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Hang the covers...

I'm fortunate enough to have an office in my house. I'm lucky enough that I can call myself a full time writer which means I don't have to get dressed, do my hair and wear shoes every day.
And today I stand here before you all in my pajama bottoms, an oversized tee shirt and no shoes with a confession!
My name is Carolyn Brown. I have an addiction. I LOVE BOOK COVERS!

I love them in the bookstores. I love looking at them, touching them, drooling over them. It's the first thing that draws me to a book.

And I really get excited when the cover is one of my very own books. It's the icing on the cupcake for parking my butt in the chair and working long hours. It's a tough job dealing with all those sexy cowboys but I'm up to the task most days and when I get a cover for approval, it's worth every hour.

I remember the first time I got a book cover (in the snail mail in those days) for approval. I was in absolute awe, couldn't take my eyes off it, put it in a folder and showed it to anyone who'd stand still and look at it. Okay, okay, so I did chase a few people down Main Street in Davis, Oklahoma and held them at gunpoint. I didn't have bullets in my pistol so the deputy didn't take me to jail.

In those days I was writing under Abby Gray. I chose that name because Gray was my maiden name. I changed colors not names...and Abby was my one eyed black and white cat. It seemed a fitting name for a writer who planned to never let the public know that she was writing. But alas, my sister was so proud of my accomplishments and the fact that she didn't have to post bail money that she put a wonderful article about me and the book in three newspapers. The secret was out so when that line died and I went to another publishing house I just wrote under Carolyn Brown. And I still squealed every time I got a new cover in the mail.

Nowadays the covers come through email and I do I hold my breath while I wait for the mail to open? Hell, yeah, I do!

And as the cowboys keep arriving, do I swoon over some of them? Oh, yes, ma'am!

And do some of them look just like the cowboy that lived in my head for weeks and weeks? You betcha, they do!


 When I converted a bedroom into my office, I saw all those lovely blank walls and knew exactly what I'd do with them.

My office now had a name...it is my Ego Room...and I've stopped chasing people down the street to make them look at my new covers. It's where all my cowboys, heroes and heroines and I have daily conversations. Yep, I hear voices in my head as well as have a cover addiction and I understand antibiotics will not cure either one!

And Sister was tickled pink because now she could spend those dollars she had tucked back inside her purse to bail me out of jail.

I won't hold a gun to your head but welcome to my Ego Room where sexy cowboys and fabulous heroes and sassy heroines, both historical and contemporary keep me company as I write.


 
 
 
 
 
A couple of weeks ago I got two covers in one day. The roof folks are coming next week to fix the damage but it was worth it. I'll share...drum roll please...not for the roof...for the new covers...matter of fact, I'll line them all up together since they're my women's fiction books!
 

 
   
 
Now that is enough to make an addict like me do the happy stomp dance no matter what the roof damage is! And I got new cowboy covers a few days after that...it was Christmas in August, I'm here to tell you!
 
Do any of you have book cover addiction? Would you even care if there was a cure for it? Is the book cover the first thing that catches your eye in a book store? Comment and I'll put your name in the famous red boot for a chance at a signed copy of Billion Dollar Cowboy plus a lovely hand made bookmark that matches the book...Mr. Random will chose a name at ten o'clock tonight! Until then I'm back in my office working hard on another cowboy book...can't wait to see the cover!!!

Comments

  1. Those covers are lovely, Carolyn! One of these days I want to frame all of mine and display them--and maybe a few other authors' covers I like too!

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  2. Thank you, Shana. My daughter found several of the big frames at thrift shops and I painted them all to match.

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  3. Hilarious post, you made me laught with your excitement and making me laugh first thing in the morning is not easy!

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  4. Glad to have gotten your day off to a good start with a giggle or two, Glenda! Thank you so much for stopping by today!

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  5. Beautiful covers. Covers are the first thing that catches my eye when I am book shopping.
    Crystal816[at]hotmail[dot]com

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  6. I also have a cover addiction! I love looking at them, too. You should be proud and display your covers, Carolyn. Your room looks great!

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  7. Thank you, Crystal...if I had a huge room, I'd plaster the walls with book covers of all my favorite authors as well as my own. They set the mood for the book, don't they?

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  8. Thank you Victoria. It's my own private sanctuary that looks like a tornado struck most of the time...but no one had better touch a bit of my clutter because I know exactly where my important notes are...LOL!

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  9. What a great, fun post. *raises hand* Yes I am a cover whore. I love them. It's what catches my eye first. Sometimes I will just go into a bookstore to look around, and if a cover catches my eye, I will pick it up to look more closely at it(and maybe drool a little), then I'll read the back cover. I have found many wonderful books and new authors this way.
    Love the Ego Room. What a unique way to display your gorgeous covers!

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  10. Love it! My daughter and SIL made me a lovely book frame set with my first 4 covers and two wolves and a picture of me. Really love it. :)

    I think it's great to display your covers, Carolyn!

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  11. Love how you display all your covers, I think it's a great idea. I do love cover, it's what catches the eye first on the shelf. My husband teases me about all the sexy people on the covers. Now I have a Kindle, but I can see the covers still, just nobody else can.

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  12. The first book I bought by you was Mistletoe Cowboy & I had to have it because of the cover! Great idea to post them!

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  13. Joanne, I'm so glad I've got company in my addiction! At least this addiction doesn't involve fat grams or calories and we can go sit in a book store without a guilt trip afterwards, right?

    Terry, thank you! I bet that book frame is gorgeous. Would love to see it sometime.

    Sheryl, husbands are like that, yeah, they are! My husband likes to tell folks that he's the model and the inspiration for all those sexy scenes.

    Sharlene, thank you! I'm so glad that Creed's picture made you pick up that book. He is a bit of a hunk, isn't he?

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  14. That is definitely the advantage over ereaders - I love my books and covers are more gorgeous than ever. A cover will catch my eye but I do read the back blurb to make sure lol.

    catslady5(at)aol.com

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  15. nice covers catch my eye first; skip over the book if I don't like the cover

    bn100candg at hotmail dot com

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  16. Catslady: That's exactly what my daughter says about the ereader...she loves to look at the covers on her bookcase but then the ereader is so nice to take on trips and to read at night since she can adjust the size of the print.

    BN100: Thank you for stopping by and commenting. Covers can sure grab the eye, can't they?

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  17. OOH! I LOVE this series and I LOVE these covers!! CANNOT wait until they come out! Yeah, I join you in your affliction and I'm glad there's no cure!! The covers always catch my eye!!

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  18. Kelli Jo, thank you, thank you! I'm so glad that you love the series and that you read my books. Readers are truly the wind beneath my wings.

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  19. I look at covers first and I next look at the name of the author. I think my favorite of your book covers is One Hot Cowboy Wedding, but that could be because that is my favorite of your books !!

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  20. Erica, I squealed real loud...like loud enough to bring the neighbors out on the porch...when that cover arrived. I LOVE IT, too! And the book was so much fun to write!

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  21. I love that your last name has changed from one color to another. You have some beautiful covers and have displayed them very artistically. Congrats on your many accomplishments!

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  22. Thank you to everyone who commented today! Erica is the winner of the signed copy of Billion Dollar Cowboy and the matching bookmark...please send your snail mail address to
    ccbrown66@att.net
    and I will put your package in the mail!

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  23. Great post, Carolyn! The only place I have that kind of wall space is the barn, which is where all of my hunk pictures and posters end up. Needless to say, they don't keep that pristine look for long! Congrats on having a real office of your own. Even if I get my son to finally move out of his room, I don't think it will ever be my office. I'd have to add another room. *shudders*

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