Tag Archives: cover art

Killer Orange cover reveal!!

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Killer Orange IS coming. The editing process is ongoing, and the release date is still slated for end of August 2015. (I hope)

Until then, enjoy the cover of my second novel. I’m very excited about this book and this cover, and I have been going crazy trying to find the right artwork to convey the feeling of the book. (Tag line coming soon.)

Summary: When reclusive artist Rebecca Miles moves into her new house in the Sunshine Sands community, she is hoping to live quietly with pleasant neighbors. Instead, she gets pulled  into a terrifying subculture of over-tanning and pressured vanity. Rather than leaving her alone, her new neighbors are determined to either make her into one of them or cast her out on deadly terms. Her alluring and gorgeous neighbor Daniel seems to be her only ally, hoping to inspire Rebecca to rise above her own fears.

I will probably publish a couple of other short stories within the mix this summer as well. Happy Beltane everyone! Let me know your thoughts on my cover, and I’ll answer any questions about the upcoming book!

Cheers,

H.K. Rowe

Author Hibernation

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Hello, real world! I hardly see you anymore…

My first beta draft came in last night and I’ve heard mutterings of more coming in at the end of this week. I’m excited to finally slash through this story and then work with the final edits. I’m going to make this release deadline for Killer Orange even if I lose sleep over it. Though lately it hasn’t been necessary. I just need to be dilegent in my free time to work on my book and only my book. Sorry but TV time and housework has to suffer!

I have also been struggling to sketch out what I want to do for the cover but this morning I had a moment of clarity and I jumped on iStock and found THE PERFECT stock photo to use. I will be doing some illustration on the background and style but it’s nice to have an image to work with that I don’t have to outright draw. My background maybe illustration but sometimes it’s hard to get back in the saddle when I haven’t been doing it for awhile. I’ve been doing a lot more UX design than actual traditional design and art, and therefore I’d be wary of drawing anything that I’d want to sell. And there really isn’t time to brush up on my drawing…

And I also kept feeling it wasn’t something that was appropriate for book covers. I’ll keep my illustration skills for commissions on Livejournal for now. 🙂

Anyway, I’m excited to sit down and use that perfect image. Fingers crossed my day job won’t be too draining and I will have motivation to do so.

I have my schedule cleared for outright author hibernation! I will have to decline a few social invitiations this months, and I will have to be adamant when people judge me for being an antisocial hermit, but hey, it’s book release time!

Do or die!

Cheers,

HK Rowe

Removed from Google Play

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So I got a notification today that Google Play has removed my book “Unbridled” for violating content. I’m pretty sure the violation was the “pseudo-incest” which the book has, since Elekta and Ethan are cousins but not related by blood. Elekta is adopted, in fact, but still engages in sexual acts with Ethan.

I honestly don’t remember reading in their terms that pseudo-incest was not accepted. Nor do remember my book ever being approved by Google Play Books. I remember uploading it, getting warnings that it wasn’t approved and that I needed to enter my bank information (but I don’t think I did) and figured it wasn’t accepted. No biggie. Google Play doesn’t have the name Amazon or the Nook has in books.

I didn’t even advertise it here, mostly because I honestly never remembered Google ever approving it.

So oh well! It is what it is.

I’m still drafting “Killer Orange” and I’m hoping to send out to beta readers Sunday night. I need to get going on this! Plus, I’m really excited about creating my cover for it. I have a really good idea for it.

Soon I’ll be posting more excerpts. Stay tuned!

Have a good weekend everyone!

Writing Helpers

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I hope everyone enjoyed the excerpt from Unbridled yesterday!

It’s a quiet Sunday morning and I’m about to get ready to go pick up my client for lunch and do her community and personal goals for the day. I usually hang out with her on Saturday but she had a wedding yesterday so we’re getting together today.

helpers

helpers

Before that, I’m enjoying my coffee while I preview my print version of my book that will be released through Create Space. Of course, I wasn’t happy with how the cover looked, so I edited in Photoshop and re-uploaded it. I have to wait all over again for the review process to finalize. I guess it’s better than looking at a cover all the time of my own story that bugs me!

In the picture above are my helpers, Malachy and Whiskey. Whiskey is purebred beagle and Malachy is a beagle/schnauzer mix. Other than my husband, they are the loves of my life. They have been with me through some tough times. Beagles are sweet, loving dogs, but they are also very stubborn and food-crazy, which I guess makes life interesting.

I hope everyone has a great day. It’s already beautiful out here in the ‘burbs of Chicago. Sunny and a clear day with beautiful temps. I’m looking forward to enjoying it!

I’ll be posting the print links to Unbridled soon!

Cheers,

H.K. Rowe

 

Cover Release Day!

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Okay guys! It’s time to reveal the cover of my upcoming book, release next week slated for May 20th!

Unbridled cover!

Unbridled cover!

I’m very happy with it! I found just the right stock photo image and made some tweaks. This is the official cover of the book, which features my female protagonist Elekta. Elekta is a pinnacle part of the story, even though a majority of the POV rests with Ethan, the male anti-hero.

I hope you enjoy it! Now that the cover is revealed, the next step is only to release the book! The plan is the e-book version will come first, and then within due time, the print version will be available as well.

Just little background about myself, besides writing (of course), I’ve been a professional graphic designer for over 10 years. I’ve been drawing forever and I love technology so naturally I have evolved into the Illustration, Graphic Design, and now UI/UX design world. Design evolves and changes, so I love being able to share this part of myself with my writing as well.

I hope the book cover makes you excited as I am for this book’s release.

Until later!

H.K. Rowe

Update, Dedication Pages and Thanks

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First off, thank you to everyone who has followed this blog and liked my posts! I really appreciate it, and I look forward to blog-stalking everyone who followed me. 🙂

I will be officially releasing the cover of my “Unbridled” novel this Friday. I’m super excited to show you all and pretty much show the world when it’s done!

And just one last thing… I was thinking the other day that I really wanted to have a dedication page in my novel, but have not seen a lot of them in Indie books. What do you guys think? If you’ve published indie books before, have you had a dedication page or other beginning pages? I’d love to just hear other people’s experiences!

I’d love to dedicate this book to my late father. He was a huge supporter of my creativity, whether it was art or writing. Our family lost him last October to pancreatic cancer, and I believe that even though he’s gone, he still supports me from the beyond. I don’t think I would have gotten this far without his wisdom and guidance.

A dedication in my first book seems small in comparison to the gratitude I feel for him, but it’s something, right?

Also, I hope you like my new header image on top of the blog! 🙂

Unbridled Update

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Yay!

My beta reader texted me yesterday and she’s very close to being done with her feedback, so I’ll be able to start revising and formatting my novel into its final stages. I’m shooting for May 20th for a release date. I’m working toward that and I feel like it’s my own personal iron-clad promise to myself and everyone who’s had an interest in the book.

Let’s just say I’m very determined to meet my goal!

The cover is 80% complete, and I will post it when I’m closer to the release date, and maybe some teaser pics.

I’m sorry for the lack of blog updates but I really am working on things! I shall update again soon.

Thanks,

HK Rowe