Update

            I know this blog has taken little side trips away from the subject of getting published, but I chase rabbits. It’s a weakness, or strength, however you want to view it. The last time I posted about publishing, I was puzzling over whom to get to do the cover.

            Here’s an update. I contracted ‘locally’ for the cover for ‘What Rough Beast’, and that was the correct decision because the cover is absolutely terrific. It really is. It took less than two weeks of back and forth between the designer and me. That was much quicker than I envisioned, and I have to thank the designer because she was terrific and responsive and made the process a fun experience.

            Of course, one wants input on something like this. At work the other day I pulled it up on a computer to show to some friends. They gathered around the computer with gratifying interest. They took turns looking closely at it and made a point to read the blurb on the back. Altogether, it was most satisfying to see their interest.

            I asked my friends if the cover would entice someone to pick up ‘What Rough Beast’ and look at the back. The response was affirmative. Why is that important? Well, the cover of a novel, or any book for that matter, has one mission in life. That mission is to stimulate a person to pick the book up, but not just pick it up. The mission is also to motivate the person to flip the book over and read the back. It’s the ‘back cover blurb’ that sells books. Here’s a little bit of trivia for you. Researchers say that a person spends about three seconds looking at the front cover and between twelve and fifteen seconds reading the ‘back cover blurb’. The back cover blurb gives the prospective reader a little bit of information about the story and the main character, just enough information, one hopes, to tease them into taking the book to the checkout. With the help of a wonderful friend and associate, I have a killer back cover blurb for ‘What Rough Beast’.

            I’m so happy.

            I’m trying to figure out how to post the cover so you can see it. It really is good. It captured the sense of ‘What Rough Beast’ quite nicely. In the process of producing the cover, I met a nice person, the designer, and made a new friend, and that’s always a pleasant thing.

            Okay, so what’s left? I think I mentioned that I’m following the advice of a publisher who said, ‘create a readership and a publisher will find you’, so I’ll offer the book myself while I pursue traditional publishing avenues. I’m still talking to someone about setting up my personal web site. I have no idea when that will be a reality, but I hope it’s soon. I’ll keep you posted.

            Thanks for your time.