Three Parts Dead : The Cover!

I’m thrilled to be able to share the final cover for Three Parts Dead—which you’ll see on shelves at your local book shop on October 2!

 I cannot say enough good things about this cover.  I love the painting (by Chris McGrath, who does covers for the Dresden Files books!), the design, the quote (from Jerry Pournelle!), the city, the color scheme…  Tara’s almost exactly as I pictured her; she’s gorgeous, but she also looks human (and her pose is a pose  human beings can adopt).  Even the glowing glyphs, more like circuits than runes, fit perfectly with my vision (and descriptions) of the world.  I went into this process with a “well, let’s see what happens” approach, and I’m so happy about the results.  The team at Tor rocks!

There’s another piece of new information in the log line of this post: I have a release date!  Three Parts Dead debuts on October 2.  Mark your calendars!  Start your engines!  Rev up your time machines!  (Note: if you have a time machine, can you give me a lift to the 22nd century?  I need to pick up some Future Milk.  Thanks for the help—I owe you one.)

That’s all for now, but watch this space for further developments about Three Parts Dead, my other books, and general insanity!

26 Responses to “Three Parts Dead : The Cover!”

  1. Vladimir

    So happy to see this officially AND to see the release date! Woo 3PD!

    This cover is just the awesomest thing ever. I can’t wait to have it on my bookshelf 😀

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  2. max

    Thanks, Vlad! I can’t wait to *see* it on your bookshelf. This is so cool.

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  3. Teresa Frohock

    I said it on Twitter and I’ll say it here … it’s beautiful, Max! Congratulations!

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  4. Steve!

    Holy crap, dude! You have a pullquote and everything! GORGEOUS cover!

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  5. max

    Thanks Teresa & Steve! I’m glad you like the cover. I’m kind of obsessed with it myself. I have this on my iPad desktop now – Tara keeps daring me to get back to work.

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  6. sarah

    Wonderful cover. Can’t wait to read the book.

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  7. Danny

    It looks fantastic!! Very exciting. And Tara looks quite dangerous. Yes, better get back to work. Or else.

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  8. max

    @Sarah Thanks! I’m excited to hear what you think!

    @Danny It’s scary having a character who’s about 9,000x more motivated than I am. And helpful! “Are you seriously feeling too tired to work right now? Try having to argue a motion the day after you’re attacked by a pack of gargoyles.”

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  9. Emmy

    So awesome, Max! (I know I saw it before, but I’m wowed all over again). And congrats on the fabulous quote too!

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  10. Miguel Garcia

    WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO… … OOOOOOOT!
    Grats man! This mean we can start pre-ordering?

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  11. Miguel Garcia

    Aw, it cut me “several pages later” comment out from between the ellipses 🙁

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  12. max

    Emmy – I’ve had the base painting as my wallpaper for well over a month, but somehow it still blows me away. Something about the combination of my name, and the cover (and the awesome quote) makes it even cooler than the painting on its own.

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  13. max

    Miguel – Thanks! Not yet on the pre-orders, I’m afraid. We’re still a few steps from having a finished book: I think there’s a proofing stage to pass through, and final production, before I can rally the troops for pre-ordering. This is a huge step in the right direction, though!

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  14. Melody

    Awesome!!! That came out beautifully. What happened to the potential for hats? 🙂

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  15. max

    I’m really glad you like it! I suggested a couple alternatives to the fedora in early concept stages, and I guess he decided not to go with them. Fine by me! I love the hair.

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  16. Matt

    This. Is. Fantastic.

    Kind of thing that makes you not only want to get right back to writing but add in an essay on the merits of beautiful covers!

    You deserve it all dude. Can’t wait for the physical specimen!

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  17. Alana Abbott

    Actually, Max, you do have preorders up at B&N…

    http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/three-parts-dead-max-gladstone/1109152282

    (Have just been putting together my blog post and thought, wow, I can link to it online!)

    So, what’s your opinion on sales (if you’ve formed one yet): should we preorder, buy at an indie, or just buy copies for all our friends regardless of where we get them? 😉

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  18. max

    @Matt Physical specimens will abound! & Thank you. 🙂

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  19. max

    @Alana – Wow! That’s news to me. And, after a little digging, I find a similar pre-order slot at Amazon:

    http://www.amazon.com/Three-Parts-Dead-Max-Gladstone/dp/0765333104/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330809498&sr=1-2

    Whoa. That’s pretty cool. Neither B&N nor Amazon have the cover picture up yet, but that’s definitely my pre-order page!

    I haven’t formed an opinion on sales yet—though my impression is pre-orders are good for helping the publisher establish print run size (& sell to bookstores), and in-person purchases or orders at indies are better for bestseller list gaming post-publication. More researched & well-founded opinion to come!

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  20. Katrina Lantz

    This is so awesome, Max!!!! Can’t wait to feature it on Operation Awesome (definitely this week)! I’ll email you. Thank you so much for sharing! I absolutely love it.

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  21. Kell Andrews

    Congrats, Max! It’s very striking!

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  22. Amparo Ortiz

    B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L. That is all.

    *faints from the pretty*

    Congrats on all your success, Max!!

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  23. max

    @Katrina – Thanks! Answer to your email forthcoming.

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  24. max

    @Kell @Amparo – Thank you!

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  25. uncle danny

    so much to say more to follow the cover ABSOLUTELY AWESOME
    Chris must have been channelling Frank Frazetta

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  26. max

    Thanks, Danny! I like the thought of Frank Frazetta as a tutelary deity for cover artists. Chris shows considerably less skin than the average Frazetta portrait, though.

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