The Creation of The Book "Beatrix Percival" - Inspiration & Creative Process

When I found out about Steemit, I thought it would be fun to start writing a story and releasing it chapter-by-chapter.  I had always wanted to write a fictional fantasy story, but never spent the time to write one.  It was an exciting idea, and different than the usual creative paths that I have taken.  I really have to thank Steemit for inspiring me to start writing; it is something I would have never taken the time to do.

I sat down knowing the theme of the story, but not the story-line or character names yet.  I wanted the lead character to be a girl - so I started trying to come up with the perfect name.  I love the sound of vintage names; they have a sophistication to them.  I went online, searched for vintage names for girls, and wrote down my favorites.  "Beatrix" jumped out at me, and I knew that was the one I wanted.

Finding the last name was actually quite challenging.  I wanted it to be something unusual, but also familiar.  I searched for last names, and most of them that came up where very ordinary.  I then thought about using another first name for the last name.  That search wasn't getting fruitful results either, so I decided to try vintage men's names; that is when I came across Percival.  It went well together, and felt like the character to me - so I ran with it!

The story development went quite smoothly actually.  In a way - while I was writing, it was like I was watching the story happen in my head, and just typing out the words.  I never really got stumped on where to go next.  The introduction of new characters were not previously planned, they just came to be because that is where the story went.



I found it relaxing to listen to instrumental music while I wrote.  Most people would probably find that distracting, but I think it actually enhanced my story.  When exciting music would play, the story would get exciting. When sad music would play, the story would become more dramatic.

I really enjoyed the excitement of releasing my story chapter-by-chapter here on Steemit.  Releasing each chapter felt like it's own individual book release.  My story had very few followers, but I kept posting my chapters in the hope that more people would find my story.  I also decided that it was OK that my story wasn't getting too much attention, because I was going to turn it into a book after I finished posting it on Steemit, and I had a few loyal followers :)

With the text of each chapter that I posted on Steemit daily, I would create a special graphic/photo to represent the chapter.  I did this for all 20 chapters, and had a blast with it!  I used some of my own photography, as well as creative commons photos for the base of the image.  Then I would edit them to change the coloring/lighting, and add the magical effects like sparks and smoke (which I had also separately created).  

Here are a few "before and afters" of where the image started, and where they finished.  
(Above photos are the befores)


(Above) I created special magic effects before adding them in many layers onto this image after the lighting was adjusted darker and the color tinted.

(Above) Color tints, lighting adjustments, and "cloning" (tool to get rid of the path on the left side) were used to transform this photo.

(Above) Many images required quite a lighting change and special effects to add to the magical theme of the story.

(Above) Layers and layers of imagery and color tints where used to create these effects.

About half way through the story, I decided that there was much more to the story to tell, and decided to make it a series rather than a single story.  I have decided that there will be at least three books in the series.  After I finished writing the first story, I started writing the sequel.  Though I posted the first book's chapters here on Steemit, I decided that the rest of the books in this series will make their debut as actual books.  The first story didn't have much popularity here on Steemit, so I decided that I will work hard on sharing the other creative things that I do here (like my artwork and other creative projects).

After many hours of further editing of grammar and punctuation errors, I finally published "Beatrix Percival"!

I really enjoyed creating the cover design for this book.  I wanted something artsy that showcased the beauty, darkness, and magic of the story.



One of the most challenging parts of creating the book cover was the description on the back.  I found it hard to briefly describe the story-line without giving anything away.  Here is the description that I came up with:

Beatrix was an ordinary girl. She wished one day for something extraordinary to happen to her, and one day—it did. Follow Beatrix on her extraordinary adventure as she plummets further into an unknown world full of strange beings, mystical creatures, and magic. When tragedy begins to unravel the
world around her, love drives her
on the journey that lies ahead.

But, will it be enough?

I now have 7 books on amazon, but this is the first one that I have formatted into a kindle book (thanks to @mctiller's suggestion!).  The Beatrix Percival book is now available on amazon for $6.95 and digital copies of the book are available for $2.99. It is also available to read completely free here on Steemit!

Here's the book's video trailer:

Beyond the creation of the book, I have had fun in Photoshop and other design programs creating promotional material and logos for my new story.  

I have quite a bit of the second story written, and am excited to see where the story leads!

Thanks for reading! :)