Everything creative. No joke. I grew up writing stories and received my first publishing contract at age sixteen. I studied composing and sound design for film and games at my state Conservatorium, of which I gained early acceptance, before completing my second degree at film school with honours. I've produced award-winning short films, worked as a Producer's assistant and sole marketer on Raindance premiered documentaries, been a minor Judge for the prestigious Walkley awards, created Kickstarter-loving projects, and designed book covers for best-selling authors that have been translated into six different languages, featuring my original designs.
So why does my site focus on art? Well, because I love it. And it allows me to stay home with my dog.
I now work part-time as an artist and teach piano while I develop my own creative projects.
I live in sunny Queensland, Australia. No, I am not a paid actor. Yes, it can be sweltering hot.
Do I work with creatives overseas? All the bloody time. It's great. Seriously. I work while you sleep and vice versa! It's highly productive.
Everything babe. Right now I am focussing primarily on illustrating book covers and film posters. But my love is the entire creative industry; anything that explores and challenges our human condition.
If you are in need of creative assistance, don't hesitate to say hello. I'll be upfront if I can provide any services or not, and will at least try to point you in the right direction.
As it reads on the tin. The more you learn about me, the more you'll realise I'm not just that cover lass. I am a driven woman with far too much curiosity and (double-edge-sword-alert!) skills to enable.
If you have a creative vision, I can promise you I can figure out how to make it achievable in one form or another. It's just what I do. It's what I enjoy! Throw it at me. Let's figure it out together.
We are only held back by what we allow ourselves to achieve...
Nupe. I do try to be affordable for emerging creatives, but, sadly, the reality is we are living in a time of obscene greedflation (Never heard of it? Look up Oxfam), with our global wealth hoarded by the 0.01%, and us laymans left to scamper for scraps. I'm in the shithouse with you. Everything is getting more expensive while our "worth" diminishes. Again, like you, I must ensure bills are paid. (Let alone have, you know, some nice comforts in life). So, no deals, sorry. No sales. But, if you approach me with your budget, I can see what I can offer at least, even if it's not your full vision.
That I do! I actually insist for everything over $500. Most of my work is split into two or three payments, fitting with my creative process and revision framework. I'm as flexible as I can be. Just remember: No final payment. No file delivery. (Which thankfully isn't something I've had to hold over anyone yet. And that's not a challenge please and thank you!).
Paypal with a 4% Transfer Fee.
Bank SWIFT Transfer with 20USD fee. (Note: SWIFT can take up to 2 weeks to reach me).
I do not start work until agreed payment has hit my account. Further, if you're booking in advance (which is my preference), I do require some form of payment to lock in your spot which is non-refundable. Why? Because if you're booking four months in advance, I'm holding that space for you and turning down work for that period. Cancel and I may not be able to fill that period which means my bills are suddenly scary! If you are not 100% committed, do not book. You may lose the spot, but that's safer than losing money. (And saves me having a little panic).
Oof, ain't that a magic question! No idea. Honestly. Every project is different. Some are carte blanche. Others are shoestring and two-day crunch deadlines. A better question than How Long Do I Take, is How Long Do You Have? More time the better for the creative and collaborative process. But if you're happy for me to do my thing and then tight works! Just keep in mind, if you are throwing a huge project at me with a tight deadline, there is a 50 to 300% rush fee. (The cost of my sanity let's be real). Otherwise, my rule of thumb is three months for larger projects to ensure safety buffer zones, and two weeks for more "mundane" stuff.
If you pay for them, you sure do darling!
Otherwise, every project does get a set amount of revisions worked into the standard fee at my discretion (one revision is not equal to another after all).
I tend to work in three stages: Concept, Development, and Finesse. (Development sometimes being split into two if the art requires rendering: ie. High Detail Coverage or Technical Export). At the end of each stage, you will receive files to review and provide feedback. I then revise and proceed once I've received explicit confirmation of approval re: chosen concept and / or direction.
If you decide after approving a concept and / or direction to change the brief, you will be charged additional. Further, if you um and ah and build up a truck-load of little edits that have us flip-flopping all over the place like a beached fish, that will also incur costs. I will be upfront at the time, dw.
If you are working on a product that requires promotion, the earlier we start the better. Even if we only work on place-holders or concept material. Having content you can use to market will increase your game by a thouand percent. True facts! It just comes down to >
a) You know what it is you want (or know that you don't)
b) Have the budget available
The more work I have to do to figure out your creative vision, the more it will cost.
Meaning, it's one thing for you to commission me with an explicit vision that I can knock out in two weeks without having to wonder too much about visual expression beyond style. Another for us to build multiple ideas over a few months and allow them to evolve into a distinctive final product which obviously will be far superior to anything I knock out in less than a month, but expensive.
I do have to flag authors: I can not create print materials for your paperbacks and hardcovers and dustjackets and pretty sprayed edges if I do not have final formatted page count. Obviously.
Ha. Wasp nest that one. Look, my opinion is this in its most crude form: Any software or tool that generates content from a database utilising nonconsenting intellectual property is piracy. I do not endorse or use these tools and believe the companies creating them must pay for licenses to do so.
I do believe there is so much good these tools can offer when built ethically but that's not the case right now sadly. (Side Note: Adobe's Firefly is not an ethical alternative like they originally promoted. Firefly is trained on Adobe's stock platform which does allow AI submissions. I know, gross.)
I will admit I did dabble in its earliest stages out of curiosity back in 2021 or so (stock for highly-skilled photo composite works, mind) when I was under the false impression that deep-learning tactics were more abstract and conceptual in what they data-mined. Turned out, that was a fallacy. These shitheads are just ripping art from everywhere, pixel to pixel, and shitting out incestual lifeless graphics in an uncanny-valley mess. It's a speed-run of the dead internet theory!
In saying that, I do think people are using the term "AI" too colloquially. It's become the new "buzz" word. I doubt most of you actually understand how generative and deep-learning technology works. (And that's okay by the way!). Just hate the game not the players, yeah?
(Except for "AI" artists that have no actual artistic skills and want to be taken seriously as artists and be able to copyright their "works", created from keyword generations formed by stolen IP. What a joke).
Okay, the short answer is no, but don't freak out on me! It's a little complicated. In a sense, yes, you own the exclusive license to distribute the product within the agreed terms of our arrangement anyhow you want. But you don't actually own the intellectual property of the asset. That stays with me. Unless you pay additional. Because, truth is, the true rates and worth of my work are far more than what you've paid. The way I make back some of that money is through royalties and / or international licensing among other things, depending on what your product is and our agreement and, honestly, just how lucky we are! (Not everyone strikes gold like Laura Thalassa!)
Scared? Just ask me. Honestly. I don't bite. Chances are, you'll be fine.
Every project and product is a little different so it's hard to put out blanket costs out. But my current rule of thumb (December 2024) is this:
For indie authors not aligned with a publisher or press:
Blanket commercial use (not including merchandise) is 40% of original creation cost. This would cover paid advertisements and promotional use that's more extensive than basic social media coverage. For example, including artwork prints in a bundled book purchase or book box.
Merchandise Royalties are 5% gross sale for products partially featuring my art or 15% for full feature. I understand most creatives do not have a set up for this so happy for upfront payment per QTY ordered. For example: 200 Bookmarks with my Art, Retailing at $4 would Gross $800 = $120 to me.
NOTE: If you have purchased a product from me with the intent to sell only within agreed set boundaries there are no additional costs. Meaning, if I design a book cover for you, I won't chase you for royalties as long as that product is only sold as intended and additional assets provided aren't used for unintended commercial purposes.
Got questions? Confused? Just say hi and happy to chat further! :)
Congratulations, that's so exciting! No need to stress at all. I do offer territorial rights to publishers for a fee which allows them limited access to my working files to create their own edition. Just have a rep email me at hello@creativedayna.au with an offer.
Lucky to secure a foreign language edition? I have working relations with Siren Books (Spanish), Mystery Press (Czech), Martı Yayıncılık (Turkish), and AST Publishing (Russia) amongst others.