Designing the Cover of DIVINE FALL #angels #amwriting

I love the covers of all three of my books.  When I received my first contract for SILVER LAKE, I was absolutely overjoyed, and the whole process was brand new to me.  My publisher, The Wild Rose Press, actually allows the author quite a bit of input in terms of cover art.  A detailed questionnaire was provided, and I filled it out with my ideas and suggestions.  We're encouraged to send in pictures or copies of book covers we like as well, and I had a ball searching the Internet for inspiration.  You can find the pictures I sent in on the Pinterest board for SILVER LAKE, and the one for GULL HARBOR.

However, the final decision on the cover belongs to the publisher, as they've bought the rights to the book.  A cover needs to do a lot of things...in this competitive market, visibility is key, and an eye-catching cover can help with that.  I read a lot of YA books, and I think this is especially important within the Young Adult Romance genre.  There are so many absolutely breathtaking covers!  And yes, I know the old adage about not judging a book by its cover, but gorgeous covers get noticed, and a reader can't consider a book unless they've noticed it among the millions of choices.  The cover, or packaging, is one of the 5 "P"s of Marketing.

Which leads me back to my original degree--I have an MBA in Marketing.  So with my third novel, I decided I'd step up and use it, along with what I've learned about the industry in the past 6 years, and take total control of DIVINE FALL.  Yes, that means publishing the title on my own--a scary process.  There's so much to consider and more things to learn.  But it also meant I could design the cover from start to finish, and while it felt a bit overwhelming at first, I am so, so happy with the results.

Where to start?  If you google "book cover artists", the results are mindboggling.  So I headed back to my favorite place for inspiration, Pinterest.  I searched "beautiful book covers" and went from there.  And then I found her--the artist I knew I needed to have: here is a board of book covers created by Phatpuppyart.  Every single one is stunning, in my opinion.  I sent the initial email, and I described what I was envisioning for my new book's cover.  Claudia and I decided to work together, and things moved very quickly from there.

The linked hands

First, I needed to pick out the pair of linked hands from a stock photo site.  That was fun (literally) - I think I viewed every single photo of arms on depositphotos.com.  I was able to compare them in a "lightbox"; I then picked out my two favorites and sent them to the artist so she could choose the one that would work best.  I purchased the rights to use the one Claudia selected.

Claudia's creation...I love the mystical
quality, the vivid colors, and the
juxtaposition of light and darkness

From there, we discussed the background...this book takes place during autumn, and much of the action takes place in the woods.  Plus, there is the paranormal element...a fallen angel, or Nephilim, with a host of dangerous secrets.  Once I described the setting and mood and sent the blurb, Claudia came up with the gorgeous background in record time.  I was absolutely blown away.  It's perfect!





Then one of Claudia's partners, The Font Diva, took over.  Again, I got to look over the portfolio of covers and pick out fonts I liked.  Once I sent in my choices, she designed the font for the title, author name, and added the floating feathers to bring in the Nephilim element.  Again, I was blown away.  So, so beautiful.  Now that the formatting is done, she'll be creating the spine and the back cover, complete with more feathers and beautiful lettering.

The finished product!  The Font Diva added
both the perfect font and the feathers, and I love
the colors and shading she used in the title

I can't say enough about the level of professionalism and the quality of their work.  I'm so happy with the finished product, and I enjoyed the process immensely!  DIVINE FALL has its own Pinterest board, of course, which I sent to Claudia when we began.  Check out the characters, setting, and cover art inspiration - and click here to add to your Goodreads list!  Less than a week until release day--July 25--, and I'll be able to hold the physical book, with the beautiful cover, in my hands!