by
Merida Johns
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GENRE: Women’s Fiction
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BLURB:
A fictional story with a memoir
overlay as narrator Katie Blake reflects on life in small town America and the
principles, influences, and big personalities she wants you to never forget.
It’s Memorial Day weekend, 2009, and the town gossips have
their shorts in a twist about a mysterious newcomer who wears tie-dye, colorful
headbands, clunky necklaces, and rings on every finger. “Who installs a ceiling
fan on a Victorian porch?” cries Ned Boomer, Woodburg’s grumpiest man, and the
town gossips concur, “She must be a hippie, witch, or maybe worse . . . a
socialist.”
Hell-bent on preventing a neighborhood blow-up,
precocious, nine-year-old Katie Blake launches a covert investigation to gather
the truth about the enigmatic Rose. But when she discovers a decades-old secret
binding her, Rose, and bad-tempered Ned Boomer, her world takes a turn.
Penning a memoir sixteen years later, Katie is forced to
reconsider whether the real proof of love was in preventing a neighborhood war
or finding friendship and comfort among three unlikely grief-stricken souls who
should never be forgotten.
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EXCERPT:
Gram taught me to be independent, manage my
anxieties, and have confidence in myself, showing me
how to use my imagination
to wiggle out of a jam or face the “grim crossroads” when confused or sad.
The first time I cried and lost it over a
complicated computer problem, she said, “Be inventive, Katie! What can you do
to calm down and think things through?”
We put our heads together to come up with ideas.
Gram said she brewed herself a cup of tea when needing a break. Mom worked on
crossword puzzles. Dad played solitaire. My one decadent delight was a FatBoy
ice cream, and that’s how Gram and I hatched the plan of taking two ice cream
sandwiches and hiding them under the frozen vegetables to create my private
emergency stash.
“Close your eyes, breathe, take a bite, and
replace the leftovers. No one will suspect anything. Our little secret. . .”
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Guest post:
Book Cover Design of A Proof of Love
We're all familiar with the idiom, "Don't judge a book by its cover." While the metaphor is useful for withholding judgment about the value of something or someone based on outward appearance, it couldn’t be farther from the truth when it comes to books. A recent research study showed “that book covers are more than decorative; they play a key role in shaping book perception and consumption.”I
Given that I wholeheartedly agree with the above researcher that a book cover’s sole purpose is to be judged, let me share the process I used to create A Proof of Love.
My priorities when it came to the cover design
I wanted the cover to fill three roles. First, the cover should reflect the inciting incident that disrupts the protagonist's life and sets the plot in motion, or it should represent the point of truth in the story, called the climax. Second, I wanted a visual narrative that would attract readers' attention and interest, and third, a reference point—a cover—that would propel them into the simulation as they read.
The choice—the inciting incident or the climax?
Well, I had a little help from 64 of my Substack and other social media followers.
I developed seven cover prototypes using a popular software program. Secretly, I had a preference, but I wanted to know what my anticipated reader audience preferred. I needed to learn which design was most attractive to readers who enjoyed my novels' content. To accomplish this, I asked my social media followers for volunteers to evaluate the seven prototypes.
Sixty-four followers participated and assessed designs based on both the inciting incident and the climax. Using a variety of statistical techniques to analyze the responses, the current cover representing the inciting incident received the most positive comments.
How does the porch represent the inciting incident and other cover priorities?
From the book's blurb, prospective readers can surmise that the inciting incident that raises the neighborhood’s blood pressure into the danger zone is the placement of a fan on the ceiling of a Victorian front porch by the newcomer to town, whose manner and dress don't jive with the stereotypical village citizen. The white ceiling fan that sparks the hubbub is prominently featured on the book cover.
The porch scene gives a visual narrative of hospitality, friendship, refuge, and trust. A place for conversation and sharing. As a reference point for readers, cover elements—from the Boston terrier, lemonade, cookies, comfy white wicker furniture, to hanging flower baskets—each have a home within the novel's pages that readers will recognize (and revisit) as they move through the story simulation.
Final Cover Design
While I developed the seven prototype covers using a popular software platform (Canva), I’m no designer. With the input from my 64 reviewers, the chosen cover was handed off to my professional cover designer, Ruth Miller. Ruth designed the award-winning cover for my novel Flower Girl and has a spectacular eye for detail, color palette, composition, typography, and layout. She adjusted elements of the prototype to conform to graphic design principles. I couldn't be more thrilled with the result for my fourth novel, inviting readers to come sit on the porch and enjoy a good read about Katie, Rose, and Ned, and the summer when their lives are reshaped by a secret that binds them.
Final Thoughts
I’d be pleased if you’d drop me an email to let me know your reaction to the cover and the emotions it raises for you.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
My
passion is writing women’s fiction and exploring the human experience—how
ordinary people tackle challenges, endure sorrow and betrayal, wrestle with
doubt, and act on their aspirations to achieve flourishing lives.
My
insight into the power of fiction came during a conference call in late 2017
with a group of fellow life coaches. “What would it be like to help women and
men achieve a flourishing life through storytelling?” I asked them.
After
that phone call, I got started answering that question. The result was my debut
novel titled Blackhorse Road, a compelling story of womanhood and the power of
choice, gratitude, and forgiveness, published July 21, 2020, by Coffee Cup
Press, followed by Flower Girl (2022), Flawless Witness (2023), and now A Proof
of Love (2026)
Before
embracing writing fiction, I was the author of health informatics and
leadership textbooks. Later, I put my leadership experience to use as a
leadership coach, focusing on supporting others to fulfill their leadership and
economic potential. My range of nonfiction is available on my Amazon Author
Page.
