Guest Blog

Today I'm featured on Holli Castillo's blog, Twelve Question Tuesday. Find out some new things about me. http://www.gumbojustice.blogspot.com/

I had a great time answering her questions. What would you have said?

Book Covers

Some publishers design the covers for all their books, and the author is not allowed any input. However, we’ve been very lucky with ours. (As a type-A control freak, having some say on what the completed book looks like is very important to me.)

For our first book, 31 Months in Japan: The Building of a Theme Park, we had intended to use a photo of the two of us at Universal Studios Japan on the cover. However, when we submitted it, we discovered the resolution was not good enough. The book block had been approved, and we were very close to the publication date. Larry went to work and sketched the Universal Studios entrance archway and the pagoda in Kyoto. He faxed them to me. (This was in the days before everyone had scanners at work.) I loved them and showed them to some colleagues who agreed.

When we got home that night, he said he would do formal versions of them. However, I love Japanese Sumi-e painting, and his simple pencil sketches had the same quality. So, he scanned the sketches. (We had a scanner at home.) I did the layout and added the background color. We ended up with a cover I love, but poor Larry never got the credit for the artwork.

 

My next book was the first of our five (to date) romance anthologies, Snowflake Secrets. I knew exactly what I wanted for the cover and even arranged four crocheted snowflakes on a large piece of poster board and sent a photo to the cover artist, Melissa Summers. She took the idea and ran with it, creating a terrific cover. (See mock-up and final cover below.)

Melissa has done all the subsequent covers for the anthologies. I send her suggestions, and then she interprets them to create terrific covers which convey the ideas of each of the novellas in the books.

She also worked with me to create the covers for our mysteries. I wanted a bird of paradise on the cover of the first one, Murder…They Wrote, so I took lots of photos and sent her half a dozen of the best. I also said I pictured a woven reed background. She sent a couple that were just wrong. Since we had intended to write a series, I wanted the same background for all of them. I finally laid a placemat on the table, shot a photo and sent it to her. It became the background for the first book as well as the second, Murder in Paradise, which uses another of my photos of outrigger canoes.

The publisher for Larry’s short story anthology, Lakeview Park, provided a cover design. We didn’t like the front cover image, but the back cover one seemed to work with the book. We asked to have the background changed from the original lime green to teal, and loved the results.

I worked with a new publisher for my fantasy, romance, mystery, Ghost Writer. When I received the initial cover, I was appalled. It was clear to me that the artist had no idea what the book was about since the cover showed two half-naked people and would have worked well for an erotic romance. (I only write sweet romance—with no body parts.) Larry mocked up an idea and sent it back. The artist, Karen Phillips, did a great job using this image, and I was delighted with the final version.

Now we are working with award-winning artist Jenifer Ranieri on the cover for our latest book, the Memory Keeper. Our good friend and fabulous artist, Robert Schwenck (http://www.schwenckart.com) has allowed us to use one of his paintings for the cover. I’m confident we’ll end up with a terrific image for the new book.

Does the cover make a difference to you as a reader? Do any authors have stories (good or bad) about getting the right cover designs for their books? How do you like ours?

Learn About EPIC, the Electronic Publishing Industry Coalition

This week, I am interviewing the president of EPIC, the Electronic Publishing Internet Coalition, Betty Kasischke.

Disclaimer: Larry and I have been members of EPIC since2005 and have learned a great deal about the publishing industry from the group.

Betty, tell me a little about how EPIC came about and its history:

First, thanks, Lorna and Larry, for giving me this opportunity to talk about one of my favorite subjects.

EPIC began in 1997 with a small group of 11 romance writers who wanted to learn more about emerging electronic publishing industry. At first, that group shared their information among themselves. As the industry grew, and as people continued to greet talk about ebooks with, "A what?" we decided that we could do more if we incorporated, established a website and started really promoting the industry.

The next big thing was establishing the eBook Awards (then called "EPPIE") and an annual conference, EPICon. The first EPICon was held in Omaha, Nebraska in August 2000, and our very first EPPIEs were presented that weekend.

As the years have passed the eBook Awards, the longest-standing awards for ebooks, has grown and earned an enviable reputation. But our Competitions Chair, Debi Sullivan will tell you more about all EPIC's competitions later.

We remained a published authors' organization until 2003, when we opened our membership to publishers and other industry professionals. This gave us more of an industry focus, rather than an author focus. This makes EPIC unique.

Since then, we've changed our name to reflect that new focus, EPIC, the Electronic Publishing Industry Coalition. EPICon also has a greater emphasis on industry topics.

Who can join EPIC?

Our membership is open to published authors, publishers, editors, artists, and booksellers. Other industry professionals are also eligible on a case-by-case basis. Our membership criteria and application are available on our website: http://epicorg.com/join-epic.html.

What are EPIC's activities?

Our major organizational focus is education and sharing information. We love to share news about the ePublishing industry, so much of the information is available to the public on our website. We will continue to expand these resources.

Our major activities are the eBook Awards and EPICon. These celebrate the industry and give us and those who participate the opportunity to spread the word.

EPIC sponsors the New Voices Young Writers Competition. Every year, our members participate as judges and we sponsor the prizes that the talented winners receive, including the publication of the winning entries in a print anthology. We maintain the New Voices Young Writers website and are in the process of creating a forum where kids can safely learn about writing and learn from their peers and publishing professionals.

EPIC is also creating partnerships with companies to get discounts for our members of valuable services.

All our work is done by volunteers, and I'm very proud of all of them.

How can industry professionals join the organization? What is the cost?

EPIC membership is $30 per year. Our membership qualifications and application are on our website.

What else would you like to say about the organization?

As a founding member of EPIC, I'm very proud of our history and our vision. The members of EPIC are generous and willing to share their experiences and knowledge. Some of the most lasting friendships I've made have been in EPIC.

It's a great place to be!

Thanks for being here with me. EPIC has been an important part of our journey as authors, and we’ve made many friends over the years among it members. We always recommend EPIC membership to our friends who are e-published.