Hardwired

CLON-X

Book Cover Designs

Mar 6, 2026 | , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I was grappling with ideas for my next blog post when I received an email from a first-time reader. His question, “Where do you get your book cover designs? LOVE them!” That got me to thinking.

Brainwash

After I completed the rough draft of Brainwash and polished the book several times, I sent the manuscript to my editor. In the course of conversation, I asked her if she knew a good book cover designer. Without hesitation she replied, “Fiona of Fiona Raven Book Design.” 

Those ghoulish zombie-looking characters on the cover were her idea, and I’ve had a lot of compliments on the design. She also suggested splitting the book’s title, Brainwash, into two words to make the title larger, more “grabby.” 

Gadgets

As for Gadgets, the cover images were a no-brainer: hot air balloons. All I had to do was pull from my collection of photographs—the 800+ shots I had snapped during my attendance at two Albuquerque Hot Air Balloon Fiestas. 

In fact, while photographing the events, I found myself contemplating the gruesome thought of shooting a hot air balloon out of the sky, not with a conventional projectile, but with something more technologically advanced. With my background in medical lasers while working for an ophthalmic corporation, I thought, “Laser? Hmm. Why not?”

Genocide

In keeping with the morbid plot line, a morgue scene with dead bodies piling up seemed fitting for the cover.  As for the book’s colors, I drew upon the premise for Genocide: Sean Ireland, the first gay presidential candidate in US history, is guaranteed the election—until he’s found dead at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco.

Throughout history, the color purple,  has had special significance. By the mid-20th century, it and its vibrant cousin lavender had become synonymous with the LGBTQ+ community. To complement my purple/lavender choice, I went with a vivid lime green. In retrospect, a darker green would’ve been more complimentary and striking.

During a visit to Vancouver, BC, I had the chance to meet Fiona. I spent a delightful day touring Granville Island and after lunch met with her. She was putting the finishing touches to my cover for Genocide. Not long thereafter, Fiona retired and sold her business. That’s when I hired Alan and Ian of the Book Designers (https://bookdesigners.com/) to do the paperback and Kindle versions of Genocide, as well as the audiobook for Brainwash. 

CLON-X

Again, the book’s plot guided my choice for the cover. Out for a run in Keller, Texas, former FBI Special Agent Darcy McClain and her giant schnauzer Bullet find a canvas sack submerged in a creek. Inside are the pulverized remains of renowned geneticist Dr. Catherine (Cate) Lord, who has been receiving death threats for her alleged research on human cloning.

Pulverized remains. Red of course for the background. As for the central emblem on the cover, I chose a DNA strand for human cloning. The text for the title and author name was an easy decision—another one of my favorite colors: turquoise.  

Blue Angel

While writing Blue Angel, my mind wandered to what the cover would look like. My imagination played upon the dark, life-altering secrets that would challenge Darcy throughout the plot. That’s when I envisioned a black background for the cover. As for the blue angel, would the person be good or bad? Regardless, I chose blue for the title and author color. As for the book cover image? Hold that thought. You’ll know soon! 

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The Lone Star State

Mar 21, 2024 | , ,

Friends and readers have often asked if I would ever set a book in Texas. For years, my standard reaction was to laugh and shoot back with, “Why would I?” Sure, I love where I live in the Lone Star State, but set a book here? After all, what’s so intriguing about living in the Eastern Cross Timbers region of North Texas that a fiction author would set a thriller here? But in the end, that’s exactly what I did. I set book four, CLON-X, in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.  

Once I began to research the history of the DFW area, I discovered reasons to do a re-think. The more I learned, the more addicted I became to knowing more about those early settlers who made the Texas Plains their new home. And as a person who has a deep respect for and love of the land – not to mention being an outdoors person – I immersed myself not only in their stories, but also in the knowledge of the land itself. 

The Cross Timbers is a forest-grassland ecoregion with both savannah and woodlands of post oak, blackjack oaks, and my personal favorite, the eastern red cedar. Some consider the red cedar to be an invasive species, but my love endures. The oaks in the Cross Timbers area were not considered usable timber, so deforestation wasn’t widely practiced there. As a result, these old-growth forests contained millions of post oaks from 200 to 400 years old and red cedar over 500 years old. In 1835, one early American explorer who forged a path through the Cross Timbers terrain described it “like struggling through a forest of cast iron.”

After the history of North Texas dug its hooks into me, I found myself devouring anything and everything related to the early settlers who called Texas the Lone Star State. Why and how did Texas come by this moniker? Theories abound as to the exact story, but it seems the tale begins south of the border. 

When Texas was a province of Mexico, the land that’s known today as the state of Texas encompassed two areas called Coahuila y Tejas. It’s thought that the original flag for this land bore two gold stars in the middle of the red, green, and white stripes of the Mexican flag. Once Texas won its independence from Mexico, the victory resulted in the design of a new flag for the independent Republic of Texas. That first flag, and subsequent variations of it, all featured a lone star, representing defiance, pride and — most importantly — independence, with the red, white, and blue representing, respectively, bravery, purity, and loyalty. All noble traits.

Although we no longer live in a freestanding republic, Texans still pride themselves on their rugged individualism and independent spirit. And as you might expect, the people who are happy to make Texas their home still have that “Lone Star State” spirit. 

Texas joined the Union on December 29, 1845, as the 28th state. I have discovered that, as with so much of history, controversy surrounds even the Texas flag. Who designed it? The Texas State Library and Archives Commission says the flag was designed by Austin artist Peter Krag for $200. Read more about the flag controversies at https://www.kut.org/austin/2016-06-15/why-nobody-knows-who-designed-the-texas-flag 

As someone who’s happy to call Texas home, I find my appetite to learn more about my adopted state has definitely taken hold. Read more about Texas history by starting here https://patkrapf.com/texas-the-german-belt/ Then follow me through the archives of the Lone Star State.

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Book Reviews

Jan 26, 2024 | , , , ,

I appreciate all the book reviews I’ve received over the years for my Darcy McClain and Bullet Thriller series. But for a moment, I’d like to concentrate on one in particular that caught me by surprise. 

An acquaintance saw a print ad I had recently run in a local bulletin and was delighted to learn I’m an author. He quickly followed with, “I used to be an avid reader, but since my stroke, my attention span has never been the same. I find it hard to stay focused.” But he assured me he would buy Brainwash and do his best to read the book. 

A week later we bumped into each other again. He appeared excited to see me and I wondered why. Sure, we know one another, but he certainly had something on his mind and was eager to share it. With a broad smile on his face, almost bordering on a smug grin, he said, “This is a great book, and I’m back to reading like before my stroke. I couldn’t put the book down.” He was halfway through Brainwash and had purchased Gadgets so as not to break his momentum. I couldn’t have been more thrilled. Not about the book sales, but that the series had helped someone in a most unexpected way. 

Three weeks passed and I hadn’t seen him. I grew a bit concerned and asked about him from mutual friends. He was on vacation visiting family in his hometown in North Dakota. When we met up again, he had read Genocide and was almost done reading CLON-X. That impressed me, but what touched me the most? He had a thank-you gift for me. And what better than a book from a local author in his home state – Lori L. Orser’s Spooky Creepy North Dakota. What a fitting title right in time for Halloween! 

I read it in two days. I loved the haunted stories, but, as I’ve never visited either of the Dakotas, I also found the historical facts about locations and people informative. I had both states on my bucket list and all reservations made for visits. Then Covid hit, derailing those vacation plans. Both states are now back on the list. 

A parting comment. In Lori’s book she states: “Like most places, North Dakota has plenty of what would be called urban legends in a more populated state. Here, we call them rural legends. These are stories with only one source, and no one to confirm or disprove them, but whose authenticity as history can only be considered as dubious!”

Her statement regarding authenticity as history certainly hit home, harkening back to my blog post titled “Fact, Fiction, or Contradiction?”

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