Cat's Corner

How You Can Use a Road Map to Avoid Bumps on the Cowriting Road

9/16/2020

Cowriting isn’t like a jolly walk in the park.
It’s hard work,
a collaborative business
than can be a fiasco
if not managed well from the start.

I know. Sigh.

My first cowriting adventure
imploded and haunts me still.

However
since partnering with Rosie Russell on our tale for tweens,
Just Between Sam and Me, shameless plug for our new book [wink]
I picked up tons of cowriting tips that helped
Rosie and I succeed.

I share our learnings
in a conversation about
co-authoring
with fellow Tar Heel blogger Carol Baldwin.

Rosie and I used a Statement of Work (SOW), a road map to hash out our writing roles, royalty distributions, taxes, and other potential bumps
on the cowriting road
before we wrote a jot.

How You Can Use a Road Map to Avoid Bumps on the Cowriting Road ~ catmichaelswriter.com

A tale for tweens – coming 2 December 2020

You'll find that in-depth discussion on Carol Baldwin’s blog
HERE

Plus, when you click over to Carol's blog,
you can enter a giveaway.

One lucky winner
will receive a FREE advance copy of
Just Between Sam and Me.
Book giveaway ends 21 September

Still curious about cowriting?

Thinking of starting a collaboration?

Download your FREE
Statement of Work
template that Rosie and I used
to help us succeed with our collaboration.

Start the discussion
to guide your
cowriting journey!

Click here to download your FREE 3-page co-w riting roadmap

btw.... Miss part 1 of our co-authoring convo with Carol Baldwin?

Visit my YouTube channel to catch us in a video convo
about how Rosie and I began our writing partnership.

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Long Journey to Create Perfect Cover Art for a Children’s Book

9/3/2020

26 Comments

Covid’s got us locked down and staying close to home. But imagination can take us anywhere. Are you up for a literary Photo Walk? All the way from summer’s green-drenched country roads in North Carolina to autumn tints in rural Missouri?

Start your journey in Carolina with me to fetch the perfect cover art for my newest tale for tweens, Just Between Sam and Me, launching 2 December 2020.

Then click over to Midwestern countryside for cowriter Rosie Russell's blog at the end of this post. She's got a sweet cover reveal video just for YOU.

btw...more book cover art fun for you with links at the end
... animated book cover vid from Auden Johnson in the Big Apple
... slow build reveals using images from Sandra Bennet from Down Under.

Long Journey to Create Perfect Cover Art for a Children’s Book ~ catmichaelswriter.com

Cowriter Rosie Russell and I
virtual-brainstorm cover concepts for weeks
for our new book for 8 to 12-year olds.

We want the perfect image
to engage young readers.

We nail our back cover quickly ...

Back Cover: "Just Between Sam and Me" Coming 2 – December 2020

... but
the front image remains elusive.

Eureka!!!!!
We finally find that consummate image!

Artist Irene A. Jahns is on it.

Days pass
until it's time for me to fetch Irene's cover rendering
at her family’s farm
30 miles from my North Carolina home.

Blazing heat and stifling humidity
on this summer morning.

AC cranked high in the car,
I speed along the highway
until it siphons off onto two-lane roads
snaking between towering stands of kudzu that blot the sky.

Roadside kudzu

Argh.
Despite my trusty GPS,
I miss the turn.

I circle back
and bounce down the dirt lane
to Irene in the farmhouse ahead.

Irene's family farm at the end of a rural country lane

We agree on a Covid safe-distancing spot
to talk and exchange the cover.

Best.
Art Hand-off
Location.
EVER!

Gotta love safe-distancing poolside

We sit opposite each other on pool chairs.
A third chair between us keeps us 6 feet apart.
Irene spreads her drawing pencils and canvas
on the empty place between us.

Two black farm cats nose around to see what’s up.
After all, our titular SAM is an orange tabby.

Maybe those real cats sense a kindred spirit
with our fictional feline [wink].

Artist Irene A. Jahns

As Irene and I discuss finishing touches,
art-challenged me watches
as she adds her last strokes.

I’m fascinated by the textured canvas.
It lovingly laps up Irene's watercolors.

Dabs of color here.

A few drops of water there
from a kitchen water glass
swished onto her brush.

The cover comes to life before my life!

How does she do that?!?!?!?

Half hour later,
the completed canvas drying and protected in my car,
I’m speeding home.

Can’t wait to send Rosie a snapshot,
and
deliver the canvas to our graphic designer,
who will work her magic
turning Irene's watercolors into our cover.

And we

can’t wait

to show that finished cover to

YOU!

Ready to continue your literary blog cruise?

Meet Rosie Russell next in Missouri
and catch her cover reveal video for
Just Between Sam and Me

It will be a cool autumn afternoon when you arrive.
Rosie’s waiting for you on the front porch.

Rumor has it
she may serve up
her famous country-fried steak
if you want to stay supper.
(It's our main character's fave meal)

Hope you enjoy our cover
and
Midwestern hospitality
with Rosie Russell.

Click HERE
to continue your blog cruise.

Tale for tweens: Coming 2 December 2020

More Book Cover Art Journeys

My #Gr8Blogs writerly pals from around the globe have fab book cover stories, too. Check 'em out below!

... animated book cover creation vid from Auden Johnson in the Big Apple HERE
... book image series builds cover excitement from Sandra Bennet from Down Under HERE

YOUR TURN
Are you art-challenged like me? To be honest, I was terrified I’d smear Irene’s watercolors before our graphic designer, Kayte, could work her magic to convert the original canvas into a high-resolution jpg cover.

Or does drawing come naturally to you? Is painting or coloring-in a relaxing outlet for you, especially during Covid-19? Please share your thoughts in the comment section.