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Bad Cover Art
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Dian, Crazy Nooooob Mod! :D
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Aug 13, 2010 09:48PM

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I'm quite the book browser, you never really want to make a library trip with me, I take forever. Book stores are even worse, because I have to decide what to spend money on.
Oh i take forever at the bookstores I like to go by myself for that reason. Plus I never know if it will take me 20 mins or 3 hours, depending on what I find.

...in the long run the cover tends not to matter to me.........unless it's porn :)...
For me titles don't really make it is break if for me now granted a really bad one can send me running especially of I have nothing else to go on.
I don't really pay attention to book covers that much - since I browse books online more now. I usually go off the description. Usually the cover of the book is just stupid no matter what, even for the books I love, so I try not to judge them by it. Same with the title - those things can be really stupid. I try not to judge anything before I've known/experienced it and books just fall into that category.

Otherwise, it really depends on my mood. And sometimes I've heard something good about a particular book so that even if the cover sucks and I'm in a mood, I'll still pick it up and check out the summary.
And I don't think I've ever seen a single "Doctor Who" novel that didn't have a less than stellar cover but I still like 'em.
I find it odd when books that have people as the cover art but yet when you read the descriptions of the characters they don't even vaguely resemble the people on the cover. Why bother?

The brainless draw of 'beauty' that supposedly works on a psychological level that causes people to think that if they read / own a book with a beautiful people cover, they'll be seen as being the same.
Makes me want to be seen in public with Garfield books.

should we pet you or will we get clawed??

I think it's more like feed me and let me sleep for super long periods of time. :D
And no vets.

I usually know the author's name ahead of time,
so the artist that the publisher hires to draw
whatever is of little consequence to me. I'm interested
in the book, not the cover.
Besides, the covers are often misleading. There is
a lesson there I think.
Judge a book by it's author and not it's cover? Does that mean I should judge people based off their parents?
>.>
>.>
I'd be in trouble if people judged me by my patents, or more likely I'd never have trouble so is be making way too much of my own

The funny thing is, there have been cover artists which I think totally make the book too. Whelan[?:] [I don't have any references on hand at the moment to double-check the spelling:] was the guy in charge of the original Pern covers. To me, his Pern dragons -are- Pern dragons. He has a certain style. If I see his work on another book, I'm more likely to pick that book up to browse. Unfortunately, he's apparently not doing the art for the McCaffreys anymore [or at least for the printings I'm getting:] and it's kinda sad. It almost feels like the books are already limping with a handicap before you even read the first paragraph.
Jingai wrote: "Well, at least if you judge by the author, you'll know
what you are in for."
but thats the problem, what if its an author you dont know? All you can judge it by is the blurb and the cover art. If the blurb is uninspiring, and the cover art is creepy or just doesn't speak to me I will admit to by passing the book. I know its horrible cause Im sure I over look good books, however I have to base an opinion of a book off of what I am given if I am unfamiliar with the work. There is only so much attention you can give authors that you are new too, especially if there is nothing eye catching about it. When i go browsing a store I first look at my fave authors, in case they put out something that I didn't know about, then I browse authors I dont know. I usually start by the title(although we all know how misleading that can be) the next thing you see is the cover art. Between the cover art and the title that is your first impression of not only the book but the author as well. In my really morose or you could say mean/angry moods, if i go book shopping and I pick up a book that has bad art on it I dont even bother reading the blurb. Too me if you can even come up with a good concept design for a book(even if its done badly) then what true creativity can that person have as a writer. Might be cynical but there it is, I do judge a NEW book by its cover. That is the authors 5 seconds to impress me, maybe Im just hard to impress but I expect cover art to be just that, art that in some aspects expresses the book in some aspects.
what you are in for."
but thats the problem, what if its an author you dont know? All you can judge it by is the blurb and the cover art. If the blurb is uninspiring, and the cover art is creepy or just doesn't speak to me I will admit to by passing the book. I know its horrible cause Im sure I over look good books, however I have to base an opinion of a book off of what I am given if I am unfamiliar with the work. There is only so much attention you can give authors that you are new too, especially if there is nothing eye catching about it. When i go browsing a store I first look at my fave authors, in case they put out something that I didn't know about, then I browse authors I dont know. I usually start by the title(although we all know how misleading that can be) the next thing you see is the cover art. Between the cover art and the title that is your first impression of not only the book but the author as well. In my really morose or you could say mean/angry moods, if i go book shopping and I pick up a book that has bad art on it I dont even bother reading the blurb. Too me if you can even come up with a good concept design for a book(even if its done badly) then what true creativity can that person have as a writer. Might be cynical but there it is, I do judge a NEW book by its cover. That is the authors 5 seconds to impress me, maybe Im just hard to impress but I expect cover art to be just that, art that in some aspects expresses the book in some aspects.
Katt_goddess wrote: "I do tend to look at the author more than the cover for the most part. But no matter how much I might like a particular author, if the cover features half-nekid people swooning, I'll still skip it...."
Omg yes!! That was actually the reason why I started this thread but I never got around to sitting down and ranting about it. I have a series that I am reading that is a very dark action packed vampire fantasy series. I love it, its one of the few books that is actually from a vampires perspective and it doesn't just paint them as oversexed drop dead gorgeous creatures that just occasionally have to drink blood, or evil incarnates with no soul and no room for character growth. Anyways, love the series, and recently the author released the 4th and 5th book only a month or two apart. I was so excited since I didn't have to wait forever, then I saw the cover art for the 5th book....and i stopped dead in my tracks. The 5th book cover basically looked like a porn novel. I was irate. Not only was it a complete departure from the normal look of the cover but it portrayed the book in the completely wrong light!! Its not like the books didn't have sex in them, but it was never a focus of the books or anything more than a small happening, yet if you just passed by this book without knowing anything of the series you would keep on walking. I know I would! I was literally ashamed to buy the book and to read it around people. It looked like I was reading a really seedy romance novel. There is a reason that i dont like those novels and hate their art work. If i wasn't against destroying books in any form, I would have ripped off the cover of it. That cover art basically destroyed in my mind the series in some aspects, not only did it make the series seems cheap and taudry(which it isn't in any sense of the word) but it was misleading and kinda ruined part of the plot. The whole series had been building a relationship between these two polar opposites when in the 4th book they actually try to make it a go at a relationship, yet due to the dynamics of it the are continually to spin their wheels. So for the 5th book to come out and too basically see the two main characters look like they are fucking completely ruins the whole build up. Cause in the 5th book till the very end you dont know if the two will actually get together or not. Thats part of the fun of their relationship, yet the author ruins it by not even hinting at whats going to happen or not happen. She has it blazen on the front cover. Which is completely misleading for the fact that through the whole book the relationship is self-destructing before they even get to first base.
I know for most people, they wont see it the issue with it but when you are invested in characters enough to read 4 books and buy the 5th one, and enjoying the building chemistry between the characters too then see that cover it was almost like a slap in the face. You drew it out till the 5th book, and what?...you couldn't just hint at a real relationship between the two you have to have them basically doing it on the cover?!?! It was just really low brow and tasteless in my opinion. Its why i think cover art can make or break a book. If I didnt know nothing about the author or the series and I saw that on the book shelf, I would keep walking and not even give the series a chance. Which is sad cause it really does have some great characters in it. I just really hope this isn't foreshadowing what is to come with the rest of the series.
Omg yes!! That was actually the reason why I started this thread but I never got around to sitting down and ranting about it. I have a series that I am reading that is a very dark action packed vampire fantasy series. I love it, its one of the few books that is actually from a vampires perspective and it doesn't just paint them as oversexed drop dead gorgeous creatures that just occasionally have to drink blood, or evil incarnates with no soul and no room for character growth. Anyways, love the series, and recently the author released the 4th and 5th book only a month or two apart. I was so excited since I didn't have to wait forever, then I saw the cover art for the 5th book....and i stopped dead in my tracks. The 5th book cover basically looked like a porn novel. I was irate. Not only was it a complete departure from the normal look of the cover but it portrayed the book in the completely wrong light!! Its not like the books didn't have sex in them, but it was never a focus of the books or anything more than a small happening, yet if you just passed by this book without knowing anything of the series you would keep on walking. I know I would! I was literally ashamed to buy the book and to read it around people. It looked like I was reading a really seedy romance novel. There is a reason that i dont like those novels and hate their art work. If i wasn't against destroying books in any form, I would have ripped off the cover of it. That cover art basically destroyed in my mind the series in some aspects, not only did it make the series seems cheap and taudry(which it isn't in any sense of the word) but it was misleading and kinda ruined part of the plot. The whole series had been building a relationship between these two polar opposites when in the 4th book they actually try to make it a go at a relationship, yet due to the dynamics of it the are continually to spin their wheels. So for the 5th book to come out and too basically see the two main characters look like they are fucking completely ruins the whole build up. Cause in the 5th book till the very end you dont know if the two will actually get together or not. Thats part of the fun of their relationship, yet the author ruins it by not even hinting at whats going to happen or not happen. She has it blazen on the front cover. Which is completely misleading for the fact that through the whole book the relationship is self-destructing before they even get to first base.
I know for most people, they wont see it the issue with it but when you are invested in characters enough to read 4 books and buy the 5th one, and enjoying the building chemistry between the characters too then see that cover it was almost like a slap in the face. You drew it out till the 5th book, and what?...you couldn't just hint at a real relationship between the two you have to have them basically doing it on the cover?!?! It was just really low brow and tasteless in my opinion. Its why i think cover art can make or break a book. If I didnt know nothing about the author or the series and I saw that on the book shelf, I would keep walking and not even give the series a chance. Which is sad cause it really does have some great characters in it. I just really hope this isn't foreshadowing what is to come with the rest of the series.

what you are in for."
but thats the problem, what if its an author you dont know? All you can judge it by is the blurb and the..."
Well, in situations where the blurb and art are lackluster, I actually just flip open to a page and
read a few paragraphs. Not many, and certainly not more than a page, but just enough to get a feel for the author's style. The story context of what I'm reading isn't important, just the general style the author is using. If I like the style, then I'll give the book a read, particularly if I am in the library.

I've read that they test covers too. So if a certain cover tests better, it may be the one that ends up on the book no matter what the author thinks. Not everyone shares the same sensibilities. We're probably in the minority as far as bare chested men looking sexy on books goes. By the amount of books they end up on, they must attract a certain type of buyer.
And Dian, that sucks about your cover basically being a spoiler. I suppose you could always email and complain. I doubt it would do much good but you'd be able to vent your frustrations.

I'm just going to start calling the degradation of a perfectly good premise the "Anita Blake syndrome" = when a perfectly good book / series grabs a pack of Trojans and dives for the gutter without looking back. O.<
Lmao Katt! That's a good way to put it. I really hope it doesn't go down that road. All the books had some sex in it but it was always just a passing thing nothing that derailed the book. And the same was with the latest book, it wasn't till almost the end that the characters end up having sex, which is also why it was so misleading. Almost felt bad for the reads who thought that due to the bookcover there would be more sex, and there really wasn't. Although in the last book it was a bit more graphic and drawn out, but considering the fact it took them 5 books to get to that point it wasn't as bad as it could've been. I just don't want the series to derail and go down a path that is different than the one its already on. The cover was really just a shock to the system cause it was a complete departure from it norm.
JK wrote: "@Dian
What series are you talking about?"
its actually the series i nominated this month. Nightwalker for the first 3 books it has Mira the main character on the front. Then the 4th has Danaus on the front who is the male lead cause that story was from his POV. Then bam! This is the 5th cover Wait for Dusk
Now maybe I am being overly sensitive but it really does look like the cover of a bad romance book.
What series are you talking about?"
its actually the series i nominated this month. Nightwalker for the first 3 books it has Mira the main character on the front. Then the 4th has Danaus on the front who is the male lead cause that story was from his POV. Then bam! This is the 5th cover Wait for Dusk
Now maybe I am being overly sensitive but it really does look like the cover of a bad romance book.
Exactly! Imagine going to the bookstore excited for a new book in a series you love and find that staring back at you. Now you get why I was utterly pissed at them for doing that cover and why I half want to rip it off the book. It gives off the wrong vibe and is not what the series or even the book was about. I actually like that book less because of it, and it was actually a very good book that turned the whole series on its head which had very little to nothing to do at all with their relationship. But I was so self conscious reading it cause of cover art that I couldn't enjoy the book as much or get into the characters like I usually do. I had to read it when none of my family was around, cause I really didn't want to see where a conversation that cover would lead too.

I try not to judge books by their cover, but when you see something like this it's just too hard not too.
It's for children, but still.

It's for children, but still.

Haha jk dont hate on the puppies with wings. It's cute, weird but cute. Ofcourse I'm a sucker for animals. And yeah that second one is just weird. It's like the characters face is misshapen or maybe the graphics on my phone is what's doing that.
Mary wrote: "I saw a couple of tutorials and I thought of this thread and Dian's book problem. So I thought I'd post them. http://zakkainspired.blogspot.com/201... Cloth book cove..."
Oooh thanks. I will def have to try one of those.
Oooh thanks. I will def have to try one of those.
Heh, I love puppies too, but that cover is just horrible. XD
Didn't mention it before, but smut on the front usually has me thinking the book will be crap. Most times I'll still give it a try, but I don't have high hopes.
Didn't mention it before, but smut on the front usually has me thinking the book will be crap. Most times I'll still give it a try, but I don't have high hopes.
Same here. And what's sad is that I enjoy the occasional romance/love story driven plot. I'm a romantic, but very few "romance" books aren't smutty. Porn doesn't bother me, but tryin to dress it up as romance bugs the shit out of me. There was one romance book that I loooved and thankfully didn't have a bit of sex in it, the author used sensuality and sexual tension to make the readers swoon, not a 5 page description of a 3 way to entice and entrances readers. I wish I could find more books like that. Or have them come with warning labels like they do when you download a book it will tell you at the end of the description that it has graphic sex
Books mentioned in this topic
Angel in a Fur Coat (other topics)Wait for Dusk (other topics)
Nightwalker (other topics)
Encrypted (other topics)