It’s been a long time on this one.  I’ve mentioned it before, but my artist had it rough this year, and now it’s allergy season and we’re both being whomped.  The cover still isn’t done, but it’s progressed enough for a post.

Previously, on the Book 3 Cover:

The cover art took basically a six-month hiatus after that, during which I squeezed a banner and logo from the artist and we went to a convention and holidays happened and personal life exploded.  When put into that perspective, I guess it’s not so bad.

Anyway, the first update came in January — not much, just a bit of background work:

The honeycomb pattern is the Great Evil of this cover — the thing that has given Deb the most pain and suffering — so the next few months were riddled with honeycomb angst.  Not terribly interesting angst, alas, but extended and continuous, to the point that she started working on other things when the honeycomb was driving her too crazy.

Like the face!

We’d both recently seen the movie Horns and agreed that Daniel Radcliffe could possibly play Enkhaelen in a movie version, since he’s sufficiently short and can do intensity/crazy well enough.  He’s got too much jaw for me, though, so with this pic I was going JAW!  JAW!  And she was going aw!  awwww!

So she fixed the jaw.

I approved.  He’s starting to look like the maniacal bastard I know!

But it’s not just the face; he needs the right hair, and that eyebrow scar.

Good start!  Except…

ARE HIS EYES CORNFLOWER-BLUE?!?

….yes?

I OBJECT!!!  GLACIER ICE!  GLACIER ICE!

Sigh…

BETTER.

With the eyes done and the hair preliminarily set (still need forelocks), our intrepid artist tackled the honeycomb again.

The stucco texture decided to be a bastard.

Fifteen days passed in vicious struggle.

Finally, the situation seemed to be in hand.

Except…

What is this?

WHY DID HIS EYES TURN TEAL?!?!!

…I have no idea.

FIX IT!  FIIIIX IIIIIT!

Yeeeeees maaaaaaster.

And thus began the detailing.

Except…

HIS HAND LOOKS WEIRD.

….kind of, yes…

I KNOW WE AGREED ON THAT HAND BUT I DON’T LIKE IT NOW.

Hm…

This?

IT’S TOO BIG, I THINK.

This?

I DUNNO….IT MIGHT BE TOO SMALL.  I WANT TO SEE IT IN CONTEXT.

YEAH, IN CONTEXT I DON’T LIKE IT.

*various throttling sounds*

Thiiiiiiiiiiis?

IT LOOKS WEIRD.  I HAVE SOME IMPROVEMENTS!

…..

COSMETIC HAND SURGERY — ENGAGED!  ALSO THE RING LOOKS LAVENDER.

…but….reflections…

TOO LAVENDER!

Sigh…

This????

WHY IS THERE A DOT ON HIS CHEEK?

It’s the cursor!

OH.  THAT’S OKAY THEN.

…

And thus ends the most recent installment of the Cover Art Saga.