The Face of the Story

I take book cover design with the utmost seriousness. It gives a face to the story, and must express it faithfully, in graphical terms. In my mind, when you take my book into your arms, you must be rewarded by holding a work of art. It starts with the cover, which opens the door and sweeps you, page after page, into a different world. It continues with a careful layout of the interior pages, and culminates with the story. 



Here, the back cover is a natural extension of the front cover, which gives you the illusion that the image wraps itself around the book, hugging it. You can see layers and layers of red fabric, in which the main character finds herself tangled more and more, losing herself in a knot of passion. 


The text on the cover is no less important. The blurb at the top of the back cover of Apart From Love was contributed by Jeremy Joe Kronsberg, the legendary screen writer, director and producer, who is often amused at being referred to as 'the godfather of the modern ape chase movie'. He wrote the screenplays for 'Every Which Way But Loose', 'Any Which Way You Can' (with Clint Eastwood in the title role), and 'Going Ape' (with Tony Danza in the title role.) In addition, he wrote lyrics to numerous songs, for example 'Feels So Good to Win" (for the movie Coast to Coast), "Sassafras Sundays" for Homebodies, and "Your Guess Is Just As Good As Mine" (for The Outfit.) So I am truly honored that he agreed to grace the back cover of my book, Apart From Love, with his blurb. Having read the story, and having reflected at length on its meaning, he said:


"A fascinating study of three voices who lead us through the tangle of their lives
and challenge us through their wounded communications to re-examine how we connect."