The last design element needed for the book is the cover. I designed one Super Bowl weekend that I liked a lot, but after previewing it on here, I got some good critiques from several sources who design for a living.

The cover is the first impression, and it truly can make a difference, so the important thing for me when reading their critiques was not to be so in love with my own design that I refused to allow improvements.

After listening to their feedback, I designed a new cover, and shared it with a few friends. The agreed it was an improvement, but it still wasn’t quite right.

There was one thing that needed to happen that I just didn’t have the skill to do. They liked the update of having our image on the front, but the background was too busy and needed to be eliminated. However, my software is too simple to achieve the desired ‘cut out’ effect.

Enter my friend Josh. One of the most gifted musicians I have ever had the pleasure to know in person, he is also a great designer, and an all round lovely person.

In the one acts I wrote for our upcoming theatre show, I needed a name for my fictional leading man I had described as ‘incredibly kind’–so naturally, I thought of him and named the character as such.

Knowing how busy he is with his own work load, I feared it a long shot, but took the chance to ask for his help several days ago.

While he couldn’t look at it until this weekend, he promised to do his best. I never doubted he would be successful, and I knew it would make the book so much better looking, but I also had to be willing to settle for my simple design in case he just didn’t have time.

But he did. He turned in the final cut out image to me earlier this afternoon. I am beyond thrilled with the result. I incorporated it into my earlier design and I am very, very pleased!

The last two days of work have been made so much easier on me thanks to those who have stepped forward and offered a hand. While Rachael is sort of stuck in this project with me, Jillian and Josh have truly given me irreplaceable assistance.

It is thanks to them that I am able to take the night off and write this from my recliner as I watch the Oscars. 🙂

Right at 35 days before my 35th birthday, Rachael and I found out that a book we wrote about our experience making our first film “No Lost Cause,” was being returned to us by the publisher after a year of waiting for it to be printed. Instead of wallowing in our collective misery, I committed to blogging every day while I searched for ways to overcome this perceived rejection and obstacle to our goal. I currently also have about three other projects brewing at the same time, and write about the progress of each of them. This is part of that series.

Read the first entry here: https://ashleyraymerbrown.com/2015/01/23/35-days-to-35-dealing-with-rejection/