The Learning Process....

It's incredible what can be learned during the editing/publishing process. It almost makes me laugh a little to think that the easiest part of all of this was actually writing the book.  I say this because it feels like the editing is never ending and of course, the little things, such as the cover take time, to make perfect. 

I got some really great advice from my cousin, Eric, who just recently published his first novel (Harrow - you should check it out... it's fantastic!). Anyway, he told me that getting a sample copy always helped him with editing and so I decided this was what I would do.... what great advice. Not only would I get to check it over for any formatting issues and use it for final editing, but I could also see the finished product before it was out in the world and I was unable to get any take backs. Boy am I glad for that advice! 

Last weekend I posted what I believed would be THE cover for Harvest Moon... I showed it to all of you, proud of my choice and ready to see it up close and personal. Well, what happened when I got that very up close and personal copy was that I hated my cover choice. It looked all wrong in person, whereas on screen it looked beautiful. So I did some more research and find that the buying a standard license for a stock photo of my choosing was the route to go. Over the last couple days I have been scouring these photos for the "right one" and yesterday I found it.  

After last weeks debacle with the whole formatting issue of my cover and not getting to use my own fonts, I again decided to do a little more research.  After a while, I found that I could create my own one-piece cover, which would allow me to do whatever I wanted as long as I met the parameters for the book layout. This included figuring out the specs for the front cover, the back cover, the spine and in the book world, what they call the "bleed areas".  It took some time and a TON of patience, but I finally got it and was able to create what I believe it the best cover I have ever created....  

This cover is exactly what I wanted, but could not accomplish with the more rigid program and paying for the standard usage license of the photo was well worth it once I saw the quality of the finished cover.  Here's to the learning process and the statement that everything happens for a reason! 

So, here it is... 

THE OFFICIAL HARVEST MOON COVER! 

I would love to hear your comments and feedback....  

Thanks, 

Megan