Friday, March 8, 2013

Renee Collins Takes the Dare!

Since my lovely cover went live only a few days ago, I knew I wanted my dare this week to have something to do with that. Only trouble was, there were no unused dares that would work relating to a cover. So I went to the Friday the Thirteener ladies to shamelessly ask for one.

Natalie dared me to mock my cover instead of praise it. But how could I? LOOK AT IT!

Definitely not mock-worthy. Though I did come up with a hybrid of that dare. I wondered, what if I staged a re-enactment of that cover? It's a little know fact that the red-rock cliffs near my home helped to inspire the setting for RELIC. So for one day, I decided to be Maggie. These are the results. . .



First, here's a picture to set the scene. These are the cliffs near my house. I can see them from my bedroom window.

GORGEOUS, right? I agree. That's why I wanted to put them in my novel. (I took this picture. Feel free to marvel in the comments section.)

So, with my hubby and kids, we set out on a trail near our house. Note the difference in color. I took the picture above on a different day. For our excursion this time, the lighting was much less flattering. Alas.

 I led the our little party. An intrepid explorer with a vision and dream.




 After hiking a ways, taking in the unseasonably lovely March evening air, we arrived at the perfect, RELIC-eqsue spot. I can see Maggie here. I can see Landon and Ella and Yahn. I can see . . .(Okay, no more teasers.)



 As I said before, the lighting was less than ideal. Look at this sunset! NOT gorgeous, fiery red like my cover.


But, regardless, I was there, and so a picture I must take. Here are the results. What my cover would like in real life. (If Maggie wore jeans.)
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I think I prefer my cover artist's vision. And her artwork around the title, because dude, I clearly have no skills.





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Renee is a YA writer and professional ponderer. She loves historical settings, fantasy, and semi-tragic romance. RELIC is her first novel, coming September 2013 from Entangled Teen!

17 comments:

  1. Hahaha! I love this, Renee! :) You have skills...just maybe not in covers. ;-) But I love the pic of you being Maggie! VERY COOL!

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  2. Awesome! This makes me want to visit and dig for relics:)

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  3. My first thought reading this post was this: "Wow, Renee has a nice butt."

    And an awesome cover.

    Usually you can only have one or the other.

    Also, apparently you live in a national park or something? Is your husband a forest ranger? Who has a view like this?

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    1. Kristen, you crack me up!

      I was almost going to have the line in my post read, "What my cover would like in real life. (If Maggie wore jeans.)(And had child-bearing hips.)" ;)

      And this isn't the exact what I see from my house. We had to hike a ways to get this. But I do have a pretty spectacular view.

      Also, husband as forest ranger = one of my lingering fantasies from adolescence.

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  4. I love this! You capture the pose beautifully :)

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  5. And that scenery is why part of me still wants to move out west. Gorgeous.

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  6. This is fantastic, Renee! Love, love that landscape.

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  7. I love this so much! You're so awesome. Now if there were only a gust of wind blowing through your long, dark hair. :)

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  8. so fun! great dare. What a beautiful place you live in.

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  9. Thank you all for your comments! I really do live in a beautiful area. I knew I had to put it in a book one day. :)

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  10. Love it. You are so lucky to see cliffs out of your bedroom window. I see a tree.

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  11. Why is there no wind sweeping your hair!? You have the locks, but alas no high powered Hollywood fan. Still, the real cover is fantastic!

    P.S. The mountains outside your window are pretty than the one's outside mine.

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  12. WOW! Just WOW! On all fronts!!! Congrats girl!!

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  13. that was so cool! i love how you get to be your Heroine and the wonderful scenery, funny haha

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  14. Thanks for all the nice comments! I had fun in the attempt, and that's what matters, right? :)

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  15. What an awesome cover. That's so cool that the red rocks inspired the cover. Love it.

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