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I'm currently working on two novels. The first, I've been working on for two years now and the closer I get to getting finished, the more work I realize I still need to do. I can see the end now closer than ever, though, so that's good. The second book, I've only been working on for about 6 months and I'm only about a quarter of the way through. I'm still working out some plotting issues with that one. They are both in totally different genres. I'm also mostly finished on a third fun book which will be a series of books that tie into my other books. It's written as a nonfiction how-to book but is totally made up. That one is almost done.
I love 3D and how I've been able to visualize my characters and scenes in my books. The idea of being able to do my own covers gives me a thrill and I love that I'll have total control over the whole process.
Wow, you are busy. You're working on two novels--simultaneously--that's crazy! But it sounds like fun.
What you wrote about 3D is exactly how I feel about it. And sometimes, after I render a scene I may even change it in my novel's rough draft!
3D is so inspirational. I have literally pulled entire new series out of a character's face. Music can be that way too. Any tool that helps us cross the finish line is a good one! Chocolate, coffee, wine, 3D...LOL
Oh yeah, 3d is amazing for visualizations.
I'm busy creating a medieval city that I'm hoping to eventually get into the Daz store. One of the buildings is an inn, and while I was creating it I was reminded of an inn that my characters visited in my first book. It then struck me that if I made a few small changes, I could turn it into that inn, and turn the city into the city from my novel. My idea is that I can eventually create a small video where I can take my readers on a tour of the place (perhaps upload it to Unity 3d and release it in VR!). For example two of the characters stayed in a dingy room just off the kitchens with tiny windows opening onto the pavement, and I can actually show people what it looked like. I thought what a cool little bonus for my readers, and I'm doing it in Blender, so it's not even costing me anything but my time. Without 3d, there is no way you'd be able to do that without spending a LOT of money.
I agree, I also love the cover design part of it. Before, I had to use stock photos, and try to match them all up hoping to find the right angle and lighting, but now you can create an entire scene and take full control of every inch of it. It's amazing.
One reason I got into DAZ, aside from being able to do my own covers, was the potential for doing my own book reels and to create videos that would allow readers to visit the places where my characters' stories take place. The potential for extras for readers is mind blowing if books or series have their own websites. I have a lot of ideas that I've never seen authors utilize that I think would be awesome. I think if more authors got involved in 3D and used it to it's fullest potential, it would really give their readers and an amazing journey into the books they love to read.
I totally agree! One of my projects for next year is to create animated book trailers. I already have them mocked up in my head, along with the royalty free music to go with them. I need to build a better computer just for that. This year I'm researching what tools I want to use and nailing down the 3D and digital art skills.
I also end up with a ready concept in my head, before I have the chance and some spare time to fire up DAZ and do it. I strongly recommend Iray rendering as the main base for adding other tools and ideas, since it is relatively easy to use, and quality boost it gives to visuals is quite dramatic. And ughm.... music, and particulary RF music, is my main thing, so, I end up using my own :)))
My novels basically take a year. Some of that is through having to maintain a day job for the purposes of eating, paying bills etc (unimportant things . . .) and some of that is from being a slow writer. I read of people being able to crank out fully edited novels in three months or less; I couldn't do that. Heck, I haven't even succeeded at NaNo, despite several attempts (anyone doing Camp NaNo this April?)
It's been a year since I wrote anything seriously, mainly because I've been focused on making stuff for Daz3d, but I'm sure the balance will reestablish itself eventually and I'll find more time to write.
I like the idea of an animated book trailer, but I need to get down and write the book first! I'm thinking of changing genres - maybe some scifi . . .
@TangoAlpha I think @Llynara is thinking about doing it. She's done a few of the camps. I've only ever done the big on in November. I'm looking at the possibility of doing the on in April. I haven't completely decided yet. I have lots of story ideas but I'd have to think about what to work on and whether I want to take on another project. A lot that thought will be determined by how much I manage to get done on my current projects in the next month. I might hold off until the one in the summer.
@TangoAlpha I have no idea how you manage to work full time, being a PA and a writer! Wowzas. And your stuff is awesome, by the way.
Yes, did Camp Nano last July and loved it. Definitely doing it again in April and July. Would love company!
@SoundLufs - I have six original songs in my first book, Crazy in the Heart. I really need to record them and put them on my website so people know what they sound like. When I hear music, I see stories. When I write, I end up hearing music. It's weird but it's all tangled together. And then add the 3D art in there too. So many ideas, so little time!
I don't! That's the trouble. Being a PA is now my day job. Which is great, but I habitually work 14-16 hour days and there's no brainpower left at the end for writing. To an extent that's largely set to continue while I'm establishing a track record and decent back catalogue, cos I'm still at the stage where I feel like if I slow down I won't make my (admittedly self-imposed) deadlines, won't get paid, and hence starve, lose the car, get kicked out on the streets etc. But I still *want * to write. Just need to get back into the habit without letting the other stuff slip . . .
NaNo could be a good incentive for that.
Next couple of days I'm mostly rendering promos for my next set, which gives me some down time while the computers are tied up. Could be an opportunity to get some serious plotting done . . .
Not wierd at all, but alas, its a hefty task to realize as many as 6 songs, and make them sound as intended.
This is what I tell my students: Producing art for books -- whether a cover, interior drawings, or whatever -- can be a slippery slope. It's easy to use it as an excuse for writer's block. IMO, if you find yourself always preferring to dabble with some scene in D|S rather than spend the afternoon finishing a chapter, you've slid down that slope.
This is a "demon" created largely by the accessibility of digital art. There are few writers who began an interest in watercolor or oil just so they could do their own covers. Those that do typically had that interest and skillset already. Most mainstream publishers demur when an author wants to provide their own cover, some flat-out refusing, so author-created covers is something you see primarily with self/indy publishing. Of course, there are plenty of writer-illustrators as well. These are usually children's book authors, or writers (like me) who illustrate their non-fiction works.
I'm not saying stay away from doing the art, just be careful when it repeatedly takes you from the writing. Each requires a discipline. Once you allow that discipline to break because you have an escape valve, it becomes too easy to make excuses for why you're not finishing your book. An unfinished novel is the saddest story there is.
On the other hand, by playing with art -- 3D or otherwise -- you might discover you like it better than writing. It's okay to mix-and-match avocations as often as you like.
I get a lot of my writing done while the computer is rendering. Since I insist on using Iray and my computer renders CPU only, most of my renders take a long time. Perfect for getting the writing in there. My problem is staying out of the forums. :) I have to seriously talk myself out of coming here during my peak writing times which is late at night, usually after my boys are all in bed. :)
I can't tell ya'll how many times I've slid down that slope hitting every rock and branch on the way! But you're right, it requires tremendous discipline and determination to claw my way away from 3D and back to strictly writing. Setting up a scene and rendering it is its own reward. While writing sometimes, can be lonely, boring work.
I try not to mix the two. "Concept Art" is something I do very early in the process, like at the outlining stage, or at latest a couple of weeks before starting NaNoWriMo, or else it's something I do after the first draft is done, mostly for fun (I don't think I'm cover art levels of good yet). It's partly a question of having only so much creative energy to go around, and partly the fact that too much time mousing around DAZ Studio leaves my dominant hand/arm too sore to write.
I used to have an old Macbook that ran Scrivener and not much else, and I could sit in bed or on the sofa or at a table in a nearby cafe and just write, with little in the way of distraction. Sadly that machine is no more, and I'm restricted to my main work computer, which naturally is always running Carrara and Modo and DS, Photoshop, Substance Painter and on and on. And because this is where I habitually "work" rather than "write" - it's a kind of muscle memory - I sit down at my desk and the work flows, but the writing doesn't.
Next payday I think I'm going to start scouring ebay for a replacement macbook . . .
TangoAlpha: I sometimes dictate to my smartphone, usually when my wrists are bothering me or I feel like lounging on the sofa instead of sitting at the computer. I spend a lot of time cleaning up typos afterwards, but it beats not writing at all.
This is good advice. I try to work around that problem by keeping my writing to the early morning hours. Sometimes I'll do audio notes in Evenote on the drive to work if I'm on a roll, then transcribe them over my lunch hour. When I get home, I'm ready to do art. That separation has worked well. The words don't flow in the evening, and I want some eye candy by then! I need to feed my soul beautiful things, which is probably why I spend too much time in the store looking at promo art, LOL.
@TangoAlpha - I didn't realize you were a full time PA. Congrats and that must be nerve wracking at times. I'm looking at transitioning home in the next few months and it's more than slightly terrifying.
Still playing with these and still mulling over the pre-made book cover market. Supposing that I can make covers of sufficient quality, and that there is sufficient demand for something of this kind, the prices in that market are very low for the time it takes to make these. Of course, those prices (around just $70 for good ones - there are some priced higher but I'm not sure how well they sell) are based on photo-manipulations with stock images but I suspect that is now the price people expect and are prepared to pay, so I might be better off doing some extra hours at the office (as soul destroying as that is) and continue with these as a pleasant pass time.
Anywho, I did this a few nights ago for a bit of a play around with lighting. The experiment that I really liked though, called The Head Count might be against the TOS here (I'm going back to horror at the moment, and lots of severed heads) so I'll not post it.
I do love your pulp covers! I haven't sold any of my stock covers yet, but I have 6 up now. They say in the book market that it takes 10 stories to start selling, maybe it's the same for the cover market.
Here is my latest:
In the case of covers, I think that having a large portfolio available would make a big difference for getting noticed buy customers. More than that though, the premade cover market is a scattershot strategy, so the larger your selection, the more likely one of your covers will fit what a customer is looking for.
I had aimed to have at least fifty covers that I'm happy enough with to sell before I consider submitting them to a store, and while I'm approaching that now, I'm not happy with the variety that I have. I've not really targetted the selection to the market and that's something I'm going to have to address with a little research. The problem is that while finding out what subject matter is popular with readers would not be difficult, what I need to know is what subject matter is popular with writers and publishers - after all, they are the customers, not their intended readership.
Ah well, for now, here are a few more.
These four are my second experiment in re-using a scene for more than one picture. Two covers for each of two scenes, with each image rendered from a different camera and with different lighting.
Finally, another thriller.
Absolutely fantastic! I don't even like horror and I want to read them all! lol. Maybe you should just write the stories to go with the covers, and sell that!
I've done a few more than this but won't post them here as there's a bit of gore and I'm not sure where the line is drawn here. Anyway, I have posted them to my gallery (linked in the signature). I really do need to do more with sharks - I certainly have enough of them in the runtime.
I have some time off this week, so I hope to do some work on alternative layouts for branding and logos.
Pricing is hard, I have played with doing a few of these. I use mostly my own photos so it's not like a bunch of other people can overuse the stock, it's 100% exclusive...... Maybe I should just sell the stock, I could probably make more selling commercial rights multiple times then exclusive rights once, unless I get in with a publishing company. As a photographer I made $400 a cover working for a small calendar company, 100,000 copies, 1 year, world wide, non exclusive, one time rights..... I kept my copyrights and sold them the same photo multiple times.
I'm hearing nightmare stories from other book cover artists and huge copyright violations made by self published authors - partly the artists own fault - ALWAYS get a contract signed - still many these self published people seem to know nothing of art copyright and how it works. Like I said I have made a few book covers, I'll attach one, but have not tried to sell them yet.....
Photo composite made with all my own photos
Love them!
That really is a stunning cover!
I have also heard some scare stories, not just about copyright violation but also unrealistic expectations on the designer's time. A friend of mine used to take commissions for covers in the early days of self publishing - before pre-mades were a thing - and he had to stop as writers expected so much work for so little money, taking umbrage when when he had to draw a line. It does put me off a bit but I need some money toward a new computer, so I'm willing to give this a go.
However, any plans to try and sell anything are on hold at the moment. I've been trying to contact the font designers to clarify their copyright attribution requirements - as well as to chase up an order I've not received - for several weeks without success. I've tried emails, their site contact form, and even post. I may cave in this week and phone long distance to Texas (I'm in the UK) - otherwise, I'll have to cut my losses and try to source suitable fonts from someone I can contact.
The font thing is a pain, I have just started looking onto it. I'm going to have to go through all my fonts and see what ones are commercial and what ones are not. I think I'm just going to delete all non commercial fonts. I like this site https://www.fontsquirrel.com/ everything here is free to use commercially.
Ever since my last computer rebuild, I've been very careful only to install fonts that are free to use commercially. That way I know that if it's in my fonts menu, I can use it.
That's a task I went through myself. I had a lot of fonts from magazine cover discs and had to dig out all of them to check the licensing - very few of them stayed on my system.
Almost all of the fonts that I've been using for this project though, have been purchased from The Scriptorium (Font Forge), so I'm in the clear to use them but when checking their usage agreement, I found the copyright attribution requirements a little unclear, so I can't go ahead until I've clarified that. I had already been trying to contact them over an order that wasn't completed back on the 5th Feb (which is odd - the one time I had to contact them in the past, they were very quick to get back to me), so I'm going to try email again today and if I haven't heard anything by Friday, I'll make the phone call long distance. Failing that, its going to have to be Paypal for a refund on the order they didn't complete and cutting my losses on the past ones.
If I do manage to get it sorted out, I'll mention it here, as otherwise I think their products are excellent - and I've not found anyone else doing quite the same thing for pulp fonts.