Book Covers

Hello all, it me again. The hairy, beary author from the sunshine state of Florida: Matt Ortiz. I am coming to you now on a break from finishing The Butcher, the Baker and the Custom Bike Maker: The Baker. It’s Boone’s story and am having a great time writing it and am about to consult my cover artist Christie when I remembered a review of my book. The young lady like the book for the most part but and I quote ‘It’s the worst book cover ever created’. Ouch…

When I started writing almost three years ago, while I enjoyed the books, the covers looked the same to me. Two guys, in varying states of nudity, muscled, smooth jawed and perfect. Or drawings of guys with their pants falling down, exposing their underwear and looking surprised. Now I’m not knocking them. The artwork is exceptional. Me, I wanted something different. My first series had houses on it. My second was objects. It wasn’t until my third series I had faces placed on my covers and even then I didn’t want them to be the main focus. I wanted the reader to imagine how the men looked and not have a preconceived notion.

For the Butcher series, as I call it, I asked my artist to do an edgier look. Grey tones, hard lettering and to find me a model that was ectomorphic. Meaning a thin man with some muscles. An average man. Nude but with no ‘bits’ visible. I loved what she sent me. It was artistic, harsh and edgy. I thought: slam dunk. Obviously not. While most loved it, some like the afore mentioned young lady, hated it and it stung. Until I remember what another author once told me. ‘Write what you like and what you feel and choose your look. It’s your work and while the readers and fans are important, you have to do what feels right to you’.

She was one hundred percent right. Be true to myself.

So I pulled up my big boy drawers and told my cover artist to begin work on the next cover. It is going to be nearly identical to the first one and so will the third books cover. PS: I know the man who posed for the picture and he is not only a great looking man but a wonderful human being. So I’ll keep choosing my covers as I see fit. Popular or not, I love them… and their mine.

Ta for now!