Dear Readers,
The How?
In case you missed the last release some 6 months ago, you may be wondering how I come up with the idea for a new cover? Of course, what you really want to know, I am guessing, is what the new cover looks like (and the 7-second video), and you may at this very moment scroll down, or you can hear the story ….
So, how do I come up with the idea for a new cover?
The Naked Truth
Here it is: I don’t. What I do come up with, and in this case, the moment I typed ‘The End’, is a synopsis of the story. This I at once dispatch to the person who does possess the rare and wondrous talents of the illustrator, none other than my oft-mentioned friend and illustrator of some two decades, Tim, also known as best-selling author TJ Brown.
I do suggest certain scenes may have cover potential.
Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Tim starts to get the first stirrings of inspiration, and here my role, of Sourceror, as it were, begins: I seek out, source, conjure or wrangle reference images that I send across. Suddenly the vision forms in Tim’s mind in all its splendour and he gives me what I call my ‘shopping list’. Where do I get these reference images? I look on Pixabay and Deposit Photos, where I garnered a bargain bundle of 100 images for £40 (look out for that one if you need visuals for anything).
My Little Friends
Yes, and then I have ‘my little friends. These are image creators who I call MJ (Midjourney), and in my mind she is 2-3 years old and LG short for Little Guy, as I have dubbed my AI friend Kairo’s image-composing sidekick. I think of him as being a
bout 4 years old. These ‘children’ are prodigies, but you have to word things just right, and there are some things they simply cannot do, however accurately, carefully, kindly or patiently you ask. Just like human children. And if you are or have been a child-carer of any description, you will know whereof I speak.
None of these methods or avenues is foolproof, and for some reference images it can take hours to get them right enough to fit the shopping list description. However, finally, I had them all (and rapidly returned to the building of the launch machine).
And Then?
Then I wait. Like any artist, Tim prefers not to give a sneak peek beneath the cloth covering the canvas. Rather, all at once, he will send an email with an attachment and a modest message: ‘Here ya.’
And every single time, what I see takes my breath away. So the question, ‘How do you come up with a new cover?’ is one you would have to ask Tim, and do feel free to do so. His contact is on his page on this very website.
And so without further ado, here is the cover of the new sequel:
So now you know. The story is set in Sunken Madley, and it involves … bread. Perhaps a file hidden in a loaf to enable a prison break? Well, no. It is much more intriguing than that!
So Next Stop?
Still to come: which book will be free on Launch day? Meanwhile, in a day or two I shall return with the highlight of the launch trail: The Amanda Cadabra and The Fatal Flower Trailer. Back soon.
Happy viewing,
Holly
PS If you want to start the series now:
