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Wednesday, February 20, 2019

The 13th Floor Complete Collection Gets A Makeover!


Ah, the old cover. The one where I took an image of some stairs and photoshopped a silhouetted couple in it. Not horrible, but not that great either. I wouldn't call this an eye-catching cover any longer.

I've been wanting to change it for a while now, but I could not decide what I wanted to be on the cover. It had to scream paranormal romance. Researching covers, looking at hundreds of them, I came up with a list of what I should have on it.

1) Setting. Dark background. Don't let it overwhelm anything else on the cover. It can just be a faded partial bit.
2) Title/author. It should be easy to read in thumbnail form. Font is important. I had complaints about the font I used on the original cover. The style of it makes the letters uneven. I liked it, but some people thought it was just bad design.
3) Hunky man or dynamic couple. It's tough to find an image or images of a couple that work together for what you want. It's easier to go the hunky man route. But having a person or people on the cover is key. (Sidenote: usually having just a woman on the cover is more representative of urban fantasy than paranormal romance.)
4) Something paranormal. Lots of magical swirls or mist is popular.

Even with these guidelines, it was tough to figure out what to do. The book consists of six different novellas with various characters. I spent hours searching through image sites.

I finally decided I would feature either Marc (The Marquis) or Xan (The Dragonslayer). They are my two most popular heroes. And it was easier to find a dark haired muscle man than a blond one. Marc gets to represent the collection!

I don't know how pleased Marc was with the decision, especially when I knew immediately how I wanted to present him. I imagine some grump going on, but Mae would convince him to be a good sport about it.

I found the background at Pixabay and the model at Unsplash. These two are my favorite free image sites. Lots of variety and beautiful shots.

As I've leveled up my Photoshop skills, I've learned to layer, but I've also learned that if you can get away with a few layers, all the better. Simple and clean without so many things to distract the eyes.

Behold! The new cover!


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30 comments:

  1. Elizabeth SeckmanFebruary 20, 2019 at 2:31 AM

    I really enjoyed that series! The Marquis was my favorite, so I'm glad he won out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine RainsFebruary 20, 2019 at 10:47 AM

      Everyone is cheering for him, but he just grunts. *LOL*

      Delete
    2. ericOctober 1, 2019 at 7:23 PM

      i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
      or
      call/whatsapp:+2349057261346










      i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
      or
      call/whatsapp:+2349057261346

      Delete
  2. Alex J. CavanaughFebruary 20, 2019 at 6:32 AM

    Very cool new cover! I still need to finish the series, but I liked The Marquis best as well.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hilary Melton-ButcherFebruary 20, 2019 at 9:04 AM

    Hi Christine - I enjoyed the one book I read ... but love the new cover - it's strong ... cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
  4. Madeline Mora-SummonteFebruary 20, 2019 at 9:37 AM

    As someone who doesn't know much - anything?! - about the paranormal romance genre, this certainly feels paranormal to me, much more than the original. Well done!

    And I agree about less layers and keeping things simple.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine RainsFebruary 20, 2019 at 10:48 AM

      Thank you, Madeline! I often over-complicate things for myself. I need to tell myself to take it easier, and the result turned out well here.

      Delete
  5. L.G. KeltnerFebruary 20, 2019 at 11:13 AM

    This new cover is great! Very eye catching!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Author R. Mac WheelerFebruary 20, 2019 at 12:52 PM

    Good luck. This is so hard. Blurbs and covers...are killers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine RainsFebruary 20, 2019 at 1:20 PM

      Oh, don't I know it! You're very good with your covers. :)

      Delete
  7. Juneta keyFebruary 20, 2019 at 1:49 PM

    You are getting great at covers. Gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
  8. emaginetteFebruary 20, 2019 at 2:19 PM

    Very nice work. :-)

    Anna from elements of emaginette

    ReplyDelete
  9. krystal janeFebruary 20, 2019 at 10:04 PM

    I love Unsplash and Pixabay! ^_^

    Yay red mist and horns! The new font is definitely easier to read. Good job!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine RainsFebruary 21, 2019 at 12:01 PM

      Thank you, Krystal! I had to learn to get tricky on those image sites because sometimes what I want isn't exactly the word it is.

      Delete
  10. Cherie ReichFebruary 21, 2019 at 10:49 AM

    Love the new cover! And Marc will get over it. Hehe!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine RainsFebruary 21, 2019 at 12:02 PM

      Thank you, Cherie! He'll eventually forget about it. Hehehe!

      Delete
  11. AnonymousFebruary 22, 2019 at 11:35 AM

    The new cover looks great. Who cares if Marc whines a bit. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  12. MarkFebruary 26, 2019 at 2:49 PM

    Very cool that you chose to revamp it, both are good of course! :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Meradeth HoustonFebruary 27, 2019 at 12:46 PM

    Such an awesome makeover! I love it! Also, you have some seriously impressive Photoshop skills :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Heather R. HoldenMarch 1, 2019 at 4:45 AM

    Aw, the 13th Floor! Have always adored the original cover for this collection, but the new one is just as great, and definitely has a paranormal romance vibe. Love how Marc gets to represent the collection now--The Marquis was the first book I ever read of yours and instantly made me a fan. ^_^

    ReplyDelete
  15. Sherry EllisMarch 4, 2019 at 11:28 AM

    Very cool! You're really good at coming up with cover designs!

    ReplyDelete
  16. cleemckenzieMarch 5, 2019 at 12:41 PM

    Big change and all for the better! Covers are so important, aren't they? Congrats on seeing your project through, Christine.

    ReplyDelete
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  19. ericOctober 1, 2019 at 7:22 PM

    i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
    or
    call/whatsapp:+2349057261346










    i am ERIC BRUNT by name. Greetings to every one that is reading this testimony. I have been rejected by my wife after three(3) years of marriage just because another Man had a spell on her and she left me and the kid to suffer. one day when i was reading through the web, i saw a post on how this spell caster on this address AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com have help a woman to get back her husband and i gave him a reply to his address and he told me that a man had a spell on my wife and he told me that he will help me and after 3 days that i will have my wife back. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my wife. Thanks for helping me Dr Akhere contact him on email: AKHERETEMPLE@gmail.com
    or
    call/whatsapp:+2349057261346

    ReplyDelete

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