Original drafts

Here are drafts I originally created to help me imagine/design a book cover. My favourite draft was draft number 2 because I really liked the complementary colour scheme and the bright hues, so I decided to base my piece around that one. 

'The Raven Princess' Full Story

Written story

'The Raven Princess'

By Olivia-Anna Boden 

Long ago, in a land far away, there was an abandoned forest. Neither man nor woman dared venture there, as it was thought to be haunted. Nobody knew what lay beyond the twisty, tall trees, and nobody wanted to find out.

One day, a girl named Narcissus was playing outdoors. She lived in a village near the haunted woods, and often wondered what it was that lurked in there. On this particular morning, her mother was out shopping and her father at work. Curiosity took hold of her, and she set off for the forest. 

Along the way, she noticed a raven flying above her. It too seemed to be heading for the forest, and Narcissus wished she had wings like the bird; she longed to soar in the sky.

As she got closer, she began to feel slightly scared. However, Narcissus was a brave child, and continued on with her journey. She finally reached the wall of thorns that hid the forest from mankind. Slowly, she began to edge her way in, and after  she had carefully  climbed over the ivy covered wall, tiptoed through the twisty trees and danced across the stepping stones; what a sight it was that greeted her!

The land Narcissus had reached was not scary at all- it was, in fact, utterly beautiful. The sun shone brightly, and the landscape stretched far and wide. Everywhere she looked, there was colour. Bright, blooming flowers blossomed upon the trees, and the luscious green grass tickled underneath her feet. There were creatures that could have only been magical, and faeries flew near the waterfall, which caught the light and shone different colours, giving the impression of an everlasting rainbow. In the middle of the land, there stood a giant tower. Narcissus stared up at it, trying to understand how anybody could possibly get up there.

Suddenly, she saw a  great shadow looming from behind her. Everything went dark. The faeries all hid, and Narcissus slowly turned around.

"I am The Raven Princess," they said. "And just who are you?"

The Raven Princess was beautiful. She was tall and had an elegant frame. She wore a black, jewelled bodice with a feathered skirt, and her fingers were laden with gems. She wore no shoes, and her silver-white hair tumbled around her, reaching her waist. Upon her head was a crown, embellished with onyx jewels . She wore a silver mask which was tied on with a single black ribbon; and upon her back were exquisite, broad, black-

"Wings." Narcissus whispered.

The Raven Princess laughed. 

"Well, Wings, what brings you here? We have not fought against your kind for many years- do they wish for us to again?" 

The girl shook her head.

"No, I wished to see beyond The Wall of Thorns...And my name is Narcissus, your Majesty." she added as an afterthought.

The Raven Princess stepped back.

"It is just a child, you may come out now." she shouted.

The sun came up, and from the shadows emerged every animal there was, magical and not, great and small. Narcissus looked around in awe.

"I look after them." said The Raven Princess. "As long as I am here to protect them, no animal shall be harmed."

"But how do you do it?" asked Narcissus.

"Why, by flying of course!" the Princess replied. "I fly to the land if man, to know if any animal is in danger. If it is, myself and the ravens  bring it back here. We nurture and care for it until it is safe for them to be released back into the wild. I am impressed by your bravery, Narcissus, but I ask of you not to visit here again; as it is too dangerous for both you and this animal kingdom. However, I can grant you one wish because you were so brave. What is you hearts desire?" 

Narcissus had been listening intently to the Princess, whilst stroking the mane of a Pegasus that had sidled over to her. She thought long and hard.

"To fly." she said.

The Princess smiled.

"An excellent choice! And just remember, if you ever see a raven, it is helping nature- and you should too!"

With that, The Raven Princess held Narcissus firmly. She began to flutter her wings, and suddenly, they were flying.

The Raven Princess flew and flew, they soared high above the clouds. Eventually, she took Narcissus home, but promised to visit everyday.

Since then, a raven has appeared at the bedroom window of Narcissus everyday. It caws once, whilst the child strokes and talks to it; and the Princess sees her slowly bloom into a beautiful young lady. The Princess kept her promise to visit, and Narcissus kept hers about never returning to the forest. 

So, if you ever see a raven, make sure you are good to it- after all, it may just be a Princess!

Chosen Brief: Design a book cover, back and spine for a children's short story

Brainstorm for my story

I decided to write my own story to create a cover for, because I can therefore have my own, more personal, approach to it. 

I began brainstorming ideas, and after a while, I came up with the idea of the story 

'The Raven  Princess'. The basic plot is about a girl visiting a forbidden forest, and meeting a winged princess; who may seem scary at first, but has a good heart. The moral of the story is to not judge people by their appearances, and to care for nature, as it is needed to look after us- and we should therefore look after it. 

After brainstorming, I created a pin-board to help with my inspiration for writing the story. This pinboard is my 'Subject Matter' pinboard.

These images helped strengthen my mental image of The Raven Princess, but also helped me to change some ideas I had of her.