Book Covers

I love to design things, put smaller pieces together in order to create something bigger. My mom insists that graphic design is my true calling, but I don't want to spend the bulk of my career designing logos or posters. But she's isn't wrong on one point: I do have an eye for what looks good.

I taught myself to use Photoshop when I was twelve, and have been editing pictures, putting together graphics and impressing my art teachers every since. So I'm always slightly shocked when I see books with absolutely dreadful covers. I mean embarrassing to look at, even more embarrassing to purchase, just all around unattractive covers. Not that the writing is bad or that the author didn't deserve to be published. But the fact is that people DO base books by their covers. Which is why I've taken the design into my own hands.

Whenever I start a book, I don't just focus on the characters, settings and the writing. Maybe it's because I've got ADD or something, but I also obsess over whether or not the book will have an interesting cover, if the style of clothing is aesthetically pleasing or whether or not the settings translate into something that's easy to comprehend. I have filled sketchbooks with rough designs for covers, preliminary character looks and landscapes. I want everything to visually translate, because it's no use if the reader doesn't see something the way that I see it. They might not be onto the underlying plots yet, but they better understand the floor plan of Riverwick.


So I definitely don't want just anyone designing the covers for the book or the series; even if they got my approval on everything, I'd more than likely be unhappy with it. I'm very particular about things like this; my friends already consider me a bridezilla and I'm not even dating anyone. And I consider my books to be about three tiers more important than my wedding. (To put this in perspective, I've had my wedding completely planned since I was sixteen, down to the hairstyle the bridesmaids will wear to the flavor of the cake and the kind of bachelorette party I want.) Being able to design my own covers would be an immense relief to me, saving a lot of time and stress for anyone else who is involved in the publishing process. (Although, if another artist did make the cover, Brigid Vaughn, aka Burdge would be my number one choice. She's incredibly talented, and has a real knack for nailing character description.)

On a completely unrelated note, I'm still on Tumblr hiatus. It's strange how much happier I've been since I decided to stay away from the site. It'll be so much easier to make it a permanent change than I thought. Which is a huge relief. I'm incredibly more productive, I remember to eat at a normal time and I'm less likely to get upset with trivial matters. This will definitely be a change for the better.

Check out these great songs, or Voldemort will rise for a third time:
Suppose - Secondhand Serenade
Faithless - City and Colour
Blood - The Middle East
Your Biggest Mistake - Ellie Goulding
Lover to Lover - Florence + the Machine

How did I go for an entire post without including a single picture of myself? Times are a'changin'.