Cover Art Magic!

Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine Issue 61 is just about ready to launch for readers, and in advance I have received my contributors copy. Wow, I am blown away by the wonderful cover art by Shauna O'Meara!

I've had art done to accompany stories before, but this is the first time I've been honoured with cover art, which is for "Long's Confandabulous Clockwork Circus and Carnival, and Cats of Many Persuasions". Check this lovely out:

Cover of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine Issue 61:
Two young women stand on a river dock, watched over by the shadow of
a mysterious flute player. The woman on the left is North African with brown skin, facial tattoos, and tight braids,
and is holding a white cat. The woman on the right is Chinese , with long straight black hair, and is
holding a mechanical cat. They have mud splattered legs. Many cats float in the river. In the background,
black storm clouds cover a city.

I am so pleased the artist captured the look and spirit of not only the story, but of this particular scene (no spoilers!). The woman on the left is Chifwe, the animagus and reclamation specialist, holding her special albino cat. The woman on the right is Ba Luen, an engineer and daughter of Long's Circus, holding her steam-powered clockwork cat. The shadow of the flute player is Hotor, a master of music, shadow, and insects.

This scene is from a major confrontation in the story, so I don't want to give anything away. However, I am pleased at the inclusion of intricate detail and that the true essence of my characters remain intact. River City is a steampunk alt-world Northern Africa, possibly Egyptian, city, with a myriad of cultures, people, languages, religions, and magic, and is an intersection of trade routes. Such details as Chifwe's facial tattoos and outfit and Ba Luen's circus costume are all included, which really delights me. I'm really pleased the artist and ASIM made the effort to acknowledge the intersections of race and culture I attempted to imbue in my story.

Plus, in release serendipity, "Long's Confandabulous Circus" is the first story set in River City, and the second, "The Long Trip Home", was released in "Daughters of Frankenstein" earlier this month.

Now, is it just me, or does the clockwork cat look a little like Cat Iron Man?