One of the requirements of the Kindle Scout campaign is that the book must have a cover. In addition, one of the Author Q&A questions I could choose to answer in 300 characters (includes spaces) or fewer was “Tell us about the cover and the inspiration for it.” In 300 characters? Really? Read on and you will see why that was an impossible task.

 

When you don’t have a budget, a talented friend can save you.

Yes, my initial cover budget was zero dollars. What saved me was Bonnie Myrick Eaton, my friend and talented Photoshop guru. She spent many hours working through all my ideas, even the early ones that were truly unworkable. Those of you who have been following the blog may remember the empty picture frames. My idea was that the empty frame signified the missing father. The picture frame is one that held my grandmother’s picture, and the background is my kitchen cabinet door. It is easy to see why this didn’t work.

 

Not to give up to easily, Bonnie took a picture of one her frames and tried that. It still wasn’t quite right.

 

 

 

Old pictures and copyright woes

I can’t show you the next effort, but the cover was wonderful. Karen Overturf let me borrow two old photographs, and I used them as inspiration for my main characters, Lucy and Cordelia. I was ready to purchase the pictures and use them for the cover when I ran across a disturbing article titled “Copyright and the old family photo.” Besides explaining why a photo of one’s grandmother taken over 100 years ago may still be under copyright, the author includes a chart showing what photos may or may not be under copyright law. Since I had to swear to Kindle Scout that I had the rights to everything I submitted and I couldn’t do that with the photos of the young women, I had to pass on a wonderful cover.

A search for symbols

Next, Bonnie and I brainstormed for symbols of the fathers. We thought about pipes, pocket watches, and boots. I suggested an empty place at a dining table. Nothing seemed right. Finally, I realized we had been looking at fathers when we should be looking at daughters. The girls were traveling to be united with their fathers.

The stagecoach on the cover

I remembered a picture I had taken several years ago during a visit to Old Cowtown Museum in Wichita, Kansas. Since the girls were traveling by stagecoach, I saw this image as my best option. I sent the photo to Bonnie and she did her Photoshop magic. I also got permission from Old Cowtown Museum to use it. I wasn’t sure if I needed permission since I took the picture, but I wanted to be certain I wasn’t violating any laws. So ends the story of my search for a cover.

If you have not nominated For Want of a Father for publication, please do so. If you have, thank you for your support.