My anthology is published! Wow! I forgot what a rush it is to see a brand new book on Amazon! I had planned to publish it last year, but, you know, 2020 being what it was – quite a lot of my plans turned to dust. I never stopped working on it, though; it just took a lot longer to happen.
The manuscript itself was ready to go by summer last year, only the cover needed work. I spent an intemperate amount of time working on it, really fretting and sweating over it, tearing out my (overgrown lockdown) hair. I’d decided to go with a custom-made cover and really, really wanted to get it right. I researched it, looked at similar books, studied anthologies, tried to find the right pictures. I had, really, wanted my daughter to draw it for me. Her digital art had gone through a phase which was just perfect for the style of book, but she had not only abandoned that style but had no interest, no confidence and no inclination to help. Hence the custom-made cover. I finally found a cover that was similar to what I wanted and I’m SO glad I did because it made me realise what a cliché my idea was! Also, my go-to book cover designers (The Cover Collection) had closed their time slot for custom submissions by the time I was ready. This was actually fortuitous. I realised I wasn’t ready to publish. I hadn’t the energy and couldn’t face the work it would involve. By lockdown 2, I had to find other ways to get myself out of the writer’s funk (the gigantic editing job did the trick!)
New year, new ideas, and I decided to go with a premade cover. The one I found was perfect except the bird. I loved the bird, don’t get me wrong! But it was a trifle too serene and looked just a weeny bit like a seagull. I really needed a crow! I wrote to Debbie at TCC and asked if I could have the bird changed for an extra charge. This turned out to be no problem at all. I had a choice of two birds and four different fonts, all of which looked fantastic. It was great fun choosing the right one!
It’s hard to find a cover for an anthology, particularly one with a mixed-genre. I wanted to highlight the title story and had originally imagined my heroine in her long black cloak and her long black hair, pointing imperiously at a stone tower, a crow on her shoulder and several more on a wintry tree behind her, all swathed in mist. As this was a tall order (and needed the type of artist I can’t afford), I would have settled for a Goth-girl in a long black cloak in a forest with a crow. And some magical sparkles to show the, well, magic. Heh. In time I realised that not only has this been done to death but is very YA. NOT the right genre at all!
But at least I got my crow. And a big spooky moon, delicious colours, some sparkles, and a weird glowy construction in the middle. It isn’t a perfect match but the mood is right and somehow it manages to cover all bases.
Which is what you want, really!
Here’s the link to the ebook (the paperback comes out later this year):
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08Y5J4ZM5/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
Here’s my Amazon Author Page:
https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B00AP4UY7K
You have TWELVE stories to read. I hope at least ONE appeals to you! If so, please leave a review. My career has reach a make-break point and I need your help!
The manuscript itself was ready to go by summer last year, only the cover needed work. I spent an intemperate amount of time working on it, really fretting and sweating over it, tearing out my (overgrown lockdown) hair. I’d decided to go with a custom-made cover and really, really wanted to get it right. I researched it, looked at similar books, studied anthologies, tried to find the right pictures. I had, really, wanted my daughter to draw it for me. Her digital art had gone through a phase which was just perfect for the style of book, but she had not only abandoned that style but had no interest, no confidence and no inclination to help. Hence the custom-made cover. I finally found a cover that was similar to what I wanted and I’m SO glad I did because it made me realise what a cliché my idea was! Also, my go-to book cover designers (The Cover Collection) had closed their time slot for custom submissions by the time I was ready. This was actually fortuitous. I realised I wasn’t ready to publish. I hadn’t the energy and couldn’t face the work it would involve. By lockdown 2, I had to find other ways to get myself out of the writer’s funk (the gigantic editing job did the trick!)
New year, new ideas, and I decided to go with a premade cover. The one I found was perfect except the bird. I loved the bird, don’t get me wrong! But it was a trifle too serene and looked just a weeny bit like a seagull. I really needed a crow! I wrote to Debbie at TCC and asked if I could have the bird changed for an extra charge. This turned out to be no problem at all. I had a choice of two birds and four different fonts, all of which looked fantastic. It was great fun choosing the right one!
It’s hard to find a cover for an anthology, particularly one with a mixed-genre. I wanted to highlight the title story and had originally imagined my heroine in her long black cloak and her long black hair, pointing imperiously at a stone tower, a crow on her shoulder and several more on a wintry tree behind her, all swathed in mist. As this was a tall order (and needed the type of artist I can’t afford), I would have settled for a Goth-girl in a long black cloak in a forest with a crow. And some magical sparkles to show the, well, magic. Heh. In time I realised that not only has this been done to death but is very YA. NOT the right genre at all!
But at least I got my crow. And a big spooky moon, delicious colours, some sparkles, and a weird glowy construction in the middle. It isn’t a perfect match but the mood is right and somehow it manages to cover all bases.
Which is what you want, really!
Here’s the link to the ebook (the paperback comes out later this year):
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08Y5J4ZM5/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
Here’s my Amazon Author Page:
https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B00AP4UY7K
You have TWELVE stories to read. I hope at least ONE appeals to you! If so, please leave a review. My career has reach a make-break point and I need your help!
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