I’m excited to reveal my new project of diversion.

I majored in interdisciplinary studies, which is a fancy way of saying “I couldn’t decide on just one major, so I proposed my own to the university, and they accepted.” I called my curriculum “Visual Communication.” It included studying the written word (literature, writing, and editing) as well as two-dimensional art (design, art history, and photography). In college, I focused on writing and had some short stories and poetry published. When I graduated, I worked as a designer, doing some editing from time to time to distract myself. Now I’m focusing on editing, and it’s no exaggeration when I call it my dream job. When I help writers polish their prose, I feel like a superhero.

And yet I still need to feed that visual side. So I came up with a new project, and I’m really hoping that you’ll collaborate with me! Introducing:

So here’s where you come in.

I’ve chosen 20 classic books and 20 different genres. It’s up to you to pick the combinations. I’ll choose my favorites from your suggestions, and I’ll post them on Wednesdays.

Note: I won’t be posting every Wednesday. The third Wednesday of the month is reserved for Query Workshops, and I can’t guarantee I’ll always get a chance to do the designs.

Why am I doing this?

It’s a distraction, it’s a chance for creative collaboration, and it’s good practice for me to keep my design skills from getting rusty. It’s also meant to treat my perfectionism. I will give myself a time limit for each design, and when the time is up, my design is finished. No endless tweaking for these. You’ll be seeing some less-than-perfect designs, but hopefully I’ll grow as a person by letting go of my need for perfection.

The Choices

Choices that have been crossed out are pairings I’ve already designed. However, if you contribute your own, you can choose from any of the two columns below.

Example

My first request came as a result of asking a few people to pick a number 1–20. They chose 11 & 8—The Jungle Book as a Horror novel.

Results

I’ll blog each mash-up I design, then link to them below. If you’d like to participate, please read on. Otherwise choose your mash-ups and comment with them below! Your pairing could be next!

1. The Jungle Book—Horror

Designers and Illustrators—Want to participate?

Please do! Just post yours on your blog or website, including a link back to this page. Don’t forget to tell us which pairing it is. You can choose one of the suggestions given from commenters, or you can decide on a pairing yourself. There are no restrictions. All of you could do a Chick Lit Beowulf if you wanted. Then use the form below to give me the link so I can add it to the list of results. Note, if you post yours to a WordPress blog, I will also reblog your contribution.

Note: By entering, you accept responsibility and ownership over your artwork. If your artwork should be found to be a copyright infringement, I am not responsible. All of the titles above are in the public domain. It’s up to you to get permission to use any images or fonts in your design.