Ta-da!
Drum roll please! Here’s the cover of Murder
at Peacock Mansion! Thanks to Kim Jacobs of Calliope Designs. Kim is the
publisher of Turquoise Morning Press, which has up until now, been my
publisher. The press is now focusing on romance—no more mysteries—so I will
self-publish the new one (I already did that with The Perfect Coed with fair success, but I hope to get better at the
self-publishing game with this new title). Kim did such wonderful covers for
both the Kelly O’Connell Mysteries and the Blue Plate Mysteries that I asked if
she’d continue to do my covers. By happy coincidence, she’s part of a design
group. I love what she came up with on the first try and am delighted to reveal
it.
I
have spent the entire day, except for Wednesday night dinner with Betty, at my computer
dealing with first edits on the Peacock manuscript. I sent the editor, the
wonderful Lourdes Venard, what I thought was a clean manuscript. She proved to
me again how important it is to have a professional editor. She caught
everything from commas I should have put in and typos (how did bottom become
bppyypm?) to major development flaws—the man lurking in the bushes who is never
again mentioned, the strange fellow who gives Kate a ride and then disappears—is
he related to the action? There were scenes where a character suddenly became a
part of the action though he wasn’t originally there.
It’s
been a long day, but I think the book will really be better for all the work
both Lourdes and I have put into it. Sometimes I’m a slow learner with a
tendency to think I can do all things myself…but I can’t. I know have valued
help—a cover designer, an editor, a web maven. It takes a village to help me
with a book.
I’m
simultaneously taking an online course in self-publishing. Now the question is
if I can post this book myself or need to pay someone to format it.
Self-publishing may let you get all the profits, but it also costs money. I’m
not enough of an accountant to figure out that balance sheet.
Anyway,
long story short, how do you like the cover?
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