I always put a lot of thought into the covers of my book. For my first book on wxPython, I thought it would be fun to do a cookbook because I already had a lot of recipes on my blog. So I went with the idea of doing a cookbook. For the cover, my first thought was to have some kind of kitchen scene with mice cooks. Then I decided that was too obvious and decided to go with the idea of an Old West cover with cowboy (or cow mice) cooking at a fire.
I asked Liza Tretyakova, my cover artist for wxPython Cookbook, to do a quick interview about herself. Here is what she had to say:
Can you tell us a little about yourself (hobbies, education, etc):
My name is Liza Tretyakova, I’m a free-lance illustrator currently working in Moscow.
Education:
- Moscow State University, Faculty of History of Arts
- BA(Hons) Illustration, University of Plymouth
I work as an illustrator for about 10 years. I love horses and I used to have a horse. Also I’m interested in archery. I like reading and spending a lot of time with my daughter Yara, who is 7 years old.
What motivated you to be an illustrator versus some other profession?
Since I was a child I have been drawing all the time and it just happened that I started to work as an illustrator, it turned into a profession.
What process do you go through when you are creating a new piece of art?
It is different every time, there is no specific “recipe” 
Do you have any advice for someone who wants to be an illustrator?
You should try to draw every day, the more the better.
Do you have anything else you would like to say?
It was a pleasure working with you!
Thanks so much for doing the interview and for agreeing to be my illustrator for my wxPython Cookbook.
You can see more of Liza’s work on Behance.