When working with creative people, it’s inevitable that you’re going to be bouncing ideas around all the time. Most are just for fun and usually forgotten. San Cicaro started the same way, a little idea some years ago that we left in the trunk because of our busy schedules.
Then, somehow, it resurfaced. San Cicaro refused to be denied, and we felt compelled to unveil some of the city’s darkest and strangest tales with Welcome to San Cicaro. Building the marketing campaign was a great time, and we were happy with the overall experience. For us, the job was done.
What we didn’t know then was San Cicaro wasn’t finished with us. To be frank, we didn’t expect it to draw this much interest, but it did—and we had to step up our game.
San Cicaro needed to have its own identity…
The trend among self-published authors is to produce photobashed covers; a composite of various images into one. When done right they can look great, as it did for Welcome to San Cicaro‘s original cover. Plus they can certainly be cost-effective if you are using stock images. But put those covers next to each other and they often blend into an endless and indistinguishably horizon of collages. Anyone would be hard pressed to maintain their brand’s consistency.
So, after some soul-searching, we found inspiration in the travelling posters of old, in the art deco landscapes depicting fabulous destinations mainly travelled by railway. The bold colours and stylish shapes would contrast nicely with the dark tales of San Cicaro. Hidden in plain sight, the bizarre and the miraculous are to be found by visitors fearless enough to brave the journey. A bit of fun amidst the horror.
Come visit San Cicaro, the jewel of the Californian coast, and enjoy everything it has to offer. You’ll never want to leave, and the city may not let you.
