First Impressions

Fyodor is an absolute delight to work with. He takes the descriptions I give him and turns them into quality representations of my ideas. His artwork captures the essence of my tales and brings emotion to what would otherwise be static work. He takes suggestions to heart and delivers on his promises.

Giovanni is an amazing artist with an eye for detail. I hired him to continue the Red Jade series as I entered the realm of prequels and he truly delivered. His artwork captures the essence of the characters and their feelings. He also surprised me with full-body sketches of the cover characters for Delminor and Donya, which prompted me to ask if he would illustrate others. Giovanni is a perfectionist who communicates well to ensure his client is satisfied. I highly recommend him and his work.

Nadiia has a true flair for color and lighting. She also has a great grasp of fantasy settings. I wanted a completely different art style for Garinor's Adventure and she did not disappoint! My original concept appealed to her but she suggested certain changes that worked beautifully for the final cover art. She works fast and does a phenomenal job in the process.

Two years earlier, I had hired Nadiia to create artwork for my wedding; a centerpiece that I could use for invitations, save-the-date cards, menus, and so on. I had a specific requirement that the image could be broken into three pieces such that the left and right thirds could be brought together to complete its own scene. Nadiia nailed it.

Matt took my concept of a teacher in a classroom where the kids "visited" many different settings and turned it into a cover I love to this day. He utilized the chalkboard as a sort of springboard for portals to each of the worlds the students visit. He captures the essence of the story.

I also asked Matt to work the cover of my first coding book, tying in the eduction theme I was looking for. Inspired by the holodeck of Star Trek, he envisioned a room being build from the ground up as the kids themselves worked to code the game. It was a perfect concept.

My second coding book involves creating 15 different mini-apps. I wanted a way to showcase them that made sense without cluttering the cover. Matt came up with the idea of a museum and I think the concept works great. My favorite image is the representation of rock-paper-scissors. It made me laugh when I first saw it.

For Legend of the Starsword, I wanted a more contemporary cover to compete with the style of today. I sought out Rock, and he took in my ideas and crafted a cover I love. I never thought I'd have a cover like this one day, but I'm glad I went for it. Rock and I went back and forth on some tweaks to the cover, and he was a perfect professional about it, meeting all my needs. If you like this cover, consider hiring him to do yours.