Some Advanced Notes On A Cover Reveal

Hi lovely friends!

I feel like I start every email these days with 'I'm so excited' and it must surely get old but at the same time there's genuinely no containing how over the moon I am to be revealing the cover for my debut novel 'Some Advanced Notes On Practical Dreaming', as created by the incredible artist Mia Minnis. I still cannot believe I got to work with such an insanely talented artist, or the way she literally knocked it out of the park at every single opportunity. Even her initial ideas and outline sketches were stunning, let alone this truly beautiful final version.

In fact Mia didn't just create a gorgeous cover but a whole beautiful spread as well. I really, really wanted a wrap around design like this one and just didn't think I would have the budget but Mia so kindly found a way of making it work and I will not ever be able to express my gratitude to her.

Since working with Mia has been one of the highlights of my publishing journey so far, I thought I'd share a little bit about what the process looked like for us. I started researching artists at the end of August/beginning of September, not really expecting to commission the cover straight away but wanting to be organised in case people's commissions were really booked up. I had pretty open parameters for what I wanted in a cover, so the shortlist I came up with was mostly just artists whose posts on Instagram made me say something along the lines of 'that's really fucking sick'. After a few weeks of searching around I had a list of about five artists, and figured I'd send out some emails, just to see if anyone was free and up for the commission. Mia, however, was always always the very top of my list.

I discovered her work through out mutual favorite author Ava Reid, and something about it instantly grabbed me. I felt like her really distinctive style would be a great fit for SANOPD, which is also a book which kind of sits between different genres and styles in a fun way, and I knew the amazing gift she has for painting with shadow and light contrast would perfectly reflect the book's tone and atmosphere too. Every single person I emailed was so talented and so lovely but I was just hoping against hope the whole time that Mia would be up for the commission. She emailed me back saying that she'd love to work together when I was visiting my family in the USA and I think the final clincher for me was that she was kind enough to say that, having read the sample chapters I'd sent her, even if she didn't get the commission she'd still be supporting SANOPD because it just felt like exactly her kind of book. I knew that getting to work with someone who was not only super talented but was also enthusiastic about the book itself was just going to be the best opportunity ever.

The idea for the cover came to me really out of the blue when I was in the USA. I can't really tell you where it came from, just that it instantly felt just right for me. It's an image pulled from a really pivotal part of the book and one that I think sums it up so well; the juxtaposition between Sam in her modern outfit, with the background, posing and the sword I think is such a great indicator of the book's aesthetic and tone. But, I have no visual imagination, had no idea if it would look good and also am awful at explaining things to people. If you think Mia did a good job just from seeing the cover, take a look at what I gave her to work with, i.e. absolutely nothing.

Honestly my favorite part of this process, though, has been all the details that Mia suggested, or added in herself. The shadow across the back cover was her idea and the mirror that Sam is lying next to was something she put in herself, way back in the initial sketches. Part of the Auchter House entrance exam is to bring either a sword, a mirror or a ring out of your dreams. This crops up in the second chapter of the book, which Mia had read, but I'd never mentioned it to her in our emails, and she'd worked out the connection between the mirror and the sword herself. Looking at the sketch and realising how much attention she'd paid to what I'd written was a really special moment for me, as the whole process has been. I can't wait to work with Mia again and right now the plan is to go to her for all my covers, for as long as I have indie work that she and I both feel she'd be a good fit for. We've already agreed on a commission for later on this year and I'm already so excited to see it and to share it with you all!

If you see the cover out in the wild on social media it would mean so much to me if you could like and share it, if nothing else so that Mia gets the love she very much deserves. Other than that, that's it from me for now for quite a while - next you guys will hear from me will probably be the start of April, when I'll be letting you know all about how pre orders are going to work and to give you early access to the first pre order giveaway.

For now, take care of yourselves!

Clarey