Monday, May 12, 2014

[Guest Post] The Making of COME BACK's Cover

The day has arrived! Come Back, Melissa Maygrove's debut historical romance, is out there in the world. Are you excited? I am! As many of you know, Melissa was my very first critique partner. She also happens to be one of my closest friends, and I'm so proud of her. :D

Did I mention she's also a client?

Since I did the graphics and trailer for her release, I have access to some behind-the-scenes shots. With her permission, I've made a 'making of' GIF to go along with her guest post. Take it away, Melissa!


Come Back - The Making of the Cover

 

Illustrated Romance

After watching Carrie work her magic and design my book’s cover, I knew I had to blog about it and show you how it all came together behind the scenes.

First, I had to find an image of a couple that resembled my MCs. This task was made exponentially more difficult by the fact my book is a historical. Modern clothing, make-up, and hairstyles rendered most of the stock unusable. Luckily, Carrie knew her way around the web and pointed me in the right direction. 


I chose this image from Jenn LeBlanc’s website, Illustrated Romance.

Next, I had to decide what kind of background to use. At this point, I was cross-eyed (from combing through stock images for days) and totally clueless. Once again, it was Carrie to the rescue. 





What about this? she said, referring to this image. We could use it for the cave and put some other background in the center.

After searching the stock some more, we settled on this sunset.

We ironed out a few more details, like choosing the color of Seth’s pants, and Carrie took it and ran with it. After many hours of work and a few final tweaks, this is what I got.



Forward Authority Design Services
Is that incredible or what! Not only is it a testament to Carrie’s vision and talent, it’s the reason I’ll never believe anything I see ever again. LOL

 

 

 

About the Book


Title: Come Back
Author: Melissa Maygrove
Genre: Western Historical Romance
Category: Adult / New Adult
Available: May 12, 2014 from Truelove Press

Left behind by everyone she loves...
Rebecca Garvey had the promise of a California future dreams are made of, until the wagon train her family was traveling with left her behind. Now she’s slowly dying in the wilderness, abandoned and stripped of her self-worth. Once the shock of her desertion turns to embittered despair, she doesn’t want to be found. Then a handsome stranger challenges her convictions and changes her mind.

Headed for Texas, chased by the demons of his past...
Seth Emerson knows exactly what he wants. Working to save for a cattle ranch of his own keeps him busy and keeps his pain buried. Rescuing a stubborn woman from the hills of New Mexico Territory isn’t part of his plan—but she’s exactly what he needs.

Making greater sacrifices than either of them could foresee...
Seth and Rebecca set off on a risky journey and a quest for truth, each healing the other’s love-starved soul along the way. Will they give in to their growing attraction?  Or will they honor their commitments when Seth returns Rebecca to civilization... and her betrothed?

Where to Buy



Trailer

 

About the Author


Native Texan Melissa Maygrove is a wife, mother, nurse, freelance editor, and romance writer. When she's not busy caring for her tiny nursery patients or shuttling teenagers back and forth to after-school activities, she's hunched over her laptop, complicating the lives of her imaginary friends and playing matchmaker. Melissa loves books with unpretentious characters and unforgettable romance, and she strives to create those same kinds of stories for her readers.





Giveaway

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Question of the Week:
Are we ready to support Melissa?! :D

Alternate Question of the Week:
Have you gotten to see behind-the-scenes shots of your own covers?

68 comments:

Cathrina Constantine said...

Sooo excited for Melissa. And I love the Cover, Carrie!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Quite the transformation! You did an awesome job, Carrie.

Nick Wilford said...

Great job, Carrie! The characters really pop up against that background, almost like 3D. Congrats to Melissa.

Donna K. Weaver said...

I saw a great review of this book just a few minutes ago. Congrats to Melissa.

That changing cover really threw me, Carrie. lol

Meradeth Houston said...

Very cool cover! And I love the gif of putting it together :)

Melissa said...

I'm still in awe of what you did, and I've had way longer than the rest of the blogsphere to take it in. LOL Thanks for all your help. :)

Rachel Schieffelbein said...

That is awesome! Very cool. I'm glad you shared that!

Catherine Stine said...

Very cool to get a behind the scenes look at the cover process. Congrats, Melissa!

Melissa said...

Thank you, Catherine. :)

Melissa said...

Thanks, Nick. I'm happy dancing today. :D

Melissa said...

Thanks, Donna. :)

ilima said...

Carrie is amazing. That is so cool to see. Congrats on the release, Melissa!

Melissa said...

Yes, she is!
Thanks, ilima. :)

cleemckenzie said...

Here's to a great blog tour, Melissa! You're off and running.

Melissa said...

Thanks, Lee. I know we say it all the time, but the writing community really is awesome. :)

Kyra Lennon said...

The GIF showing how it all came together is so cool!

Chrys Fey said...

I've never been able to help with the cover process other than telling the artist my ideas and then waiting anxiously to see the results. So seeing each step like this was neat! I hope I can have a more hands-on approach with one of my covers in the future. :)

Carrie, you did an amazing job! So did you, Melissa. The cover is beautiful and I love the feel it gives.

Congratulations!!!!

Melissa said...

Thanks, Chrys. Carrie probably grumbled all the way, but she kindly let me 'help.' LOL Well, she let me *think* I was helping. :P

Loni Townsend said...

I can't staring at the animated gif. That's so cool. *awestruck*

Emily R. King said...

That cover truly is amazing. So much talent between you two ladies!

Congratulations, Melissa! :)

Melissa said...

I stared at it, too. And the book trailer! LOL I must've watched it 20 times through the first time she sent it to me. xD

Melissa said...

Thank you, Emily. :)

JeffO said...

Great work by Carrie. Congratulations, and good luck, Melissa!

Michael Di Gesu said...

Hi, Carrie, Hi, Melissa,

Thanks for sharing the process with us Melissa!

Carrie, you did an excellent job!

Since I design cover too, it's great to see how it all came together for this particular cover... BEAUTIFUL!

WELL done ladies! You two work seamlessly together!

ALL the best, Melissa!

Stephanie Faris said...

My covers just arrive in my email inbox one day, characters and all. It's so exciting to hear how you put this one together.

Melissa said...

Thanks, Jeff. :)

Melissa said...

Thanks, Michael. I'm blessed to have this talented lady as a friend.

Melissa said...

Wow. I can't imagine not being involved in the process. Although I will probably find my images BEFORE I write the book next time. LOL

Carrie is wonderful to work with.

Mark Koopmans said...

Adding to the "Well Dones" to both Melissa and you, Carrie :)

Not that I would have any doubts about the work ethic and professionalism of both you ladies :)

PS... I think it's cool, too, that "Sidebar Carrie" follows me as I scroll up and down the blog... I tried shaking her off, but she's too wily :)

Elizabeth Seckman said...

The cover is wonderful! And that trailer...wow! Excellent work ladies.

Melissa said...

Thank you, Mark.

Yes. She's a bit stalker-ish, isn't she?
*glances left... scoots chair over to the right a tad*

Melissa said...

Thanks, Elizabeth.
I helped, but Carrie gets the bulk of the credit. ;)

Tammy Theriault said...

So glad to Melissa showing off the lovelies!!! Getting Carrizle on your side for this was a stellar idea! Hugs to both!! And yes Carrie, I see the under side of my cover all the time...I just left up my sheets. Blahhhhh....

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

Congratulations, Melissa. You're right. Carrie is a brilliant. The backcover looks every bit that period. Bravo to you both.

Melissa said...

You're a mess, Tammy. A hot mess. LOL

Melissa said...

Thank you, Joylene. :)

Demetria Foster Gray said...

This is awesome! I love when behind the scenes information is shared. It's so wonderful learning about the making of your cover. Kudos to Carrie and congratulations to you, Melissa, on your debut.

Melissa said...

Me, too, Demetria. I'm still mesmerized by that GIF. LOL

Misha Gerrick said...

That's seriously cool! Well done, Carrie.

Michelle Wallace said...

Wow! Wow! and Wow!

Melissa said...

That's what I said! LOL
Carrie is too talented for words. :)

Crystal Collier said...

Have I mentioned that trailer is epic? Because I think so. Yay, Melissa!

Melissa said...

Thank you! Carrie did a great job, especially considering what she had to work with. I had so much trouble finding images for that one.

Liz Blocker said...

So, I've loved the cover since I first saw it, and I always love an inside look into someone's artistic process - so basically, I loved this post altogether :) Thanks for the peek into how the graphics work, Melissa and Carrie!

Melissa said...

Aw, that's so sweet, Liz. Thank you. :)

Carrie Butler said...

Thank you, Cathrina! :D

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Alex! :D

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Nick! I totally see it that way now. :D

Carrie Butler said...

Thank you, Meradeth! :D

Carrie Butler said...

Happy to help, my friend! Thank you. :)

Carrie Butler said...

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks, Rachel. :D

Carrie Butler said...

D'aww... thanks, Ilima! :)

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks for stopping by, Catherine! :)

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Kyra! :D

Carrie Butler said...

Thank you so much, Chrys! If you ever go indie, I'm your gal for covers with behind-the-scenes access. :D

Carrie Butler said...

Thank you, Jeff! :)

Carrie Butler said...

Thank you, my friends! :)

Carrie Butler said...

Koopmans! Haven't seen you around for a while, buddy. Good to hear from you. :)

And yes, I'm very, very sneaky...

Carrie Butler said...

Thank you, Empress King! :)

Carrie Butler said...

Hopefully you get an inside look next time! :)

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Elizabeth! <3

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Tamizzle! Be careful with those sheets. They're Egyptian cotton! :O

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJLgw9QAL4o&t=0m50s

Carrie Butler said...

D'aww... *blush* Thank you, Joylene!

Carrie Butler said...

Yay! Thank you, Liz. :D

Carrie Butler said...

You guys are all so kind! Thank you, Crystal. :)

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Misha! :D

Carrie Butler said...

Thanks, Michelle! :)

Carrie Butler said...

If only I could work as fast as the GIF... LOL

Thanks, Demetria (and Melissa)! :)