Nature’s Inspiration

The idea for Tea Leaves and Trouble came to me like a flash of lightning from the sky one evening while watching my son’s baseball practice. And as any good writer, my notebook and pencil were sitting nearby. As the boy gathered up his equipment and the team mates said their goodbyes, I realized that I had created not only every major character, but the setting and majority of the plot as well. The itch in my fingers to write became a full blown blaze and I couldn’t wait until tomorrow’s game to start developing the story.

The story grew and the characters took on personalities of their own. But my “witchy story” was put aside time and again for major life events. My grandmother’s passing and my older son’s high school graduation were just a few. But each time life settled itself down, I began to hear the whispers of Ernie and the crew. So, my “witchy story” was completed and ready for the world to meet my friends.

But one thing stood in the way. The cover. What picture would do it justice? What sketch would help me feel like every life event that transpired throughout the writing of my book would be honored? No stock photo would do for me in this case. It had to come from the heart. So, I “hired” someone close to me…. so close, I happened to give birth to him. After searching for artists and finding unique sketches on my own, none of them felt “just right.” Until I was cleaning my now college-residing son, and found his own artwork in a drawer. And there is was! My cover. It was just a small watercolored square, but it hit my heart like no other. And it looked oh so very familiar. I just couldn’t place it. Until…….. I looked out his bedroom window, onto the woods ahead. And there was my picture. There was my cover, and there was Castor’s newest resident’s abode. It had all come together like a lightning bolt once again.

So, how would you find a way to create a cover that is as personal to you as the story inside it?

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