Fifty percent of my web design clients are authors. Through working with writers and the publishing industry I have seen many generic book covers and illustration art. I have had the task of finding and creating graphics to coincide with their books for marketing purposes such as newsletter headers and social media posts from stock databases.
Recently I started working with a client who is an art collector. He collects the artwork of a well-known illustrator of the 1920s to 1950s. At that time magazine and book publishers commissioned artists to produce paintings and drawings for their covers and illustrations. The originals are now of great value and demand. There is no replacement for human talent and hand drawn and hand painted illustrations.
Through this experience and becoming weary of the artificial intelligence generated images and the grab and go graphic design options for book art and small business logos, I have teamed up with a local artist to offer custom book covers, logos, and marketing illustrations. Pricing is comparable to computer generated covers and logos but of much greater value and visual appeal.
Meet Mary Beth
My name is Mary Beth. I am a freelance artist residing in the Roanoke Valley. My work is inspired by nature, interactions, and the human mind, fueled by God. I work with all mediums, but am most comfortable with pens, acrylics, and graphic design.
Art is my outlet for expression, coping, engagement of the imagination, and a way to serve others. Commissions are like cracking codes for me. I get to bring to life a visual representation of each client’s mission, with a splash of my style woven in. My steady endeavors include designing beer labels for Big Lick Brewing Company and an array of wearable art and paintings for two sister shops in downtown Roanoke; Gypsy Palooza and Artsy June.
Here is an example of a marketing illustration: first an image pulled from a commonly used stock and AI based graphic design program, then Mary Beth's hand drawn image and her painted image. The quality is incomparable.
Here is an another example of her art in a book cover. Mary Beth takes the time to know the story and it's main characters. She creates the cover in mind of the underlying themes as well as the dominance of title and author. The product is an eye-catching cover and at the same time a piece of custom original art. When you commission her talent for your book cover, you will receive the original piece as well as all the digital files of that artwork that you will need.
Contact us for your next book project, small business logo, or marketing and social media graphics. (If you would like to contact Mary Beth directly, send email to