The pop-ups appeared each in three different spots - the below one appeared at the beginning and showed the mines mountains and the river, the top left one appeared in the middle and showed the different layers of the cave in which the mistress lives, and the last one, the house, appeared at the end and showed Nastia, Stepan's sad wife by the window after receiving the devastating news
I had a conflict regarding the atmosphere I wanted the cover to reflect, as on one hand it is a book for children and young adults to read.
But on the other hand, it's a bit of a scary story. I was afraid to do it too dark or reflect too much horror. I've been through many options until
I condensed it to the six ideas above. First of all, I tried to avoid reflecting "scary" but rather hint on something mysterious and magical.
Secondly, it was important for me to stick to a small color palette, specifically green-related (because of lizards and the malachite stone)
But on the other hand, it's a bit of a scary story. I was afraid to do it too dark or reflect too much horror. I've been through many options until
I condensed it to the six ideas above. First of all, I tried to avoid reflecting "scary" but rather hint on something mysterious and magical.
Secondly, it was important for me to stick to a small color palette, specifically green-related (because of lizards and the malachite stone)
Eventually the inspiration for the cover came from book covers from the 1840, where the title of a book appeared along with usually a single visual that highlights the content of the book. I searched for simplicity and a certain balance as the content of the book is rich in colors and pop ups, and I didn't want the cover to reveal it. The book was binded with a special elevation between the pages with the pop-up appear to allow the book to open easily and support the pop-up. The title is a combination of old Slavic font I found with a Hebrew font.
Two serfs, Stepan and his friend, resting in the forest on a warm summer day on their way to work
Stepan sees a strange figure of a woman sitting on a huge lead stone, surrounded by lizards that look like gemstones, and calling him to come closer with her seductive smile
I wanted the mistress to be "snake-y", "lizard-y", as she's not only a literal lizard but also act like one.
Sneaking, hiding, luring.
Sneaking, hiding, luring.
The mistress is demanding from Stepan to come to his master and deliver him a message, word by word, to stop working in her mines and disturb her
The mistress invited Stepan to her cave after he fulfilled her request. She promised to make him a free man again and fed him all the best of traditional Slavic food. In return, he needs to promise he will forget her and never come back again
Stepan and the mistress both sad by the goodbye, the mistress gave him a jewelry box to sell and become rich
The mistress is sad by the unfortunate ending (no spoilers!). She is the mysterious entity that shows herself only to a few.
She will vengeance the ones with darkness in their hearts. And to the good and naive one, she will bring only trouble and misfortune
She will vengeance the ones with darkness in their hearts. And to the good and naive one, she will bring only trouble and misfortune
