Sometimes, I know exactly what I want then someone shows me what I really want. This is the story of how my poor attempt at concept art for the cover of Jimmy Grits, Private Eye became something brilliant when placed in the skilled hands of Philadelphia-based artist Aubrey Brown.
Drawing is not in my skill set, so the mock-up I sent to Aubrey was a Frankenstein’s monster of public domain images and shapes from my word processor’s insertions palette. I did my best to modify and mash everything together into something representing my ideas, which I shared with Aubrey along with a droning narrative. He listened patiently and without judgement as I rambled-on about what I had envisioned for the cover.
He is a saint. I know.
A few weeks passed, and Aubrey called with an idea, an inspiration during a flight home from visiting family. “I was thinking of something to grab people’s attention. Something to represent the book’s whimsy. It needs to stand out, so people see this is not just another detective book.” He sent me his concept art. “I’m thinking Jimmy is in his Studebaker in a giant claw machine.”
“This is really interesting,” I said, “and not what I expected.” I felt my brain trying to make the one-eighty from my ideas running as an obsessive loop for months. “Let me process this and get back to you.”
I didn’t need more than a few hours to grasp the genius of Aubrey’s approach, and I called him back in a couple of days to give him the green light. This led to periodic updates on his progress beginning with some line drawings.
Next came a color wash.
Some more color and detail in the tank.
Each emailed update increased my excitement, and I cannot wait to reveal the finished cover art for Jimmy Grits, Private Eye. Look for it in a post coming soon! In the meantime, check out some of Aubrey’s art at his website https://aubreybrownart.storenvy.com.
david cooper writing 