Cover Crush Winner Scarlet Night by MJ Parker

Cover Crush Contest Winner 2012 - Romance/ Dark Romance

What are the key elements that tie in the cover with the story?

~The cover was actually originally drawn and designed for my story. The characters are all uniquely made to fit to my exact characters in the book. So, the key elements would definitely have to be the characters—each one DOWN to the tattoos on the male’s (to the right) chest is perfectly matched. I could not be happier with this cover as it portrays exactly what my characters traits are.

Who designed your cover?

~Rae Lori – a VERY talented artist who has worked with me one-on-one to draw out and design my cover perfectly. You can see more of her work at www.raelori.com OR http://raelori.wix.com/ravenfiregallery#!mainPage

What is the favorite part of the cover?

~I gave Rae very small details at first on my characters. Yet, when I was given the initial sketch, she had made my main character EXACTLY how I saw her when writing her. The energy/auric bow and arrow she uses was perfect and the expression was definitely one my character would make. She made my male ghost perfect fit exactly how he was in the book as well. I think my favorite part of this cover IS the entire cover.

Tell us about the book.

~The story revolves around the vampire, Serena. Her father has recently been killed and the clan she has fought to stray from is in need of a leader. Zane, a vampire who is cursed by magical tattoos that turn him bestial, is a part of the clan and needs to get Serena to take over the clan she is needed by. However, as more danger threatens their clan, Serena and Zane’s emotions can’t be denied. Of course, this is made difficult when Serena’s dead-lover’s ghost haunts her every move.

What advice do you give others about creating a award winning cover?

~Just think of key elements that really portray your book. If a character has unique eyes or traits, make sure to add them to the cover. Also, find a good artist (unless you’re an artist yourself) and check out their portfolio to make sure their work can translate your work perfectly. Also, keep your descriptions detailed but small enough to still add some mystery to the cover. I think that not only the art style but the mystery behind the cover really can add to the readers wanting to discover more behind the cover.

In you opinion does a great cover sell a book?

~Yes. Although, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover…people do. Let’s face it; certain art and themes really draw people into the book. Since, by default, the FIRST thing a reader will see is the cover of the book in question, you really want to make it special. You want the reader to stop at your book on the shelf of a bookstore or on the screen of their computer and go “hmm…I’d really like to see more.” Make sure it not only screams at you but you can really feel that the cover will scream at the reader to pick it up and delve more into the story.

Thank you again for the opportunity to be hosted on your blog and thank you everyone who voted for my cover in the contest!!

~Megan J. Parker

About the author

Megan J. Parker lives in a small town in Upstate NY with her fiancee and two devil kitties. She loves all things art and is usually writing, designing or editing videos.

She started with writing poetry before slowly developing into writing short stories and finally, her work developed into novels.

Her debut novel, "Scarlet Night" will be released October 1st, 2012 and will be available in print and Kindle. 

 ~ x ~ 

Votes are open for your favorite Dystopian cover!

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Cover Crush winner Shayne Leighton , actress, author and musician

So I had no idea that Light and Darkness was not only a book but .... Check out the movie news:

Click on the banner to enter the amazing world 

Movie poster : 

Awesome right!!!!

I have been lucky enough to feature an interview with the talented  author, musician and movie star ~

Shayne Leighton

In Shayne's first year out of high school she penned, co-directed, and starred in the feature film 'The Incubus', a paranormal romance, which obtained distribution and screened in over fifteen theaters across South Florida among major theater chains such as Regal, AMC, and Cinemark. 'The Incubus' has also obtained a passionate fanbase of over 100,000 girls online and has garnered the attention of reporters from the Miami Herald, CBS News, and NPR Radio.

Leighton also starred alongside Scream Queen, Tara Cardinal, in the film 'Legend of the Red Reaper' which will make its world debut at the 2012 AFM in Los Angeles.

Now, 21-year-old Leighton is excited to release her debut young adult novel series, 'Of Light and Darkness', set in contemporary Prague, as well as developing the film adaptation of the novel series starring Michael Welch from the 'Twilight Saga' and Cassie Scerbo from ABC Family's 'Make It Or Break It' and 'Teen Spirit'. The novel series is represented by internationally renowned literary manager, Joel Gotler of IPG.

Recently released songs can now be heard on ReverbNation.com with a full-length album in the works. Leighton is currently named #35 on the pop charts in Miami, FL.

Named #26 in Boca Magazine's "Top 100 'It' People" for 2011, Shayne has joined many other up and coming celebrities by obtaining representation by Arcadium Entertainment.

What does Shayne have to say about what makes a winning book cover?

Interview Questions:

What are the key elements that tie in the cover with the story?

There's a couple of key symbols on the Of Light and Darkness (book 1) cover that tie heavily into the story. The major one being Valek's eyes. They seem to jump right off the page. I focus a lot on the description of Valek's eyes in the story because Charlotte (my human character) is so hypnotized and entrapped by them and their beauty. Not only that, but also because they glacier blue-green color of Valek's eyes are a shared attribute with all the vampires in my story. I wanted readers to know right away that he was paranormal, and since his eyes are a telltale sign of his vampirism, I wanted to focus on that. A few other symbols are the spires from Prague Castle, since the story takes place in Prague. Also the way Charlotte's face is angled up to Valek who is staring at the reader head-on. This is meant to signify that he is the hero and Charlotte looks to him for protection. Another, more subtle symbol is Valek's right scarf that appears a bit faded on the far left of the book cover. This is a symbol for free-flowing blood and also, in the opening scene of the novel, when Valek finds Charlotte as an infant, he cradles her in his red scarf and takes her home in it.




Who designed your cover?

I did! :) I was lucky enough to have a really awesome publisher that gave me a lot of freedom in the final product of what my novel would turn out to be. We created one cover for the eBook and I decided I wanted a different look for the paperback edition.

What is the favorite part of the cover?

My favorite part of the cover are the muted reds, blues, and grays paired with the harshness and the haunting quality of Valek's stare. I think it really depicts the paranormal nature of the story and him as a character pretty well right off the cuff, before the reader ever opens the book.

Tell us about the book.

Of Light and Darkness is about Charlotte, a mortal girl bound between the lines of light and darkness, must fight for life and love in a mystical realm of vampires, elves, and creatures of myth and fantasy, in a town just beyond the boundaries of the modern world.

What advice do you give others about creating a award winning cover?

The best advice I can offer is just to know your story inside and out. Knowing the mood and various elements of your story really well, along with a good artistic eye for an overall picture, will definitely promise to build the foundation

In you opinion does a great cover sell a book?

Yes, I definitely think that's true! A good cover draws your attention immediately and makes you want to flip to the back cover to read what the story is about it. I definitely judge books by their covers and that initial draw makes me want to inquire more.

Follow the awesomeness and excitement : 

Facebook / Website  / Amazon




You can vote for your favorite favorite
Romance / dark romance covers 
~ Vote ~ 

The Broken Destiny unveils Part Three

Part Three

Unfold

“She will become what she hates to save the ones she loves.”

You cannot know what light is

if you have not experienced darkness.

How could you know what happiness feels like

if you know not what it means to be sad?

Right does not exist without wrong.

Hate exists because there is love.

You are either driven by fear or love.

To love is not to fear.

It is to be godly.

~ . ~ 

CHAPTER ELEVEN

~ Supernova ~

~ The smell of wood fires and some kind of chemical polluted the air,

smothering all the fresh air in our surroundings. I took it all in; the

shape of the forestry nearby whilst searching for little escape paths

through the trees. I noticed Enoch smile. I had to be careful what I

thought about around him. My ears were suddenly assaulted with the

sound of drums beating wildly and the echo of war cries resonated

down the hill. I stared at the ties around my wrists, the rope made of a

thick weave consisting of animal hair. Its coarseness scraped across

my palms. I couldn’t feel the cuts and bruises on my body anymore.

The pain in my heart was much worse, but I shoved it down. I needed

it to save us. ~

CHAPTER TWELVE

~ Revelations ~

Change everything you are.

Change everything you were.

Change everything you will be.

~ A troop of guards escorted us up a spiral staircase

made from the same ivory as the four-poster bed. Skulls hung from the

clay brick hallways, strings of multicolored spears decorated the roof,

their sharp blades threatening to come down on me at any minute. We

entered a doorway and my eyes fell on a massive lion’s head stuck to

the wall – we were about to enter the Royal chamber. A golden mane

gave way to a soft, fair face and in its eyes, hollowness and death was

evident. My heart ached at the way its beauty and majesticness had

been defiled at the hands of this world. Realization of how I was going

to beat my enemy sank in hard and fast. I almost felt sick at the thought

that I was to become what I had hated for so long in order to save

myself, to get to Troy’s body in time, to save the villagers, the young

queen and eventually save everything I loved. My pulse raced at the

idea. Why did it have to come down to this? I knew no other way. I wished

something would come to me soon. It was the only way I could think

of. I had to become what I hated – and very fast... ~

Chapter 13

~ Uprising ~ 

~ When he kissed me it felt like I had found the only place

where it would all be okay. There was nothing I had done that couldn’t

be fixed by that feeling. I have to pull through. I have to have more of this.

My head started to spin. I wasn’t sure if it was from loss of blood, or

yearning. At that moment, I could have consumed all of him and never

let him go. I would carry that with me into the next life. I drew in more

of his scent, thinking that this should be the part where the golden

light came raining down on two lovers and one is saved by the other’s

kiss. It wasn’t. It only got darker, my senses numbed and I felt depleted.

He disappeared entirely. He vanished from my sight, my touch and my

heart. It was lonely and it was dark. I had failed again and I knew that

that would be the thought that stayed with me for all eternity. ~

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

~ Evolve ~

To find yourself, just look inside the remnants of your past.

~ The forest blurred past me as I kept running. I felt myself

evolving with every angry breath I took and I could sense that

it was killing me. There was a tight pull in my calf muscles as

the soft, saturated forest floor gave way to a rise at the base of the

mountain. The distant strikes of lightning and crashing thunder

summoned me and the rain kept coming. It was harder and colder than

before as the icy drops stung my naked body. I wanted the rain to

shower down on me as hard and as cold as it could until it cut away all

the wrong I had done. There was something there inside me that

should never exist; I could feel its rottenness threatening to evolve me

into a monster. I kept running until my throat was on fire, but the rage

didn’t subside. It only got worse. I screamed as my feet dragged through

frozen mud, lacerating my skin, suddenly halting where the land fell

away. I had come to a sudden stop near a cliff that overlooked a strong

river cutting through the mountains like glass separating truth from 

fiction. I wanted to go so far away that it would seem like I had never

existed. I believed that every decision I had ever made would melt

away the farther away I got. I can never go back. ~

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

~ Motionless ~

I was sitting under a dim light in the library in the early morning

hours, my head buried in a novel. I accidentally cut my finger on one

of the pages and stared at the strange color of my blood, still pondering

what I was. Enoch knew, and I wondered if I would ever know what he

meant by “What you are, what is inside of you”. I sucked on my finger to

clean the blood, but when I pulled back there was something else,

something mechanical. I pulled at the skin to get a closer look, when I

heard footsteps making their way down the long hallway.

~ Epilogue ~ 

 ~ The sweat poured down my neck and my

mind raced as I fell onto all fours. “This is bad. This is very bad.” I shook

my head as I fought the return of the numbness.

Troy stood staring into the distance and then his eyes fell on me. I

wasn’t watching him, but I could feel his stare. It felt like a heavy weight

had been placed upon me. I could tell he was furious. The tension

mounted.

“What have you done?” he asked me, disgusted.

My heart sank, and all the regret and filth came clambering up

again.

I looked up and into the familiar face of my enemy, he saw me and

smiled. I took in his scent as I stood, deeply inhaled his intentions for

me – Evanescent. ~

We are broken.

How does one restart?

Words unspoken.

The broken beating of my heart.


Book Trailer
xoxoxoxo


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on the playlist : 

Blog tour kicks off in August 

Part three The Broken Destiny Revealed tour 

http://www.carlylelabuschagne.com/blog-tour.html

The Broken Series in Pinterest
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Characters 
The Broken Kind 
http://www.carlylelabuschagne.com/the-broken-kind.html

Minoans 
http://www.carlylelabuschagne.com/minoans--last-of-an-ancient-race.html

Zulus
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