Small Poisons

[delph_ambi]

Cover art for my forthcoming novel, 'Small Poisons'. Title etc will be added later.

[desertwomble]

Gawd, blimey! What kinda bug's that?

Great pic, though!

DW

[Ed]

Gawd, blimey! What kinda bug's that?

Great pic, though!

DW

Don't tell me - you're thinking pot roast? 

Nice one, Delph

[delph_ambi]

Thanks guys. 

It's just a wee beetle, but the intention is to be slightly Kafkaesque. Pot roast indeed... 

[Pharosian]

Very nice! I love the subtle touches of pink to offset the green.

And the beetle is obvious (love the pot roast joke, Ed), but I'm not sure about the apple. Is that it way up on the right side, peeking out from under that rather large leaf?

[delph_ambi]

Thanks Pharosian.

I tried to suggest 'apple tree' as strongly as I could without actually including an apple. If you can see one, the power of suggestion has been at work, because I didn't draw one. Don't think I did, anyway. 

[Woody]

Did you use a ladder to get up the tree? 

Nice illustration.

[delph_ambi]

Thanks Woody. The tree is in my parents' garden, so I spent my formative years climbing it. The first branch you can stand on is only about a foot off the ground. The trunk's completely hollow now, but it still keeps growing and even produces apples. It plays a significant role in the novel, so had to be featured on the cover.

[Caz]

The trunk's completely hollow now, but it still keeps growing and even produces apples.

Sounds like the apple tree in my garden. Ants have made their nest in the hollows and spend all day scurrying up and down the trunk. The tree is heavy with apples, they're odd shaped things and I thought about trying one once but decided that I'd prefer to stay alive

Nice picture

[delph_ambi]

Thanks Caz!

This tree produces misshapen scabby fruit, but they aren't half tasty.

[JonP]

Excellent piece of work as ever, delph. Must be really cool to be able to do the cover as well as the contents.

[Ed]

This tree produces misshapen scabby fruit, but they aren't half tasty.

Nitrogen fertilizer will take care of that, apparently.

[delph_ambi]

Thanks Jon!

Useful tip re the nitrogen, Ed. Wouldn't be the same though. That tree's been producing peculiar apples since it was planted in the 1930s. Persuading it to grow round ones now would probably send it crackers.

There's a story in there somewhere... mad apple trees... overdosing on nitrogen...

[Bec]

Great pic!

[delph_ambi]

Thanks Bec