PRE-MADE COVER EXTRAVAGANZA!

So, here's the deal.

I do a lot of covers for a lot of people these days. Sometimes when I whip up something for a client it doesn't exactly work for their book and I have to give it a second go. It's all part of the process. It happens.

Unfortunately, this means that I'm left with a pretty decent cover that doesn't have a home.

Covers are just like people, right? Every cover wants to be loved and every cover deserves a home.

Also, I'd like to at least get my money back for the stock images. That's a part of it too.

With that in mind I've decided to implement the First Annual Pre-Made Cover Extravaganza! (You know it's important because it's in caps.)

Here's how it works: Have a look at the covers below. If you think one of them might work for something you've written all you have to do is drop me a line at novakillustration@gmail.com (or leave a comment in the comments section) and it can be yours.

I'll remove the novakillustration.com watermark, plunk in your title and your author name, and even putz around with the fonts a bit if you think you'd like to try something different. If you like most of the concept but want to make some changes I'm sure we can work out a price that'll make every happy.

I'll do all of that for a measly $40. (Payable through Paypal) 

Come on, that's a serious deal. Final images will be sent to you in printable 300dpi quality, as well as three sizes for all of your online needs.

Deal city, people. Deal city.  

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Steven



COVER 1 - AVAILABLE


COVER 2 - SOLD


COVER 3 - AVAILABLE


COVER 4 - AVAILABLE


COVER 5 - SOLD


COVER 6 - SOLD


COVER 7 - AVAILABLE


COVER 8 - AVAILABLE


COVER 9 - AVAILABLE


COVER 10 - AVAILABLE


COVER 11 - SOLD


COVER 12 - AVAILABLE


COVER 13 - AVAILABLE


COVER 14 - AVAILABLE


COVER 15 - AVAILABLE


COVER 16 - SOLD

WIFE IS GONE - BAD GUYS COVER

My wife has been gone for a week. She's visiting family in another state and won't be home for another nine days. 

I'm up late.  I miss her.

I'm bored. 

 Here's the cover for The Bad Guys #3 

 That is all.

GOATS EAT CANS IS COMING!

With the Forts series wrapped up, I've moved onto something else, and believe it or not that something else is getting released in March!


Goats Eat Cans is coming soon!

What the heck is Goats Eat Cans and why should you care about it? Trust me when I tell you that you're going to like this thing.

If you hated Forts and you hate me for writing Forts, you're still going to like this.

Goats Eat Cans isn't Forts. It's nothing like Forts. Nothing at all.

Click the picture below to head over the official Goats site. You won't regret it.


Maybe.

FORTS: ENDINGS AND BEGINNINGS COVER REVEAL!

It's official!

The above image is the final cover for the thirds and final book in the Forts series, Endings and Beginnings!

The OFFICIAL WEBSITE is also in the process of being updated to reflect the look of the new book and I'll be adding some goodies on there over the next few weeks!

Steven

NEW BOOK, NEW COVER

I recently finished up a cover for a new series I'm planning on releasing over the course of 2012. The first volume with basically be a bunch of short (humorous?) stories from my life and it'll be followed by two more. I'm hoping to get them all out over the course of the year, but laziness might yet win the day.

It's a whole lot different than what I did with Forts, but I felt like I really needed to try something different.

I'll have some more details soon.

Anyway, that guy on the cover is me.

Aint' I cute?

Steven

WORK IN PROGRESS - FORTS THREE COVER

The basic art for the Book 3 cover has been worked out! This is a spoiler-heavy image as you're getting a look at a few new characters.

That's how I roll.

Steven

WORK COMPLETED - ALBERT AT THE ZOO COVER

I polished off the cover for Albert at the Zoo early last week, and I'm pretty pleased with the results. It's a nice looking cover. I think it relates to the first book well.

This edition is going to have full color interiors, so I've got a lot of work ahead of me and a very little window in which to do it.

Ain't it always the case?

Steve

WORK IN PROGRESS - Albert Zoo Cover

Along with the ten-thousand other things I'm currently working on is the sequel to Paul Wood's "Cousin Albert" Series. Not only is Albert taking a trip to the zoo this time out, but he's doing it in full color. That's right, no more black and white interiors, this time it's color all the way.

While I haven't seen the full manuscript yet, I have gotten started on the cover. I'm pretty pleased with the overall design - think it'll be a quality piece when completed.

Hopefully it will...

Otherwise, as an eight year old might say, I'm in deep doo-doo.

On another note, it's only about four months or so until book 2 in the "Forts" series comes out. I'm excited. A part of me thinks it'll be the one people remember the most. It really is the "Empire Strikes Back" of the series It's a bit darker, the ending will leave you wanting more, and once it gets rolling it doesn't stop.

Then there's Krystoph...

You're going to like Krystoph.

FORTS BOOK 2 - COVER DEBUT

I've finally put the kibosh on the cover of book 2 due out before the end of the year.



The overall tone of the book is a little darker, and I think the cover matches. If you liked anything about book one, the sequel is going to make you go bonkers.

You can hold me to that.

On another note, the profiles page of the Forts site has been updated to include four new characters. Two of them you'll be familiar with from "Fathers and Sons," the other two you'll meet in "Liars and Thieves."

Consider it the first preview.

CLICK HERE TO READ

Steven

FORTS BOOK 2 - COVER IN PROGRESS

Well, book one is officially available everywhere. Book two is written, being edited, and the chapter illustrations are done.

So what am I missing?

Yep, a cover.

I did one a while back, but honestly it didn't quite sit right. The characters didn't work for me, and honestly it didn't capture the absolutely bonkers, surprise the poop out of you, and leave you shaking your head in disbelief nature of of the second book.

So I've started over.



I like this new version. I like it a lot in fact. Granted, it's still in the early stages, but I think it'll capture the intensity of book two much better. Things get much darker, much crazier, and much more unpredictable. I need the to make sure the cover reflects that.

If you haven't yet ordered a copy of "Fathers and Sons" I'm not exactly sure what you're waiting for.

What else are you going to do with your money? Pay bills? Save for retirement?

You're smarter than that.

Spend it needlessly on things you don't need.

Come on, all the cool kids are doing it.

Steve

P.S. Please ignore the messy desk - you know, because I'm messy.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW with LIZ CZUKAS!

I did an author interview with the incomparable, goofy hat wearing Liz Czukas (No, I don't know how to pronounce it either) over on her blog! Despite the hat, she's a heck of a writer and it was a lot of fun.

You'll get some information on the book, a little on me, and maybe some you never wanted.

It was so much fun in fact, that I'll even forgive her for using the wrong cover image.

Maybe.

CLICK HERE!

Liz can also be found on Facebook here!

Steven

FORTS: A Little Background, and What to Expect

With book one in the “forts” series due out in just a couple weeks, and book two tentatively scheduled for sometime later in the year I thought I might type up a little something to give you an idea of what to expect.

I personally think the trailer is cooler than Steve McQueen in “The Getaway,” or a beat up Arnold in the chopper after he finished throwing dukes with the Predator, or even Cool Coolerson moments after winning the “National Cool Competition” in Coolsville U.S.A.

He edged out Coolton McCool for the title.

Honestly though, beyond being so darn cool – the trailer really doesn’t tell you a whole heck of a lot about the plot.

Lets start with a little background.

At roughly 120,000 words book one, which is titled “Fathers and Sons,” was written a little over two years ago and took me about year to finish. Why so long you ask? Well, I was only able to write between the hours of 10pm and 2am, and I did take a few months off sometime around June. Why the time off?

None of your business – stop being so nosey.

I shopped the book around quite a bit and amassed an impressive pile of rejection letters. Most were positive, “I like what you’re doing, but I’m just not interested at this time” sorts of things. There was one slightly pompous, “This is good but I’m just not feeling passionate about it, and I can’t get behind anything I don’t feel passionate about” response, and there were even a couple “I have absolutely no idea who in the world buy this” tossed in there.

With memories of my nerdy high school years rising to the surface once again, I had taken just about all the rejection I could handle and was ready to move onto the next project when Canonbridge came along.

Turns out all of those rejections were a blessing in disguise. Canonbridge has been a dream and at this point I can’t imagine there being a better partner in the publishing process.

I’m not saying that just to brownnose either.

Believe it or not that chocolate colored smear on my schnoze is actually nothing more than chocolate. I’m a messy eater. You know those pictures of little kids with bowls of spaghetti on their heads? I took one of those last week – of me.

When book one hits on or around the 20th of this month it’ll hopefully be some of what you’re expecting, and a lot of what you aren’t. If I can leave you surprised and wanting more I’ve done my job.

Without giving away too much of the plot let me tell you that you’ll get very real drama in a world familiar, and even more in worlds not so much. There are ancient prophecies, underground cities, castles, kings, swords, monsters so incredibly large their heads get lost in the clouds, and an army hell-bent on stacking the bodies of the dead just as high. At the center of it all is a group of five children from very different situations with abilities they can scarcely understand, let alone hope to control.

You’ll get some actions, you’ll get some tears, you’ll get some scares, maybe even a couple laughs here and there, and hopefully a few moments that will you feeling like you’ve been slimed.

I of course mean that in the most positive of ways.

In the end, I just hope you dig it.

I dig it.

If I didn’t I wouldn’t have written it, and would feel like the worlds biggest jerk trying to sell it to you.

Steve

COVER ILLUSTRATION

last year I did some cover work for a talented writer named Mary Ann Bernal and the novel was just released.

Click the picture above to have a look!

Steven

FORTS BOOK THREE COVER

Been a while since I've had time to put anything up in the old blog - too long.

Anyway, today the streak ends!

Steve

WORK FINISHED - Forts 2 Cover

Here's the finished illustration featuring some of the characters from "Forts Book 2: Liars and Thieves." I like how this one came out. In fact, I liked it so much that I've already gotten started on the illustration for the third.

Am I getting WAY ahead of myself?

Without a doubt.

It's what I do best.

Steve

WORK FINISHED - Forts Cover 2

Finished!

Finally!

I have no doubt that if you were in the room with me, you would give me a congratulatory high five, would you not?

Steve!

WORK IN PROGRESS - Forts Cover 2

I was able to make a little progress on this one over the holidays - not as much as I would have liked to, but progress none the less. Overall, I'm fairly pleased with the way it's coming out. I tweaked the large turtle-guy on the left an awful lot because a bunch of wisenheimers out there kept telling me that it looked too much like a "ninja turtle."

My argument is that an upright walking turtle is going to look like a "ninja turtle" no matter what. Then I told them to "put up their dukes and get ready for the thrashing of their lives!"

Okay, so maybe I didn't do the dukes part.

Steve

Work in Progress - Forts Cover

As I get closer and closer to finishing up the rough draft of the novel, I decided to put together a little an image/possible cover. I haven't decided it I'm going to do anything else to this piece yet, but I have some ideas.

Steve!

I Hate Busy Weeks

I dislike busy weeks, I really do, and the last couple have been among the busiest in quite some time. The good news is that I have dedicated myself to finishing a first draft of my novel before the year ends.

Can I do it? Yes.

Will I do it? That remains to be seen.

I've reached the climax of the story and I can see the end in sight, the problem is simply finding time to write these days. Overall I think it's a pretty solid first draft thus far. It's basically a fantasy story about some kids who end up in another world (which has been done a billion times) but I think how they get there, and what happens when they do are both different and interesting. While it's fantasy, at the same time it's a story about terrible father figures, family, fate, and faith (which is a bit strange seeing as I am by no means whatsoever a religious man) so it works on a few different levels.

Or maybe it doesn't, I don't know. Maybe it's total crap.

Anyway, crap or no crap I'm going to finish the thing before January 1st rolls around.

The sketch above is a very rough sort of outline of a possible book cover. (Really just an excuse to draw some of the characters.)