Book Cover Illustrations

Life may imitate art, but it can’t copy it very precisely. Human beings can strive for perfect in their appearance, but as the old saying goes, in the physical world we are seen “warts and all.” People aren’t like artwork where major and minor flaws can be removed with a few flicks of a paintbrush […]

OK… these have to bring the total cover concepts I’ve created for the graphic novel Werewolves of New Idria (written by John Chadwell and soon to be released by Moonstone Books) up to something like eight different versions. The good news is that they seem to be getting better along the way. And each rejected […]

Being creative means facing a lot of rejections. Editors, clients, critics all can draw blood with remarks that often fail to acknowledge the human frailties of the artist, that maximize his shortcomings, and which generally minimize his achievements. (And artists don’t help matters by often being moody and aloof, hiding behind an I-could-care-less facade.) Those […]

Finding the right typeface for a title is never as easy as it at first seems. There’s often a temptation to choose a font that calls too much attention to itself. Instead the titling should be both easy to read and pretty much “invisible” as far as style — while (somewhat paradoxically) conveying some “flavor” […]

A sneak peek at the book cover illustration that will appear on John Phillip Backus’ new novel The Gathering: After the Fall (book two in the series).

The next to last illustration in the graphic novel version of John Chadwell’s Werewolves of New Idria (Moonstone Books). The illustrations have been a bear to get finished due to the number of pictures and complexity of each one (the one shown above was also a boar to get done – but far from boring). […]

In ancient times alchemists wrote incantations in lost tongues; today they apparently design icons and control interfaces.

I’ve been at the publishing game for more years than I care to admit, coming into illustrating through the back door, first working as a writer/illustrator, creating my own artwork for my technical books. I’ve gone from painting and pen-and-ink stuff to digital and have no regrets. I don’t miss the ink blots on clothing […]

Several yeasr ago I Ben Bova’s book about writing. As a professional and very successful sci-fi writer, Bova had some surprising advice: Never join a small writing group (unless it was being taught by a professional writer). Second, don’t allow your friends or family members give you advice unless they were really skilled writers themselves. […]

Here’s another illustration “The Last Leaf of Autumn.” Done for my personal enjoyment, it’s currently book cover artwork looking for a home. I always find it interesting wondering when these “for fun” pieces will be purchased and what sort of story they’ll illustrate. ===================== Duncan Long is a freelance book illustrator whose artwork has been […]