The cover is here!

My first published story is getting closer to being on the virtual shelves. The cover came in a couple days ago.

The cover artists were one of the biggest reasons I went with The Wild Rose Press. During the publishing process, you fill out a form called Cover Art Sheets. In this you explain the premise, give links to covers you like, any design suggestions, and you say what the most important element is. I detailed out two alternate covers with a lot of instructions and even did a mock up of a cover. My critique partner (CP) asked with some amusement (she’s pubb’d with WRP), how much of my suggestions were used. Answer: none. Ha ha! Except for “the most important element,” which I said was the hot FBI agent.

The heroine on the cover looks contemporary. At first I was like, “Wait! I didn’t describe that outfit.” The intelligent people I surround myself with quickly pointed out the obvious. Yeah, Angela Anderson saved me from myself. I’m so happy with the cover.

You know, for a long time, I didn’t want to be published. When I announced this to one of my writing friends, she said, “I don’t know what to do with that.”  She had already fixed me up by helping me see my slump-du-jour might be because I didn’t like the story I was working on, letting me know I could just set it aside and move on. We don’t have to finish everything we start. But then I came out with that comment.

Not wanting to be published sounds crazy, but to me, when I looked at people who were published, it didn’t look fun to me. At the time, I had a demanding job, and being a published author looked like a lot more pressure and work and no fun. But I watched my CP’s experience with The Wild Rose Press for a couple years. Her experience looked SO FUN!!!! She even went to an author retreat at a ranch in Texas! (I get to go to the next one, next year. Very excited.) Her editor was nice. Tough but nice, encouraging. They got back to her. They were organized. Then she received her first cover and wow. Now it’s happening to me.

In conclusion, getting published with The Wild Rose Press is FUN!