Pictures. I love looking at them…the backgrounds, people’s facial expressions and body language. And right now, I’m looking at a ton of them.
You see, this past week I began working with a designer on coming up with the cover imagery for my new book, The Muse Unlocked.
We have a little bit of time since it’s not planned for release until late May/early June but still, it’s definitely a much more daunting task than I anticipated.
For one thing, I have this visual in my head of what my characters look like and I’m so hellbent on whatever imagery I present not conflicting with that. Crazy, I know. Poor designer who gets to work with me, right? Yeah, I pity her, too, but so far, she’s been tremendously patient.
On top of that, I am so determined not to take away that wonderful opportunity for the reader to envision their own Cate and Oliver, that part of me doesn’t want to show too much. I know as a reader I am so appreciative when the canvas has been left blank for me to populate with my own pixels.
Yet I also know the expectations of the reader and book bloggers. There is the matter of providing readers of a more titillating genre something they will find enticing yet without setting up false expectations…
Okay, why don’t I just go and say what we’re all thinking? SEXY COVERS.
Sure, I want one, too, but what I don’t want to do is set certain expectations about the explicitness of my novel and then have the reader be disappointed if it’s not explicit enough, because I am after all, unfolding a story. A love story. It’s contemporary romance, folks. Not wall-to-wall sex fest. Sorry if that disappoints. But I promise if you give the story a chance, you just might like the places I take you.
A fine line, a fine line indeed.
But it sure is fun looking at all of these pictures of bare abs and other body parts.
Wait a sec, did I think that or did I type that?
*coughs*
It’s a long, arduous process but I’m up for the challenge. *arches eyebrow*
Happy reading!
ck
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