Please welcome our special guest, David McGlumphy, cover artist, author, and editor of the new anthology Jurassic Attack!

Book Description:

They’ve been gone from our world for millions of years, little more than a collection of fossilized bones and detritus from a forgotten past, but now they walk among us! Dinosaurs have returned without a moment’s warning and now they’re coming to take back their world one stomping foot, swiping claw, and gnashing tooth at a time. Can you survive the Jurassic Attack? Featuring cover art by David McGlumphy and stories by: David McGlumphy, Justin Hunter, Donald Armfield, Nikolai Misura, T.S. Woolard, Dona Fox, Ryan T. Sirk, Stephen Blake, Gary McCluskey, Catfish McDaris. Essel Pratt, Roma Gray, Amanda M. Lyons

What gave you the idea for your book Jurassic Attack!

In the late 80s, a trading card set called Dinosaurs Attack! came out. The story was about a group of scientist messing with time travel, and how they created a device in which they can see into the past. They decide to look back at the dinosaurs, and in doing so, an evil alien race intercepts the signal, resulting in the dinos coming out of the screen into our time, and the world becomes populated again by dinos. Very bloody and brutal card series on the lines with Mars Attacks!

You are one of the cover artists at J. Ellington Ashton. How did this come about? What’s it like to be a cover artist?

In 2013 there was a Facebook event surrounding zombies and horror in general, and there was a contest going on to win a copy of Titanic 1912 by Catt Dahman. I won this contest and became a huge fan of Catt’s. I kept in touch with her, and on a whim, I showed her some Photoshop artwork that I had created, and she then showed it to the JEA cover artist Susan Simone. Sus liked my work, so I was brought on as an intern, and I did so well they eventually hired me on.

Being a cover artist is exciting and very intense at the same time. Having to create art that the author and millions of people will enjoy is draining at times (haha). Finding images that are both commercial appealing and commercial enough to be used for a mass produced cover is timing consuming, but worth the effort when all the elements come together and the author gets to see the image they wanted on their cover.

What got you into the world of horror? Which do you prefer, writing or artwork?

Late night HBO as a kid, watching movies such as Friday the 13^th, Nightmare on Elm Street, and my all time fave, The Return of the Living Dead. You don’t get to see much of the gore and violence; it’s more about the thrill of not knowing if the characters will make it to the end. I prefer artwork, my writing skills are lacking in my mind, but then that’s the artist in me, my own worst critic. Writing is one of my passions. It’s a very beautiful art form that I haven’t yet grasped.

What are you working on now?                          

I am currently working on a few covers, one for Kevin Candela, and a few others but a artist doesn’t share too many secrets *winks.

What is it like working with authors? Is it difficult creating their vision into artwork?

Authors are vicious (lol). No, authors are very keen about the image they want to see on their cover, as they should be. The book is their baby, and I do my best to give them a cover that is top notch and appealing. Creating a cover is difficult at times, finding images that can be used for a commercial cover is a big challenge. You can’t just go to a search engine and find an image, then expect to use that on a cover; you have to get images that are either free for use or you buy said images. Finding the images is a real trick, especially since it is based on a blurb or a short synopsis of the book provided by the artist.

What is your favorite book (other than your own book, of course) and why?

Oh wow so many to choose from Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, a theme park full of dinosaurs wrecking havoc on man, whom shouldn’t have brought them back in the first place. I love the science, horror, and the mystery of the story; it always keeps me captivated, no matter how many times I reread it.

What advice would you give aspiring artists and writers?

Keep with it and don’t let the small things get to you. Commercial appeal, and above all, only use legal images for covers. And make sure images match. I have seen some awful covers that could have been amazing if time was taken to adjust the right elements.

Book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Jurassic-Attack-David-McGlumphy/dp/1523615869/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454880869&sr=8-1&keywords=jurassic+attack+book

Author Site: http://davidmcglumphy.weebly.com/