MY COVER ART IS HERE!!

This is a very exciting day for me. I finally have the pleasure of revealing the cover art for my MG/YA novel, Michaela's Gift.


I've had the art for a bit, but I wanted to savor it in private for a few days - just a few - before making it public. 


After much deliberation, I chose not to picture my main character on the cover. That was my original intent, but then I decided that it often works to our advantage to allow our readers to form their own visualization of our characters. It opens the mind to so many more possibilities when every reader is allowed the freedom to create a little something of their own in our work.


Of course, I had to put Blackie on the cover. Since she's described in such detail, I couldn't leave much to the imagination with her. One black Newfoundland looks pretty much like every other black Newfoundland, or Neuffie, as we like to dub them. They certainly have their own unique personalities and quirks that sets each of them apart, but that's a bit difficult to reveal in a picture.


Musa's cover artist, Kelly Shorten, created exactly what I wanted with the castle in the background. The color is perfect, and the fact that it's partially obscured delights me no end. The turrets have the exact look I wanted, and the position at the highest point in the scene was crucial to the image I had in mind.


I couldn't be more pleased with everyone I've worked with at Musa Publishing. The fact that Kelly willingly made several changes to help me find the exact image I wanted for my debut novel makes me feel even more comfortable with the decision I made to submit my manuscript to them.