Yep, it's our 26th Annual Holiday Studio Card!
As you may already know, every year, for the past 26 years, my boys and I have gotten together to brainstorm a wild book cover photo illustration holiday card concept for the photo studio.
Nobody really has a clue as to where these ideas come from. But, we have always had a lot of fun coming up with a crazy situation for the boys to navigate through.
This year, because of a museum class I was taking, Rocketboy said that it should be a museum heist.
Of course, that meant that we needed a security system for the boys to defeat.
The cats came from Gears, who now has two of the furry roommates running around his apartment.
Unfortunately, the conversation was mostly over text instead of in person, due to scheduling.
I remember the good old days, when the boys were just down the hall… sigh.
But, I digress…
Well, we needed some height to get the boys up high enough. Luckily, Gears has access to some wonderful toys…
With the photoshoot concepted and set up, we needed two more elements: The story excerpt and the digital background.
The inside of the greeting card always contains a page from the pulp paperback book.
That is where we describe the action taking place on the cover.
If I shared with you some of the plot points that get discussed during the shoot… Well, let’s just say that those are not exactly young adult level material!
Maybe some day, I’ll write those up… under a pseudonym!
Oh, but what about the cats?
Well, I asked Gears about featuring them in the cover art. He agreed and supplied me with a library of each cat at different angles and with different expressions.
It was just a matter of sifting through and finding the perfect cat attitudes!
Hope you enjoyed our Happy Holiday Studio Card this year.
Be sure to check out what we have done in the past. It is pretty amazing to me just how much Rocketboy and Gears have changed!
The Cat’s Cap Caper
Gears’ eyes shot to a blur of motion in a dark corner.
“Did you see that?” he exclaimed. “Spooky!”
“Focus, dude!” Rocketboy grumbled. “We’re hanging over a laser beam field and you’re out chasing cats again.”
“Sorry, RB. I just want to understand what the cats have to do with the Red Guy’s cap getting swiped off his head and ending up here, in this dusty old warehouse, surrounded by security tighter than an art museum!”
Rocketboy paused for a moment and looked down below his dangling feet to the floor twenty feet below.
“Well,” he mused. “You know. He and the Missus tend to nod off after a glass of milk and one of those cookies. Maybe they were bingeing some old tv show, like they do. They fell asleep in their comfy chairs. And, that was when a cat burglar snuck into the room and grabbed it off of his head.”
“A cat burglar? Come on,” Gears muttered in disbelief. His eyes still swivelled to the shadowy areas of the room. One eyebrow raised slowly.
And, then his hand, slick with sweat, slipped on the metal frame of the air vent. He felt himself slide forward a couple of inches further, causing the cover to swing and bang against the wall.
Rocketboy’s feet scrambled for purchase on the wall. His free arm swung close enough to one of the beams that he felt the heat singe the hairs on the back of his hand.
Gears reset himself in the tunnel, bracing his feet against the seams.
“Fine, RB. It could have happened that way,” he said, the strain apparent in his voice. “Now, grab the cap and let’s get out of here.”
“Yup,” Rocketboy agreed. “We’ve hung around here long enough. And, that cat just winked at me!”
Gears whipped his head around to where Rocketboy was pointing.
“What cat?”
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