Early on a bright January morning, I opened my computer to an email from my Regal House editor announcing that the interior and exterior proofs of my book were attached and ready for viewing. Getting a book published is a little like giving birth. And seeing the cover is like holding your baby in your own arms for the very first time.
In other words, it’s a really big deal.
I peered at the tiny pdf attachment of my book cover, which was literally no bigger than my thumbnail. All I could tell from the image on my phone, was that the cover was very, very blue.
And I was shocked.
My book had a blue cover.
I think I literally recoiled. How could this have happened? How could the artist paint my book cover blue? Okay, water is involved in the story. Lots of water. Knee Deep takes place in New Orleans, which is literally surrounded by water: Lake Pontchartrain to the north, Lake Borgne to the east, wetlands to the east and west, and the Mississippi River to the south.
That was not the problem.
The problem was I am not a blue person.
There are no blue rooms in my house.
No blue dresses in my closet.
And really, there is no blue food in my fridge, except for blueberries and one could argue their blueness borders on blackish purple.
And yet there it was. A book with a decidedly blue color.
I rushed up the stairs to my daughter’s bedroom. I wanted to open up the pdf and see the cover with her, not only because she has been a cheerleader for Knee Deep from its beginning, but because she was in the house and my husband had already gone to work. Having recently moved home to finish her master’s degree while working full-time and already sleep-deprived, she was cocooned in her blanket, sleeping like a baby. A really good mother would let her sleep in a little longer.
Instead, I climbed into the bed beside her and woke her up.
And together, we opened up the pdf to a full screen.
And yes, the cover was blue. There was no mistake about that.
And yet…
…I fell immediately in love.
With my cover.
When I saw the image of Camille reaching out across the waters I knew instinctively what my friend, fellow screenwriter and Regal House author, Mary Kuryla would later say: “It’s an alarming image because of the rising water pushing at the title, and her little tender boat, but it’s also darkly beautiful. She does not seem in peril in the image, but rather charged with coping with these rising waters.”
I may not be a blue person.
But I do have a blue metal roof on my home that ripples like ocean waves.
And my front yard is an overgrown oasis of blue flowers sprinkled amidst the rambling white roses.
While I do not own a blue dress, I have been known to buy a blue blouse or two.
And I do eat blueberries for breakfast almost every single morning.
And now I have a blue book.
Which I cannot wait for you to see.
And to read. Pre-orders are available now.
Acknowledgement: The cover for Knee Deep was designed by the immensely talented C.B. Royal who also designed a number of Regal’s other covers as well – such as Banana Republic, Ms. Ming’s Guide to Civilization, Grape!, Zip, or Micrology.
Karol Hoeffner is the Chair of Screenwriting at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. She has fourteen film credits including several Danielle Steel adaptations, a television mini-series Harem, movies-of-the-week based on true stories – TheMaking of a Hollywood Madam and Miss America: Behind the Crown. Among her other credits are the original movies, Voices from Within and Burning Rage. She has penned two young adult novels, All You’ve Got, and Surf Ed.
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