As I've mentioned in the past, the only thing that equals the amazingness of getting to publish such awesome work through the dancing girl press series is also getting to have a hand in the design of many projects.We approach the look of our books from many different standpoints, both more hands on and less so, but I like to think we still have a fresh, innovative, clean look to our books that's unified.
Sometimes an author will have definite idea of what they want--a specific piece of work of their own or an artist/designer they know. I get really excited about authors who have their own visual exploits that might be used a as a cover. If it's someone else's work,I'm usually okay with it as long as the author can arrange for us to use it for free. We've had some amazing covers done by designers working directly with the author. If nothing specific comes to mind, I usually try to get a feel for what the author wants to see there. This can be as general as colors, or mood, or things to avoid.
At around the time I start layout, I usually have them send me their ideas or samples of book covers, either dgp or other publishers, that are in the ballpark of what they'd like to see. . Sometimes, the author leaves it entirely up to me, and it's a great opportunity to dream something from the ground up. Sometimes I'll use an existing piece of my own and sometimes something entirely new emerges. Occasionally, new pieces either launch a new or fit inside series I'm working on and serve double duty. (you might spot one of the ghost landscape paintings above on the cover of Listen.)
