What Brings You Happiness?--Or Happiness Can be a Great Book Cover

Okay, I’ll admit lots of things make me happy. Good health. A loving family. Wonderful friends. A vacation getaway to a favorite place or new one. News that I’ve sold another book. The list goes on. But something not already listed brought me immense happiness and a reason for celebration this past week. What’s at the root of her happiness this time, you might ask? I’ll gladly provide the answer. My cover art file for my upcoming Ellora’s Cave novel, TORMENTED, arrived in my inbox. No matter that my morning had been filled with mundane errands and household tasks. Simply seeing that email brought the same level of excitement as I’d experienced when a child on Christmas morning. But when I finished clicking and opening, there wasn’t any wrapping paper or ribbon to tidy up this time. Instead, a work of cover art that perfectly meshes with my story.





Blurb:

A winsome Boston socialite—Eve Morneau—falls victim to a venomous beetle’s bite. Her healing and sexual awakening are placed in the hands of a New Orleans physician, Charles Galletiére, whose unconventional means of curing her malady lend themselves to unbridled passion and abandonment of her former ways of life. Immortality comes at a cost to the innocent woman, and her Christian soul might be left hanging in the balance.


For several years, Eve’s and Charles’s romantic story remained only in my mind. There were some scenes that needed more fleshing out. Some secrets and details the couple needed to divulge before I could tell their tale. When I submitted TORMENTED to my editor at Ellora’s Cave, I hoped this story of my heart would find a home. I haven’t written a historical romance in several years, but TORMENTED reminded me of how much…here comes that word again…happiness filled my heart at the story’s writing process and acceptance. Historical romances were my first reading love as a teenager, and that passion for bygone eras has translated to my passion for writing my own historicals.

As a very visual woman, I’m drawn to stories wearing appealing covers. If an author isn’t on my auto-buy list, a cover that artfully and interestingly conveys the subject matter contained within an e-file, paperback or hardcover novel, finds me more inclined to read the story blurb/back-cover blurb and the first chapter. Of course, it’s all about the story and characters when it comes to reading, but a great cover finds me considering a book I might have otherwise missed. To date, my favorite book cover is ROUGHRIDER. I’ll admit I’m quite fond of the sexy rodeo hero pictured on the front of my latest release from Ellora’s Cave.





Pretty yummy, my cover rendering of Jack Dodson. And speaking of yummy, between now and the end of May, I’m hosting a reader giveaway of a $25 Godiva gift card. One winner will be drawn from among those who have responded to the following question and who are also subscribers of my e-newsletter.


You may subscribe to my newsletter by sending a blank e-mail to –

Grant-moore-subscribe@yahoogroups.com


Question for Gift Card Giveaway:

What is your favorite book cover?

Contact Shawna here with your answer to the book cover question

Wishing you all many happy reading moments,


Shawna Moore
ROUGHRIDER – Ellora’s Cave
HELLE IN HEELS – Ellora’s Cave
TORMENTED – Coming soon to Ellora’s Cave
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