I have a lot to say about this cover, but since you’ll no doubt scroll past all my brilliant prose in your rush to see it, let’s get that part out of the way.
Deal?
Deal.
Drum roll, please …
Ta-da!
SEE! I told you … it’s gorgeous!!
You can go back and stare again for a while if you want. Believe me, I’ve been staring all week. Because it’s gorgeous! And cool, and intriguing, and amazing, and omigosh, I can’t stop staring!
Anyway, here’s the thing about this cover: I get to take most of the credit for it.
As a rule, authors don’t have much say in their cover. Publishers hire designers to design them, and the author is stuck with whatever they get.
But not Swoon Romance. Swoon asks their authors for their vision for the cover. Pretty cool! So about six weeks ago, Swoon publisher Georgia McBride asked me how I envisioned THE FUNERAL SINGER’s cover.
My response: “I’d rather not say.”
See, I work in communications and marketing, so I deal with designers a fair amount. For pretty much every project I’ve ever worked on, my “vision” has been one thing, and the designer’s has turned out to be quite another. A much, much, much better ‘nother.
So, yeah, after five years of writing and revising THE FUNERAL SINGER, I had a few preconceptions about what its cover might look like. But I had a feeling a designer’s vision might be much, much, much better.
And I was right … this is nothing AT ALL like what I’d imagined. It’s brilliant!
So you see, if it weren’t for me keeping my mouth shut, we might have a totally different and no doubt much lamer cover. You’re welcome.
(OK, fine, I’ll give Swoon a little credit, too. They rocked it. SERIOUSLY rocked it.)
Now that you’ve seen the cover, perhaps you’re wondering what this book is about. Well, you’re in luck! In addition to a cover, the book now has a publisher’s promo blurb:
* * *
Being a funeral singer was a dead-end job until it led her to him….
Seventeen-year-old Melanie Martin has witnessed her share of lame eulogies and uninspired epitaphs while singing part-time at her dad’s funeral home. She’s determined to be more than a funeral singer, more than someone’s “beloved wife” or “loving mother.”
When Mel’s impromptu rendition of “Amazing Grace” at a local rock star’s graveside service goes viral on YouTube, she becomes an Internet sensation, gains thousands of fans and followers, and snags a hot rock star boyfriend – Zed Logan, bass player for The Grime.
But instant fame isn’t easy – and neither is love. Especially when Mel realizes she’s falling for another guy – one who may just want her heart more than her voice.…
* * *
And that’s not all! In addition to a cover and a blurb, the book also now has a publication date: September 24! As in, less than two months away. So please, go mark your calendar and create a reminder for yourself on your phone and create an “appointment” in Outlook, because that is the day you will be able to download it. And then you can have your very own copy of this beautiful cover (and the rest of the book, too).
There you have it … THE FUNERAL SINGER in one compact little cloud! Thanks to the magic of Wordle, we can see which words appear the most in my book.
