Meet Decadent Cover Artist Trisha Schmitt!

Cover by Trisha Schmitt

 How did you get your start in Graphic Design?

I have always been the creative type. I love to draw and do pastel landscapes. I am a huge reader, and one of the series I adore is Lara Adrian's Midnight Breed novels. When I joined her fan forum, I was introduced to photoshop. I was hooked!! I started to make banners and little graphics for the peeps on the board. It kind of spiraled into me teaching myself everything I could in Photoshop. From there, I went on to photo-retouching for photographers, which helped hone my skills, but was boring.. So I put my love for books and art together and started pushing to do cover work. Here I am now!

What are your favorite sorts of covers to do?

Hmmm... My favorite.. I really love anything paranormal. They have more creative freedom and are just plain fun! Nothing like a hawt vamp to make my muse sing.

You’re one of our house cover designers. Do you remember the first project you did for Decadent Publishing?

 Ha, ha, well.. Heather kinda fan/stalked me before I did any work with Decadent. (Not in a bad way! I just posted how much I loved her stuff on her FB page. LOL!--Hb)  I do a lot of character fan art for the books I love, and she found me that way. I love know she had rotating wallpapers of my art on her computer. That kind of stuff rocks my world! Then, I believe we were in some sort of chat one night, and I said to Heather, " Hey, why am I not creating covers for you?! " a few weeks later I had my first cover project Another Chance by Rebecca Royce. I love working with the team at Decadent. You all rock! Oh and FYI, Heather can booty dance like nobody's business!

What are a few of your best or favorite Decadent Publishing covers?

I really like Usher's, Inc. that was fun and my first and I think only YA cover!  Daughter of Lust was challenging and creative, too.

What other authors do you design for?

Oh, too many to list! I have done over 136 covers this year alone! I am a workaholic! When I get a project assigned, I have to get it done THEN! Which is getting harder to do. I am working with a few major NYC houses now, and they keep me pretty busy!

Do you have other creative outlets besides designing?

I love to scrapbook. Which I have not done in ages, but I love it. The design composition with scrapbooking actually is the same as cover composition. 

Thanks for having me here! I wish you all the success in the world!!

Getting to Know...

 Ann Mayburn

1. My hair color changes with the season. I'm usually dark brunette in the winter and caramel blond in the summer. With shades of red thrown in there every once in a while. 

2. I used to be big into the Detroit Techno scene 'back in the day'. If you live near Detroit, you must attend the Detroit Electronic Music Festival for people watching on Memorial Day Weekend.

3. I love playing the nickel slot machines. Fifty bucks in nickels lasts forever!

4. I crochet blankets for all the babies in my family. With seven brothers and sisters...that's a lot of babies.

5. I taught myself to crochet via YouTube.

6. I'm short, really short. Like if I go to an elementary school the 6th graders are taller than me short.

7. I want to be Stevie Nicks when I grow up, or Bette Midler. Or just dress like Stevie Nicks and have the big, beautiful brass balls of Bette Midler. 

8. My husband tears up at chick flicks while I groan and roll my eyes.

9. I own and enjoy shooting guns. 

10. My husband owns the guns because it's one of his hobbies. I own guns because I'm getting ready for the zombies. Seriously.

If this didn't scare you away, go visit Ann Mayburn at her website!

One lucky commenter will receive an e-copy of Daughter of Lust, Ann's latest release with Decadent Publishing! 

Our Amazing Cover Art!

by Ann Mayburn

It probably comes as no surprise that authors tend to be artistic in other parts of their lives than just writing. When you have an imagination that is often in overdrive you find yourself drawn to other creative outlets that give your muse a chance to rest and play. I know authors that knit, make D&D miniature models, design their own jewelry, blow glass(which I would love to do) and just about anything else under the sun that allows us to be imaginative.

Myself, I do cross-stitch, crochet, scrapbook, paint(badly), do pottery(well), and about a dozen other things. I can’t walk through a craft store without salivating at all the different projects. So my husband was actually happy that my new hobby didn’t involve filling a grocery cart full of expensive crafting crap. Instead it only cost us a good art program and some stock photos.

You see, I’ve discovered the fantastic world of cover art. Now, I know what you’re thinking, don’t you like...need to know what you’re doing to make a good cover? Uh-no. With stock photos and today’s art programs anyone can make a cover. Don’t believe me? Have you been to the Amazon kindle books section lately?

Decadent was nice enough to let me design my own covers for myself and one of their other authors. I can’t say how much I appreciate this opportunity, and I promise Val is going to sell TONS of books with the hot little cover I made for her. Feast your eyes on this:

Totally sexy, right? Well if that hotty made you tingle, better buckle your seatbelt for this one. I like to write books about real, flawed men and the women that find them sexy. Anyone can have a guy with a six-pack on the cover, I wanted a guy who actually looked like most of the guys I know.

 

But wait, it gets even better! Like hot fetish books that push the boundaries of what’s new and hot? Me too! That’s why I designed the cover below to introduce readers to a sassy new kink.

Okay, if you’re done throwing up in your mouth now. I can offer you a palate cleanser. ;) Take a look below at my real cover art done by real artists. Each of these covers is 10% inspiration from me and 90% talent from my cover artists. These ladies bust their butts to make their authors happy and I really appreciate it. Being a cover artist can be a thankless job, we authors tend to get upset when they aren’t psychic and read our minds about what we want. Or when we’re totally unrealistic and/or have bad taste.(cough) So thanks to the ladies and gents with the talent to give our book a face. We love you more than you’ll ever know.

PS- Yes, they are freak’n awesome. :D

Show and Tell Saturday with Ann Mayburn

Trying to give a title to your book is almost as hard as naming your child. You want it to draw people in. To let them know that there is something amazing waiting for them if they choose to read your book. The title should seduce the reader's imagination and make them want more. A lot to ask from a few little words, huh?

Daughter of Lust is my debut erotic paranormal romance novel with Decadent Publishing. I have to say, the title came to me fairly easily.  I realize the very nature of the word lust brings to mind all kinds of racy images. Lust is a very powerful word, and it often brings to mind sinful and forbidden pleasures. The kind of pleasures and needs that you only whisper about in the dark, glad that your partner can't see your furious blush at even thinking of such things. Or maybe you haven't found the courage yet to speak such words aloud, instead keeping them safely in your mind where they never fail burn your blood.

The leading lady of the novel, Natalia, is trying to deal with the overwhelming power of lust-both blood lust and carnal passions. A peasant living in Kazan, Russia in the 1800's, she's ashamed and confused by her wicked desires. No one she knows ever talks about sex, let alone speaks of their erotic dreams. She believes she's losing her mind as her cravings for blood and lust grow to the breaking point. 

At night, her dreams are filled with the press of skin, the exchange of breath, and soul wrenching need.  Strange passions urge her to force the son of a local mafia lord into submission and the return of a childhood crush arouse the shadowy side of her soul. The demonic side of her essence has been slumbering, but now threatens to awaken fully and take over her life. Natalia is about to learn that demons are very real, and the balance of Heaven and Hell hang on the threads of her love.

I hope that the title of my novel has seduced your imagination. If you would like to read the first chapter of Daughter of Lust, please check out my website at www.annmayburn.com