Great news!

I finally finished the background for my front cover! *Throws confetti into the air and dances in excitement*
After about four weeks or so of working on the painting, it's finally finished. Or, at least, the part I'll be using for my front cover is finished. I'm still a little behind on my own schedule, especially since I wanted to at leas tbe finished with my table of contents and my double-page layout by the time I was able to finish the background (both are technically finished, but I still need to add some extra last touches to the layout). In other words, the little access I have to InDesign and Photoshop are going to become crucial. Last weekend I was able to download the free trial onto my dad's computer (mine won't download it for complicated reasons) but I no longer have access to that computer until the weekend. Because of this, I'll only be able to work on the project once or twice a day for an hour while I have access to the programs I need.
Nevertheless, I finished the background! It's everything I wanted it to be and more. Not only is it captivating, but also shows the extent to which art is able to take its subject, especially when the artist is so passionate about what he or she is doing (I really do love dogs). I really hope it turns out well on my overall project, but if it doesn't, then I still have some of my old drawings to use as a back up. In the mean time, this is a preview to what the unedited and photographic version of the background looks like (it's a secret!). This is the original picture, which I took when I went on my first visit to the Broward Humane Society.