The Votes Have Been Tallied (and there may be some election fraud)

Hello Bloglandia!

Here we are again. Another round of book cover voting has wrapped up. Although last time our candidates ran a clean campaign and the results went uncontested, I fear the course of democracy may not run as smoothly this time around.

If you missed the info about the story these candidates are destined to cover, you may want to pop over to THIS POST. But to give a quick summary, it’s a darkly humorous tale about a legendary Irish death harbinger and his horse Buttercup.

And these were the choices for covering that silly story…

The Results

So, let’s just say, despite “The Crown” being a super popular television show, the crown covers weren’t winning any love in this election. They each got a pitiful 5% of the vote.

When asked for commentary on where their elections went wrong, they started rambling on about the system being rigged, something about fake news, and I believe there was mention of hydroxychloroquine in there somewhere. It was hard to tell because there were a lot of empty Irish whiskey bottles scattered around their campaign headquarters.

As for the other two candidates, Cover B nabbed 24% of the votes and Cover A took away 67% of the votes. Cover B played it cool and congratulated Cover A who was just about to give her acceptance speech when the trouble began.

Cover Controversy

So, during the campaign, while many people said they liked the blue cover (A), others with strong voices touted the benefits of Cover B’s green leanings.

And I had to agree.

I did like the blue, but it felt too blah, too subdued, and what can I say, I think “green” implies “Irish” better than blue. But I didn’t really like the shade of green I’d chosen.

So, since I am the overseer of the election, I made a bold move and pulled both candidates from the campaign.

After some negotiation, it was decided that both would concede the election for a new candidate who represented what they stood for, but who could put a little shine on their overall message.

Don’t worry, there was no Russian meddling…that I know of.

The Final Cover

As you’ll see, I ended going with a brighter yellow-y green with a gradient toward a bluish tint and I think the blend makes the cover a little more eye catching than either of the original two.

I also darkened the pink of the font to make it stand out a bit more.

Speaking of fonts, several people also stated they didn’t quite like something about the font, so I played around a little and gave the subtitle a more playful font then tied the look of the cover together by using the same font (Sifonn) on the title, horsey quip, and author name.

The end result….

And for the audiobook cover…

Wait, Audiobook?

Yep, that’s something special I’ve been working on behind the scenes. I’ll tell you a little more about this latest project very soon!!!

The Future of Buttercup

I’ll probably shop Buttercup around to a couple magazines before letting her loose into the pastures of my Payhip Bookstore some time this fall.

In the meantime, if you’d like a story from me, you can either get a free one by signing up for my newsletter, or just head to that Payhip link above and you’ll find several stories looking for new homes.

Thanks for all your input, and remember voting is the best way to make your voice heard (even if it sometimes feels like no one’s listening).

And hey, I’m always listening, so be sure to leave a comment letting me know what you think!!