# It's the cover that first catches the eye



## LeeC (Jan 31, 2016)

Any opinions please? I thinking of changing my book cover as few get the intended relevance of the Celtic Treasure Chest (complexity of life). The book being basically a coming of age literary eco-fiction work I'm thinking the image of my grandson (received after publishing) would be more meaningful to the average person.


current cover



possible new cover





One good thing about epub self publishing is tweaking the book as needed


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## popsprocket (Jan 31, 2016)

Yes the photo would make a better cover image, but... it ends up being very busy for a book cover because of how uneven the lighting is. It would probably work better heavily desaturated or in black and white.

Also (sorry) the typeface and text colour need some help.


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## LeeC (Jan 31, 2016)

Yes pops, thanks. That's the issues that bugged me in creating it. 

The original image is a lot brighter, and I had to tone it down quite a bit. Never considered B&W, but maybe I should.

As to the typeface one needs bold and wide to stand out, especially when considering if it can be read in a thumbnail. The font used is the "bulkiest" I had, maybe I'll look around some more. As to the color, the gold lettering I created didn't contrast enough so I used a Pau Amerillo wood swatch I had. But you're right in the color clashing, so I'll have to keep playing. 

Thanks for your thoughts


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## popsprocket (Jan 31, 2016)

Design is a touchy issue since we all have our own tastes but I think that everyone in general would be surprised to find out how many people will put down a product/close a website/go somewhere else over issues of design.

Using a modern typeface is a really easy way to guarantee that a potential reader won't click away based on their impression of your book cover.

There are lots of suitable fonts out there, but unfortunately none of them come with the average computer. I could probably link you a dozen fonts to try instead but really you can't much go wrong with this one:

http://www.fontsquirrel.com/fonts/League-Gothic

It's free and it's beautiful and you really can't go wrong using it in all-caps coloured white.


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## Riis Marshall (Jan 31, 2016)

Hello Lee

One of the points somebody made not too long ago - I don't remember who - is today, in addition to looking great generally, a cover must look good as a thumbnail, particularly for an e-book.

What I do when I'm thinking about cover design is to have a troll of my local bookshop's best seller shelf. This isn't the entire story by a long shot because even successful publishers tend to get it wrong sometimes but I think it's worth a browse. Then when I come up with something I think will work, I shrink it down to tiny and look at it on screen and ask myself if it still gets my message across.

So, yes, I think a photo of your grandson is a great idea but grab your camera and take about a hundred pictures of the little guy then think about thumbnails.

All the best with your writing.

Warmest regards
Riis


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## Flint (Jan 31, 2016)

Lots of good advice in here already. IMO, your grandson in a natural setting would be a much better choice.


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## Aquilo (Jan 31, 2016)

I'd just watch the spacing around the title too. It's looks very tight to the edges, Perhaps also consider some shading beneath title and author name and title? But it does look a touch chaotic with the shadows.


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## Jack of all trades (Jan 31, 2016)

If something works great as a physical cover, but not so great as an ebook cover, why not create a separate, but similar, ebook cover?

Physical books have different covers for hardback and paperback. New editions have different covers. I would keep something consistent, font and font color, maybe.

Jus a thought. 

As for this particular cover, I think the contrast is too great to make it workable. Can you ask for another picture, taken at a different time of day?


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## LeeC (Jan 31, 2016)

Thanks for all the valuable advice 

I think for the moment I'l try to simplify the photo and the font (keeping a thumbnail in mind), with maybe the the font having a fading background to stand out more.

I've found in life that every time I jump too quickly I trip ;-)


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## Schrody (Jan 31, 2016)

I like the second cover better, but if it's a book about the treasure, then the first cover fits better...


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## Olly Buckle (Jan 31, 2016)

The people who say 'don't judge a book by looking at the cover' are talking rubbish, that is exactly how most people judge them. If you really want to sell  books put an attractive woman on the cover in place of your grandson, want to emphasise the 'natural', have her in a swimming costume beside some natural pool.

Call me cynical if you like, but I bet it would work.


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## LeeC (Jan 31, 2016)

Thanks Olly, I'd put up a "branding" image to that effect:



Got more circulation on social media than my book cover ;-)


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## Aquilo (Jan 31, 2016)

I wish it were that easy. I've seen enough romance authors with gorgeous covers who have barely above 20 ratings etc on Goodreads. It's not good enough to just look pretty, especially so within the romance genre.


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## TKent (Jan 31, 2016)

Aquilo, you are right. A great cover by itself is not going to do the job  But a great cover will get someone to read a great book faster than a bad cover. 



Aquilo said:


> I wish it were that easy. I've seen enough romance authors with gorgeous covers who have barely above 20 ratings etc on Goodreads. It's not good enough to just look pretty, especially so within the romance genre.


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## LeeC (Jan 31, 2016)

Amazing how brainstorming here can bring out great ideas  Pops mention of B&W led me to rescan the photo in grayscale and the results are quite good, reducing the busyness, accentuating my grandson and theme better, and producing more of a period look. 

I'm going to try this route, reducing the busyness a little more, and using a more conventional font (Courier New Bold or Iowan Old Style Bold) with a feathered contrasting background.

Thanks for the font link pops, but in checking to see if I had it found hundreds of fonts already on my Mac. 

My sincere appreciation folks


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## LeeC (Jan 31, 2016)

Jack of all trades said:


> If something works great as a physical cover, but not so great as an ebook cover, why not create a separate, but similar, ebook cover?
> 
> Physical books have different covers for hardback and paperback. New editions have different covers. I would keep something consistent, font and font color, maybe.
> 
> ...


Since I've self-published this as an epub book (Smashwords distributor as I'm not fond of Amazon) a publisher has asked to review my book. If anything happens there with hardcover I'll wait to see what they might come up with ;-)

Odd, after spending six months trying to interest an agent/publisher, that they should peek out of the woodwork now. Maybe we've got the whole idea of publishing bassackwards ;-)


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## Aquilo (Feb 1, 2016)

TKent said:


> Aquilo, you are right. A great cover by itself is not going to do the job  But a great cover will get someone to read a great book faster than a bad cover.



Ohhh yes! I love LA Witt's cover for _As It Flies_, just a curled and sleeping whip. It offered so much more than than a guy with his shirt off! I wish more romance covers would go that way...


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## LeeC (Feb 1, 2016)

Once more please  I've done a good bit of work on a new cover and came up with two possible options. So I'd appreciate your opinions re the color version or the grayscale version, and if you think I'm not quite there yet. [you can click to enlarge]

Many thanks.


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## Jack of all trades (Feb 1, 2016)

Certainly the grey makes your grandson's face appear better, but it doesn't look much like an Eden to me without color. And cutting out the rest makes it more about Caleb than Eden, in my opinion.

Question. Is the main character a boy? 

Congrats on the nibble! I hope it is with a reputable company.


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## LeeC (Feb 1, 2016)

Jack of all trades said:


> Question. Is the main character a boy?


At one stage yes. As to the cover's relevance I think the story is best explained in the review here.


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## PrinzeCharming (Feb 1, 2016)

Olly Buckle said:


> If you really want to sell  books put an attractive woman on the cover *in place of* *with *your grandson, want to emphasise the 'natural', have her in a swimming costume beside some natural pool.
> 
> Call me cynical if you like, but I bet it would work.



This will attract more women readers than men, and how else would 50 Shades get that far? MEN READERS? HA. Color me gray. Women are the biggest market right now. 



LeeC said:


> Once more please  I've done a good bit of work on a new cover and came up with two possible options. So I'd appreciate your opinions re the color version or the grayscale version, and if you think I'm not quite there yet. [you can click to enlarge]
> 
> Many thanks.
> 
> ...



I really like the B&W. It's less distracting. There isn't a lot of exposure to the sun as before. It focuses simply on him. That's a plus. Isn't that the reason for him being there? I am not sure about the font though.


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## LeeC (Feb 1, 2016)

Thank you PC  I liked the grayscale better myself**, thinking it more "artistic," but everyone so far that commented on social media thinks the color is more appealing. Either way, I went to a lot of work to reduce the busyness of the original and create depth in the image to bring the boy out more. As to the font, I tried a good number, and this one (Bordeaux Roman Bold) seemed to work best, especially in still being readable in a thumbnail, and it wasn't as "blocky" as say Arial Black. 


** Of course I also liked the original cover with the Celtic Treasure Chest representing the complexities of life, but the consensus has been that the cover is no place to be clever ;-)

Meant for the color version to also be "by L. G. Cullens" as on the grayscale, and already got a comment on such, so I've got that to correct.


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## PrinzeCharming (Feb 1, 2016)

LeeC said:


> Thank you PC  I liked the grayscale better myself**, thinking it more "artistic,"




I am more of the grayscale / silhouette type because I don't want to define my characters with a real person on the cover. What if my YA audience doesn't like what they see? I'd rather have them paint their own illustration throughout the story. My book cover idea sparked from Kalisha Buckhanon's _Upstate, _except with mine it represents feeling a mosh pit of butterflies.


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## LeeC (Feb 1, 2016)

Oh, you have a good point, and I'm trying to see which way the majority lean. Why I posted the choice on social media also. It's a hard road to get one's first book in the hands of enough first readers to see if it will gain any traction. Especially for someone like me that prefers their canine companion's company 

I do appreciate your thoughts. 


One of the unforeseen aspects of social media is I've started getting a few requests from individuals wanting me to critique their writing. I say a few words and politely point them here.


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## Jack of all trades (Feb 2, 2016)

I know this is not going to be popular, but on my phone the treasure chest is best.


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## Flint (Feb 2, 2016)

Jack of all trades said:


> Certainly the grey makes your grandson's face appear better, but it doesn't look much like an Eden to me without color. And cutting out the rest makes it more about Caleb than Eden, in my opinion.



Yeah, IMO, you're losing the Eden in the black-and-white one. Is it possible to do both or would that look too weird? That is, black-and-white Caleb with a bit of (faded) colour left in the trees? Or even just one coloured tree?


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## LeeC (Feb 2, 2016)

Thank you all. The consensus overall (including social media and an eco-fiction writer's group) seems to be the color version with lower case letters in my last name.

Whatever is pertinent and appeals to the most people is what I was looking for. I just want potential first readers to get beyond the cover ;-) Without them there was no point in writing the book in the first place. 

There's a lot of hype on the eco-fiction writers group site about a number of new books. I think they're well written and deserve attention (some with very good covers like Charlene D'Avanzo's cli-fi myster thriller "COLD BLOOD, HOT SEA"**),  but to me they're writing for the choir, not the bulk of average readers. I tried a more subtle approach, believing an engrossing story to the average reader is foremost, and if they're receptive they'll get the undercurrent. I'll never know if I've accomplished such though if enough first readers aren't aware and get beyond the cover. 

My sincere appreciation for everyones thoughts.


** I thought the following very effective in its simplicity. Feel free to offer up other samples to help budding writers here


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## denmark423 (Jun 14, 2016)

Of course, the cover what the eyes catches first. I think it should be more about the story, so I would suggest my own opinion for you to have the second cover where a boy is sitting down in a forest which is your possible new cover.


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## fisaffie (Jun 29, 2016)

Hello Lee,

without any doubt at all, I can categorically say that the book cover depicting your grandson is by far the most enticing. The original, rather monochromatic little box is good, but doesn't draw a potential reader anything like as strongly as that gloriously innocent child apparently in a dream world of his own.

I am in the process of getting my first book published and am at the stage of designing a book cover. Unfortunately my experiences with a publisher called Austin Macauley have been absolutely horrendous from the get go.  We are in the seventh month of getting my autobiography _White Zulu _published and are only at the book cover stage. Although I originally handed them a clean manuscript as I have an editor of my own, it has taken them this long and I still don't have a satisfactory design, in fact, every time I ask them for a minor tweak on the cover, they get it even more wrong by fiddling with the wrong aspects.

To make matters worse, I have now discovered that Austin Macauley have appeared on the "Publishers to be avoided at all costs" website. If only I had known then! But there were no alternatives when I was looking for a publisher in 2015.

I wonder if any other writers out there have had a similar experience to mine. Not necessarily with Austin Macauley, but with publishers who have been extremely slow, and had to be prodded and poked constantly to get any form of reply?  If so, I'd be very keen to hear from them.

Regards,
Fi


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## fisaffie (Jun 29, 2016)

*A publisher showing interest in your e-book*

Hello again, Lee,

I read your exciting bit of news with great interest. As a writer going through a similar process to yours, your experience is what I dream of maybe happening to me when I eventually put my book out there. 

I am delighted for you, and eagerly await further news of any progress in that direction.

Here's wishing you every success, :salut:
Fi


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## kpierce (Dec 7, 2016)

It's just that the cover is the first thing to be marketed especially to people who are artistic. It's the first thing to market your story in the bookstore.


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