Cover: “Coke with a Twist” by A.W. Hartoin

by | Apr 18, 2012 | ,

The latest in cover designs was done for author A.W. Hartoin and her short story, an introduction to her upcoming Mercy Watts series, “Coke with a Twist“

Look for it coming soon to eBook!

BLURB:

“Marilyn Monroe look-a-like, Mercy Watts, has her share of problems, despite her fabulous face.  Her father’s a private investigator and when he ropes her into one of his cases, Mercy can’t contain her curiosity.  Two college students have confessed to the brutal rape of a young woman, but reason they had the opportunity, remains a mystery.  The case will take her from a dive bar to sorority row to the gutter.  But Mercy will solve the case, if she can survive it.”

And of course, the matching Facebook Timeline Cover Image:

Cover: “Following Yonder Star” by Ehud Gershom

by | Apr 10, 2012 | ,

The latest cover was designed for Ehud Gershom’s upcoming novel “Following Yonder Star: The Untold Trials of the Three Kings”. We all know the 3 kings followed the star to Bethlehem when Jesus was born, but we don’t know what may have transpired on their journey. Ehud Gershom’s fictional novel tells their story. How they met, what transpired and what happened to them afterwards.

Ehud sent me his mock-up print cover, and the stock he used, and I got to admit, it was pretty dang good. Made me a bit nervous. But went ahead and chopped up the stock image, laying it out in a manor more suited to the 3 kings, played with the color and textures and this is what we came up with. (He plans on adding the text to the back at a later time)

And of course, with the plan to use facebook as a marketing tool, the timeline cover:

And as soon as the book is out, I will link to it. It will be available for print and eBook!

Gone

by | Apr 3, 2012 | ,

I spent Sunday afternoon driving around, exploring, looking for that perfect picture to capture with my camera.  I haven’t been out since last fall, and I didn’t know where to go. So I just hopped in the car and drove. I wanted to rejuvenate my love for photographing old run down abandoned houses, or that barn up on the hill, so I headed north, out into to a more rural setting.

I drove for hours, only stopping twice to take one or two pictures! What’s wrong with me? I drove by several abandoned houses, falling down buildings, probably hundreds of barns. Have I lost my edge? Is photography not doing it for me anymore? All I could think about was how much gas I was wasting! It’s sad really.

Before I headed out, I was skimming through some of my past images. To me, I feel like I have lost something in the past couple years. Originally I blamed it on the loss of my old tablet PC. I started out with an older Toshiba Satellite Tablet laptop, with which I could just flip the screen over, and use the stylus right on the screen. I LOVED that comp. Not to mention what I saw on the screen was EXACTLY what the print looked like. This new laptop makes everything much lighter, and no matter how much I play with the display settings, it doesn’t help.

When my tablet PC kicked the bucket one last time, I stopped playing with images for quite a while. I stopped taking pictures, I stopped making abstracts, and photomanipulations? No way! But gradually I got used to using the mouse again (lefty using a right handed mouse here!), and gradually I started working my way back into my creative outlet. Looking around my blog now days, you see I’ve been doing mostly photomanipulated book covers, and recently I purchased a Wacom tablet, still trying to grasp what I had with my tablet pc. (Though I tend to go for the mouse more still lol) And with that attempted grasp, I was looking to grab onto my older style in photography/editing.

Which brings me to my original point of this post. Some days you just get sidetracked…..

After driving around for about 4hrs, I stop and get something to eat (driving makes you hungry!), sit down, pull out my map to figure out where I’m going next. Because this aimless driving, wasn’t getting me anywhere. And then I had a thought. Why don’t I go revisit some of the places I photographed before? I mean, 4-5 yrs have passed, they might be even more dilapidated! So I pack up, head an hour west, all excited that I KNOW WHERE TO GO!

To this day, my favorite image in my portfolio is “Abandoned” It just speaks to me on sooo many levels. I weave my way through all these back country roads, spitting up rocks as I fly down the dirt roads, my destination for once completely clear to me. As I start to pass the adjoining apple orchard, I slow, eyes peeled, music blaring on the radio, fingers tapping with the rhythm,  sitting forward in my seat leaning over the steering wheel, so excited. The clearing approaches, I pass by an old trailer, then a massive stack of apple crates, then more orchard. Wait, more orchard? I throw it in reverse. Stop in front of that pile of apple crates. Note the shrubbery surrounding them is familure, then notice the cement foundation they are stack upon. My heart sinks. It’s gone! Gone!

I’m not sure how long I sat there staring at these stacks of apple crates, but it was a while. I reached for the camera at one point, intending to “document” the loss, but couldn’t bring myself to actually take the picture. It seems so silly to be upset about the loss. It was a falling down, abandoned house, no “historical” importance, a safety hazard! But still, I felt the loss so deeply. I can’t explain it.

I suck it up, thankful I found it when I did 4 yrs ago to take that amazing picture, then decided to revisit a few more spots in the area that are prominent in my portfolio.  (There were quite a few in this area) I head down the road to where I took “Quiet Barn”. I slow as I come up to it, very familure with it’s exact location, since when I lived out there I drove by it almost daily.

Nothing! Nothing but and open field! You’d think after the house, I’d somewhat expect it. But this barn was still in use last time I drove by it!

I keep going, now looking for places I photographed, desperately needing to know if they are still there.

GONE.

GONE.

GONE.

GONE.

I stopped looking, and just went home. It just goes to show, you never know how long something will still be there.

Facebook Timeline Covers

by | Mar 28, 2012 | ,

All of you rolling your eyes, refusing change (like I was) suck it up and get with the program! Facebook’s new timelines are here, but are you ready?

Honestly, I never gave the timeline covers any thought. I just kept clicking the “not now” button. Then earlier this week, I had an author contact me asking if I knew where she could find an image she might be able to use for her facebook cover. I had already done her eBook cover, so I had all the files. Putting something together for her wasn’t a big deal. Then after that, I did my own. And from all that, I have decided to offer facebook cover images as part of my services.

For the time being, I will offer a Facebook timeline cover image FREE with the purchase of a eBook/book cover. That image could take parts of your book covers imagery, to promote that specific book, like this one, created with the image from my pre-made cover “The Lost Girl”:

Or a basic image containing the book(s) as an actual book and your info, like you see here:

Or just a snazzy design with your author information. It’s up to you!

 

If you don’t need a book cover designed right now, but do want to update your facebook timeline cover image, for a limited time I will be offering that service for $10 per image!  Send me an e-mail at kklawiter@gmail.com.

 

And just in case you are curious, this is what I am currently using for my facebook fan page cover image:

Cover: “True & False: The Dreams, Thoughts, Life & Lies of an Aspiring Lunatic” by Steven Christians

by | Mar 28, 2012 | ,

“True & False: The Dreams, Thoughts, Life & Lies of an Aspiring Lunatic” by Steven Christians

BLURB: A copulation of short stories and poems that covers subjects ranging from hunting, to farming, to firefighting, to life in general. This book will have you laughing, crying, and thinking about the basics of life itself. This is written by a firefighter, who because of paraplegia, and with the help of God, found a way to deal with depression, as well as the struggles of day to day life, by writing poetry, and both fiction and non-fiction short stories.

ADDED 4.19.2012 The Print Cover:

Covers for M A Comley’s DI Lorne Simpkins Thriller Series

by | Mar 20, 2012 | ,

I’ve got four covers here I recently finished for author MA Comely’s DI Lorne Simpkins Thriller Series.

“Cruel Justice,” “Impeding Justice,” “Final Justice,”  “Foul Justice“

BLURB: The headless body of a wealthy widow is discovered
decomposing in Chelling Forest. Then a second victim is found. Detective
Inspector Lorne Simpkins and her partner, DS Pete Childs are assigned the case.
Before they can discover the identity of the killer they must make a connection
between the two victims.

After a third murder, Lorne receives a grisly surprise. Clearly, a vicious
serial killer is on a rampage…and Lorne has become the killer’s fixation.

Lorne can’t allow her failing marriage or her new boss–a man with whom she
shares a sensuous secret–keep her from focusing on her job. She must catch the
macabre murderer, or risk becoming the next victim.

 

 

 

 

 

BLURB: For eight long years, Detective Inspector Lorne Simpkins has tracked the
vicious criminal known as The Unicorn. But the killer has frustrated MI6
at every turn and remained successful at Impeding Justice.

When Lorne is targeted in a trap that results in the death of her
partner, the tragedy shakes her confidence to the core. Before she
has time to recoup, her teenage daughter is kidnapped. More than Lorne’s
professional reputation rests on her bringing The Unicorn to justice

 

 

 

BLURB: A ruthless killer returns–and former DI Lorne Simpkins is forced to revisit her ugly past.

After suffering a breakdown and quitting the force, Lorne Simpkins
finds herself embroiled in an MI6 covert operation to hunt down her old
enemy, a sadistic and merciless criminal whose ambition is to become the
world’s richest man.

Lorne tracks the madman through France, attempting to thwart his plans and bring her long-time nemesis to Final Justice.

 

 

 

BLURB: Detective Inspector Lorne Simpkins is back on the force. Before she can get comfortable with her new partner, newly-promoted DS Katy Foster, the two are assigned a tragic murder case that looks like a robbery gone wrong. However, when another wealthy footballer’s family meets the same deadly fate within twenty-four hours, it is clear the crimes involve something far more sinister.

Keeping her focus on unravelling the complex case isn’t easy for Lorne when she learns news that throws her personal life into a spin—her fiancé, M16 agent Tony Warner, is involved in a dangerous covert operation in Afghanistan.
But innocent people are dying on her patch, and someone must catch the killers. Lorne can’t allow this Foul Justice to prevail.

New Art

by | Mar 17, 2012 |

I’ve been doing all these book covers lately, but haven’t done anything for me in a long time. With the cold weather, and well just life, I haven’t been able to get out with my camera in a LONG time. Something I hope to remedy soon with all this summer like weather.  But in the mean time I started working on a photomanipulation in between cover works. Honestly, I think it started out as a pre-made cover (the dimensions are right for it lol), but I didn’t slap a title and name on it. I suppose it could be used as a cover if it suited the right book.

I always have mixed feelings about photomanipulations. For cover work, they’re fine, but as art I don’t really feel that it is “MINE”. Normally I try to use as much as my own photos as possible. Come to think of it, I think this is only the second piece I’ve done with all stock art. The first would be “Lil Red Riding Hood“.  No, wait, I misspoke myself, this will be the third all stock piece. “Beyond the Falls” was all stock too.  Typically, at the very LEAST I use my own backgrounds, but I do use stock models in anything with people. I just don’t have willing models to pose for me lol.

So here it is, “Wishful Thoughts”