Fun with graphix!

Fun with graphix!

As I mentioned in my last post, I love the idea of incorporating a few images, here and there, into my novel, Stan Finds Himself on the Other Side of the World. From little globes as section breaks to a variety of handwritten addresses on postcards from around the world, I’ve tossed images into the book.

When it comes to the marketing, images show up there, too. One thing I did was use a fantastic – but unfortunately now defunct – site called Bitstrips to create cartoon versions of Stan at all points in his journey. He morphs from a clean-cut Wall Street type to a long-haired beatnik over the course of the story.

stan-before-and-afterjpg

These will become the images in the coloring book I’m developing as a gift for the crowdfunding campaign – and probably a standalone ancillary product. I’m still looking at a few cartoonizing sites for the coloring book. The old versions of Photoshop used to do an awesome job at it, but I haven’t found the newer ones quite as versatile in this regard.

stan-mt-olympus

I also employed Canva.com, an easy-to-use infographics platform, for the basic concept I used in the infographic I created to promote Stan.

infographic-before-after

Not to mention the default, all-purpose tool I could not live without – Photoshop. That’s where I did all of my editing to add cartoon Stan into photos of the places he visited, and how I adapted the Canva version of the infographic into what I wanted it to look like.

stan-macchu-pichu

I often do the same sort of thing with Microsoft Publisher – using it for the general template, but then overwriting the system’s fonts, original graphics, and backgrounds to make the image my own.

I’m self-taught at all of this. I remember in the pre-you-can-find-a-video-on-YouTube-for-how-to-do-absolutely-anything days, the hours and hours it took me to discover how layers worked in Photoshop. But I got there. I still make major goofs – losing all those precious layers by accidentally saving them into one. Crikey that hurts when it happens! The point is that you can teach yourself, too. I’m not the best graphic designer in the world, but I know enough not to put outlines around every box just because I can.

_______________

Read the FIRST 5 Chapters of Stan Finds Himself on the Other Side of the World.

_______________

LAURA ORSINI is an author and self-publishing consultant who works with other authors who want to LO picchange the world. From concept to publication to the first-time author’s book launch, her expertise will help you make a better book and find more readers. Friend her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, and check out her pins on Pinterest.

0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *