Mid-key values give literary painting its characteristic quietness - nothing blazes, nothing disappears. Warm and cool are kept in productive tension, creating the kind of chromatic harmony that sustains the eye. Saturation is deliberately withheld - the beauty here lies in the near-monochromatic gradations rather than colour difference. The saturated accent, #8C7F4B, registers at 5.1% - sparse enough to feel like a deliberate surprise. At 54 units across the value scale, the palette keeps contrast readable without letting it dominate.