Before I get to bonding time with the kids, I want to keep my promise to you. THIS --->
is the other possible cover for my new book, out next spring. My publisher can't decide which concept to go with. They both look like the same concept to me; but this is less obviously pixelated. (Remember the one a few posts ago, with the Pac Man type graphics?)
So which of the two images do you like? Can you think of another picture idea you would use as the cover of a book set partly in the west end of Toronto and partly in a hotel in the sky, featuring many dead characters who look like pirates, nightmares, or old ladies with black kerchiefs? Oh, yeah, and there's a pool game in the middle, which is of course what these cover images are capturing. As before, you can email me or post a response here.
And for any kids reading this blog, I am trying to put together a contest about the cover. I'll tell you more about it in a week or so when I have a chat with Peter the web guy.
Enough business for now. Let me address my issue for today -- bonding time with kids. Remember the family dinner? Big table, with stew or roast in the middle, and Mom and Dad at each end? I do. What a great way for parents to catch up with each other and the kids, a re-uniting if you will, a diurnal reweaving of threads into that intimate and colourful that was the family. Well, for a variety of reasons including but not limited to kid scheduling, jobs with long hours, laziness, bent-family dynamics, dietary restrictions and of course more laziness, my kids do not have a serious family dinner very often at my place.
So where do we bond? We take our moments where we find them. Sometimes we bond in the car, on the way to soccer. (I know about Ed's pet peeves, for instance. Fascinating topic of discussion for next time.) We bond in the doctor's waiting room. (Imo's spots have brought us seriously close together. We both hate the radio station playing in the background.) And we bond over homework. (I know way more about the war of the Austrian Succession than I used to. Thank you, Thea.) If you think about it, there are tons more chances to bond nowadays. No, we don't have dinnertime. But there are many more opportunities for kid-parent contact than there used to be, since kids don't seem to go anywhere on their own. In my childhood I only saw my parents at dinner and bedtime. Every other part of the day I got to under my own steam. (All right, they drove me to the hospital. But it's hard to bond when you are in shock from blood loss.) Frederico, Ed's busy friend, has four sports and culture activities every week, and he needs a lift to and from each of these. He has allergies, meaning hospital and drug store visits, a part-time job on the far side of town, and no driver's license. Far as I can figure out, no more than a couple of hours ever goes by without parental input.
is the other possible cover for my new book, out next spring. My publisher can't decide which concept to go with. They both look like the same concept to me; but this is less obviously pixelated. (Remember the one a few posts ago, with the Pac Man type graphics?)
So which of the two images do you like? Can you think of another picture idea you would use as the cover of a book set partly in the west end of Toronto and partly in a hotel in the sky, featuring many dead characters who look like pirates, nightmares, or old ladies with black kerchiefs? Oh, yeah, and there's a pool game in the middle, which is of course what these cover images are capturing. As before, you can email me or post a response here.
And for any kids reading this blog, I am trying to put together a contest about the cover. I'll tell you more about it in a week or so when I have a chat with Peter the web guy.
Enough business for now. Let me address my issue for today -- bonding time with kids. Remember the family dinner? Big table, with stew or roast in the middle, and Mom and Dad at each end? I do. What a great way for parents to catch up with each other and the kids, a re-uniting if you will, a diurnal reweaving of threads into that intimate and colourful that was the family. Well, for a variety of reasons including but not limited to kid scheduling, jobs with long hours, laziness, bent-family dynamics, dietary restrictions and of course more laziness, my kids do not have a serious family dinner very often at my place.
So where do we bond? We take our moments where we find them. Sometimes we bond in the car, on the way to soccer. (I know about Ed's pet peeves, for instance. Fascinating topic of discussion for next time.) We bond in the doctor's waiting room. (Imo's spots have brought us seriously close together. We both hate the radio station playing in the background.) And we bond over homework. (I know way more about the war of the Austrian Succession than I used to. Thank you, Thea.) If you think about it, there are tons more chances to bond nowadays. No, we don't have dinnertime. But there are many more opportunities for kid-parent contact than there used to be, since kids don't seem to go anywhere on their own. In my childhood I only saw my parents at dinner and bedtime. Every other part of the day I got to under my own steam. (All right, they drove me to the hospital. But it's hard to bond when you are in shock from blood loss.) Frederico, Ed's busy friend, has four sports and culture activities every week, and he needs a lift to and from each of these. He has allergies, meaning hospital and drug store visits, a part-time job on the far side of town, and no driver's license. Far as I can figure out, no more than a couple of hours ever goes by without parental input.
I wonder if he eats dinner alone? He might enjoy the solitude.
4 comments:
Hi Richard,
Other than the green, I like this cover much better. Maybe the "Me" should be on the western side of the cover & the death on the other thinking West end Toronto (Me = west). Too deep? Maybe. I like how the 8 ball is incorporated MUCH better now with the & inside it. Great you nixed the little invaders.
As for bonding, me being a night owl this summer has helped my son & I bond for the late-night TV benders. My hubby & daughter can just here us laughing & chatting away. He's on the brink of grade 8 so I treasure it while it's lasting. My daughter & I bond doing lots of different things -- rollerblading (she's helping me not fall), checking out Jonas stuff online & being at hockey hockey hockey together. I'm finding they are liking the down time -- quietness is great for bonding too (cuddles).
Susan
DUH - I get the green -- pool table colour!
Susan
I like this cover a lot better! The use of space is better, and it's more dynamic. I would be attracted to this book, and probably buy it.
Hi Richard,
I like the second cover better, too. I wouldn't have picked up the first one - reminds me of 1980's video games and I was never good at video games (I also wouldn't read a book about volleyball). When does the book come out?
Bonding... My dad and I used to frequent used book stores in search of old magazines featuring Madonna on the cover, and we still go to record stores together for Father-Daughter Days (we let my sister come sometimes).
Stephanie
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