thought I'd read everything by him. Fun random fact, in A Gift of Thought, one of the main characters spots Terry Pratchett on another character's bookshelf and decides that's a good sign that he'll like her. (That's not really a spoiler, because I think it happens in the first chapter.)
That's seriously cool! I read the first part of A Gift of Ghosts and now I'm trying to decide whether to buy it in paperback or Kindle format. Kindle is cheaper but I can only read that on my laptop and phone!(Btw, I couldn't find a purchasing link and had to google for it. Just sayin'!)
Check your email! (I followed your name link, so it's the email on your blog.)
You're far too kind! And I'm loving A Gift of Ghosts!It's so different with such a fresh voice. It keeps making me smile. Thank you.