Thursday, December 30, 2010

Cover Art

Everybody knows the old saying: You can't judge a book by its cover. Both literally and figuratively, however, we do it every day. Psychologists (or at least mine - I'm married to one) say that you have 30  seconds to meet someone and make an impression. At a writing workshop, a speaker said much the same thing about book covers.

We choose a book by checking out the cover, flipping to the back to read the "blurb" about the story, then, if we like what we read, we read a few sentences on the first page. A quick decision that seems to work for most of us. We know pretty fast what appeals to us and what doesn't.  I know I've bypassed books that are purported to be great, but I just can't help my little biases and gut reactions, and I don't think many of us can.

Looking at this design, you might ask yourself questions. Does the main character literally fight the elements in a storm? No. Does she have the gorgeous blue eyes depicted at the top? Hers are actually brown, but it isn't about telling the whole story in a picture. The cover is about that first impression, and this one, appeals to me, of course. I like the image of a girl, alone, facing a snowstorm. It opens possibilities to me - wondering what her status might be. Is she lost? Has she run away? Is there shelter around? Will she survive?

Snowstorm is about being a teenager with problems. It describes the choices we all have to make, but with added challenges for these characters. No vampires or wizards make an appearance. Nobody can fly or shape-shift. So, I think the cover is a good reflection of the plot - a girl in trouble. 


Now, if the writing is as pretty as the picture, on April 1st Ill be all set!

1 comment:

Author Guy said...

Eyes are always the thing to get people's attention. People look for eyes, eyes are how they connect to other people. I've often said the reason the Daredevil movie failed (aside from the bad acting) was that you never saw the hero's eyes. He was blind, so he wore the sunglasses or his costume, which had no eyeholes. I see your cover and I think this is a person alone, wandering, lost, with the eys representing someone either looking for her, or looking over her. Very good cover.