Cover Designer Interview and Giveaway: DEGREES OF WRONG by Anna Scarlett (aka Anna Banks!)

The DEGREES OF WRONG Blog Tour is being hosted and run by Bringing the Epic.
Stop by to see all of the past tour stops, full of reviews, interviews, giveaways, and more!
DEGREES OF WRONG comes out tomorrow!!!

Anna Scarlett is the pseudonym of YA author Anna Banks when she's writing adult fiction.  DEGREES OF WRONG is Anna's second published novel this year (The first being OF POSEIDON, reviewed here) and also has water-related elements!

She can be found on Twitter as @byannascarlett and @byannabanks!  Keep an eye on Twitter all day tomorrow for a chance to win all kinds of great prizes, including your own copy of DEGREES OF WRONG!

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Today's tour stop features an interview with DEGREES OF WRONG cover designer Kanaxa!  Visit Kanaxa's website to see more great designs or check out her author site as Nathalie Gray!

Stop by at the end for a special giveaway!

Kanaxa is the name Nathalie Gray goes by when designing her award-winning covers.  As Nathalie Gray, she has published more than thirty novels of speculative fiction ranging from steampunk to fantasy

An interview with 
Kanaxa

One thing that drew me to DEGREES OF WRONG was the gorgeous cover. I love how much detail has gone into everything, even the background. My eye always has something new to look at! How did you come up with the final cover's concept?

I knew I wanted something with the element of water. There was something about the way the author described her story that made me think of water. So this automatically meant cool tones. Blues, greens, grays. I was trying to make the water on the cover a character in itself, instead of just a canvas on which to pin other elements. I am glad it piqued your interest. May it catch many, many readers' interest!

Did you go through multiple ideas before finding this one?

Actually, no. Not for this one. I knew what I wanted right away. Not that it makes actually creating the cover easier, but at least, I knew where I was going.

What other covers have you designed?

I have designed over two hundred covers so far. Time just flies. Some ofmy work appeared on the coming soon pages of Samhain Publishing, RedSage Publishing, iUniverse, individual authors, and magazines, bothonline and in print. Recently, my work was featured in Men FitnessAustralia.

What, to you, make up the elements of a great book cover?

As long as it draws the reader's eye, the cover has done its job. I lament (often) how covers are sometimes used as a CV for the story. It'snot. A cover shouldn't try to display every main character, every element and theme, the setting, the conflict, etc. To me, a cover should:

1) look good, 
and 
2) attract positive attention. 

That's it. Of course,we need to keep the heart of the story intact (you would not want abeach-theme cover on a winter-set story), but nothing more.

What media do you typically use when creating your illustrations?

I use mostly Photoshop for software, and Wacom Intuos3 Tablet Pen, which I call Mr. Funky Fresh. I could not create covers without these two.

I like the way the colors in DEGREES OF WRONG remind me of Anna's YA novel OF POSEIDON. Did you purposely decide to keep the books in the same color family?

You nearly gave me a heart attack! I had no idea these two authors were one and the same. After taking a look just now at POSEIDON, I have to say, I hope the author likes water-themed covers! :-)

How did you get your start in design? What have your influences been?

Self-taught, self-started. I approached my publisher at the time (RedSage) and asked if I could try to do my own covers, because I had always had an affinity for art and wanted to see if I could. I wanted to start with my own because I never would have subjected any other author to my abominations. But after a bit, I was confident enough that I wouldn't shame anyone, and subsequently offered my services to other publishers. To this day, I design art for various clients and look forward to more.

Should anyone be interested, my contact information can be found at kanaxa.com under the page Contact.

Thank you so much, Kanaxa!  I think the cover for DEGREES OF WRONG is gorgeous, and loved the insight into the way you work!

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O F F I C I A L   I N F O:

Title:  DEGREES OF WRONG
Author: Anna Scarlett

Release Date: Out August 28, 2012

Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.

SUMMARY:

This time, the straight-and-narrow path could be the road to ruin.

Dr. Elyse Morgan’s mission: find the cure to the HTN4 virus. The compensation, courtesy of the United Nations: a lab stocked with hi-tech goodies, limitless resources and enough chocolate to make her rear look like a cellulite farm. Bonus: she gets to live.

Rescued (kidnapped) and secreted (imprisoned) on an undersea warship, Elyse adjusts to her assumed identity as a cadet with the finesse of a toeless ballerina. Her sulfuric temper and blatant insubordination capture the unwanted attention of the ship’s captain, the gorgeous, infuriating, engaged Nicoli Marek.

Elyse would rather perform her own autopsy than become the other woman, but Nicoli—who’s as full of himself as he is of secrets—regards his impending marriage as a mere political transaction. And Elyse as fair game.

As Elyse’s suspicions about the UN’s true agenda mount along with her attraction to the relentless, chronically shirtless captain, she must choose between the murky path to everything she’s ever wanted, or the squeaky-clean path of self-sacrifice—which could mean taking the secrets of the virus with her to the grave.

Warning: Features a strong, chocolate-loving heroine who takes no prisoners on the way to saving the world from an epidemic and winning a captain’s heart.

ENTER TO WIN!

Anna is being kind enough to give away an e-book copy of DEGREES OF WRONG and some fun swag featuring bookmarks and chocolate!

You know you want to win this stuff!

Enter below and you might be a winner!  Don't forget to check out the other tour stops for more chances to win!

And stop by tomorrow's Twitter Launch Party for even MORE chances to win!!!