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'Smirch' - cover design feedback request
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Hi Erez,Before I give my feedback, my disclaimer is that I don't read much in your genre.
Your cover is quite attractive. I don't think you need to dot the 'I' in the title. I wasn't sure if it was the mole.
With respect to the mole, when I read your blurb I thought you were talking about the animal mole. I was trying to picture the tone of the book and I was thinking that the main character was dealing with a serious problem while maintaining his sense of humor. When I saw the picture I realized my mistake. All this leads to my main piece of feedback--try to make the tone of the cover match the tone of your blurb. I would find it difficult to guess the genre from your cover.
Best wishes,
Terri
Mod
* Like Terri, I don't read much in your genre (except "Harry Potter"!).
* I like the simplicity of your "hands of God" illustration, plus the simple title font (too simple? too plain?). However, I also notice that many (most?) of the books in this genre tend to be much more "lush" (complex and layered). Which may work to your benefit in standing out from the crowd.
* I have no idea what a "mole" is, and also thought from the description that it was a type of rodent-like animal. But you should realize that the green mole spot is virtually invisible at thumbnail size, which is how most will see this. You may want to consider adding emphasis to it somehow. Maybe a glow or something?
Keep talking about it, if you want. Good luck!
Terri wrote: "Hi Erez,Before I give my feedback, my disclaimer is that I don't read much in your genre.
Your cover is quite attractive. I don't think you need to dot the 'I' in the title. I wasn't sure if it ..."
Hi Terri,
Thanks - this is really valuable feedback!
May I ask - how long did it take you to figure out the intended meaning of the word mole?
Regards,
Erez
It wasn't until I opened the file with the cover. Then it was obvious. When I was reading the blurb I did wonder how the animal mole was attached to the character's cheek. LOL
Harald wrote: "Thanks for submitting your cover, Erez! Some thoughts:* Like Terri, I don't read much in your genre (except "Harry Potter"!).
* I like the simplicity of your "hands of God" illustration, plus th..."
Hi Harald - thanks for your very valuable comments!
* If it's not a hassle for you, I would tremendously appreciate any pointers from you to book covers that follow the style you're referring to in your comments. I'd like to make sure that I'm making the correct comparison.
* Throughout the book, the 'mole' has conversations with Adam in his mind - so the word 'mole' is mentioned many times. I was thinking about changing it to 'smirch' to match the name of the book - what do you think about this? The thing is - I'm trying to keep it a single-syllable word :-)
* Thanks for your comment about making the spot stand out - I will definitely do that!
Regards,
Erez
Terri wrote: "It wasn't until I opened the file with the cover. Then it was obvious. When I was reading the blurb I did wonder how the animal mole was attached to the character's cheek. LOL"I see! So, do you think I should 'hand-feed' the meaning of the word 'mole' in this context to the readers, or is it OK if they figure it out by themselves like you did?
For example, would it be better if I used 'smirch' instead of 'mole' throughout the book?
Erez wrote: "Terri wrote: "It wasn't until I opened the file with the cover. Then it was obvious. When I was reading the blurb I did wonder how the animal mole was attached to the character's cheek. LOL"I see..."
If you are willing to change how refer to the mole, why not use 'alien' instead? I was a little confused about how the mole looked on the cover, most moles don't spread like that.
Terri wrote: "Erez wrote: "Terri wrote: "It wasn't until I opened the file with the cover. Then it was obvious. When I was reading the blurb I did wonder how the animal mole was attached to the character's cheek..."Well, here's where things get a little 'philosophical'...
The ideas in the book are partly based on Plato's 'Anima Mundi' concept:
In fact, there are many 'moles'. They represent the cosmic fabric of 'consciousness' - where the entire universe is a self-aware 'organism'. The first time the 'moles' came to Earth was 542 million years ago, creating what science refers to as 'The Cambrian Explosion' - planting the seeds of self-awareness & cognition in what was back then 'unconscious' life. The Cambrian Explosion cannot be explained by science to this day.
And next year, around mid-August, they will be back... :-)
The 'mole' itself explains to Adam why 'she' (it's a 'she') cannot be considered an 'alien': she claims that 'consciousness' is a fundamental element of the universe - just like energy or light. So, the 'mole' should not be regarded as an 'alien' just like a meteor falling on Earth is not considered an 'alien'...
That is interesting, but tricky to get your reader into that mindset. Do you think your reader audience will have knowledge of the Plato concept?
Terri wrote: "That is interesting, but tricky to get your reader into that mindset. Do you think your reader audience will have knowledge of the Plato concept?"Oh - absolutely not... I may put a reference to that on the book's webpage. The plot gradually builds up the reader's understanding - along with Adam's understanding. The 'mole' presents straightforward explanations for several scientific 'mysteries'. And I try to present all that using a very 'down-to-Earth' language...
Erez wrote: "Terri wrote: "That is interesting, but tricky to get your reader into that mindset. Do you think your reader audience will have knowledge of the Plato concept?"Oh - absolutely not... I may put a ..."
Best wishes!
Mod
Just go onto Amazon Books and put in your genre plus "bestsellers", there they will be.
* Throughout the book, the 'mole' has conversations with Adam in his mind - so the word 'mole' is mentioned many times. I was thinking about changing it to 'smirch' to match the name of the book - what do you think about this? The thing is - I'm trying to keep it a single-syllable word :-)
Well, as a noun, "smirch" means 'dirty mark or smear' so I guess that could work, but it depends on how it works for your overall story. 'Smirch' would definitely be more unique and unambiguous (once you're defined it early on).
Hope that helps.
Harald wrote: "Erez wrote: "... * If it's not a hassle for you, I would tremendously appreciate any pointers from you to book covers that follow the style you're referring to in your comments. I'd like to make su..."Thank you very much - your feedback & Terri's comments convinced me to align all references to this 'universal consciousness' entity to be 'smirch' instead of 'mole'.
I would greatly appreciate your feedback on the design I've made for my new paranormal fantasy novel - 'Smirch' - which is about to be published.
PREMISE:
Adam is a typical family man. And that is really frustrating - because he's always felt that there is something special about him.
What Adam doesn't know is that at the end of the summer of 2025, a colorful mole will arrive from outer space, attach itself to the back of his right cheek, and recruit him, along with his family and the underaged daughter of his neighbors, for a mission that will determine the fate of humanity.
What the mole doesn't know is that something very, very wrong happened on Earth several hundreds of millions of years ago - something that never happened anywhere else in the universe and was never ever supposed to happen. Ever. The consequences of what occurred still affect all humans today and may put the plans of the mole at risk.
As Adam and the mole set out to discover who is responsible for deflecting the course of our evolution, they uncover an ancient recipe for couscous - could it be the key to solving this mystery?
https://docs.google.com/document/d/13...
Low-resolution version:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g...
Thanks for your time!
Erez Buchnik