Discover the process and Photoshop brushes behind this fantasy book cover
by https://www.creativebloq.com/author/peng-lu · Creative Bloq- Copy link
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The client commissioned me to design an original book cover for a new fantasy novel, A Bleeding of Heavens, whose central protagonist is a powerful dragon. They hoped the overall atmosphere would echo the iconic scene of Daenerys travelling with her fleet across the ocean at sunset in Game of Thrones.
Once I got the design requirements, I started planning the overall layout right away. I depicted the main dragon in a vivid dynamic stance, dashing forward from a distance in the frame, straight towards audiences with its mouth wide open in a fierce roar.
Floating clouds and sailing fleets spread across the sea in the lower part of the picture. The huge dragon and the tiny distant ships form a sharp contrast, building remarkable spatial depth. The whole scene is set against a glowing backlit sunset sky, and striking light rays enrich the visual layers.
For the back cover, I drew the other two dragons from the novel locked in an intense battle. I arranged the three dragons with clear visual hierarchy, and concentrated the finest details on the main dragon’s head on the front cover to highlight the core character.
If you want to follow a similar process, you'll need digital art software, and you might want one of the best drawing tablets to work on.
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02. First sketch
I quickly sketched out the overall composition and mood. Using simple photobashing, I overlaid some scene photos on the bottom layer, then blended elements into the scene with broad textured brushstrokes. For the dragon, I referred to 3D models posed in Blender.
02. Lighting effects
After the client approved the sketch, I moved on to lighting rendering. Following backlighting rules, I focused on reflections across the sea, rim-lit clouds and subsurface scattering on the dragon’s wings. Once roughly 60–70% complete, I sent the draft for detail checks.
03. Adding drama
The client quickly approved most elements and requested that the lower fleet should be depicted in battle to match the chaotic tone of Jasmine Young’s fantasy novel (the fifth in the Dragon Breaker series). I revised accordingly and refined the artwork to final completion.
Artist's tips
Cloud formation
I use cloud brushes to quickly block out shapes. I intentionally vary the size of near and distant clouds to create depth. Additionally, it’s important to differentiate warm and cool tones between sunlit areas and shadowed back sides of the clouds. As you can see in the illustration, I tint the rear sides of the clouds with cool blue hues.
Fine details
Given the top-down perspective requiring abundant details, I added figures on ships and multicoloured foliage atop island hills to amplify the sense of scale.
Colour effect
The vivid red on the dragon’s wings and bright pink within clouds stem from subsurface light reflection, enhancing the overall luminous effect.
Sea foam
My tip for detailing: paint sea foam only on lit water and leave shadowed areas under ships sparse. This draws eyes to highlights, saves work and boosts visual impact.
Chaotic layout
For the ships, I arranged multiple vessel orientations with 3D models in Blender to create a chaotic layout and avoid tedious perspective issues.
Cloud painting
Here’s my tip for cloud painting: keep shadows unified and focus on lit areas to build volume, while keeping the scene’s perspective in mind.
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