Showing posts with label Blondie's Custom Book Covers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Blondie's Custom Book Covers. Show all posts

Sunday, March 5, 2017

Blondie and the #BookCover #Podcast


Suzanne's original book cover designed by Blondie's Custom Book Covers featuring
photo's we orchestrated for Suzanne.

I'm excited to bring you this podcast featuring Suzanne Kelman, Jody Smyers, and I where we discuss the elements that make a great book cover. My expertise comes from our book cover business, Blondie's Custom Book Covers where Jody is my book cover designer and professional photographer, and Blondie's secret weapon for our amazing cover designs.

In this episode we discuss Suzanne's first book cover that we designed, as an example of what elements to consider when hiring someone to create a book cover for you. As the very first thing your readers will see, your cover is a crucial part of packaging your book.  

For Suzanne's cover, we went above and beyond your typical design strategy by providing a custom photo shoot with six models and numerous props all orchestrated by Suzanne's cover vision. 

You can see the new cover designed by the publisher that picked her up after her book was released, Lake Union Press, an arm of Amazon publishing here.  Since being picked up my Lake Union, the world has embraced her novel and she has become an international best selling novelist. If you haven't already, you should check out The Rejected Writer's Book Club. 

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Monday, June 20, 2016

Jody Smyers and KJ Waters -- Episode 18 -- Blondie and the Book Cover

My book cover business partner, Jody Smyers, and I spent a little time chatting with Suzanne Kelman on our very first podcast recording. It wasn't our first podcast aired but it was the first one we recorded when we were just setting up the podcast last summer. We've improved a lot, but it is still an interesting look at how Jody and I work together in my book cover business, Blondie's Custom Book Covers.


Jody Smyers and KJ Waters -- Episode 18 -- Blondie and the Book Cover:


Jody Smyers and KJ Waters — Episode 18 — Blondie and the Book Cover

January 16, 2016
Ever wonder what it takes to create the perfect book cover? In this week's podcast Suzanne Kelman (the Brit) interviews photographer Jody Smyers and our very own KJ Waters (Blondie) about their company Blondie's Customs Book Covers. In this special podcast we explore all the elements that make up the perfect cover and how important first impressions are. If you are an Indie published author or considering going Indie with your book, you don't want to miss this episode










Connect with me:
Website: http://www.kjwaters.com http://www.blondieandbrit.com/ http://www.blondiebooks.com/ 
Twitter: kamajowa 
Facebook: Facebook profile 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=217401576&trk
Blog: http://kjwatersauthor.blogspot.com
Instagram: @kamajowa
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kamajowa/
iTunes:

Other Twitter: @BlondieandBrit @Blondiebookcov


 BLOW -- A SHORT STORY

Linker link: myBook.to/BlowbyKjWaters
Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Blow----Short-Story-Waters-ebook/dp/B01DYDFO6Y/
Barnes and Noble:BN
iTunes: iTunes
BLURB:
Caught between a hurricane and a deadly secret, Rick Harris struggles against a ticking clock when the wrong people show up at his door looking for shelter. As the storm closes in wreaking havoc on Pensacola, Florida, he has to make a choice between saving their lives and exposing a secret that could cost him everything.
  
STEALING TIME

Book Linker: myBook.to/StealingTimebyKJWaters
Barnes and Noble: BN
iTunes: iTunes
Blurb:
Stealing Time is a "Breathtakingly original" time travel adventure that will keep you on the edge of your seat. As Hurricane Charley churns a path of destruction towards Orlando, Florida, Ronnie Andrews and her best friend, Stephanie McKay, scramble to prepare for the storm. Ronnie seeks shelter at her boyfriend’s weather lab while Steph heads back to her house.

During the peak of the storm Ronnie is hurtled back in time to eighteenth-century London where she is caught in a web of superstition, deception, and lies in a life and death struggle to return to her own time.

Steph is thrust into the middle of the hurricane, but it quickly turns into a living nightmare as she is faced with losing everything. Stealing Time: Book 1 in the Stealing Time Trilogy. 


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Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Fitness Calendar -- Men of Steel Voting on the Cover



Men of Steel Calendar 
Featuring the Models from 
Blondie's Custom Book Covers.

We are in the final stages of designing the fitness calendar and I would love your input on the front cover.  Please use the voting tool to choose the design you like the best.

The calendar features a few of the models from my company, Blondie's Custom Book Covers. The front cover features Zach, a physique show competitor who was in the Marine Corps. 

 All photography and design work was done by my business partner, Jody Smyers. You can see more of his work here. All art direction, model wrangling, marketing and business development was done by me.

 For more info on our book cover business check out our website here.Blondie's Custom Book Covers.





Cover 1


Cover 2

Cover 3

Cover 4
Cover 5
Cover 6
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Sunday, October 5, 2014

Blondie in the Stream of Consciousness

Blondie in the Stream of Consciousness

Stealing Time

I wanted to post a quick blog to let you know what's going on with me and why I've not been on here much lately. First of all I've been working feverishly on my novel. After nine years I'm finally inches away from releasing Stealing Time. At the moment it is at the editors. So far the feedback from my beta readers has been spectacular, way beyond what I had hoped. Here are a few of the comments:
For more on my book listen to my Interview here!


 "Gripping! I can't wait for it to be released so I can have a autographed copy."

 "I stayed up almost the entire night because I couldn't put it down." 

 "A real page turner."

 "Such an original concept!"
If all goes as planned (and Lord knows that's not been the case so far) I plan to have it on preorder on Amazon mid-November and available on ebook and print by the holiday season.

Here is a quick synopsis:

Three days ago Ronnie Andrews moved to Florida just in time for her birthday. With Hurricane Charlie barreling up the coast towards Central Florida, Ronnie takes shelter in her boyfriend's weather lab where they ride out the storm and celebrate her special day. During the peak of the storm Ronnie inexplicably leaps through time landing her in 1752 London. With no clue how she arrived there, she has to find her way back to 2004 before time catches up with her.

I'm also working hard on a website redesign, a book trailer, and of course my social media presence. I just found out I'm ranked in the top 5% for social media users. Can you believe it? At least I have something to show for all my time wasted...I mean spent (wisely) on social media.

Already I have an amazing track for my book trailer composed especially for me by the ridiculously talented BrotheRabbit. He is available for your custom track needs and has a huge array of really unusual and funky music. Check him out on youtube here. I will be working on putting the trailer together in the next few weeks.

Blondie's Custom Book Covers

 Secondly, In January I started a business called Blondie's Custom Book Covers where I help authors create high quality covers for their books. Please check out our website at www.blondiebooks.com on twitter at @BlondiesBookCov and on facebook https://www.facebook.com/BlondiesCustomBookCovers. I'd be honored if you'd follow us.

Blondie's Custom Book Covers

I'm working with a professional photographer, Jody Smyers, who is extremely talented in photography, lighting, night shots, time lapse, and of course photoshop. You can see his work here http://jodysmyersphotography.com

We have several covers in process now that I cannot wait to show you, but for now here are a few we created for three authors who have recently released their books.  Please show them some love and check out their work on amazon.

The first four are from author Roger Grubbs. They were shot on location with Roger working closely with us to chose the setting, models, wardrobe and all other details of the shoot, and then the photoshop elements to create a stunning cover. What do you think? I couldn't be happier with the results. Let me know if there is anything we can do for you.

Buy it here!


Buy it here!


 Buy it here!

Buy it here!


We recently completed a travel series for author and editor Jeri Walker-Bickett. Check out one of the covers we did for her here:
Buy it here!

The latest release that Blondie's Custom Book Covers created is a very funny and touching book called The Rejected Writer's Book Club by Suzanne Kelman. This was by far the most complicated cover we've done so far. We found five models that fit the characters, created their look, and found a location and props to suit the storyline. The photoshoot was a blast with this fun group of ladies and Suzanne joined us via Facetime to help direct the shoot. We made a cake inspired by one of the chapters and shot that as well with the letters and teacup. After all of that we then took to photoshop and put all of the elements together creating the light playful mood of the book with the colors and layout.

Buy it here!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you stay tuned for my upcoming novel release! I would love for you to follow my blog and answer the questions below in the comment section.

1. What covers do you like the most? I would love for you to let me know if you were interested enough to purchase one of these books.

2. Do you think you might pre order my novel? If so what would you be more interested in, paperback or ebook?

3. I will send the first two chapters to anyone who preorders the book in early November, just to get you started on the story. Just let me know how to send them to you.


KJ WATERS

Please check out my social media links below. 

I would love to hear from you! Please take a minute and leave a message for me in the comments section below. 

Contact Me
  • Check out my website:       www.kjwaters.com and stay tuned for a complete redesign coming soon. 

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