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| Co-designed by Tirzah L. Goodwin |
Does all this mean I'm planning to self-publish? Call me old-fashioned but, especially for my first book, I'm holding out to be traditionally repped. And believe me, I'll be glad to have the publishing house figure out how to create a cover that conveys the essence of Josepha, abolitionist Reeca Fitzgerald and sadistic slave catcher Benjamin Michaelson. I can't wait to see if the design team will decide to go with a photo of a person or an inanimate object.
SO WHY DO I HAVE THIS COVER?
It's for a couple of different reasons. One is that over on the right side of my blog I have a thumbnail of the cover that takes you to an excerpt of Gift. Plus looking at this cover is an incredible morale builder; if I ever think about throwing in the towel, I look at this artwork and whisper to myself, "Wouldn't you like for this to be the real deal?" Works every time. :)
And it's not just self-pubbers who might need to create artwork like this. When, on that blessedly wonderful day, I do an Amazon pre-order campaign for Gift, those who place an order on the designated day will receive a free PDF containing an extra story from the book, so I'll need an attractive cover for that. And did I mention I also do design work as well as editing for my day job and just couldn't resist doing this. :)
If you'd like to be amazed by Tirzah's other covers, I hope you'll take a moment to visit her blog, A Clever Whatever, at http://acleverwhatever.blogspot.com or her online portfolio at http://www.wix.com/tirzahlou/tirzahsbookcovers.
By the way, Tirzah did the original cover for Jeanne Bannon's debut novel, Invisible. You can see it at http://beyondwordsblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/is-this-my-lola.html. Both it and the book trailer Tirzah created rock hard.
PLANNING TO WORK WITH A DESIGNER?
Whether you'll be partnering with someone to create a cover for your self-published book or you're working with a publishing house's design team, I highly recommend Tirzah's post Helping Your Cover Designer.
Or have you always yearned to make your own book cover? Tirzah has our backs for this as well with her post Create Your Own Book Cover Without Photoshop.
Your turn: What inspires you to keep on writing?
21 comments:
Very cool, Michelle! I had a vision for the cover of my book, and it eerily turned out very similar to what I'd been imagining.
I think designing a cover is a great idea. Would definitely be very inspiring.
It's very good Michelle. I think justice has been done with this cover,
Yvonne.
Tirzah was interviewed at The Character Depot yesterday. She's very very good at what she does :-)
What a beautiful, intriguing cover! Great idea.
I appreciate Michelle linking a few of my how-to's up. She's so NICE. I meet the best people.
With a bit of stubborness, most people can create an ebook cover. A print cover is trickier but still doable.
:)
T
I tried to post but my computer had a moment. :) If you get this twice, I apologize.
Thank you for posting my links today Michelle. I think seeing your cover, even a temporary cover really help inspire an author to stay on task. It seems so much more tangible.
Michelle is so kind. I meet the best people.
Tirz
Hey, Michelle,
I understand totally about wanting to be traditionally published first. I felt the same and besides, there was the stigma attached to self-publishing. Truth be told, I was also prejudiced about self-publishing and then I started studying and the rest in history, as they say. :)
I know what you mean about the cover acting as inspiration. I've only started thinking that way in recent times, because of my association with Tirzah. That said, I like this cover. It's just what I like - simple, yet elegant and most of all, professional looking. It also conveys the essence of that character in your story.
Have to agree, Tirz is da bomb. I created the GutD cover from that article she wrote.
One thing to note---the making a cover without Photoshop works great for creating an ebook cover. However for a print cover, it gets more complicated. Nothing you can't handle though.
:)
Tirzah
@Jennifer, I find that fascinating that your publisher's design team and you saw the same visual image. The cover for Creep is great!
@Yvonne, your words "I think justice has been done with this cover" gave my shivers. Thank you so much for understanding.
@Sarah, I agree with you 100 percent that Tirzah and her designs are amazing. Her blog is a Top 10 favorite, both for its artistry and wonderful wit. :)
@Meredith, it really goes to show that both our words and images really are all about creating feelings.
@Tirzah, I can't thank you enough for this special guest post. When I bookmarked these articles earlier this year, little did I know I'd have a Tirzah design as well as you visiting my blog. Wow! BTW, Tirzah is at author J.L. Campbell's blog today, http://thecharacterdepot.blogspot.com/2011/09/take-five-withtirzah-goodwin.html. It's a great article, and Joy's blog rocks hard too.
@Joy, I'm so glad you understand. Self-publishing is highly intriguing, but like you it's not something I'd ideally like to consider until I have the traditional experience to compare it with. For now I'm looking at it as a way to provide a little something extra, say for those who participate in an Amazon pre-order campaign. :)
BTW, Tirzah also did the cover for Joy's new book Don't Get Mad ... Get Even. It's at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/88905, if you'd like to see it. And in a further BTW, this collection of short stories is rich with darkly satisfying twists and filled with the perfect amount of Jamaican slang and patios.
Very nice cover. Thanks for the links too - I'm quite fond of rigging up book covers, they'll come in handy.
Hi Michelle,
I followed JL Campbell's tweet to this post, it's awesome!
Tirzah is fantastic and this cover is very realistic looking. I think it matches what your story is about.
All the best!
@Jamie, I'm so glad this post was a helpful one to you!
@Nas, what a wonderfully uplifting comment; thank you!
I love your cover, Michelle, and the book trailer for Lola is excellent - I totally want to read it :) Tirzah is very talented.
I love it!! And I totally understand wanting one even though you want to trad pub. I've created my own too, though it certainly doesn't look as amazing as that! Her portfolio is pretty awesome, and the book trailer on her site is hilarious :)
Sigh... I can't wait to see what some publisher comes up with for my book cover one day!!
@Susanna, on Oct. 6 I'm scheduled to run a review on Bird's-eye View about Jeanne Bannon's debut novel, Invisible; it is a tender and powerfully written book.
@Alexia, I would love to see a post on your blog about how your cover came to be. I'm a sucker for the story behind the story. :) And I'm so with you about the anticipation of our one day seeing the look our publishers come up with--and I have a suspicious that day will be coming for you sooner than you might think ...
I hope they say stay with this cover, truly. Its so beautiful and deep, you can just drown in those eyes. Thanks for the links to Tirzah. I love her work that I've come across on the internet.
@Wendy, those haunting, hunted eyes reveal so much, it is truly a case of showing, not telling. I'm so glad you had the opportunity to learn a little more about Tirzah and her incredible work; on Sept. 27 she also was on author J.L. Campbell's blog, http://thecharacterdepot.blogspot.com/. What a great article!
Wow, Michelle, that's quite a departure from the original. I think your ideas for using the cover make perfect sense. Good luck with this. Maybe it will help you find that elusive publisher.
@Rosi, I'll never forget the love I have for my original working cover, but even though I'm writing historicals, I think photographs will have more appeal than vintage line drawings. I'm not sure it will help me select the right publisher to partner with, but it sure helps keeps me motivated in the meantime. :)
I love the cover! I always make my own little covers when starting a new project so I definitely see where you're coming from.
Thanks so much for the links. I'm going to check out those posts right now. :D
@CherylAnne, I'm so glad to learn I'm not the only one who gets a motivational boost like this. :)
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