Book Cover Illustrations

Author Rosanne Dingli recently pointed out that Novelrank can become a useful tool for tracking Amazon sales of an author’s books. And Novelrank is free for authors. Dingli writes, “You register each of your titles (they must have had at least one sale to be registered) and create a “user page” that lists all the […]

I’m a writer / illustrator. These days I’m mostly an illustrator. But a couple of decades back, I was mostly an author, and at one point had the happy experience of putting 13 novels into print with HarperCollins and Avon Press, along with a host of non-fiction books with smaller presses. During my time as […]

A little news from the publishing world — and design tips and ideas for those who are self-publishing or who have a new book to promote: Barnes and Noble posted a $119 million loss in Q4 2013, and now B&N is hoping to “partner” with 3rd party for selling/developing future Nook tablets. This latter bit […]

For self publishers or those starting a small press, the process of creating a print cover PDF can seem pretty daunting the first go around. Fortunately after a time or two it becomes pretty much “old hat” and can be taken in stride (though this isn’t to say that new and varied hiccups don’t occur […]

Some useful tips and suggestions for writers and self-publishers: Self publishing is changing the marketplace. Here’s a look at Some interesting winners and losers in this process: Ten Ways Self-Publishing Has Changed the Book Industry. Tips on writer gender-specific dialogue. Marketing ideas for non-fiction that can be applied to marketing novels. Rules are made to […]

The paperback version of my science fiction novel Lesser Gods is now available, with additional artwork not found in the ebook version — and more interesting typefaces and layout. (Yes, eBooks are nice and handy to read, but print still can be a bit more refined if not prettier.) Many of my clients have been […]

I’m no lawyer. But I have signed at least a thousand publishing contracts of one sort or another over the decades I’ve been working in the publishing business. And during that time I’ve dodged a few potential pitfalls that writers and artists can face in contracts. (Up front, let me say that before you sign […]

A quality book illustration and cover design can greatly improve book sales. Consequently publishers as well as self-publishing authors often find themselves searching for an artist who help produce a quality book cover. One of the key tools in nailing down the book cover rights as well as getting a handle on a project is […]

Many authors are going the self-publishing route these days (and for many, it makes good sense). Others are going so far as to create their own small presses. The result is an explosion of new books and a wealth of quality writing for readers to choose from. As I’ve noted previously (perhaps the phrase “ad […]

I recently had the pleasure of seeing my artwork chosen for the front cover picture for Blake Patterson’s action/fantasy novel The Spider Magus and The Bunny Lord. This is one of my illustrations that I sold through my “PreMade Book Cover Artwork” page, which offers bargains on illustrations I’ve created for my own amusement without […]