Overview
Conceptual book cover design for NOS4R2 (more commonly seen as NOS4A2), a horror novel by Joe Hill. This design aims to visually communicate one or more important themes of the story using visual rhetoric. Metaphor and allusion are utilized through the image of the car as the shadow to express the inability to accept reality, signifying something being haunted and not what it appears. The scrabble tiles, an in-story access to the supernatural, represents a bridge between the readers and the fictional world.
Software
Illustrator, Photoshop
Timeline
Sep – Oct 2022 (5 weeks)
Ideation
Preliminary Research
To understand what imageries would best represent the story, I reviewed the plot and conducted more comprehensive research into its themes to identify important imageries and potential concepts. NOS4A2 (or NOS4R2 in the UK) is a supernatural horror novel by Joe Hill, revolving around Victoria McQueen after she discovers the ability to travel where she is needed by riding her bike through an old covered bridge. On one of her trips, Vic is warned about Charlie Manx, a child kidnapper possessing similar abilities to hers. The subsequent events follow the conflict between Vic and Charlie and the toll of their supernatural abilities.
Based on the plot, I wanted to highlight the dark supernatural world of the story and the objects that allow the characters to access their abilities — Vic McQueen's bike, Charlie Manx's Rolls-Royce, and another character's scrabble tiles. While the story isn't specifically set during Christmas, the imaginary amusement park Christmasland is an important location and opens up more possibilities for visual elements. Existing book covers and related artworks were collected for inspirations and reference. Rhetorical tropes and visual examples were looked into to ideate more nuanced concepts.
Ideation
Brainstorm Sketches
Initial ideas were sketched with by pencil on paper for quicker explorations. I focused on experimenting with the imageries and themes, before moving onto typographic and layout choices.
Ideation
Further Iterations
From the sketches above, the ones featuring the characters and their shadows seemed most interesting and suitable for the story. I explored further with different placements and angles. There're also simpler sketches focusing on straightforward imageries and typography.
Refinement
Potential Layouts
The final stage of pencil-on-paper sketches was exploring the layouts. The concept I selected has the character on their bike and a car as her shadow. This was redrawn in axial, concentric, and radial layouts. Concentric iterations made the images feel warped, which would suit the story, but would be more difficult to implement, while radial ones did not seem as suitable. Axial layouts were more appropriate and were the least complicated to further refine.
Refinement
Colours & Style
With the final sketch, I experimented with colour palettes and stylistic directions. Based on the story, the general design was intended to lean towards a comic book feel. The art style and colour scheme were inspired by the animated movie Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the comic book series Sin City by Frank Miller, and Hellboy by Mike Mignolia.
Refinement
Iteration #1
Refinement of the chosen concept and layout were executed using Adobe Illustrator. The illustration for the character referenced a stock image, then adjusted according to the digital sketches. Francesco Francavilla’s tribute cover of the book was used as reference for the car. The colour palette and illustrations were adjusted as I continued to refine the cover. Based on feedback I received, I switched out the blood-like title with the scrabble tiles; the blood would show more ties to the horror aspect of the novel, but the scrabble tiles have more connections to its themes. The direction of the back cover text was aligned to the diagonal direction of the front cover illustration.
HEX
RGB
#3B4954
59, 73, 84
HEX
RGB
#282828
40, 40, 40
HEX
RGB
#50514A
80, 81, 74
HEX
RGB
#A3A58C
163, 165, 140
HEX
RGB
#BE1E2D
190, 30, 45
Mockups were made with the final spread in Adobe Photoshop to demonstrate how the cover would look in a realistic setting.
Refinement
Iteration #2
This iteration used the same sketch as the foundation and maintained the overall layout of the previous iteration, but I wanted to revise the colour scheme and illustration style. The revision aimed to increase cohesion between graphical elements. The colours shifted to a colder scheme with red as the emphasis. The blue scrabble tiles work more harmoniously with the colours of the main character. The illustration has less of a comic book art style but still retain some of the desired effects. It also extends across the cover in a subtler manner.
HEX
RGB
#58595B
88, 89, 91
HEX
RGB
#231F20
35, 31, 32
HEX
RGB
#003049
0, 48, 73
HEX
RGB
#669BBC
102, 155, 188
HEX
RGB
#C1111F
193, 17, 31
Beyond the Cover
An augmented reality effect was developed with the first iteration as the base, granting the audience a unique experience with the novel. In the story, scrabble tiles connect an individual to their own supernatural world. To mirror that, in this experience, they act as a bridge between the readers and the fictional world of the novel, representing a disregard for reality. The audience is first presented with the cover with scrabble tiles placed on it. By moving closer, the cover disappears to reveal a different set of tiles inside the book, prompting the audience to come closer and investigate to put together the message.
This effect was completed from October to November of 2022, using Cinema 4D and Meta Spark AR.
