Heart of Flame cover art competition

Sharpen your pencils and boot up Photoshop - my Arabian Nights romantic adventure novel Heart of Flame is approaching publication as an e-book and I need YOU to create me a cover.

Yes, CatScratch Press have launched a competition to find cover art for my book - and I get to choose the winner! And if that's you, then you'll be paid $175 for use of your work. Honestly, I'm more excited than a whole carload of Labrador Retrievers on their way to the beach.

The competition rules (format, legal etc) are over at the CatScratch blog, but I'm taking the opportunity here to give you some ideas for inspiration. A cover is a vital part of a book - fairly or unfairly, sales are made on the strength of it, so it needs to be intriguing and attractive and to reflect the contents. Whether abstract or iconic or a detailed painting, this cover must say Arabian Nights to the reader.

Here's the plot summary:

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Taqla, a young sorceress disguised as a man, has been hired to assist handsome Rafiq on a dangerous quest.  Ahleme, known as "the most beautiful woman in the world", has been kidnapped by Yazid, a rebellious djinn, who plans to coerce her into becoming the mother of his child.  Taqla and Rafiq must find Ahleme before this child - this abomination -  can be conceived.

As the unlikely pair race across the desert,  a dangerous encounter with ghouls strips Taqla's magical disguise away, leaving both her face and her emotions bare to Rafiq's scrutiny. Burdened by this unwelcome revelation, the two struggle to continue their quest, though their relationship grows more strained with each passing hour.  It is only when Taqla is nearly killed that Rafiq begins to view her as something more than just a means to an end.  Yet Taqla's past experiences and fear of being diminished by marriage cause her to remain aloof. 

Will Taqla's fierce independence soften enough for her to see Rafiq through eyes less jaded?  Or will their approaching battle with the djinn kill them both, rendering the argument moot?

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The cover doesn't have to be complicated, just effective. This sort of thing works really well for a certain author.

Feeling ambitious and want to have a go at depicting the characters? Here are some of the pictures I used as inspiration when writing (although of course you may not manipulate these photos directly as they belong to other people), which may help you too. Click to enlarge.

Rafiq, my hero, is a merchant-traveller in the style of Sinbad. In fact, think Sinbad and you can't go wrong. He probably looks a bit rougher than this by a few chapters in! He wants to rescue and marry Ahleme and thus become heir to the Amir of Damascus. He's certainly not expecting to fall in love with a sorceress on the way...

Taqla, my heroine, is a sorceress. She has spent her whole life hiding this fact from the outside world, and when she ventures out from the safety of her home she shape-changes into male disguise. She agrees to help Rafiq in his quest much against her better judgment, but is terrified of letting him past her emotional defences.  She has striking green eyes and wears many different rings, one on each finger.

Yazid the djinni is the antagonist of the story. He abducts Ahleme and wants to father a magical child on her; he has a fierce temper and an awful lot to learn about human women.  His skin varies from white to blue depending on mood, and sometimes an ancient script can be seen tattooed on his skin. I had this TV genie in mind when I wrote him, only better-looking and with no beard.

Ahleme, the victim whose abduction kicks off all the action, is feted as the most beautiful woman in the known world. She's young and frightened and forced into a situation beyond her control. Will she be able to fend off Yazid's advances for long enough for her to get rescued? I haven't got a particular face in mind for Ahleme, but this one is in the right ballpark - she's half-Somali, half Arabic.

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More ideas needed? The two main protagonists visit medieval Baghdad, the ghoul-haunted ruins of Ctesiphon, Bukhara, a huge swamp, several deserts (one of which is pale green) and the snow-covered mountains of Kashmir, and they ride a metallic silver horse across the surface of the sea. There's no magic carpet though!

I am happy to answer any questions here in the comments section about the novel's contents and details. But to enter you need to go to the catScratch blog where you will find formatting details and the address to send your art - don't send it direct to me.

So go on - Please! - Make me a cover! And if graphic art is not your thing, please pass the news on to friends who might be interested.

Closing Date is 2nd December, Midnight CST

xxx
Janine