Wanted: Six Illustrations — With a human touch!
I want to have a deluxe, illustrated edition of La Maupin, Mistress of the Sword with at least 6 pieces of interior art: a frontispiece, and full-page plates for five or more of the chapters. I have a plan, and I’m looking for an artist to help me execute it. Are you the artist I’m looking for? Or do you know them? Contact me at LaMaupin@eldacur.com!
Chapter plate mock-up using AI-generated art.
It’s not bad, but lacks the feeling and skill of a human artist. Care to help?
The requirements
What I’m looking for is something more or less along the lines of the mock-up above, except done by a human artist. Specifically, the project consists of:
- Total artwork: 6 full-page illustrations.
- All artwork must be human-created, as mentioned.
- Art style to be determined, but suitable to an historical adventure novel.
- Each page 6"x9". Margins and space for the caption TBD.
- Black and white digital artwork at least 300dpi, lossless (e.g., PNG, TIFF).
- Optional: black and white original art, if the artist works in traditional media.
- Price per piece to be negotiated.
La Maupin was a notorious, bisexual, cross-dressing, sword- and pistol-wielding duelist, lover and opera star. La Maupin, Mistress of the Sword is a swashbuckling adventure and romance, but it is not an “open door” spicy romance. There will be no explicit sex, nor more nudity than perhaps a naked back, as our heroine does her morning ablutions, or the like (along the lines of the AI mock-up to the right). The exact scenes used will be worked out with the artist at the time of the commission.
The (proposed) plan
I’m a self-published author, and intend to compensate a human artist appropriately. To pay for the art, I propose to do a Kickstarter campaign in a way that minimizes risk for both me and the artist.
Prior to the Kickstarter, I would buy one fully complete illustration, and five sketches. As the campaign reaches each of five pre-defined levels (based upon the price of the art), I will pay the artist to complete one more illustration, half immediately and half upon completion. If I’m working with a traditional media artist, we may also offer the original art as a campaign reward. (I’ll undoubtedly want to keep one.)
Other possible styles & subjects as AI mock-ups
The main reward offered to backers will be a deluxe illustrated edition in one of three forms: traditional trade paperback, laminated hard cover, traditional hardback with dust jacket. Non-backers will not be offered illustrated editions for at least 6 months after the backer copies are shipped and the book is launched.
If the campaign does not meet its goals, I will not be purchasing, and the artist need not create, the remaining illustrations, but the artist will have been compensated for all of the completed artwork. If the campaign exceeds its goals, I will be open to adding additional plates, if the artist chooses.
The details of the commission, the art and the plan are all dependent upon finding the right artist and working out something that leverages their talents, and a deal that seems equitable to everyone involved: author, artist, backers and readers. If this sounds good to you, and you think you can bring La Maupin and her world alive, please contact me at LaMaupin@eldacur.com.