How important is a cover? I’ve seen different opinions on this – anything from it can make or break you, to it doesn’t really matter. To be honest, I’ve had really good sales with covers t hat didn’t thrill me, and absolutely awful sales with covers that I adored.
It’s really a mystery to me. I’m hoping that with my next release, my gut instinct proves to be correct, because I think the cover is gorgeous. It was designed by Marteeka Karland, who is both an author and an artist. A really good artist. She took a pose that I liked, and produced this incredible cover that conveys the substance of the book, right down to the mountains that you can see through the window in the background. Not all covers pay such amazing attention to detail.
So what do you think? Does a good cover lure you into buying the book? Does a bad cover make you keep on browsing? I know a good cover can make me pause long enough to read the back cover blurb, which might entice me to part with some hard-earned cash. In that way, a cover could be said to sell the book. I guess I’m just going to have to wait and see what happens on release day, which is May 8th. (Just in case you find the cover irresistible, LOL!)
It’s really a mystery to me. I’m hoping that with my next release, my gut instinct proves to be correct, because I think the cover is gorgeous. It was designed by Marteeka Karland, who is both an author and an artist. A really good artist. She took a pose that I liked, and produced this incredible cover that conveys the substance of the book, right down to the mountains that you can see through the window in the background. Not all covers pay such amazing attention to detail.
So what do you think? Does a good cover lure you into buying the book? Does a bad cover make you keep on browsing? I know a good cover can make me pause long enough to read the back cover blurb, which might entice me to part with some hard-earned cash. In that way, a cover could be said to sell the book. I guess I’m just going to have to wait and see what happens on release day, which is May 8th. (Just in case you find the cover irresistible, LOL!)
6 comments:
Believe it or not, I couldn't care less about most covers, even mine. When I do my own covers for WIP most of the time I use ambiguous designs that are pretty, but not people. It's an exciting step in the publishing process, but still just a step. Too often covers are misleading or send the wrong message and as a reader, I don't judge a book by it's cover.
A cover is what first draws me to even look at a blurb. I've been very lucky so far. Out of 20 or so covers, only one didn't thrill me.
It all depends on my mood. Sometimes, I will be so intrigued by a bad cover, I'll buy it just to see. That's the rubbernecker in me.
A good cover? That will make me pick up or click to read the jacket copy, but I won't usually buy a book based on just the cover. Unless of course it's one of my tried and true favorites authors.
Ah yes, the cover gods can be capricious little devils, LOL. A cover I don't particularly like the look of certainly won't put me off. I'll definitely check out the blurb and peek inside before I deside.
And congrats, Anne! May 8th is my mom's birthday and she was born on Mother's Day (which is second Sunday in May here in NZ), so definitely an auspicious day .
Way to go, Anne! I'm drawn to covers, but honestly it's the blurb and excerpt that suck me in. Or not :)
Congrats on the release date!
Thanks everyone. Interesting to know what draws people in. I do agree that the blurb has to have a good hook to it, or I move on.
And Mother's Day is May 8th up here in Canada, too Maree. Seems like we foreigners have a lot in common! :-)
Anne
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