Having completed the first draft for Book 4 of the Stormfall Chronicles, I will soon be launching the cover design for Book 4. This should give my cover designer time to begin working on the cover, in parallel with my edits to the text.
This might therefore be a good opportunity to discuss the cover design process that I've used throughout my novels. My covers usually begin with a very quick, hand-drawn sketch outlining what I'm looking for. It's usually nothing elegant, just a starting point for discussions with my cover artist - who happens to also be my middle daughter. From there, the two of us can discuss what photography she will need to help create the final design.
Each cover that my daughter produces is generated from a series of photographs which she breaks down into the constituent elements and reassembles to produce the final product. Her sisters will often serve as models. For other elements, we'll go on day-trips to state parks or similar sites with camera in hand, looking for inspiration.
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| The raw photo and processed image compared. Numerous changes were made to the dress and hair. |
For Book 3 for example, she used an image of her younger sister - but had to edit the color of the dress to match the sketch. She also needed to extend the dress' hem, as well as the hair length in the image (her sister had cut her hair shorter between the photo taken for the cover for Book 2 and that taken for Book 3).
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| The dragon began as a polymer clay figure. |
A model for the dragon, in turn, was constructed from polymer clay which was painted to achieve the general tone. After experimenting with a couple of alternatives, we settled on constructing the wings and neck of the dragon separately - to allow us to take photographs at a variety of angles which could then be sorted through, to determine which combination worked best. Working from the photograph, the contours and pose of the dragon and its neck could be adjusted to achieve the desired effect.
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| Relatively few changes were needed for the tower |
The background for Book 3 also required a wall and a tower, for which we made a trip to Castle Craig Tower in Meriden, Connecticut.
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| The wall image was mirrored for the cover |
Built as a scenic lookout point, the tower required minimal modification, while the image of the wall had to be mirrored to fit in with the overall design. Similarly, the courtyard surface required a trip to a local landscape retailer to collect working images for the stone paving.
The flames were likewise reconstructed from actual flame images, captured at night. The color contrast was then adjusted to match the tones in the sketch.
There were a lot of fine details which needed to be added or adjusted to get the image right: smoke; lightning bolts; shadows; and texturing. The most crucial part, however, was the lighting. Getting the color and lighting just right to resemble the illumination from a flaming background was no small feat - and something which my daughter had to research on her own and figure out how to do.
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| Getting the lighting right was essential to achieving the final design |
Once the image was complete, it was passed through a filter to arrive at the final, "oil-painting" style. The cover lettering and framing color could then be added once everything else was done.
Assembling the cover was another great part of working with my daughters on these books. Together with beta-reading the final drafts, the cover design was another chapter which I will sorely miss when my two eldest children leave for their respective universities next fall.
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