Gay bear cover art?

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buck67209

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I want to publish short gay erotica serials via KDP for a gay male market. My characters tend to be masculine, mostly muscular or solidly-built bears, but this body type seems hard to find on the stock photo and pre-made book cover websites I've seen. All the models look waxed, which would have been in fashion in the '90s, but many gay men are into beards and body hair these days. Does anyone have suggestions on low-budget sources for cover art of this kind? I also have Adobe CS 5.5 and could probably tutorial my way to a decent DYI job, but I want to source legal images. A realistic, non-cartoonish illustration would work, but I can't draw, and I assume that would be considered a custom design at a more premium price. I'm new to this, so I'm trying to stay under $100 per e-book cover until I see income. I'd appreciate any advice. Thank you.
 

buck67209

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Perfect! Thanks! That video is concise, informative, and on point—just how I like them.

Now all I need are bears. I notice most gay erotica in the Kindle Store containing the word "Bear" have cover models with lean builds and waxed chests. These are not bears! Those that do have bears look more like custom covers. Obviously, I'm not alone with this problem. Come on, stock photo suppliers. We need hairy chests! I'm thinking about contacting gay porn companies with bear content to see if I can license one of their promotional stills (PG-13 versions, of course). I'm sure this would be much more expensive than the stock photo route, though. Hmmm . . .
 

DarienW

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Hi Buck,

I happen to love bears too! Can you go to a club and maybe find your muse and ask if they would pose for you? With Photoshop, you could darken or even filter to look less exact. I'm getting you want a hairy chest, LOL!

Anyway, just a thought, and it would be cheaper than licensing, I think, even if you paid them.

Also, maybe run an ad on Craig's list, maybe there's an actor in your area who would love the exposure.

Good luck! (and welcome!)

:hi:
 

buck67209

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Hi Buck,

I happen to love bears too! Can you go to a club and maybe find your muse and ask if they would pose for you? With Photoshop, you could darken or even filter to look less exact. I'm getting you want a hairy chest, LOL!

Anyway, just a thought, and it would be cheaper than licensing, I think, even if you paid them.

Also, maybe run an ad on Craig's list, maybe there's an actor in your area who would love the exposure.

Good luck! (and welcome!)

:hi:

Right on my fellow bear admirer! I live in Wichita, Kansas. Our scene is small enough that I can't really think of anyone. I suppose I could cast a wider geographic net on one of the hookup apps until I see a profile pic that looks like a good fit. I also was thinking about several guys (likely straight) at my gym that fit the bill: "Hey, how would you feel about posing shirtless for a gay erotica book cover?" I suppose that could get weird, lol! I've considered Craigslist, too.

I finally found a perfect stock photo in every way minus the chest hair. Otherwise, the guy closely fits the description of my protagonist's object of desire. The pose has the man in a tank top looking down and his bulky chest, which is mostly shadowed, so I don't think it would matter much once I manipulate him in Photoshop. I could dial back the amount of chest hair in my description to make it more in line with the photo. Regardless, if I'm going to write bear erotica, I can see cover art will be a challenge. I might have to explore some of these other options. I'm a newbie, but I have a marketing communication background. You'd think that if there is a market for bear porn, there would be a market for bear erotica, so hopefully visual content providers will begin to recognize the need for more bearded, hairy, manly models.
 

DarienW

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I also was thinking about several guys (likely straight) at my gym that fit the bill: "Hey, how would you feel about posing shirtless for a gay erotica book cover?" I suppose that could get weird, lol! I've considered Craigslist, too.

LOL on the gym! That's funny. Since you found your muse, I say, do a google search for bears and find a shirtless one with the hair you desire in a similar pose and mask it into your stock pic.

I do photoshop, so let me know if you need any tips!

Take care fellow bear lover! Maybe we should do a beta swap, heh!

:tongue
 

buck67209

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LOL on the gym! That's funny. Since you found your muse, I say, do a google search for bears and find a shirtless one with the hair you desire in a similar pose and mask it into your stock pic.

I do photoshop, so let me know if you need any tips!

Take care fellow bear lover! Maybe we should do a beta swap, heh!

:tongue

I might take you up on the swap. I have no readers, proofreaders, or copyeditors at this point. However, reading some of the bestselling erotica, I can clearly see that editing doesn't seem to be a big priority, which is too bad. I'm a pretty good self-editor if I can step away from the work for a couple days, but if I actually make money and can pay someone, I'll find a good copyeditor who is cool with gay erotica. Another person will always catch things I never would.
 

ColdWintersNight

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I can drawing something for you? Here's a taste of my style, oddly enough I just drew some very large manly men.

tumblr_oepsohkiPa1rkatkro1_1280.jpg
 
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