Monday, June 22, 2015

A Sexy Romance with a Spider on the Cover?

Coming up with a cover design once I finished writing my very first fantasy romance novel ended up being a major challenge.  As this romantic series progresses, things will definitely heat up like the foreshadowing excerpt here:


MAGIC AWAKENED
Derek closed his eyes, trying to tap into some of the willpower he used to conquer his old addictions, but this afternoon he just wasn’t strong enough. One right after another the images buzzed through his mind like a swarm of starving locusts, eating away at his latent doubts and fears. Deep, repressed desires steaming up from the frozen sea beyond his soul. Whips. Boots. Nails. Shackled by her chains; arms pinned above his head. Beads of sweat dripping down his chest as her dark blue eyes burned into his thick pale skin. Faith sliding her black painted nails over muscles he didn’t have the first time she tied him up. And his little devil's sinister smile, tugging at the growing length between his legs.

Darkness lighter men would fear
A part of me was tempted.

Half naked, sexy and/or gothic images with a hint of BDSM would fit this love story's theme just fine.  But then again in the beginning, my two main characters are miles away from each other.  Each of them have their own lives.  Points of view will change along with the scenery.

Instead, I wanted to shoot for something either like a grimoire book of magic type of look (like in the TV series Charmedetc.) because my two leading characters are pagan, or maybe something edgy with a Miami, Bret Easton Ellis or Jason Myerstype of feel.  I went for the second first, and ended up with this silvery chrome cover design.

The concept is essentially broken glass. Derek, an ex-salesman has had enough!  He's pounded the coffee table full of paraphernalia with his fist; done with that life forever. I really love this cover, but it doesn't look great as a tiny thumbnail, and I wasn't sure if I could carry that look over in Books No. 2 and up.  It also doesn't say what No. 1 is really about - which is Derek's new life in Tennessee.  
  
So I went back to the grimoire, Neverending Story type concept.  At first I thought about yin yang symbols, Celtic love knots, pagan designs...things like that.  Then I found the spider image at Dreamstime and everything started coming together.

Derek has always had an obsession with spiders and their webs since he was young, watching them from his estate in Quebec and then later down by his Uncle's docks in Baltimore.  

After a bit of design work, I came up with this second cover concept.  Without going into too many spoilers, the deepest depths of Derek's soul is frozen. The blue/gray is meant to symbolize ice, with the occasional white crack running through it.  I really liked this cover too; but it just wasn't dark and sexy enough. 

After another go, I finally came up with the red and black background, changing all of the text to white.  The red symbolizes lots of things...passion.  Derek's visit from an otherworld omen.  And the bug-like diamond eyes watching him from the barren Tennessee forests surrounding him.     

Here's how it came out - three times a charm:



After the High - Buy Now
is available now at Amazon.com (free fantasy romance series for Kindle Unlimited)
















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