Book Cover Illustrations

Professor Kathryn Sutherland (who teaches at Oxford University) recently studied over 1,000 original handwritten pages of Jane Austen’s writing and discovered the author was a poor speller, often misused punctuation, and committed a wealth of other “sins” that earn a beginning writer rejection letters from publishers. (For more about Austen’s writing problems, visit NPR.)

Of course this raises a question: Is there something wrong with current publishing practices if someone like Jane Austen couldn’t get past the gatekeeper at any of the presses that now reprint and sell her novels?

And how many other Jane Austens are there out there right now who’ll never see their stories published because they fail to employ the right form of “their” in a sentence or use too many exclamation marks?

The solution for the writer is to hire someone to pre-edit their work. But one still has to wonder if perhaps publishing houses are looking at the wrong things when deciding whether or not an author’s story has any merit.

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When not brow-beating publishing houses, Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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I’ve now finished over 80 B&W illustrations for the upcoming graphic novel Werewolves of New Idria to be released by Moonstone Books next year. Also in the mix are several cover proposals, a poster (that may become the cover), and the concept artwork leading up to the graphic novel (which was written by John Chadwell).

Getting my part of the project finished is a relief, of course. But I’m also feeling a tad “out of it” since I’ve been doing the book artwork off and on for nearly a year, and it seems strange not to be plotting out the next picture in the story.

So now I’m itching to start another graphic novel – perhaps of a science fiction story I’ve had kicking around in my head for several years now. And there are already hints of a sequel to Werewolves of New Idria. One way or another I’m hoping I’ll soon be working frantically to get another graphic novel illustrated. (And loving the work once again.)

In the meantime, you can see some preview pictures from the upcoming graphic novel as well as some of the covers and concept art at my Werewolves of New Idria gallery.

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When not suffering from WDWS (werewolf drawing withdrawal syndrome), Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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In one of the schools where I taught (in St. George, KS), I discovered that neither the teachers nor the custodians wished to remain in the building by themselves after dark.

After asking around, I learned that those who were in the building alone at night sometimes saw a young woman walking down the hall reading a book. When they called out to her, she would look directly at them but would never speak. Rather she turned and left, her feet “walking” several inches above the floor. She would disappear into a wall where there had once been a doorway. The room had been sealed up years before; no one remembered why.

I never saw her, but this is how I imagine she looks. The building has since been torn down. A book of love poems was found sitting in the sealed room. Workers claimed the dusty room smelled of roses.

And I may have embellished the story just a tad.

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Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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Happy Samhain, everyone.

Samhain is the Celtic celebration of summer’s end and the beginning dark days of autumn and winter. Lasting several days, the celebration was seen as a time when the separation between those living and those dead became thin, and sometimes spirits would venture into the land of the living. The living attempted to fool the dead by dressing in costumes and disguises.

In the next few days here in the USA, we have a similar holiday on November 2 during which we select which of the living dead will haunt the halls of congress. During the two years that follow, these evil spirits rob the unwary and play terrible tricks upon the living who voted these fiends into office.
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Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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Here’s the promo poster for the graphic novel Werewolves of New Idria.

Everyone seems to like it and it’s possible that it may become the actual cover for the graphic novel. If so, it will be about the eighth cover created for the title.

On the plus side, each stab at the cover illustration seems to get better, so it doesn’t seem like time wasted. I think this will pretty much complete my work on this graphic novel as well. It was my first graphic novel and a whole lot of work.

And a whole lot of fun.

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Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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I just got word from the editor of Lamplighter (published by Lion and Lamb Ministries) that one of my pictures will be used for the Jan/Feb 2011 issue of the magazine.

The cover layout uses a neat little trick, masking and cutting out the fist of Satan to place it over the date masthead.

If all goes as planned, I should also have a short bio in the magazine.

Nice.

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Duncan Long is a freelance book and magazine illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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I received this good news that I thought I’d pass along (having done the book illustration for the cover of this title). And congratulations to Tom for penning a riveting story that garnered this recognition.

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Orlando, FL / October 27, 2010 – The Florida Writer’s Association announced that The Gaelic Letters has won second place in the Thriller/Suspense category of the prestigious Royal Palm Literary awards.

The Gaelic Letters is the debut novel by R. Thomas Roe who draws upon his background in family history research and the legal profession to weave an intense story of intrigue as the main character travels to Ireland to unravel a family mystery.

Mr. Roe stated that he was honored to receive the Royal Palm Literary award from the Florida Writer’s Association and appreciates all the great comments he has received on his first novel.

The Gaelic Letters is a first-class drama that follows retired attorney Quinn Parker as he traces his roots through the libraries of Georgia, Minnesota, and Utah, and then eventually to Ireland, unraveling layers of historic mystery and exposing secrets that had been viciously protected for over a century – with deadly results.

The Gaelic Letters (ISBN: 978-0-9840614-4-0, Trade Paper, 409 pages, $17.99, Literary Fiction) from indie book publisher Signalman, is distributed through Ingram and available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and wherever fine books are sold.

About R. Thomas Roe
Mr. Roe resides along the ocean in Florida and in the mountains of Colorado. He has served 26 years as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force and retired as a full Colonel. He enjoys associations with various USAF groups and is an avid reader and mountain biker.

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Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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There’s a lot of confusion as to what a small publisher is and what constitutes self publishing. Part of the confusion results because many of these terms are used incorrectly (and I am guilty of this myself sometimes). But part of the problem is that publishing itself is in a flux with technology offering new opportunities. This new technology also makes some of the old terms less applicable than they once were.

So here’s my rough and dirty guide to the various levels of self publishing going on today:

1) The Vanity Press: The poor companies have a bad rap, in part because some have basically been operated as a way to divide ameature writers from their money, and in part because those writing for big presses like to “put down” publishers using such services. Basically a vanity press is a company that packages an author’s manuscript into a book. They edit the book, typeset it, and print it. But unlike a regular publisher which pays the author for the right to print the book, a vanity press charges the author for all the work. Since many vanity press authors have marginal talents and their books are poor sellers at best, there’s an additional level of stignatism associated with the vanity press. HOWEVER there is the potential to produce a quality book with these services if the author offers quality writing from the start.

2) Self Publisher: Basically this type of publishing is a one-man operation with the writer becoming the jack of all trades, handling all the work that needs to be done up to the time the book goes to the print shop (though not always – he may hire folks to edit, do layout work, or create the book illustrations for his title). Chapbooks, mail-order/web catalog books, and/or titles by local writers at bookstores are earmarks of the self-published book. As of late POD (print on damand) and eBooks have expanded the reach of the self publisher. Often self-published titles are printed without an ISBN (or in the case of POD /Ebooks, a pseudo-ISBN supplied by Amazon.com or others).

3) Small Press: This is a step beyond self-publishing BUT may start as self publishing. Basically the author branches out even more, hiring folks to do some of the work (editing, book illustrations, layout, etc.) either because the author lacks some of the skills for producing a professional-looking book or because the author wants to spend more time on other things. The small press will usually have its own block of ISBNs and may eventually offer books from more than one author (though not always). Typically a small press will only produce a handful of titles per year.

4) Imprint: If a small press does really well, a larger press may buy it or enter into some other business relationship with it. In such a case the small press retains its name and often its staff, but operates with an infusion of capital, gains access to the big press’ distribution system, and basically has more clout than it did before. Of course a small press losses some of its independence when becoming an imprint. Most imprints are devoted to some niche market and some even publish only the titles of one author.
(It should be noted that not all imprints start as small publishers; sometimes a large publisher will start an imprint to reach a niche market.)

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Working in the publishing industry for several decades, Duncan Long presently is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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I like used books. Used books fill about half my office and many were bought at bargain prices. If my office ever sinks into the earth without warning, it will likely be the weight of these books that caused the disaster.

For authors there is secret hardship that comes with each sale of a used book. Each used book you buy helps the seller, but not the author that wrote the book. Yes, the author made money on the book when it was printed, but after that, each time the book is resold as a used book, the author gains nothing. Worse, that sale may displace the sale of a new book of the same title.

Of course if you like the used book you read, you might seek out other titles by the author. But chances are you’ll buy those used as well if you can. Folks who buy used books understand the bargains offered in buying used rather than new. Buying used is a habit not easily broken.

There’s no real solution to this situation that will help authors.

I’ve always felt in an ideal world, the author would get a tiny payment for each sale of any used book that he wrote. Certainly in an age of computers, that might easily be done by any large company like Amazon.com where thousands of books are sold with each one keyed to its ISBN information. It would be a noble gesture if those selling used books put a little gift into the pocket of an author with each sale that was made.

Of course, we don’t live in an ideal world. So authors will continue to fight against this somewhat unfair competition with themselves.
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Duncan Long is a freelance magazine and book illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his book illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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I just finished the cover illustration and layout for David Carlisle’s The Perfect Pilot. He’ll be releasing the Kindle version soon, with a possible print version sometime in the future.

The cover illustration was a tad wild to get laid out because we wanted both the plane overhead and the mountains below, with the two characters parachuting in tandem at center stage. After a little tinkering with the arrangement, I came up with this layout which worked well.

The title arrangement was a tad challenging as well since the longer word in the title (with “the” ahead of it) came before the shorter. That made a pyramid or other possible arrangements out of he question. Fortunately the negative space above the tail of the jet made it possible to “counterbalance” the shorter word against it.

Yes, you know you’re dealing with an exciting storyline when two men will be leaping from the back of a jetliner flying at night. Carlisle’s novel delivers on the cover illustration’s promise of action.

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Duncan Long is a freelance book cover illustrator for HarperCollins, PS Publishing, Pocket Books, Solomon Press, Fort Ross, and many other publishers and self-publishing authors. See his cover illustrations at: http://DuncanLong.com/art.html
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