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After doing the cover, I moved onto fonts. I wanted to use hand lettering, but was struggling a bit in photoshop so I did it in procreate.

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I struggled a lot choosing a colour palette. At first, I was very inspired by the works of this Taiwanese illustrator, who goes by "Little oil". They seem to use a lot of cool blues and greens, and because I was doing a winter scene, I thought that might be something I should do as well.

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with the jacket, I wanted to do a continuous image, similar to these examples. I mostly took inspiration from children's book illustrations to dictate the style - the story was very warm hearted and the goblin character felt like something that might appear in a kids book.

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these are super rough and not in any dimensions, really. just had to get some ideas out and I picked elements I liked to continue in my "official" roughs

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I particularly liked the cursive title. It's a bit imperfect, and feels really personal. It also paired well with the font below.

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illustrator/ designer/ Director/ 小油画 Little Oil Art -Jhao Yu Shih ✦✦✦✦✦✦✦ 未經同意勿下載轉發 ✦✦✦✦✦✦✦ 影展： 臺中國際動畫影展-臺灣觀摩片-『馬戲團』 加拿大動畫影展 SPARK ANIMATION 2016-『馬戲團』 獎項： 2021- 美國傳達藝術年度獎-插畫類 獲獎 Communication Arts Illustration Annual 62 -Award of Excellence 2017- 美國3x3當代插畫大賽/3x3 International Illustration Show No.14 《馬戲團 Circus》 Music video---銅獎 Bronze 《Love Story》Gallery---佳作 Honorable Mention.

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- gave the goblin his 2nd facial reconstruction surgery
- changed the font of the title, used "Chantal"
- made the author's name a bit smaller
- cleaned up the lines on the cover
- added a bit more lines + texture on the logs on the back cover
- changed the colour of the font - made it match the tips of the branches on the cover.

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- used lines on the logs, plants, and figures.
- put more light on the figures
- defined the narrator's face more
- made the image lighter overall

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- I actually hate the trees in the background and I think I'm going to take it out when I put it in my portfolio
- made the couple have the most value contrast in the image so that we focus on them
- I like the glow - makes it seem like a much happier time
- reminds me of Paperman (2012) short
- added some lines on the tree to keep the style consistent with the cover

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I thought it would be interesting to include the couple in the story. The goblin and the narrator do look a bit threatening, sitting on top of the buried bodies, staring at the fire.

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I thought it might be nice to depict a really peaceful scene between the narrator and the goblin. The fire is off to the side, and it might have been better to include it more in the frame. The text also feels like its in an awkward spot.

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had to look up what a wolf tree was

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What's the first thing that would come to mind if we were to tell you that we have "wolf trees" on some of our preserved properties? Would you assume that this meant the tree resembled a wolf in one way or another? Or that perhaps it's often used as a source of shelter for roaming wolves?

In reality, a wolf tree is simply a tree that is much older-sometimes 100-200 years older-than the surrounding trees in the area. It has low-lying branches that spread wide in all directions. The terminology is thought to have originated from foresters in the late 1900s who believed that these old, massive trees were devouring too much space and sunlight; as a result, they were often eliminated from the landscape, similar to the wolves that were being hunted down for consuming too many forest resources. Trees with higher market value were planted in their place.

As the North American landscape changed and many forests were cut for pasture or timber harvests, some lucky wolf trees were able to remain, either for aesthetic purposes or to help mark property boundaries. Wolf trees can be seen on several of our larger preserved properties, particularly those with agricultural backgrounds! The one found on our Fuller/Pursell Nature Preserve aligns exactly with the property's history. It is located at the edge of the red cedar forest and has some aged wire fencing running through its trunk, suggesting that it was at one time a boundary marker. Hart's Woods Preserve and the Fisher Preserve are a couple of other properties that have a wolf tree present. Jim Drennan, our Senior Conservation Steward, explains the history of these trees well:

"Wolf trees are testaments to a property's former life in agriculture. Often, farmers would leave a few nut-bearing trees to provide shade and free food to their livestock. Pasture would surround the tree, so it would grow wide, capturing as much sun as possible. There was no need to grow straight and tall because there were no other trees around to compete for space and sunlight. Later, when the farmer abandoned the field, trees would move in around the tree. Because there was now great competition for sunlight, they quickly grew tall and straight, eventually surpassing the height of the pasture-grown tree. With the increased shade begins the decline of the wolf tree."

So, what is the ecological significance of these old giants? Why is it so important to leave them standing rather than cutting them down to make room for more "profitable" trees?

As a wolf tree ages over the years, it develops many significant characteristics: small hollows, layered and shedding bark, thick, spreading branches... All of these features provide a dynamic habitat for local wildlife. A single wolf tree can support a variety of species within an ecosystem: insects, mammals, amphibians, birds, fungi, microflora, and more. These massive trees are valuable to all wildlife.

When we preserve properties, we preserve history-whether it's an old barn, a historic house, or a large, gnarled tree that has been standing for hundreds of years.

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Defining Our Landscapes: What Is a Wolf Tree? - Heritage Conservancy

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What's the first thing that would come to mind if we were to tell you that we have "wolf trees" on some of our preserved properties? Would you assume that this meant the tree resembled a wolf in one way or another? Or that perhaps it's often used as a source of shelter for roaming [...]Read More...

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I was struggling with the thumbnails. I think because I wanted to draw a scene and just didn't know how to frame it + what to draw. I think the detriment of choosing The Log Goblin is that it was limited in terms of scenes + props.

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In these ones, I wanted to try to mirror the shape of the top and bottom centre thumbnails. I liked the idea of creating a floating shape with a lot of negative space. I wanted to try and incorporate the couple somehow, and thought it might be nice to include them when they were alive.
Some critique you gave was that the "mirroring" intent wasn't so clear, and to just ditch that idea and make two solid compositions instead of depending on that (possibly a centre composition). You also said it'd be nice to include more of the tree. The house thumbnail was simple and works, but wasn't my favourite.

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in my last few projects, I tried not to depend on line work too much. For this project, I wanted to use shapes more than line, at least in the trees and large objects. But, since this was my first time painting in photoshop (I got a drawing tablet, yay!), I thought it would help me out a lot if I drew the detailed linework in procreate. I made sure to draw them in different layers so it'd be easier for me to toggle them on and off and adjust elements where needed.

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I think the greenish colour scheme didn't feel wintery enough. I think the sort of "magical" element was there, but it just didn't feel right.

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I did try to experiment with colour combinations, but it was a bit frustrating because it just didn't feel like it was working out.

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In the previous ones, "Log" felt a bit isolated. This is the one I went with, but looking back, it feels a bit too tight.

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This is the final book cover I showed in class

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after consulting about the cover, I decided to apply the changes you suggested

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I wanted to try designing a book jacket and used this article to help me. I thought a jacket would look cool in a mockup haha

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We're told from childhood to "never judge a book by its cover." But in reality, covers offer valuable clues to potential readers about what they may find inside a book.

Books with eye-catching covers are more likely to be picked up from the bookstore shelves (or clicked on when browsing online). And that's the first step a reader takes before purchasing a book. So how do you design a book cover that sells?

Before you start designing a book cover for yourself or for a client, study up on these nine best practices for designing a high-quality book cover that flies off of the shelves:

1. Gather book cover design inspiration

2. Outline the book's main themes

3. Consider the genre

4. Use visual hierarchy

5. Get rid of the clutter

6. Think in terms of thumbnails

7. Choose appropriate fonts and colors

8. Make your title stand out

9. Don't overlook the spine or back cover

1. Gather book cover design inspiration

Before you start designing, you should always gather visual inspiration first to help guide your cover's overall look and feel.

Gathering different book cover ideas will help you to understand what you're drawn to, what works, and what doesn't, so you can narrow down what you want to accomplish with your cover design.

Start by browsing Dribbble to find eye-catching book cover designs and create a moodboard where you'll collect all of your ideas. As a good rule of thumb, aim to collect between 10 - 20 pieces of visual inspiration.

Once you've gathered enough ideas, you should start to notice certain patterns of visuals, themes, imagery, and layouts that you're drawn to. Keep this in mind throughout the next steps.

2. Outline the book's main themes

A book cover needs to support the themes the book explores. It also needs to support the mood of the book. What is the book about? Is it a serious exploration of modern society? Is it a fun, adventurous memoir all about finding yourself?

A serious book should have a relatively serious cover, while a fun beach read needs an entirely different kind of aesthetic.

Outline your book's main themes and keep these top of mind when deciding on the kind of imagery you'll want to use on the cover.

Note: If you're a graphic designer working with a client, you don't necessarily need to read the entire book to design a cover. However, you should read a synopsis and the first chapter or two to get a feel for the book's tone and mood.

3. Consider the genre

Different genres have different conventions when it comes to covers.

You'll rarely find a steamy romance novel that doesn't feature a couple embracing on the cover. True crime books usually feature dark covers that hint at the crime.

To get a sense of what the genre expects, look to competing books. If they all follow a certain convention, you'll likely want your cover to also fit that convention so that readers of that genre can immediately recognize it.

4. Use visual hierarchy

Visual hierarchy on a book cover is key. You need to make sure that the reader browsing the shelves (whether physical or virtual) sees the most important part of the cover first.

For most books, this will be the title. But for certain bestselling authors, you might want to consider emphasizing their name so that it's even more prominent than the title. That's because fans of that author can immediately recognize that it's one of their books.

In general, your hierarchy should place the title and cover graphics most prominently, followed by a subtitle (if there is one), followed by the author's name.

There may also be endorsements or prizes to include on the cover, but those are usually placed less prominently than other elements.

5. Get rid of the clutter

Cluttered covers don't work well when viewed at small sizes. Since a lot of book browsing happens online, covers are usually shrunk down to thumbnail size. If your book cover looks cluttered at thumbnail size, you will risk turning away potential readers.

Choose one focal element for your cover. This could be part of the image used on the cover, or it could be the title of the book.

Once you know your focal point, you can design the rest of the cover to emphasize that point. Also make sure you leave plenty of white space around that focal point.

6. Think in terms of thumbnails

When people are browsing Amazon or other online publishers such as Bookshop.org, they're presented with a series of cover thumbnails. These are often pretty small-less than 200px high.

That means that if your title isn't prominent enough on the cover, it won't be legible. It also means that if your cover has a ton of fine details that are important to its meaning, that will be lost in thumbnail size.

That doesn't necessarily mean that you shouldn't include those details on a cover. What it means is that you need to make sure that your cover still has a powerful impact at thumbnail size.

Make your title legible at small sizes and ensure that the most prominent part of your graphics are recognizable (i.e., a mountain should be recognizable as a mountain, a person should be recognizable as a person, etc.).

7. Choose an appropriate font and color palette

Choosing a typeface for your book cover can be tricky. It needs to look great when viewed on the full-size cover, but it also needs to remain legible at small sizes on thumbnails.

For the most part, try to avoid any super detailed display or complex script typefaces. When searching for the perfect typeface, try it out both at large display sizes and at smaller body sizes to see if it's still readable when displayed at 12px or 14px sizes.

Color palettes can be a book cover's biggest asset-or biggest downfall. The right color palette draws the reader's eye and gives them an idea of the tone and mood of the book, while the wrong colors risk confusing your audience.

For example, neon colors typically indicate that a book will be fun to read and not too serious. Dark colors? This book could be serious or scary (depending on genre). Muted colors? This book likely has an important message.

Remember: Color palettes are only one part of establishing a mood. You can, for example, create a scary mood with a pastel cover with the right visual elements (The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White has a pastel pink cover that's decidedly creepy).

8. Your title needs to stand out

We've already mentioned titles, but it's crucial that your title stands out on your cover.

If someone is looking for a specific title and the title isn't immediately recognizable on the cover, they may scan right past it. Titles can also give powerful clues as to the content of the book.

Make sure that your title is readable at small and large sizes, and that it stands out from the background graphics.

9. Don't overlook the spine or back cover

While a book's front cover gets all the glory, the spine and back cover are also important design elements.

Spines, especially, are important when a reader is browsing bookstore shelves, where most books are arranged on shelves with only the spine showing.

You also need to take into account that due to the way offset printers work, your front cover, back cover, and spine may not always align perfectly.

By continuing the basic background design around the entire cover, you avoid the spine or back cover looking bad due to printing errors. This ensures that your entire book cover looks professional and consistent.

Design a memorable book cover that sells

Book cover design has changed with the popularity of online booksellers and ebooks, but the basic principles of good design still apply. Designing a cover that catches a reader's eye is key to the success of a book.

What's more, you can find some incredibly handy book cover design templates online if you're not comfortable using design software like Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator. However, we strongly suggest finding a professional freelance graphic designer who's an expert at designing a memorable cover that actually sells.

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Dribbble - Discover the World's Top Designers & Creative Professionals

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Find Top Designers & Creative Professionals on Dribbble. We are where designers gain inspiration, feedback, community, and jobs. Your best resource to discover and connect with designers worldwide.

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Because I was taking inspiration from children's book illustration, I did a bit of research into some illustrators. I found out about Beatrice Blue (so good!) and I really love the textures that she uses - I wanted to incorporate that, especially in the spots because they'd be in greyscale.

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I love the large, flat shapes with gradients in the top right image - I wanted to incorporate that into my own image. I also took a note of which paintbrush I was using on the left haha.

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I didn't change much to this spot - it looks quite similar to the final

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this was after blocking out the main shapes + adding some texture. It still felt very incomplete and super dark. Because it's in greyscale, I felt like I should depend more on grain and texture to create an interesting illustration and use value to prevent it from looking flat.

I eventually added snow, some more lines on the objects, and more grainy textures. I also lightened up the composition and put more reflective light on the goblin and the narrator. At this point, they fall into the background.

In regards to the narrator character, I made him dress in what I thought was more modern clothing. Though, because the scene is dark and we only really see his back, I thought adding a hat would help signify a more current time.

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critique for this was to include more of the tree and do a centre composition - the mirroring goal wasn't working out.

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I went in with a value rough. I find they make it easier to read compared to just a line rough.

My roommate, Carrie, said the original rough looked like a mother talking to her kid under a tree LOL, so I decided to put a bit more work into the characters. Since this scene would be during the day, I had the opportunity to play more with their faces and clothing, as it would be more visible.

I tried to make them look like they were wearing subtle period-piece clothing. Kind of like Kiera Knightly and James McAvoy in Atonement.

I also really like the sweeping look of the tree - I think it gives it a very fantastical element.

For the foliage around the tree, I used the same designs from Spot #1. I think repeating that element helps to signify that the space the Goblin & the Narrator are sitting at is the same place as this.

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I realized it looks like they're just in an open field and not in a forest. So, I felt like I needed to include trees in the background... but I liked the negative space more. I settled for adding more subtle trees in the background for my final.

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i used this image as a reference. I like the dynamic composition made by the hill.

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I took inspiration from this image for Spot #1. I liked the floating composition and the elements sticking out from it.

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Rough #2 was inspired by this image. I like the way it plays with light as a compositional element and it's use of colour.

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For this rough, I experimented using a centre composition. I wondered how to execute it but still make the jacket a continuous image. I thought of using a hollow tree as a framing device and have it be an extreme closeup. I think I tend to want the images to "make sense" in a realistic setting - so, like, proper perspective, values, etc. - and I think having more fun with my work and not having it be bound to what I might see irl would help me improve a lot.

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Eventually, I decided to go for a purply colour scheme. It still felt wintery and magical, but I decided to warm it up a bit with oranges because I figured the story called for something warm. I really liked the combination of purple and orange in the centre image (Beatrice Blue) and decided to incorporate that.

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Sarah was nice enough to give me a whole bunch of brushes for photoshop <3!!! I also used some of Kyle's brushes - I downloaded the megapack. I had to test out some brushes to see what I liked and made a separate brush folder called "favs".

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I made this template of a book cover in illustrator.

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These are the images that inspired this rough. I loved the oval-ish frame in the centre and the detail in the border of the image. The top centre and left images use tree branches as the border. I especially loved the decorative elements in the bottom left image and wanted to bring that into my own cover.

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I looked into Beatrice's work and I love it so much. She has a cool art challenge she does called "childhood week" and I think that might be fun to participate in. She's also worked in animation in a couple different roles, so that's exciting to hear! I feel like I'm really drawn to lighthearted, fantasy content, so her work is really up my alley.

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Beatrice Blue - Welcome to Beatrice Blue's Portfolio

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just a screenshot of a small portion of my camera roll. these are a few images I took as inspiration. I have a lot more saved on my Pinterest

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Eventually, this is what I decided on. I used the values from my rough to help me keep it readable.

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Even though I did a colour study, I still found it really frustrating to colour it. It felt some some colours were too vibrant, and things were competing with each other, or that the elements in the image it felt too separate. I depended on using the image editing features a lot to change things like the saturation, brightness, etc.

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eventually, I felt like it wasn't going so well and decided to export my main layers as PNGs and move it into procreate. I think I just needed to go back to a program I was very familiar with, because learning Photoshop + having to adjust colours constantly was a bit draining. In Procreate, I played with saturation and filters a bit more easily.

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I made my adjustments in procreate and made note of some of the things I fixed.
- Reduce saturation of BG trees
- add more scratchiness to the main tree's edge
- add some lines on the bg trees
- add more texture to the main tree
- add more texture on the bordering branches of the cover
- change the goblin's face, make it a bit warmer, dull his clothes, make his skin glow using blue + dissolve.
^at the time, I felt like the goblins face was looking a bit TOO cartoonish. So I changed it to this. It looks a bit scarier. I think what I enjoyed was that it felt more expressive.

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After making my adjustments in procreate, I took my notes and work back to photoshop to finish it.

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In defence of the lack of trees in the forest:

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In defence of the lack of trees in the forest:

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In my research on wolf trees, I found that they tend to be large and their branches grow wildly because of the lack of nearby trees.
In Spot #2, the wolf tree is alive and well, which means there likely weren't many surrounding trees in this time.