Choosing a Book Cover
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Book covers are important. They are the window into the book, they are the first impression. Covers help sell books and sometimes, just seeing a cover from a book you enjoyed brings back that great feeling of “what a good book.” So here is the challenge! My latest cozy mystery, Executive Lunch is almost ready for release. But it needs…a great cover. I have two cover possibilities here and need your help narrowing the selection to the final cover. You may like them both. You may hate them both! You may hate the color green and wish to tweak it to…orange. Vote in the poll. Leave comments with details if you like. |
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Not sure what a cozy mystery cover should look like? Here’s the back blurb for Executive Lunch. It might help you decide on the tone you’d like to see on the cover.
Sedona is given the opportunity of a lifetime: play an up-and-coming executive with all the trappings of wealth with someone else footing the bill. The catch: find out who is stealing company funds before the criminals find out that their program is being debugged.
Sedona runs into danger, the corporate glass ceiling, and an occasional chance at romance in her quest to figure out who is stealing money from Strandfrost.
Not enough information? Click for an excerpt.
Which cover do you like best?
- Cover B - The realistic one! (33%, 28 Votes)
- Cover A - The purple one! (32%, 27 Votes)
- Neither really grabs me. (25%, 21 Votes)
- I like one, but some changes need to be made. (Please explain in the comments.) (9%, 8 Votes)
- Either one works for me. (1%, 1 Votes)
Total Voters: 85
Loading ...Executive Lunch will be submitted to Amazon Kindle on or around November 12. It will then go live 5 to 10 days after that. It will also be available as an e-book via Smashwords and at a later date Barnes and Noble as well as Sony e-reader.
Thanks everyone, for coming to my party! (And for voting!)
30 Comments »
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Neither worked for me. The purple one is actually kind of cute, but I think that works against it, like maybe it would keep a lot of folks from picking it up. The realistic one looks dull.
Then again, I’ve never been a fan of golf, so my opinion is skewed.
Of the two, I’d go with the cute one, but maybe use a different background color.
Sorry to be such a party pooper!
Comment by Trina — November 3, 2009 @ 9:06 am
And congrats on the new book!
Comment by Trina — November 3, 2009 @ 9:06 am
You party-pooper you!!!
I was counting on you loving both of them and raving for hours on end. Or…maybe not. Hey, I appreciate the feedback! That’s why I did this!
Comment by Maria — November 3, 2009 @ 9:09 am
I like Cover B best of the two. However, the title makes me think “Three Martini Lunch”. Maybe something like a shot over an outside dining table set for a meal, overlooking the golf course…
Comment by Max Power — November 3, 2009 @ 9:18 am
Hi Maria,
Sorry to say I don’t think either of these covers would help your sales. They don’t give any idea of what the book is about except golf. Since most people
know nothing about golf it would be better (in my opinion) to at least include
Sedona and a few spectators in the picture so people would know it was a competition of some kind. Or maybe you should add a body to the green.
Maureen
Comment by Maureen — November 3, 2009 @ 3:36 pm
I sort of agree with Maureen…nothing in either cover says “mystery”. Maybe a discarded golf club or bag…or a briefcase…a wad of money strewn across the green…a shadow or a vulture sitting on the letters above the hole. Make the background a different color than that pink/purple?
Comment by Joan — November 3, 2009 @ 4:07 pm
Y’all are bloodthirsty!
Bodies, vultures…I do like the vulture idea…what we need now is for Kelly to get me a photograph of a vulture. A nice Close-Up photo…
Thanks for the feedback!!!
Comment by Maria — November 3, 2009 @ 4:18 pm
Ok – I like the B cover best but I agree with Joan; it needs something so say ‘mystery’. I like the money idea but I think that would be difficult and unclear. How about a magnifying glass looking at a trail of money? Again, maybe difficult to accomplish but it would tell the reader more.
Comment by April — November 3, 2009 @ 5:48 pm
B looks like a magazine cover to me. I’d be more prone to pick up book A. Hope it is a huge success. Will you let us know which one you choose?
Comment by Anne — November 4, 2009 @ 7:35 am
Thanks Anne! Yes, I will definitely post the winner. It’s a fairly close race so far. I plan to leave the selections up through the weekend!
Comment by Maria — November 4, 2009 @ 7:40 am
Hi: I’m not a graphic artist, but it seems like adding a darker background, maybe semi-transparent, behind the title and your name complete the design of #2. I look forward to reading –scott
Comment by Scott — November 4, 2009 @ 8:19 am
Hey Maria –
with my limited graphic design experience as it pertains to cover design, esp. for the web, I’d say that the purple cover is more effective. Photorealistic covers are much less effective when they are displayed at the tiny sizes folks usually see them at on the browser screen while shopping or reading a review. You want a very simple image with high contrast between the background and the title. The title or at least the main element of it should be as prominent as possible — the purple cover does this well.
On the other hand, I also have to agree with the folks above who have said that nothing in it suggests mystery. In fact, between the title and the picture, it suggests misleadingly that this is either about golf or about corporate life. If there is something iconic to the story itself that suggests mystery, you may want to try to work it into the cover somehow. You might even want to revisit the fundamental assumptions (i.e. golf as the cover theme and Executive Lunch as the title.)Do they convey what you think are the most significant elements the casually browsing viewer should get at first (possibly only) glance?
Either way, drop me a line when it’s out and I’ll probably buy it!
Comment by Morlac — November 4, 2009 @ 8:59 am
Sorry — one more suggestion — try posting the covers at the smaller sizes they’re more likely to be viewed at on the sites you’ll be posting them. See what you and everyone else thinks of them at that “actual size.”
Comment by Morlac — November 4, 2009 @ 9:02 am
Thanks Scott and Morlac!
Morlac, you’re right about the sizing. I have noticed that the realistic photos don’t show as well–but people seem to like them, so I wanted to offer that as an option.
I am getting the idea that the “theme” I picked is misleading some people. It comes from a single scene in the book that conveys a sense of…mismanagement…but it’s lost on a first glance. Max had a pretty good idea for the cover as have some others. I think the problem is that I assumed that one of the covers would be well-liked…and I didn’t really leave myself enough time to do an entirely new cover with a new design before the launch date!!!
At any rate–appreciate the input!
Comment by Maria — November 4, 2009 @ 9:06 am
Hi Maria,
The purple cover first grabbed my attention, but I felt it was too lighthearted for a mystery.
by the way, it that a golf ball that dots the “i” in the realistic picture? I agree with some of the other comments, you need something to suggest mystery. Say like a golf bag on the ground but only half of it showing to the viewer, who would then say to himself, why’s the bag on the ground and why can I only see half of it? Did something happen here? Just my little opinion. Good luck! I liked voting!
Comment by Carol Hanrahan — November 4, 2009 @ 9:11 am
Thanks Carol!
Yes, it is a golf ball in the second picture. As Morlac pointed out, some of that detail will be lost in smaller pictures (like when posted on Smashwords or Kindle) but since the mystery is a cozy, I thought it added a bit of a lighter element to the real image.
Comment by Maria — November 4, 2009 @ 9:25 am
I agree that the cover alone can sell books. I kind of agree with Trina. Sorry. First I’m not into golf and would assume by the cover it’s about golf and would probably pass it by. Cover A looks like the book would be total comedy, if that’s what your after then that might be ok. How about a picture more realistic but being the inside of a fancy building with a restaurant inside, with a glass ceiling and the golf ball on a nice table. (table with simple but elegant table cloth) The glass ceiling can be visibly cracked. Glass spinkling down or not.
Just my opinion. I don’t really know anything about book covers, you might be in to far and have to pick one of the above.
Hope you pick well.
Sincerely,
Jo Ann
Comment by Jo Ann — November 4, 2009 @ 1:16 pm
Based on feedback in the comment trail…I’ve got a possible third cover:
http://www.bearmountainbooks.com/a-possible-third-cover/
Check it out, make comments as you see fit!
Maria
Comment by Maria — November 4, 2009 @ 2:47 pm
Just wanted to add something, the cover is what gets my attention but when I read what the book is about that’s when I decide if I’ll buy it or not. And I love mysteries so, now that I know about your book I’ll watch for it.
Good Luck.
Jo Ann
(I’d go with one of the purple covers, they are more eye catching.)
Comment by Jo Ann — November 5, 2009 @ 8:09 am
Thank you, Jo Ann, much appreciated!
Comment by Maria — November 5, 2009 @ 8:15 am
Can I change my vote?!
If I can change it: I like your third book cover the most… and I’m not saying this just to make it even more difficult for you to tally up the votes. The addition of the martini glass with that golf club “swirler” is a winner (to me!)
Comment by Danna — November 5, 2009 @ 9:06 am
Hi Danna, Don’t worry, if you voted for Cover A the first time around, I’m counting the new cover votes with Cover A (since it’s really an enhancement of Cover A!) So far no one has said they like cover A BETTER than the enhanced one, so I’m taking liberty in counting and putting them together.
:>) Thanks for popping by again. I’ve had lots of visitors from your fabulous blog!!!
Maria
P.S. For cozy fans, Danna runs a great blog for talking about all manner of cozy stories: http://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/
Comment by Maria — November 5, 2009 @ 9:12 am
Hi Maria,
Congratulations on your new book! I liked both of your covers until I saw the third one. I really like the third one. I am one of those who is really attracted to a book by its cover. The third one really grabs my attention. Plus, I am a golfer. In between two games my friends and I like to eat lunch at the clubhouse grill. There always seems to be someone who wants a drink! So, my vote is for the third one as it adds the connection of the luncheon and the golf. Love that iron head in the martini! I am really looking forward to seeing your book at Barnes and Noble in the near future!
Good luck!
Connie
Comment by Anonymous — November 6, 2009 @ 1:32 am
Thanks Connie!!!
Comment by Maria — November 6, 2009 @ 8:04 am
Neither one really grabs me. I feel like nothing about the photo cover says “cozy mystery”, but Cover A seems almost like clip art – it is too stripped down and simplified. I think a person on the cover would help, to give a sense of who Sedona is. I’m not a big fan of either font/script. Now I feel like a negative Nancy, but on the positive side, the story sounds great!!
After initially posting my comment, I read ones from others and saw your third cover option – MUCH better!! I’d definitely vote for that one.
Comment by Beth — November 6, 2009 @ 9:43 pm
Thanks Beth–as you can see from the poll, you aren’t the only one that voted for neither! I did take some of the advice here and created the third cover (there were more votes for a martini glass than any other request!) I had no idea it would be so difficult to keep everyone satisfied! Thanks for stopping by and helping. If this cover isn’t perfect, I aim to make the next one so!
Comment by Maria — November 6, 2009 @ 9:50 pm
I really didn’t like A or B at first. Thought if I saw them on a library shelf I might pick up A but definitely not B. Then I saw C and thought…YES that makes it more appealing to me. Yes, I might be a lush once in awhile but really I just tried to use my long experience at picking hundreds and hundreds of books at my library each year for 45 years or more. AND I am a retired Librarian FINALLY!! Now some more time for some series, NOT!!!, reading!!
Comment by Sandi — November 7, 2009 @ 9:17 pm
Sandi! Thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know how it all worked as you saw the covers. I’m very glad to hear you like the improvements. Unrelated: I worked in my local library here in Central Texas for almost two years–I love libraries and librarians (But then, all us book people do, don’t we???)
Thanks for stopping by and congrats on your retirement!
Maria
Comment by Maria — November 7, 2009 @ 9:30 pm
I really like the purple cover, I think the color alone demands attention. You may want to consider adding a one liner, however, so you can really draw them in after you’ve made that initial colorful impact.
My two funny looking Canadian pennies.
Comment by Randolph Lalonde — November 7, 2009 @ 11:32 pm
Randolph, we take money of any kind on this blog, funny looking or not! Thanks for stopping by and voting! Much appreciated!
Maria
Comment by Maria — November 7, 2009 @ 11:34 pm