I've recently started working through a course about advertising. I know I took a class like this in high school or college, but not only is my memory extremely short, trends change. Sometimes monthly!
And this course is designed particularly for authors and publishers, defining ways to get books noticed. A couple of weeks ago, we had a class on covers. The book that I'm using for training has a great cover - or so I thought. Here are the original (left and brighter) and the re-design (right and foggier) that I had done last year.
When I shared my cover within the class, however, I learned a few things:
I think the biggest takeaway is what I already said, "Trends change."
While putting the male main character on the cover - usually with his shirt hanging open - is a definitely plus nowadays, having the girl on the cover is not. I was urged to remove the girl. But I'm not one to jump into things just because they are trends. After all, my story is about the girl - Cat.
The other comment was to lose the crosshairs. Again, I had a little angst. The crosshairs make this book a suspense instead of a romance. There's romance in it, but the suspense and mystery are the story. And the overview of all of the Heath's Point Suspense books is that there is a target on the main character - as in this case. But I wanted to have an open mind about all the suggestions.
After looking through the most popular books of my Christian suspense genre, I realized that I needed to make a change. And so was born this new cover. I downplayed the crosshairs, but kept them. My focus is on the woman because she's the central character of the story. I did allow the environment, which is what I noticed on so many of the book covers in my genre to take more of a center stage. Particularly the season. The season is important in all four of the books of this series.
It looks cold which was my hope, but it is pretty devoid of color. Most of the books in my genre have darker covers, but flashes of bright colors, mostly red and blue, throughout. When I shared this cover, the lack of color was the biggest comment, though several in the group who happen to read Christian suspense, really liked this cover.
So I had another adjustment made, bringing more color into the cover. I have to tell you, I really like the newer version of this cover. It isn't quite as cold as the first, but the hair is more true to the character in the book.
One of the Christian suspense readers mentioned that she liked the cover with less color because the character look small town, comfortable, and innocent. The crosshairs jarred her, in a good way, because she realized that "a sweet, small-town girl was in trouble."
She nailed it! That is exactly how I see it, and the new cover delights me. In fact, I liked it so much that I went ahead and had it changed from the upgrade that I did last year.
And this is what brings me to you today. I have readers who prefer last year's cover. And I have readers that like both the darker one and the more colorful version of my new cover.
Then I have a kink that was thrown into the works. One of the experts - she really knows her stuff and leads the classes that I'm in from time to time - advised me to remove the model completely. Apparently, the new and coming trend is to have people-less covers. Or if there are people, they're in action at a distance.
I think this new trend has been influenced by the mainstream blockbuster Where the Crawdads Sing. The cover is a dimly lit marsh with pink water and sky and a little kayak in the center of the marsh that is barely noticed behind the large letters of the title.
So I had yet another new cover made with this idea in mind. It still has the elements of a mystery suspense, but the main character has been removed. The crosshairs that a few people didn't like has also been removed along with the season. The main setting is superimposed on the cover along with one of the weapons used, but those two details are the only thing unique to the book itself.
While I think this cover aligns with the current trend, I wonder if I've gone too far, removing the elements of the story and making the cover less unique.
Here's where you come in:
1. As a Christian suspense reader, which of the five books would you be more apt to pick up? Why?
2. Which cover or covers wouldn't capture your interest if you happened to see it while browsing on Amazon?
Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
I have to admit the green no-people cover is a complete miss for me.
ReplyDeleteI would pass right by the green cover. I love characters on the cover with a background that sets the tone/mood. I loved the darker cover with the girl: and I liked the one with more color. I would definately check out either of those books!
ReplyDeleteI'm with the others--the green cover doesn't interest me at all. I really like the darker color better than the one with color. Fascinating post!
ReplyDeleteI'm with y'all 100% I think this new trend will pass quickly.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite is the more colorful new one....the green one is my least favorite.
ReplyDeleteMine, too! :)
DeleteI don’t like the green one. The others aren’t so bad.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you, Beverly.
DeleteI would choose the top right or the 3rd one. They are more muted and just says there’s danger to me.
ReplyDeleteOoo! Good point!
DeleteAgreed! Not the green but either of the other two I would check out
ReplyDeleteAgree, not the green one. I would personally mix 3 & 4 with the cold look but the bottom darker like 4.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good idea!
DeleteI'm sure I'm in the minority but I would always go with a cover with no 'models' on the cover. I enjoy creating my own ideal of what the characters in the book look like and the 'models' on the cover never seem to really reflect the people in the book. Another author asked a similar question to yours some time back and I gave her the same answer as here - prefer no faces of models on the covers - she was really snide in her comment back to me which was a public comment too - we all have different ideas and I was just being honest as to how I feel about covers on books. LOL But it sure didn't match up with her ideas. I still enjoy giving my input though, Jeannie
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad for your opinion, Jeannie. And I'm so sorry you had a snide response from someone else.
DeleteYou're not alone. Like I said, the trend is for no models, and there is a growing population there.
As for this gal, though, I hand-picked her for my character Cat. She is the spitting image of what I'd envisioned Cat to look like. So at least there's that. LOL!
Don't like the green one. The more muted one is my pick
ReplyDeleteDon’t like the green one at all. There’s nothing to draw me in. I probably wouldn’t buy it. I really do like the more muted dark grey one. It looks suspenseful, cold and pulls me right in. The first two with the bold crosshairs are way too busy for me and makes me wonder about the content inside. The one with the big, blue eyes, kind of reminds me of a book for teens, but not a suspense novel. However, it was quite an interesting post! Barbara
ReplyDeleteDiggs.
I'm so glad you liked it, Barbara! And thanks so much for your input!
DeleteI don’t like the green cover at all! I would go for either #1 or #4.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your opinion! :)
DeleteThe green one doesn't capture my eye at all. I like either of the newest two with the focus on the girl. I like the brighter version slightly better but either the darker or lighter would catch my eye.
ReplyDeleteThat is great input, Anne. Thanks so much!
DeleteI like #4. I prefer the girl on the cover and love the colors! #5 does not grab my attention.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your input, Antoinette!
DeleteDo not like the color of the green. I do not like the cover with the bullseye and arrow pointing to the heroine. I like the original and the darker one before the green.
ReplyDeletePaula Shreckhise
That is excellent input! Thank you so much!
DeleteI like the grayed out cover.
ReplyDeleteInteresting! You're not alone. Thanks for your input.
Deletethe 4th cover as the green cover would turn my attention away
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your input, Shelia. So you don't like the dark green with the girl and you don't like the plain light green cover either, right?
DeleteI don't like the green cover. It is not very exciting. I actually liked the first one with the crosshairs the most. I thought it was exciting and really caught my attention. It also expressed to me that it was a suspense book.
ReplyDeleteI always liked that cover, Cherie! Thanks for you thoughts!
DeleteGreen cover would not even catch my attention. Of the others, I thinks I like the muted cover with the girl or the other muted cover. They both give the idea of mystery behind the story and the crosshairs make it suspenseful.
ReplyDeleteYou're not alone, Betti! I didn't expect that, but I'm delighted to hear that so many like that grayer cover. That kinda changes things for me. Thanks for your thoughts!
DeleteThis sounds like a great book!
ReplyDeleteOh, thank you!
DeleteI like the gray cold look.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your thoughts. You aren't alone!
DeleteI do like people-less covers, but I like them with a bolder color scheme. So if the green cover had a red-to-gray text title instead of green-to-white, I'd probably like it better.
ReplyDeleteCover on the left.
ReplyDeleteI love the 4th cover--the color of her hair & eyes appeal to me. I would definitely not choose the last cover!
ReplyDelete