I could probably talk about covers all day. The way they go with the trends and which I like best. And it has been a real quandary for me too, recently, having branched out into self-pubbing.
I had the opportunity to design my own covers and personally believe they go well with the stories and my style. I wanted them to be pretty and romantic and English as my books are English romantic reads. BUT this does mean they do not fit with the norm for my genre – a risk in anyone’s books. No half-naked ripped guys here, I’m afraid. No drawn cover with some relevance to food. No. Hmmm. And has that lost me valuable sales? It probably has.
The dilemma.
When I walk into a book shop and look at the covers, it’s the colourful romantic ones that draw me in, so I guess I’m creating these covers for me. Maybe I’m not your typical romance reader, but I'm probably not your typical romance writer either and there have to be others like me out there, surely? So niche may be my fated position; I can live with that.
Recently I asked a group on Facebook about my first cover and it was amazing the variation of the replies I got. Lots of people didn’t like the photography style (like mine), yet they are the ones that appeal to me most. In my defence, it did seem to be split. I wonder if this is a genre thing or it's universal. I rarely even pick up a drawn cover. Not to say that the book inside isn’t fantastic, but judging a book by its cover??? GUILTY! I can’t help it. I decide just from looking at it if I’m likely to want to read it or not. Then the blurb and then the first few paragraphs. Doesn’t everyone? If I’m on-line, the reviews don’t bother me much, as I like to make up my own mind, but maybe that’s just me being cussed. ;-)
I had the opportunity to design my own covers and personally believe they go well with the stories and my style. I wanted them to be pretty and romantic and English as my books are English romantic reads. BUT this does mean they do not fit with the norm for my genre – a risk in anyone’s books. No half-naked ripped guys here, I’m afraid. No drawn cover with some relevance to food. No. Hmmm. And has that lost me valuable sales? It probably has.
The dilemma.
When I walk into a book shop and look at the covers, it’s the colourful romantic ones that draw me in, so I guess I’m creating these covers for me. Maybe I’m not your typical romance reader, but I'm probably not your typical romance writer either and there have to be others like me out there, surely? So niche may be my fated position; I can live with that.
Recently I asked a group on Facebook about my first cover and it was amazing the variation of the replies I got. Lots of people didn’t like the photography style (like mine), yet they are the ones that appeal to me most. In my defence, it did seem to be split. I wonder if this is a genre thing or it's universal. I rarely even pick up a drawn cover. Not to say that the book inside isn’t fantastic, but judging a book by its cover??? GUILTY! I can’t help it. I decide just from looking at it if I’m likely to want to read it or not. Then the blurb and then the first few paragraphs. Doesn’t everyone? If I’m on-line, the reviews don’t bother me much, as I like to make up my own mind, but maybe that’s just me being cussed. ;-)
Someone said my first cover reminded them of a sympathy card and I thought, given my tendency to write weepies, that that was hysterical. What are your thoughts on the matter? Do you judge a book by its cover?
Thanks for reading! To return to the FICTION WRITERS BLOG HOP on Julie Valerie’s website, click here: http://www.julievalerie.com/fiction-writers-blog-hop-may-2016
Thanks for reading! To return to the FICTION WRITERS BLOG HOP on Julie Valerie’s website, click here: http://www.julievalerie.com/fiction-writers-blog-hop-may-2016
RSS Feed
