Hello everyone,
Frankly I was stunned by the wonderful array of covers ideas that came in from people for this contest. Narrowing the choices down to only three proved to be so difficult that we bent the rules and added a fourth and still left off some very great covers.
The GrayHaven editorial team selected our four favorites as finalists and now you, the reader, will choose which cover you want to see chosen for our first volume of 2013: True Ghost Stories.
Entry #1: NATHAN LEE JAMES
Entry #2: JASON HART
Entry #3: BRADD MIELKE
Entry #4: PAUL RAFFERTY
And now it’s in your hands!
Voting will end in 30 days!
All four of those are wonderful
Brad -
You are a god.
I’m partial to Brad and Paul but any one of these will make great covers. Good job, everyone
# 3 and 4 are good. though I am liking three better. Four has a serious creepy stepford thing going on.
Thanks I was after something along those lines
Mielke’s is the most professional looking. Good and creepy!
Should probably go with a one-per-day voting system next time; I smell stuffing. Ah well.
#3 by Mielke is boring. I’d probably never buy s comic with that cover. Just saying.
Better start this poll over. I was reviewing the results and 3 was jumping by 20 votes a second. Something is extremely fishy here.
Checking on that now, Bruce. Got similar emails/comments. I think I saw the issue.
#2 Has a lot of great contrast going on, great color and shadows happening. Super cool.( #3 super bland), i would never see that on the shelf and say wow gotta read this one. Looks to computer animated.
Alright everyone. Votes have been reset. A glitch allowed for repeat voting so in the interest of fairness I’ve reset the system to allow only one vote per IP and will extend the contest until August 16. Spread the word and vote (again) for your favorites.
I’m not sure why some of the latest comments seem to be thinking #3 is super bland. I think it’s more of the other way around. It stands out more than the other 3 choices in my opinion. I voted for that one hands down, looks like effort was actually put into it compared to the others choices.
How can you think #3 is the best? I just keep thinking how bland it is… it doesn’t grab my attention. If I wanted to read a book about Kentucky Fried Ghosts, I’d pick that one. If I want an interesting ghost story/comic I’d look for something that looked like #2 ot maybe #4. I voted for #2 and it’s funny that once they reset the poll to eliminate stuffing #3 fell behind. I’m glad they reset it.
#2 is the worst of the bunch. Looks very sloppy. Okay for a prelim sketch, but not a final product.
And Bradd is spelled with 2 “Ds” as in Bradd.
How many comic books have “Photoshop’d” pictures on the front cover? May need to check the copy rights. I voted for 2 but I also liked 4.
I’m loving all the feedback and debate but let’s remember to keep it civil. The four creators who were chosen as finalists did a great job of capturing the feel we were looking for and the editors here would be happy with any one of them winning. Cheer on your favorites but I hope we don’t have to do that at the expense of other candidates, slamming their efforts.
I really like #3, when I think of ghost stories it captures my imagination. I like #1 also it is errie. I don’t care for #2 and #4 they seem more ghastly than ghostly.
Seriously, shouldn’t #3 be the cover of Scooby Doo and the Confederate Caper? Its not frightening or eerie at all and the picture lacks a basic sense of balance that probably would have made me dislike it a little less.
I don’t agree. I actually think #3′s “sense of balance” is perfect for a comic book cover. #1 and #4 have a decent layout that would work great too. #2 is the only one of the four with a title already added to it, but the size and placement they used for the title was poor (placed not at the 1/2 or 2/3 marks but instead randomly placed in between). For the other three you have to realize there would be more on the cover than simply the image itself and picture a title and such on the image as well. It’s supposed to be a cover not a movie poster.
I did 4, but if I wasn’t in the competition I’d probably vote for 3 as it kinda has something to it, it does look like the figure was put on with photoshop, but then I was thinking of doing that with my ghosts, I decided to try painting them in the end as i thought it’d be more fun to see if I could do it successfully without ruining the whole piece
I think they’re all great! I love the driver’s eyes in #1. The ghosts in the green cloud in #2 are interesting, but the overall look reminds me of a “Goosebumps” cover. The detail in #3 is incredible, and the darkness/lack of colors gives it an eerie, sinister feel. #4′s wholesome family dinner, accompanied by a couple of uninvited creepy ghosts, makes me smile. I do like the colors in #4, but it gives it more of a comical look, rather than a scary look. Artistically, #3 stands out, so that’s the one I voted for. But again, they’re all great!
They were all better than I could ever imagining doing. Without realizing whose was whose I liked #3 the best. Wasn’t sure of the rules in the contest as far as what kind of media was used (if there were any rules) but everything really came together for me with #3. Then it turns out, it’s the one I was urged to take a look at. I hope he wins! Good luck everyone!
I think number 4 by Paul is the most original and best rendered. Once the title is added, I think it’ll look superb.
Cheers Sean
My vote is for: Entry #2: JASON HART
My vote is for Entry 4, Paul Rafferty … very creepy!
All of the designs are done very well, some are scarier, some are more vibrant in color, but each tells a different visual story (especially when combined with the title). #1 True Ghost Stories…from the 1950′s. #2 suggests that these are going to take you to that scary feeling you get in your gut when you have to go downstairs #3 True Ghost Stories…from the civil war. #4 It has that Stepford feel, but it’s almost scary for the sake of being scary.
When I was working on a project for a haunted theme park, they told me that the thing that scares people the most isn’t the shit popping out in front of them…it’s their minds. It’s the unknown. It’s the long walk in the dark when you think you hear something. It’s that feeling in the pit of your stomach when your kid is missing at the grocery store….he’s probably lost, but your mind goes straight to the child abduction scenario. The art should convince people that you can take them to that place. My vote is for #2.
Hands down I pick #3. Number one would be great for scary stories with a bit of humor because it has that feel to it. Number 2 would be good for scary stories aimed at teens. Number four has that creepy feel to it that would make me think the stories are probably a bit on the gross side.
But #3 has a more chilling feel to it. If the title is True Ghost Stories then that is the cover that would make me believe it. The man’s appearance and being dressed the way he is makes me think of stories that have been around for a long time… and then to notice the knife he’s holding so casually… chilling.
And as for the previous comments… lol glad to know I’m voting after the reset. I don’t know any of the artists or even the intended audience for the stories but I like what I like
So?
I thought the voting would be done ages ago
Is it still going?
When does it stop?
Hi Paul,
The voting came to an end on Thursday. One month after everything was reset due to multiple votes from the same IP not being caught. An announcement on this site and emails to all the artists is coming this week.