I’ve had the great fortune of working with Macmillan Publishers on a handful of books for author Jake Burt. The first book I was able to illustrate for these fine folks was a sci-fi adventure series called “Cleo Porter And The Body Electric”.

One of the things I enjoy most about illustrating book covers is reading the book in its entirety and imagining what the world looks like through the author’s writing. Jake made this aspect of my job incredibly easy on one hand (he is very good at painting a picture with his writing) and incredibly difficult on the other (there were too many amazing scenes to choose from!!).

Here’s a look at how the book cover came together…

When I’m reading a manuscript, I have a blank text document open on my computer to type notes in as well as a blank sheet of paper in front of me to quickly sketch out ideas and compositions. I never know what idea is going to be the winner so I simply try to record as many as I’m able. I jot down character names and descriptions as well as any elements I think might be worth including somewhere on the cover.

When it is finally time to create sketches, my goal is to create a compelling composition while including easter eggs in the scene. The way I see it, a book cover does not simply serve the function of getting you to pick it up off the shelf at a book store or library… a book cover is also the gateway you’ll walk through every time you pick up the book to read it.

I remember so many times when I was reading books as a kid where I’d read a key scene and suddenly realize the illustrator included hidden elements in the cover which call back to that scene. I loved discovering those elements on the covers of my favorite books and in that way, the cover became a companion to the story itself.

When it was time to create sketches for Cleo Porter, there were two very clear scenes I thought would make for a great cover. The first sketch I did ended up being the winner. Once the sketch was chosen, I threw rough colors behind the line work just so we could see what the tone of the jacket would be.

With the color sketch approved, it was time to work on the final painting for the jacket illustration. Because there was so much going on in the scene, I opted to keep lots of the junk and refuse Cleo was standing on simplified with minimal color and texture. The areas of importance I rendered with lots of detail and color to help them stand out.

Here’s a look at some of the details: