Lois’s answer to “How much input into the book covers do you have? - I note that Dag in Knife 3 and 4 is quite differ…” > Likes and Comments
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This makes me wonder whether cover artists ever have access to actually read the stories while making the cover or if they are simply provided a synopsis of what image is desired for the cover. It sounds like the latter is typically the case. I agree wrong covers can start folks off on the wrong foot. Maybe that is a point in favor of minimalist covers which hint without precisely describing, and leave connections up to the readers imaginations. My personal feeling though is that any image well composed and well crafted will be appealing. People often have a sense for things poorly composed even if exactly how so eludes them. A lacking composition can spoil a painting despite the most stunning craftsmanship much as a poor plot or flat characters ruins a story. I imagine that is one reason why fixing details does no good. When the composition as a whole is poor, you just have to start over. It is a lesson I had to learn early as an art student. I think it is much the same for my friends who write and sometimes find themselves starting over entirely to get things right. Or scientists or engineers, or whomever for that matter. All the fixes in the world don't make the Tower of Pisa stand straight.
Living in Australia, we get British cover art rather than American. Often I will spend more to get an American version of a book because the artwork is generally better amd not so meh boring or generic. While it’s true that covers often are wildly off, at least if the artwork is fun/dynamic/artistic, I’m willing to let it pass. Oh for the days of Michael Whelan!
Michael Whelan has drawn most of my favorite covers in the genre.
I enjoyed your description of the reasons/process behind the more abstract design for your ebook covers, though I'm still a fan of full illustration and agree with you that a good cover is part of the experience. So can I be the first to say 'Yes. Please" to "an illustrated blog post about that one, some slow day"?
I tend to buy books based on the author's name or recommendations from friends, rather than covers. E.g., I love Anne McCaffrey so I still bought that awful SFBC cover where the dragons had steering wheels! And I've never bothered to replace it -- it's the words I care about.
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Sandy
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Nov 09, 2020 04:17PM
This makes me wonder whether cover artists ever have access to actually read the stories while making the cover or if they are simply provided a synopsis of what image is desired for the cover. It sounds like the latter is typically the case. I agree wrong covers can start folks off on the wrong foot. Maybe that is a point in favor of minimalist covers which hint without precisely describing, and leave connections up to the readers imaginations. My personal feeling though is that any image well composed and well crafted will be appealing. People often have a sense for things poorly composed even if exactly how so eludes them. A lacking composition can spoil a painting despite the most stunning craftsmanship much as a poor plot or flat characters ruins a story. I imagine that is one reason why fixing details does no good. When the composition as a whole is poor, you just have to start over. It is a lesson I had to learn early as an art student. I think it is much the same for my friends who write and sometimes find themselves starting over entirely to get things right. Or scientists or engineers, or whomever for that matter. All the fixes in the world don't make the Tower of Pisa stand straight.
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Living in Australia, we get British cover art rather than American. Often I will spend more to get an American version of a book because the artwork is generally better amd not so meh boring or generic. While it’s true that covers often are wildly off, at least if the artwork is fun/dynamic/artistic, I’m willing to let it pass. Oh for the days of Michael Whelan!
Michael Whelan has drawn most of my favorite covers in the genre.
I enjoyed your description of the reasons/process behind the more abstract design for your ebook covers, though I'm still a fan of full illustration and agree with you that a good cover is part of the experience. So can I be the first to say 'Yes. Please" to "an illustrated blog post about that one, some slow day"?
I tend to buy books based on the author's name or recommendations from friends, rather than covers. E.g., I love Anne McCaffrey so I still bought that awful SFBC cover where the dragons had steering wheels! And I've never bothered to replace it -- it's the words I care about.
