Exercise: Making a mock-up

This exercise is creating a mock-up for a book cover and I am really looking forward to this process.

The chosen book is “The Travelling Cat Chronicles” by Hiro Arikawa. It is a birthday present I received and I still have the pleasure of looking forward to reading it.

This is the front cover:-

This is the inner leaf description of the book:-

It also says on the back of the book “Anyone who has ever unashamedly loved an animal will read this book with gratitude, for its understanding of an emotion that ennobles us as human beings, whether we value it or not (Lynne Truss, Guardian.

And:-

“The uniqueness of this book is its subtle yet persistent charm that insinuates itself into your heart.” (Fiona Melrose, author of Midwinter).

So my idea is to use the abstract illustration from the earlier exercise, change the colours and re-shape the round image into a heart and draw a cat journeying along.

Here is my previous abstract design:-

Here are some drawing of the cat from inside the book:-

Here is my drawing of the cat walking along based on these images:-

I have started reading the book and it is about a male white cat with a black tail which forms the shape of a lucky number 7. This is my first draft, however it feels as though the cat is looking over at a view and standing too far to the left.

With a little trial and error on the computer, the cat is moved to the right as though he is travelling towards the heart and this version appears to have more drama and movement in it:-

I would like to think this cover would catch a reader’s eye and be an invite to a good book.