Author Journey: August 28th, 2021 - Digital Art & Hurricanes

 Welcome back! I've been dreading the work for the cover art of The Tale of Outh'n Durr, but really, it's all that remains to be done before releasing it into the wild. I know there are more little mistakes in there, but the content is right where I think it needs to be. It's tough editing a work on your own, even when you're a hyper-focusing perfectionist like me. I usually keep that tamped way down inside, because perfection is overrated unless you're a lawyer, doctor, mechanic, architect, or some other job where lives are at stake if you make a mistake. After all, there are no straight lines in nature, so to speak. Anyway, with another hurricane bearing down on us, I better get on with my post. 

Planning A Cover Design

When planning a cover design, there are a few things I need to consider. 

1. Genre
   
2. Color
3. Focal Point
4. Font(s)
5. Placement of elements (title, author name, focal point, etc.)

Genre - 

I write fantasy so the first thing I need to do is keep up with what fantasy covers are looking like at the moment. From what I've seen, they haven't changed a whole lot since I was in school years ago.  This gives me some lee-way. I could hire someone to create a whole work of art to use on the cover. Or I can try to create my own work of art in Gimp. I can't afford to hire someone, so my only option is to make the cover art myself. I use elements which are open source and free for private & commercial use, as well as pieces of my own mixed media artwork. That's been working pretty well for me...in general. 

Another thing I need to consider for this book is that it's more about one person's trials and overcoming hardships than it is about finding love. I don't really want any of my books to be labeled romance novels because life is so much more than that. I think there's love in Outh'n's life, but it's not the romantic kind...at least, it hasn't showed up so far beyond what happens at the beginning of the story. 

Color - 

Color is a huge factor. I want a color that will stand out at least a little and catch a shopper's eye. But I also want to use a color that has something to do with my work. Outh'n's clan color is purple...in the violet range. It's not the easiest color to work with, let me tell you. I'm still ironing out the background.

Focal Point & Other Elements - 

Every cover needs some kind of focal point. That might be the title, depending on your genre. In my case, I don't want it to be just the title. There's a beautiful wolf element I want to use since the beasts which Outh'n connects most with are similar. And there's where I'm struggling the most. I hope I don't have to ditch the element entirely, but I might. Outh'n is also working to be a glashiin artisan at the beginning of the story, so something similar stained glass might work as a focal point. I'm undecided and it has my stomach in knots. I want this book...OUT! LOL

Most fantasy books I've really loved have some kind of border, or there's a title plate which has a border. I prefer the idea of a border around the art so I've been working with that. It hasn't worked well for the cover of Surge, but I think for Outh'n's story, it'll work out like I'm hoping. 

Other elements I'll need to include which do not show up on an ebook cover are the book blurb, author photo & bio, publisher's mark, and space for a bar code. I have to figure out the best place to put all these things so that a potential reader can easily find what they need to know about the book.

Font - 

You may think fonts aren't so important, but they are. It's going to be, if not the first thing, the second thing a shopper will notice. It needs to be eye-catching, but also match your genre and your story. That's been another difficulty. Outh'n is an artisan, but he's also a survivor. So finding a font which matches him and his story and my genre has me still looking for just the right one. I used open source fonts which are free for private & commercial use, so that limits me, but only a little. There are some really great options out there.

Placement of Elements - 

Once the background is set, and I choose the best focal point, elements, and fonts, I have to put them all together in something readers can easily process. It takes a good bit of time, some graying or loss of hair, and a little gnashing of teeth, but with determination, I press on. I really don't like those pre-made $25 covers which don't really convey the message of my body of work. And like I mentioned before, I can't afford to pay an artist to work on my stuff. There's so much I want to see on the cover and if I give myself a headache, I really wouldn't wish that on another artist. *wry chuckle*

So that's where I am today. And I'll continue to work on that cover off and on as I prepare our home to weather yet another Louisiana hurricane. This one's at Cat-3 right now and supposed to stay there. It's manageable. Not pleasant, for sure, but we can weather it with God's help. 

I apologize for any typos or weirdly worded sentences. My hope is that you're able to clearly understand things the way they came out of my mind. I'm out of time for today and have too many things hollering for my attention to be able to proofread and get this out on time. I hope you find the info helpful. Please come back next Wednesday for the next round of book reviews...barring power outages. 

Please pray for all those in the path of this hurricane! Thanks in advance!