Now I See.

When Sandra first reached out to us, she was super nervous about her punctuation usage and about some of the mechanics of writing. Together, we found more precise punctuation choices, making sure that the “rules” she set up in her collection were clear to her future readers. Sandra worked hard to make all her pieces really cohesive, and the updates we made highlighted her inventive phrasing and those vivid images that come so naturally to her. Though, we didn’t stop at the punctuation alone…

These were all really personal poems for Sandra, inspired by the challenges in her life. Writing them grew and transformed how she saw the world, and she really wanted to make sure these visions of life impacted the reader. We dug into her work to bring out the connections and to find their flow and logic. Then, together, we plotted them carefully until they mapped the sites of wisdom through Sandra’s personal experience.

By the end of our overhaul, Sandra was happy because each section of the book truly is like visiting a distinct place, all of them parts of the same world.

At first, Sandra wasn’t sure what kind of cover she wanted and that was totally cool because we were there to walk beside her as she discovered what she wanted. She did know she wanted a bright cover that would scream, “this is universal, it’s for everybody.”

So we did what we always do…ask questions. We discovered the inspiration behind her vision, gathered all the font inspo and bits and pieces of covers she loved, and we were off to the races. We wanted to create a cover that was eye-catching, so we hand drew a font that would stand out on the shelf, while reflecting the deeply personal experience that these poems embody.

We created a few different cover concepts for Sandra to explore and find the perfect fit for her collection.

Sandra knew where she was in the world: I am now so much more aware of my surroundings and environment…I am in awe of everything I see…I have to be thankful for all of it.”

And we knew we had to make her a cover that spoke to the challenges of life and to being grateful in the end.

So we did just that—we let her message shine bright from the dark space of the universe.

Sandra told us that after a great loss, she felt she closed herself up. Writing poetry forced her to see her reality and it had become little. So she faced that limitation. Sandra opened herself up beyond religion, feeling that it was exclusive and widened her scope to a broader view.

“In spirituality there is more inclusivity,” she told us.

For Sandra, this book needed to communicate that we can open up, see the way things are and still find love, find family, find gratitude. We were honored to take this collection from a long-held vision to something that people could hold and cherish.