Gambling On Forever Cover Breakdown

From time to time, I'm asked what kind of input I get to have with my publishers when it comes to cover design. The prevailing myth is that you as an author give up control of your cover if you elect to use a traditional publisher. Maybe that's the case in the "big" houses, but the small press publishers I'm with consider it a joint effort. My latest release, Gambling On Forever, is a prime example. Here's how it went:

I filled out the form about what I pictured the cover being. Here were the questions.
Were there any elements of the story I considered cover material?

Riverboats

gambler with a smirk

 Indian woman. 

What did the hero/heroine look like? Dark hair on both, she dresses in gauchos and carries a whip.










Did I have a short tag line? I struggled with this but finally came up with Riverboat gambler chases the woman who stole his money

What was the setting? The mighty Mississippi

Are there any links to images or covers I liked? I already had a list from my other publisher of the photo sites used by most small-press publishers, so I rushed over to one of them–Period Images–and scrolled through the selections. I gave the designer the number of the photo I had picked out. She had already been to Period Images when she read the blurb, and had picked out the exact same image! Talk about being on the same page!

My heroine, Elise, didn't fit the images of the Indian women on file, since she works on a ranch, wears gauchos and carries a whip wrapped around her waist. So I elected to use only the hero on the cover, assuming most of the audience would be more attracted to a man anyway. I felt it essential to have a riverboat in the background and it took a couple tries to find the right boat. Funny how the boat was harder to find than the guy.

What do you think of the Gambling On Forever cover?

It was truly a collaborative effort. Most of my other covers have been the same process. It's been a boon to have the list of stock image houses so I can take my time and go through them to find the exact right image. I'm not saying I could design the covers on my own. That takes a whole different skill set. But the end result is truly reflective of what I had in my head as I wrote the story.

Has your experience mirrored mine, or do you have a different story?

America's Beginnings

Today's the anniversary of the day the Mayflower landed at Cape Cod, MA, in 1620. While not all of us can trace our roots back to these early, brave settlers trying to find a better life, we can offer up our thanks to these trailblazers. Of the 102 passengers on board, nearly half died that first winter in this new country before spring, and more would have perished if not for the help of the Wampanoag tribe, who taught these Europeans how to grow the crops needed for their survival.

My most recent book, Dance With Destiny, explores some of my family tree, and offers up an explanation for what has been a family secret and then a family mystery. My great-great-grandmother, Susannah Myers, lived on top of a mountain (or what passes for a mountain in Ohio) in southern Ohio with her husband, William, and their numerous children. When William joined the Army to fight the Civil War, he left Susannah and the children behind for four years. It was up to her to keep the children alive, well fed and warm. That was in addition to her regular chores of cooking, cleaning and laundry. In writing this story, I had to put myself into Susannah's shoes and imagine what hardships she would face. I kept asking myself the question–could I have survived the winter?

My answer was no. Although I'd like to think I could make it, that I could be a true pioneer and deal with whatever man and the elements dished out, I know my body well enough to know I'd have been one of the 50 who died during the first harsh winter the Puritans faced. I pay homage to these brave souls who tamed this wild country by writing about them.

So today's a day of thanks. Because of the modest success of the passengers on the Mayflower, more ships from Europe arrived on America's shores each spring, bringing vast numbers of people, including my ancestors, to this new world. They fought against tyranny during the Revolutionary War, they fought for freedom for all during the Civil War, they fought for the rights of women, they fought to survive and thrive. Their hardships and their struggles should never be forgotten. And it all began on this date, a mere 397 years ago.

On another note, there are only a couple days left to enter the rafflecopter drawing for the basket of Maine goodies, put together by myself and my friend and fellow Wild Rose author, Marin McGinnis. Our books, mine a contemporary novella, Love's In The Cards, and hers, a historical, Tempting Mr. Jordan, were both released this month and both are set in Maine. The entry form is on the right, or you can access it here:

http://gvwy.io/phj4xdp

The Results Are In!

As long as I can remember, there's been a myth in our family that great-grandma Missouri Belle was half Native American. My uncle and I have had many fireside chats about her and how she came to be Indian. If it was true, it happened when Missouri's mother was keeping the homestead going while her husband was off fighting the Civil War. Was it rape, as my uncle speculated, or was it an impetuous love story? My mind buzzed with ideas, and I began doing genealogical research in an attempt to find out what tribe she was descended from.

We thought we had hit upon something last summer, when we found Missouri's grave. The name on her tombstone wasn't Missouri, but Missouria. My brother did a search and discovered there was once a Missouria tribe, but they disbanded in the 1800s, as their number dwindled. Paydirt! We were elated. So much so, my brother decided to give me the gift of a DNA test for Christmas.

I got the results a few days ago, and it revealed some fascinating stuff. My family is mostly from western Europe--Germany and Switzerland, which I knew about. Following a close second was Scandinavian, which I had no idea existed in my genes. More research must be done to find out if I'm related to any Vikings. I knew about the smidge of English in my blood, but was totally unaware of the 10% Irish in me. Since one of my heroes was Irish, this makes me very proud.

But the Native American? Not a trace was found--anywhere. The DNA revealed a drop of European Jewish, but not a bit of Indian. I discussed it with the family, and we think my uncle should get tested, since he's one generation closer to Missouri Belle, so we're not giving up entirely. But to say we were disappointed would be an understatement.

Fortunately, I love to write historical romances, and the impetuous love affair between my great-great-grandmother and her Missouria Indian can still happen. Stay tuned. Someday, you'll see Susannah Myers' illicit tale come to life. That fact that it's fiction rather than real-life won't really matter.