Friday, July 11, 2014

Rebranding the Author Brand: "Let Your Imagination Take Flight"

Last week I blogged about what the author brand is and shared some examples of logos and taglines I found for other authors online. I mentioned that I was trying to figure out the core element of MY brand. Why I write, who I am, what my books are about ... and these were the things that came to mind:

escaping reality 
imagination without limits 
breaking free from real-world constraints 
unforgettable characters

I initially wanted my tagline to be this:

"escaping reality one book at a time"

Essentially, that is EXACTLY why I have always loved stories. Loved reading and writing. Purely to escape reality. But I thought that "escaping reality" might (MIGHT) have a slightly negative connotation. Escaping reality isn't always a healthy thing. That whole ostrich-burying-its-head mentality isn't seen as a good thing! And while getting lost in a good book isn't always about denial, "escaping reality" may sometimes be seen as just that.

So onto the next idea: Imagination. No limits. You open a book and your mind is free to soar across worlds, real or fantastical. So ... I needed an image and a tagline that would fit together and depict this idea. Soaring ... flying ... a bird! Which goes perfectly with:

"let your imagination take flight"

So I started doodling and came up with this bird:


Cool. I liked it. I really liked it. But I wanted it to be in nice, neat vector format. So ... I opened up a program I've owned for more than a year but have never been brave enough to use! Adobe Illustrator. After a few basic tutorials, and several hours (yes, hours. Don't laugh. It was my first time!), I had my bird!






Then I just needed to add my name in a clean, simple non-serif font (and I spent a while looking through various options), plus the tagline in a font slightly more whimsical...




And there we have it :-)



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GIVEAWAY WINNER

The giveaway for anyone who left a review of The Trouble with Flying ended today,
and the winner, picked at random by Rafflectoper, is Sally!
Congrats, Sally! You've been emailed :-)


5 comments:

Murees Dupè said...

How wonderful. You have a fantastic creative talent. You make it look easy and I know it isn't.

Cherie Reich said...

I absolutely love it, Rachel!

erica and christy said...

You astound me, as always! I love watching you on your journey as an author. Love your creativity! I loved The Trouble with Flying and did finally leave my reviews. I finished it the day I started it...but alas, am terrible with deadlines! Thanks for letting me read it. Can't wait for the next books in the series! :) Christy

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Rachel, that's brilliant! Well done.

Sue @ Crushingcinders said...

Beautiful. Well done :)