Book Cover Illustrations

Before you read further, a caveat and a few facts about me: I’ve worked for several decades in the publishing industry and worn all sorts of hats, from self-publishing/direct marketing, to advertising (mostly my own publications), to author (80 some books with large publishers like HarperCollins and Avon on down to small presses you’ve likely […]

I occasionally create a book cover mock-up to “fill in the spaces” in my online portfolio and galleries. This is one such recent book cover design, based on an illustration I create about a year ago while experimenting with a technique for creating a rough, painterly effect using historic figures as a starting point. =============== […]

Book cover illustration and cover design/layout for Dr. David Gelber’s soon-to-be-released Joshua and Aaron (Book Two in the series). In creating this cover, our first thrust was to offer a view of a human card player and only death’s hand and cards showing. Logically this made the most sense since readers tend to identify with […]

It’s usually easy to visualize what a book cover illustration should look like. And going into a project it’s always good to have an idea of what the outcome should be. Otherwise, like someone lost in the wilderness, you go in circles without positive results. However when followed too closely, a concept for an illustration […]

An artist can sometimes be an arrogant [insert noun here] to work with. Some artists seem to think that the client should have little or nothing to say in what is being done with a illustration project. Of course it is true that an artist is hired for his skill and expertise (which the client […]

I just got word from John Chadwell that he has signed a book contract with Moonstone Books for a novelized version of the Werewolves of New Idria. John Chadwell has written hundreds of articles for magazines and newspapers, become somewhat of successful script doctor, and penned over 20 theatrical scripts on speculation. He even works […]

Perhaps I’ve just become an old crank (please, no affirmative comments are needed). But I’m tired of all sorts of people now proclaiming themselves to be “artists” even when their career paths are anything but artistic. The overuse of the word is understandable. Traditionally we have “the arts” which include music, dance, painting, sculpting, and […]

I’ve had the pleasure of creating the cover illustrations for the first two Stonewiser books (and am currently working on the third cover illustration). Written by Dora Machado, these books are technically fantasy novels, but have a bit more depth to them than is often seen with this genre. Machado’s extra work in crafting her […]

From time to time I am contacted by people who have been touched by my artwork, often seeing things in my illustrations that I aimed to share — or hadn’t intended, at least on a conscious level. They share stories of joy and hope, and sometimes of sorrows and hurt. It’s amazing how many of […]

A recent illustration (as of yet, without a home) created as a pseudo myth: The Great Father Paints the Sky and Stars. I painted the silhouette of a Native American medicine man as the Great Father and then created a starry sky (somewhat as what might be seen in deep space). I think this conjunction […]