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I am opening up this thread so people can ask us questions about Powys. If we can, we’ll give you an answer (meaning NO we won’t be giving plot details of upcoming books).
Would you like to know what goes into publishing a book? Or why we chose a particular image for a book cover? Or–and we get this one ALL the time–why does a Los Angeles-based publishing company have a Welsh name? How do you sell books on Amazon?
If you have a question, post it here.
I was wondering why there were two covers for THE FORSAKEN and what the meaning of the Moon against the leaves and flower petals was.
I liked the more artistic cover the most, even though I didn’t necessarily know it’s deeper significance. For me it just gave the novel a more meaningful, deeper or thoughtful look than a picture that speaks for itself.
Symbolically it must have had to do with Alpha in peril or change coming to alpha.
The Forsaken was originally intended to have only one cover–the rose petal cover. The cover concept was designed while the novel was being written. Vicente Gallegos-Aguazul came up with the design. He and Cesar Gallegos (no relation), the graphic artist for Powys, went out, collected the leaves, bought the roses, and photographed the image. Cesar then cropped it and inserted the image of the Moon (as per the original design).
We submitted this cover to Carlton with full author approval. The people at Carlton suggested that the cover was perhaps too far removed from the series. So we came up with a second cover. This one had an image of a blue planet over the base. We called it the “Launching Pad” cover.
The flower petal cover is symbolic. The green APPLE-shaped leaves signify the planet Pyxidea and the temptation it offers to settle there, the rose petals strewn diagonally across the image are meant to reference the flat-line nebulas and star clusters so often seen in Space: 1999 AND to symbolize Sandra Benes. In the “interlude” in the novel, Paul lies in bed with Sandra and thinks that her hair always smells like roses.
Within a single rose petal is nestled an image of the Moon. All this signifies Paul’s choice: The Green Planet OR The Moon and Sandra.
The Launching Pad cover is also significant because it contains a small inserted clue to a future novel. Yes, we planned it out YEARS in advance. B)
Anyway, back to the story. Carlton agreed to let us publish the book with both covers and allow the fans to buy the one they wanted. We agreed. It was not done to make people buy both or anything like that. It was about be willing to compromise to stay true to our artistic vision, and the kindness of the people at Carlton to allow us that opportunity to do so.
I am curious as to which cover proved to be more popular with readers.
I actually went with the rose cover.
I’m curious if the inserted clue in the launch pad cover for FORSAKEN is related to a just-published novel or one to come.
I would enjoy hearing how Powys was able to get original authors like Michael Butterworth to improve his prior novelizations for the YEAR 2 OMNIBUS and how Brian Ball came to write the novel SURVIVAL, and his story in SHEPHERD MOON.
I have to say that it is somewhat comforting to be entertained with new material written by the same writers who had me glued to the page back when I was just a “tween”.
Which Forsaken cover was more popular? Hard to say. The book sold out, so all copies of both covers were bought in equal numbers. You’d have to ask the fans, I guess. The author (and I) prefer the rose petal cover. The artist designed the images after the type of cover art used in Japanese literature. Particularly the works of Mishima. Fact.
If you are referring to our books (as opposed to the 70s novelizations and novels–whose sales numbers I don’t know), we calculated in our market research that the book-buying Space: 1999 fan base would be between 1000 and 1500 people. Our releases reflect that target. We based that on membership in online groups, Fanderson membership, the number of eBay auctions with 1999 items within any give time frame, stuff like that.
I’d like to ask about “The Creative Process”. Maybe this is too philosophical, or whatever, but, how do the authors get into the characters heads? I mean, the writers guides for the series were sketchy and inconsistent (Y1 vs. Y2), and some were only present for one year of the series. Even so, two years isn’t really much time for character development.
How, then, do you folks manage to portray them so that we, as fans and readers, can identify with a story and a character? And do it consistently so that David McIntee’s Koenig is the same as John Muir’s is the same as Bill Lathams’s… This seems especially challenging when your considering “off-duty” time, because the episodes, naturally, always dealt with some kind of crisis or another.
Is this what the editor does? If so, what do [b][i]you [/i][/b]draw from? Just your knowledge and love of the series?
I suppose, though, that this is what makes a writer a writer.
Thanks!
-Pat.
And if I ask if it is a coincidence that the planet on the alternate cover art looks like Meta from Breakaway, will you answer? :huh:
[b]PatS wrote:[/b]
[quote]And if I ask if it is a coincidence that the planet on the alternate cover art looks like Meta from Breakaway, will you answer? :huh:[/quote]He’ll probably say that it looks a bit more like Ariel from Last Sunset…
although there is a striking similarity to Meta as well. Perhaps some SFX of Meta were re-used in Last Sunset??
Forsaken cover superimposed over screen shot from The Last Sunset as the Moon approaches Ariel:
[img]http://www.captphilonline.com/powys/media/kunena/attachments/legacy/images/Ariel.jpg[/img]Does it? I honestly did NOT know that.
Also, I am thinking about how to respond to the question of what it was like to approach the original authors to contribute to Powys books. Kinda busy at the moment. Short answer: an honor and a thrill!
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