Book Cover Illustrations

Here are two more sci-fi illustrations that will appear in Ilex Press’s upcoming book SciFi Art Now. (I posted the first in yesterday’s blog along with the details about the upcoming book; I plan on putting the final two online tomorrow.) The book is slated for release in October 2010. Pre-orders can be made in […]

I just got word from editor John Freeman that five pieces of my artwork have been selected for inclusion in the Ilex Press’s upcoming book SciFi Art Now which Freeman is editing. I’ve posted one of the illustrations (above) and will post the other four in upcoming blogs. Created in 2000, Ilex Press has gained […]

As readers of my past posts know, I occasionally work as a graphic designer, laying out books I create illustrations for. One such book was Richard Thieme’s Mind Games which I also “published” under my Duncan Long Publications imprint. With all the work that went into this book, it is a bit nearer and dearer […]

I’m back…. Brief vacation to visit a new grandson. Does that make a guy feel old or what? And talk about the miracle of a small infant. Amazing! Equally amazing that each of us starts down the road of life in this helpless, totally dependent state. Life is a miracle and we too often go […]

Picking the right typeface for the lettering on a book cover can be key in getting sales as well as presenting a professional appearance to potential buyers. One of the mistakes many cover designers make (and especially self-publishing authors) is to select type that calls attention to itself. At first blush this seems a good […]

I’m often asked how in the world I can produce so many illustrations — and one questioner recently suggested perhaps I started my career at age three. That may not be far off the mark. My parents can attest that I did start at about three, but it was more caveman sketching on my poor […]

While the majority of my work these days entails the creation of book cover illustrations, I do on occasion create an illustration (and sometimes the lettering) for CD and DVD covers. With this work in mind, Unified Packaging gave me a very nice interview as their “Designer of the Week” in their Let Me See […]

If you’re in any business long enough you become aware of the various cycles things go through. Fads come and go, business is frantic for a few years and then it slows. Booms are followed by busts. That’s how business works, and publishing is no exception. Recently publishing has taken a nose dive along with […]

A B&W variation of the illustration from two posts ago — and the last of this group for those who are getting bored. Often adapting color illustrations to B&W makes it possible to illustrate the inner pages of a novel or other book without the added expense involved in producing colored pictures. I find that […]

Another “for entertainment only” illustration. Why is the pirate sitting on a pile of electronic parts with roots growing from the mechanisms? Why is he drinking wine (and ignoring that treasure chest in the shadows at the lower right)? And why has the rock opened overhead and a buzzard appeared, floating in the sky? Answer: […]