Category: fun

Creativity options

Book Discussion

So The first thing I will talk about is Covers.

Obviously I use Canva. I also use the feature that Barnes and Nobles has. I upload the front and rear cover and get the spine from them. The cover option in Canva is slightly too small. The dimensions of the cover need to be 1600×2268 and the base size is 1400x…

The temptation to use the templates should be avoided. Everyone sees those. I made the mistake of using the template with no modification once. There were at least 50 other books with the same cover. If you see a cover in the templates that you love…modify it and make it suit your book more. The rear cover should not be busy. You want your blurb to be visible.

Amazon has templates that give you a pdf cover. You merely add your image. The easiest way is to use Libre Draw and remove the text and lines. These will flag as unembedded fonts if you don’t. Then save it directly as a PDF. This is what you want for the feature at Barnes and nobles. They ask you for the title, the author name, and the text color and spine color. They have a limited font selection but it is a good one.

If you are good with art programs(such as adobe or gimp) you can do the spine yourself. I just don’t know how to get the text to lay right on my own, so I use the tool.

The idea seems to be floating around that you have to match your cover to the genre. There is some cases where I would argue that you should personalize the cover to match the book. If you do, then it should fit the genre.

Now I am of the belief that doing the creation process does not have to be expensive. That being said, I do have the pro version of Canva. It costs me $13 a month to have my pick of the photos. Could I do it on the free version? Yes but I enjoy the options. Otherwise I will be recommending freeware or software that is not costly.

Artsy Fartsy Thursday

Artsy Fartsy Thursday
Arsty Fartsy Thursday

Titled: Wind in Flight
Artist: Serenity Rose
medium: Digital Landscape
Programs Used: Krita

So I decided that I needed some new brushes in Krita to play with. This was my test art. I like how it turned out.

Wednesday Whispers

Serena Mossgraves
Serena Mossgraves

Tuesday Tunes

Lyrics –

Who’s sorry now?
Who’s sorry now?
Whose heart is achin’ for breakin’ each vow?
Who’s sad and blue? Who’s cryin’ too?
Just like I cried over you

Right to the end
Just like a friend
I tried to warn you somehow
You had your way
Now you must pay
I’m glad that you’re sorry now

Right to the end
Just like a friend
I tried to warn you somehow
You had your way
Now you must pay
I’m glad that you’re sorry now

My 2 cents –

I notice the celebrity deaths…I can’t help it. I remember listening to Connie Francis as a teen. (One of my Aunts really liked the 50’s rock.) I come by my eclectic music tastes naturally. She wasn’t one of the ones that I listened to relentlessly but I did like a few of the songs. I cannot help but pay tribute to that. May she rest well and her memory be a blessing.

Monday Poetry

Poetry




Sunday Reviews

Sunday Reviews

This one was recommended to me, and I am so happy to have listened. It’s a fantastic read. The world has progressed to see powers develop… But just like now the powerful don’t always have the right world views. And for a dude going into high school this is a fairly difficult amount of pressure. I love the complex characters and the way the story unfolds.

The lead male character is able to control undead. He developed a dangerous ability and is now scared of what the government will do with him. His family and friends circle around him as he learns to control his abilities.

This is the first of eight, I am at around five in the series. The books have a lot of good characters and a lot of work in the world building. it is not hard to see the world we are currently living in going this direction.

I recommend you pick up the first book and see if you get as pulled in as I did .

Creativity options

Book Discussion

so I have been trying to consider the Saturday thing and I came across multiple people this week asking for ideas for cheap covers or ways to do things cheaper when Self Publishing.

I am firm on my beliefs that you should hire an editor for your work. That being said, you can do everything else for yourself to save money. I am not saying you will be able to do it as well…but it is possible. I am going to start talking about self Publishing and some of the snarls.

I will talk about each step of the process. I will give advice on how I have been doing this.  I don’t know how long this series will take but I think it may be fun.

Something for Saturday

FAQ
My self reflections and Rants

I noticed that I have been doing better about the blog. I am on a streak of over a hundred days of daily posting. I don’t know if I will be able to keep it going. I’m sitting here telling myself that doing the normal things is good enough and if I miss the weekend, well it’s not a problem.

So are you believing my bs? Pretty sure I have stopped believing it. So, now I am probably going to be trying to figure out at least one more easy post. The book Review will be rotating in and out. The random rants will rotate. The random extras (like book birthdays, offshot announcements and stuff like that ) will be posted as needed.

I have a full plate of stuff to do. why do I do it to myself ? Oh yeah…mental illness and I really want to have people interacting with my blog. hmmm….I might start working on posting children’s activities for Sunday. Family Sunday sounds like a good time. So what should I do with Saturday?

Artsy Fartsy Thursday

Artsy Fartsy Thursday
Arsty Fartsy Thursday

Titled: Demon Kitty Melt
Artist: Serenity Rose
medium: pencil Drawing

Wednesday Whispers

Serena Mossgraves
Serena Mossgraves

Excerpt from Ch 5 of the Current project

The Sea Wytch

{The Sea Wytch}

       She enjoyed watching the group in the scrying pool. This group was far more interesting than any of the other ones. Though this one had the potential to give her an heir, she knew that she could do this with the next group as well. Could they actually figure out how to get the wish undone? None have in the last two centuries, not since the small German writer. She thought back on him almost fondly for a second.


      The witch had not set any major restrictions on the pregnant one. She was not really worried about the group being together. It was amusing to see how scared they were. Immortality was a lonely existence and groups like this gave her something to think about. Maybe if they were successful she would seek a true option for a child to raise. She did not normally seek the interaction with people, as it lessened the ache when they died. There was ways to grant the immortality but she always felt like it was a curse. Retaining just enough humanity to make it unbearable to put another person through the curse she was under meant that she interacted when someone bothered her.


     She cursed mildly under her breath about the german who wrote the fairy tale almost two centuries prior. It meant that there was an answer available to be found for those curious.
Not that she minded truthfully but it kind of made her feel better to curse at things she couldn’t change. She still felt a fondness for his memory and reached out to carress the hand bound original copies he had given her of each of the volumes he wrote. The problem was that the story was now in the hands of her playthings. She sighed at her own silliness.


     She debated if she should try to prevent them from finding her name. Technically according to the rules that bound her magic she could not stop the attempt to undo the wishes….but she could make it harder for them to find the answers. She just debated whether she was wanting to interfere at all. Dwelling on that might make it no longer fun to watch. She looked at the fish tank and wondered if her toy there had been forgotten. A game of wits was only fun if the opponent had some ammo to work with .

watch here for more details about the book as I get closer to its release…