Working with Friends

One my biggest struggles as a neurospicy person is that I very, very, very, strongly prefer to work with people I know. Part of it is the sparkly part of my brain going 'uuuuuuuuuugh boredom nooooo do aaaaanything else' when trying to fill out a detailed sheet of information to give an artist I don't know to commission their art. I also like making art.

Essentially, I like working with people I already know I communicate well with and who are interested in an iterative, collaborative workstyle.

There is also the aspect, that when I started with the Chaos God Apophis book covers, I couldn't afford to hire an established book cover artist charging $2000 a book cover with minimal options for changes.

So I turned to my childhood friend, a lady I'd bought several oil paintings from over the decades, and asked her if she wanted to learn how to draw on a tablet. Over the course of a few extended hang out sessions, I taught her the basics of the software and we got started.

I got better, she got better, I got better, she got better, and the covers got better step by step, iteration by iteration.

As a self published author, I have the joy of being able to update my covers whenever I feel like it, so step by step they have grown in style and professionalism, a true reflection of the story while also each one conveys the foreshadowing that the series is saturated with.

I want to thank my earliest fans, who bought our rougher art, and also promise you that those rougher covers are collectors items. (Manifestation!)

In any case, if you notice the cover changed since the last time you looked at it, that is my fault.