Mirror Matter Press, the sister press of Sinister Grin Press, is excited to release the beautiful and engaging cover for Summons of the Majestic, the first book in a fantasy series called The Eight Islands by UK author Tim Reed. We are thrilled to offer this series to readers and the book will release Dec. 1, 2016.
The cover and paperback artist Zach McCain drops by to explain his process in making the cover come together from sketch to grand finale.
The stage is yours Zach…..
The cover idea from the author for this book was very specific. It called for eight silhouetted islands floating in the sky, a manta ray like creature flying up above with crows fleeing from it, and a white figure reaching up as if to touch the crows. So the difficult part of the artwork was arranging all of those elements while still leaving room for the author’s name and title of the book.
One thing I found out right away was that a manta ray has such an odd shape that unless you are looking at it from above or below it can be difficult to make out. So I opted for a straight-on shot in the original sketch.
After the sketch was approved I started on the actual drawing. I realized that the manta ray creature in the sketch didn’t look very manta ray-like so I changed it to look more like the actual animal.
Once everything was finally in place I began coloring it. In my mind I kept picturing the colors of a sunset.
I continued to darken areas to make the luminescent parts of the manta ray pop and adding more contrast to the overall image.
The final step was adding some small finishing touches to the creature and background and at last adding the text.
If you’d like to learn more about Zach, you can go to his website.
Next, we asked author Tim Reed his thoughts on his cover, Summons of the Majestic!
How do you feel about the cover design and how does it connect with your book?
A: The vision I had for the Summons of the Majestic cover is pretty much realized! The layout is spot on, with a stark, abstract feel to the imagery which I hope creates a sense of dream-like fantasy; this permeates through the narrative, with the protagonist Teepo venturing into other dimensional worlds and struggling with his own dreams, all in an effort to combat a growing darkness that threatens to finish off the remnants of the world. I also wanted to get simple depictions of the Eight Islands (series name and central to the book) on the cover, along with the dominant figure of the Crygale at the top. The latter is a symbol of the pitiless, alien domains that Teepo has to overcome and conquer in a forced quest to capture ‘Summons’. The contrast of huge monster and tiny human outline is something I am ecstatic with. It shows the monumental task that our hero has taken on. He is not much more than a boy…and yet has to somehow subdue and control many strong spirits.
What can readers look forward to with this series?
A: I hope there is plenty, but first and foremost it is a journey with a vulnerable young man who is being corralled into an almost hopeless task - to find a way to combat an ancient power because no-one else can. His mentor is not some Gandalf-esque wise man but a man driven by a selfish endgame. And our hero, Teepo, has to learn swiftly or die. He has led a life filled with self-doubt, so it will be interesting to see how he grows (or struggles) with the burden of responsibility (oh…and he has, let’s just say, an ‘interesting’ shadow that has a growing influence on his thoughts as he journeys). Lastly, each Summon he finds presents its own problems, along with a singular history, a unique set of skills and danger level. So, for those with a love of Hearthstone, Pokemon, and all things collectible monsters, there should be plenty to enjoy.
Summons of the Majestic, Synopsis
Teepo is an orphan and a boy who can Summon - a Gromancer. The problem is that his master, Dragma, is also a Gromancer. To have two in the same generation is a curse. And when a sacred tree sheds its leaves in their village, the curse deepens and doom is foretold. Teepo has but one option. Exile.
Together with his master, Teepo must venture out into the Eight Islands and follow the ancient Gromancer way. He must search for fifty spirits of elemental, physical and mental mind, in the fool’s hope of gaining a reprieve back to Paradise. But the way is near impossible. Darkness gallops on their heels; forgotten realms unzip themselves into reality; and the Darknova moves across the moon, heralding the return of an ancient evil.
Only with their shared bond can Teepo and Dragma hope to survive the gathering maelstrom. But after a while, as they gather forces around them, Teepo starts to suspect his master has an ulterior - more selfish - motive for collecting the Summons. If true, it could potentially leave Teepo alone as the last Gromancer alive…in a world stricken by chaos.
This is the first book in The Eight Islands series. You can pre-order your Kindle copy here.
Tim Reed, Biography
Tim Reed whittles the week away by frowning over reports as a technical editor, but once the moon rises, he transforms into a werebeast of writer proportions. He has gobbled classic and contemporary novels for many years and uses them as inspiration for his own writing, mainly in the horror, fantasy and sci-fi realms. He has been published several times in the short story and novella field, in the USA and UK, with works such as Spider From the Well and Running Free available as e-books on Amazon. One day, he dreams of forming his own Inklings club, creating his own Mythos or generally accepting $1 for film rights to any of his books. So no pressure.
In the meantime, he lives in relative tranquility with his wife in sunny London, musing on how to write messed-up weird fiction without having to resort to opium. He cites Tolkien, Blackwood, Herbert, Lovecraft and King as influences.
Outside of writing, Tim enjoys many hobbies - too many, for the writer within; these include most sports, being a snooty film buff, being an equally snooty theatre/museum goer, and building shrines to Bruce Campbell (one of these is untrue). He enjoys great food, good family and loves the little, peaceful things in life.
About Mirror Matter Press
Mirror Matter Press is the sister press of Sinister Grin Press. With common ownership, Mirror Matter Press focuses on Science Fiction, Fantasy, Pulp and other fictions not horror-related. Mirror Matter Press brings the best fiction to market from new and established writers and strives to immerse readers in new worlds.
