Young Adult Cover Art

What:
This cover art was recently finished for the first in a series of books following the adventures of Alabaster "Al" Dangermond, by author Jason VanHorn. This is the second novel cover I have designed and illustrated, and I hope to do many more in the years to come.

Who:
Author Jason VanHorn is not only an old college buddy of mine, but he is a university professor, a minecraft enthusiast, an avid reader and film watcher, and a loving father and husband. His series of Young Adult novels are just kicking off, but he's doing it right, and has more than done his homework. I would not be surprised if his books end up on best seller lists and made into film projects.
You can see what he's up to at his website.

How:
Without writing a short novel myself, this image started out as a sketch based on Jason's ideas and descriptions drawn from the book. He located a scene he wanted to be on the cover, and we worked it up together from there. It took several emails and lots of brainstorming to get to the final look. The logotype/title graphic, for instance, was part of the deal, but we had no clue where to start with it at first. It grew organically from our conversations. The insignia on the wall behind the figures also developed in the same manner. I grabbed a lot of reference for this image, and applied some photoshop magic where I could. The figures were the main focus, so I used a lot of light and composition trickery to bring eyes to them. The swords on the wall were a pain, but I had fun with it. You might find some famous swords in there if you look. The most difficult part of this was to stay clear of my fantasy roots and make the figures look contemporary, yet slightly sci-fi, and still give a nod to the spy thriller type theme of the book. I found myself referencing Percy Jackson and other Young Adult series for inspiration. The painting was all done digitally in Photoshop with my Wacom Cintiq 13 HD and a lot of effort.