So here’s a first for me.
Those of you familiar with my work know my normal artistic tendencies, especially in the eBook and Print cover design arena. I’m big into the science fiction, action/adventure, and thriller genres, focusing on photo-surrealistic interpretations and visualizations of the authors’ tales. I love being able to take realistic elements and add in genre-specific nuances to bring the viewer to the edge of immersion… and then drag them over the threshold until they become part of the story or piece of artwork.
Not to toot my own horn, but I think I do pretty well in these genres overall.
So when Talia Farrow, an emerging writer in the Erotica genre, approached me about possibly working on a cover for her forthcoming short story, THE FIRST TIME, my first reaction was, “huh, now that’s something new.”
Now don’t get me wrong.
I have nothing against sexy or erotic artwork or cover designs. In fact, I’ve explored sensuality and sexuality in my pencil drawings and even in some of my own creative writing to various degrees. Violence, technology, sensuality… all of these elements have a place in the portrayal of realism in art and literature, giving the viewer something tangible that they can empathize with or correlate to their own experiences, and thereby giving them a hook into story or visual immersion.
No, I don’t have anything against erotica or sensuality.
It’s just that I hadn’t gone down that road in my publication cover designs.
Until now.
Once I got over my initial reaction, I realized that I could take the same approach with a cover of this caliber as I have with my other cover designs, only with more subtlety. Instead of using props and gimmicks, I realized that eroticism and sensuality was the vehicle by which I could create the sense of realism that would drag the viewer into the piece. After a little back and forth with the author, we dialed in the level of sexuality to convey a sense of the story without being overt about the subject matter or to give too much away.
The result of the collaboration is as you see below… a cover of smoldering desire laced with the subtlety of discovery.
Talia’s first short story, THE FIRST TIME, is available on Smashwords and potentially via other outlets in the near future. Head on over to Smashwords to get your copy today!
Note: Please keep in mind that the story is adult oriented and explicit.
