With several books already under her publishing belt, Joan reached out to Tell Tell Poetry with a new collection of gothic stories in need of polishing and design.
Joan needed to ensure that her intended theme of trusting your instincts really shone through from an outside reader's perspective. She also had a feeling that she needed to pare back repetitive language and smooth out some of the nuts and bolts of formatting. When looking at the Big Picture of the collection, Joan also needed to make sure the title was doing all it could to stand out and call readers in.
A fantastic and suspenseful collection of five stories of gothic fiction!
Joan’s collection was especially exciting because it fit wonderfully into the gothic tradition while still managing to bring its own fresh spin on the genre.
Designing the cover and interior layout for a tale of pure gothic fiction was a joy as Joan already knew she preferred photography, subdued colors, and small and classy text. Working from her previous books to keep consistency in style and following her desire to incorporate a wonderfully creepy Sphynx cat, we arrived at a cover of warm, glowing tones and rough, subterranean textures after exploring a variety of background images.
Joan Carol Bird’s The Stand-alone Chest grips the reader with a dark and sinister wit, carrying them through five brief tales: a woman cursed by her estranged cousin, a haunted production of Hamlet, a journalist who witnesses the tragic death of a friend, a father’s ghostly son, and a hellish courtroom trial . . . Utilizing her profound knowledge of literature, history, and the sciences, Joan crafted a range of allusions which are sure to entice readers familiar with gothic literature, as well as introduce a new audience to stories in this tradition. A new classic!
We crafted some cool marketing images for Joan to use to promote her book. We even included one with a gothic theme.
Man. I absolutely love this. Exceeded my expectations!