My long-awaited cover-reveal for Chained Birds is here! And fun fact — this is actually my second cover!
Let’s back up to September when WildBlue Press’ talented designer Elijah Toten produced a cover that incorporated the original artwork by Kevin Sanders (the inmate at the heart of my story), a sketch titled Chained Bird. I believe my exact words to the WildBlue Press team were, “Holy shit! I love it!” And I shared it with family and friends, naturally.
Enter my artist niece (who shall remain nameless as I’m writing under a pen name), who pointed out that the bird’s head would really pop off the page if a bit of the background were erased behind it. She tinkered with a revised mock-up, and we sent it to the team. Everyone agreed. This graphic illustrates the evolution of the cover art, beginning with Kevin Sanders’ original sketch:
When my husband Jim got wind of this cover revision request, he cautioned me about being a high-maintenance author and said I would sell exactly zero more copies with the bird’s head freed from its background. “No one will notice the difference,” he said. And to his point, I must admit that the thumbs-up/thumbs-down informal poll on NetGalley (where there are still some advanced copies of Chained Birds to give away), kind of bears this out.
I hate it when my husband is right. But on the other hand, I also appreciate WildBlue Press‘ opinion that my niece’s tweaked cover had merit. All of this makes a greater point that my publisher allows a hefty amount of author involvement in bringing their books to launch, for which I’m incredibly grateful.
The eBook and audiobook for Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir is on pre-order now at Amazon. Print copies will be available to order on pub day, November 12, 2024. For a reminder on the launch of Chained Birds and when you can get your hands on a hardback or paperback copy, sign up for my newsletter.
Carla Conti is a true crime journalist, storyteller, and prison reform advocate. Her debut book, Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir of Justice, Survival and Redemption Behind Bars, is out now with WildBlue Press.
