Nov 14, 2023
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Demigod 12 Cover Art Reveal & Explanation
For anyone wanting to sample the first chapter of this second book in the series, Demigod 12, I decided (because this is a trilogy) not to post that publicly.
Too many spoilers.
If you preorder the book directly from me you get the whole first chapter right now.
And it’s a special Chirrup this month (July 2023), so you can read it that way too.
Meanwhile, shall we talk about Demigod 12‘s cover art!?
Releases August 1, 2023!
Preorder digital on most vendors
or directly from me (comes with perks*)
About Demigod 12‘s Cover!
Isn’t it spectacular?
The cover artist is, once again, Paul Sizer and he is so much fun to work with.
As with the previous book I went with a deco propaganda feel.
Why deco?
It’s cool looking and still a touch historical (which works for me because that’s what I started out writing).
1930s is also the time period that saw the rise of the sci-fi pulps and I want to nod at that history of this genre.
My grandfather was a big sci fi reader and I remember his early two-tone cloth-bound books from the 1920s & 1930s (likes Verne and Wells) hanging around. So for me this style is very nostalgic to my introduction to the genre.
But mostly? It’s hella cool looking.
Why propaganda?
The aliens want you!
Why this title?
That’s made pretty clear through the course of this book, but all the books in this series have “D” titles with numbers following. Why?
I like shorter titles that marry well.
I like alliteration.
I like the look of numbers (rather than the words).
I think a number carries a more sci-fi feel – i.e. “12” instead of “twelve.”
Thoughts on 2nd covers in series:
The second cover does a lot of work for its series.
It has to marry or match really well to the first one.
It needs to pop without clashing.
It needs to clearly carry on any elements of series aesthetic set up by the first cover.
It needs to be unique in its own right and, of course, represent the story within.
(This last I am not going to talk about, because spoilers, but after you have read this book I suggest reexamining the cover for all the clues Paul and I stuck in there… nudge nudge wink wink.)
In the case of a trilogy, the second cover also has to bridge the first book and the final book in an aesthetic way, but still stand out on its own to carry readers through any possible slump.
Demigod 12‘s inception journey…
L-R: Demigod 12 original sketch. First image based on that sketch + Divinity 36 cover. Gail’s color response filter
L-R: Gail testing out acid green. Cover designer’s 2 responses to Gail’s requirement for LIGHTER shades & purple please
The final tweaking, and end result.
In general, in my life as an indie author, there’s a lot of me reminding designers of 3 things with my book covers:
That this is not actually a poster or art piece so please pull back on details. IMHO in this modern age a book cover has to look clean and nice in both thumbnail and greyscale digitally as well as wrapped around the printed pages.
Please BRIGHTEN it up. Most artists work on large very bright and intense monitors and don’t realize how crap the rest of us are both on desktop, mobile, and e-reading device. They often think in terms of the physical product first, digital second, when I prefer to approach the other way around. They also often lean aesthetically kind of dark and gritty as humans (artists = goths and such). All this means that for me and my stuff? They tend to lean too dark. (Also FYI printing presses tend to print darker.) So I’m constantly being like “pick it up,” no, seriously, “lay off the black.”
That the title and author name are super important visual elements (especially for an established author), and need to pop. Typology and font are vital in book covers and often neglected by author-publishers in particular.
Why Purple?
So I didn’t have a specific color profile in mind for this book. (I did for book 1 & book 3.) We went with the purple because, as you will soon see, it is the perfect bridging color between this book and the third. Also, notice this cover is just that much lighter over all than the first one?
That’s intentional.
I actually considered an acid green because of the alien nature of green as a color. But it was just a little too creepy for me and for this book.
The figures…
In book 2 we’ve moved closer in on the gods and their stage. The dome is looming over us now. The shadows of the performers are stretching forward, encroaching on the audience (and reader) in a hungry way.
There are 12 gods depicted in this cover because the book features two pantheons (of 6 each) on tour together. But those two pantheons are at different places in their careers, different levels of celebrity and fame, hence the positioning.
Secret extra bits…
One of the things readers (and authors, to be frank) don’t understand about the second book is that most of the work that the cover is doing is actually going to sell the first book.
Existing readers who already enjoyed book one will probably pick up book two unless the cover is truly terrible. But new readers will be attracted by the new book cover, only to realize it is the second in a series and then actually go get the first book instead.
I hope you enjoy this cover and this little journey behind the scenes, and I can’t wait for you to read it.
I do so love Phex and all the aliens he is collecting around himself, and I really hope you to too!
DVD Extras!
All about Divinity 36’s cover art
Read Divinity 36 the whole first chapter of Divinity 36
10 Best Bits of Divinity 36 Research
Pronunciation Guide for the Tinkered Starsong Books + Alien Linguistics (no, literally)
Yours (currently upending my closet looking for purple clothes),
Miss Gail
Find my books
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Here’s a printable Downloadable Checklist of ALL my books!
Miss Gail talking all things space tea, divinity, and writing related
In this installment of Gail is a Silly Bean. I discuss making blue space tea (and show you tons of examples of ways to prepare and drink it), the new Tinkered Starsong series, and other things writing related.
DIVINITY 36 (book 1)
DEMIGOD 12 (book 2)
DOME 6 (book 3)
The tea is here (may be temporarily out of stock)
My lipstick
The glasses I am wearing do, indeed, have a tea party theme and they are from Pair Eyewear.
The turban came from the Zon and the dress I am wearing is vintage 1970s.
Dome 6 Launch Party (eating purple food!) with Gail Carriger
In which I chat about Dome 6 (and a COMPLETED trilogy!), answer your questions & eat PURPLE FOOD.
Dome 6 is the 3rd and final book in the Tinkered Starsong trilogy and it's tons of fun and very comforting sci-fi in print & ebook.
Direct from Gail.
Chirrup (Gail's newsletter).
Gail's makeup info here.
Specifically the lippy.
The blue/purple space tea is here.
Purple things I ate, in order, plus notes:
Sweetened Star Gooseberry (Kumquat) aka Phyllanthus acidus - you can watch the Weird Fruit Explorer eat the raw version of this fruit here. Which leads me to believe these candies have had A LOT added to them. I wasn't wild about these, they tasted almost alcoholic.
Oishi Pillows Ube-Filled Crackers - these I liked a lot, it reminded me of the consistency of the yogurt coating plus the flavor of ube plus crispy cereal.
Eng BeeTin Chinese Deli Hopia Ube Purple Yam Cakes (refrigerated) - these reminded me a little of moon cakes, very fresh tasting like just roasted yam, not too sweet, quite filling.
Pastillas de Ube (chewy milk candy with purple yam) from the Philippines - these confused me but in the end I decided I didn't like them based on both consistency and flavor. I wanted them to taste more like Korean milk candy, which I love. (My favorite is the Lotte brand.)
Binggrae Taro Flavored Milk - I truly loved this and had to stop myself from drinking all of it for lactose reasons.
Rico Taro Flavored Bubble Milk Tea - way less excited about this, also it wasn't purple!
Want Want GQ Tang-Grape Flavor candy - yummy if you like super grape things (which I do)
Otap sugar biscuits ube-flavored (purple yam) - these reminded me of a yammy version of Palmier Cookies (which I thought were Italian but which seem to be actually French)
Divinity 36 Launch Party
Welcome to the DIVINITY 36 Launch Party - Tinekred Starsong Book 1 Out in the World!
The book, DIVINITY 36
DIRECT from Gail
PREORDER the next one, DEMIGOD 12
Here's my Tinkered Starsong playlist for all three books in the series. Sometimes I chose the song for the sound to feel, sometimes the visual elements, sometimes the lyrics. You can guess which with each chapter if you like.
Gail talks Divinity 36, a pretty teacup & answers fun questions!
I answer fan questions about Divinity 36 over tea.
Divinity 36 here
Demigod 12 here
Chirrup (my newsletter)
Lipstick here
Questions answered:
Is there an estimated release date for the sequel to Crudrat?
Divinity 36 seems to take place after the events in that book and reference things that book was building up to.
Do you have a music inspiration playlist for the Divinity series?
Any plans to do a book about the original builders of the universe (Tinkers, builders, tailors - was that just a nerdy thruple?)?
What inspired you to write this book?
What did you hope your readers would gain from it?
For folks who may not have quite figured it all out on their own, can you comment on the relationship between Crudrat, 5th Gender, and these books in terms of series/universe/style?
Will there be cameos from anyone from Crudrat or 5th Gender? I would love to see Tris react to the dome.
Among others... Enjoy!
That one Jakaa Nova, probably
have you read Demigod 12, by Gail Carriger (2023)?
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