Although my new novel The Good House won’t be published until next year, my editor has asked me to start thinking about what kind of cover I would like for the book. Publishers like to find a cover early so that it will appear in their catalog that goes out to book distributors each quarter. The publisher usually reserves the right to have the final say on the book jacket design, but of course they want the author to be happy with it and because the author knows the book so well, they are often very good at conceptualizing a design.
This is something I love to do. I have spent the past 24 hours browsing online images that I think would make a nice book jacket. In fact, I have found an image that I love. It’s a black and white photograph that my editor also loves, but it hasn’t been reviewed by the art department or the editor-in-chief, and we don’t have the rights to it, so I can’t show it here.
But I’m wondering what kind of book jackets you all like. Is there a particular cover you recall? Have you ever bought a book because you were attracted to it by its cover?
Here are some of my favorites:
First, Falling Man by one of my favorite authors, Don Delillo:
White Teeth, by Zadie Smith. I love the large white font against the red background. You need to be a Zadie Smith to have a book jacket like this. People buy the book because of the author:
I love Say You’re One of Them, by Uwem Akpan. Have you guys read this book? It’s a collection of short stpries written by an African priest. This is a GORGEOUS cover:
I’m not sure if this was the original Breakfast at Tiffany’s cover, but it’s great:
I’d love to know what your favorite book jackets are and feel free to offer suggestions of book jacket designs, just based on the title, The Good House.
One of my favorites is the classic cover of Fitgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”. It manages to convey change, desire and the allure of the 20s while being of the moment.
That’s right! Great one!
The first book cover I thought of was _The_Great_Gatsby_ but because I hated the cover. It is still one of my favorite books, but it always bothered me that the face had no nose, creepy! I had to make one of those shopping bag book covers for it so I wouldn’t have to look at the cover when I went to reread it years later. I guess that is one advantage of ebooks, a creepy cover won’t keep me from reading a book!
I always feel magnetically pulled to those old Modern Library books when I find them in bookshops, most are pretty simple, serene colors. I guess I just like simple.
The Great Gatsby is one of those iconic covers and I think you either love it or hate it. I liked it, but it was a little creepy.
The cover that immediately came to mind for me is Wally Lamb’s I Know This Much is True with the b+w photo of twins. Maybe because I am a photographer, I’m drawn to photo covers and less likely to check out a book with all font.
I immediately thought of Lamb’s book too. It is an unforgetable and uncomfortable image and adds thematic depth.
I went to a workshop once where NY editors talked about the selection of covers depending on the market for a book. They showed us the same book with two very different covers: one for the teen market and one for the childen’s market. The text size and the book dimensions also varied according to the targeted age.
Color is a key component. In publishing today these decisions can be very simplistic and easily pigeonhole a book. Pink and purple–romance and chick-lit. Black/grey/red–thrillers and suspense.
The right cover can really sell the book. Take a look at this one, using the link below. The graphic really pulls you in, doesn’t it?
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=rosemary%27s+baby+levin&start=365&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&biw=1024&bih=707&tbm=isch&tbnid=QY3HSsXBMI5yiM:&imgrefurl=http://www.mywwg.com/theotherside.htm&docid=X3SnJxo6VmS1DM&imgurl=http://webzoom.freewebs.com/winterswickedgarden/a%252520book1.jpg&w=440&h=586&ei=Xx8_T-m1KvKw0AHw7NCzBw&zoom=1&chk=sbg&iact=rc&dur=109&sig=115505381289937857166&page=19&tbnh=175&tbnw=138&ndsp=24&ved=0CKIEEK0DMIABOPIB&tx=96&ty=144
Sorry about the world’s longest URL! Hope the memory was worth it. Newer editions of this title use the standard black and red colors to instantly say “horror.” I think it was so much more effective to have commissioned that image of the Dakota. Just chilling.
How wonderful that you get to have some say in this Ann.
Gail, I never saw that cover of Rosemary’s Baby. I only saw a later, paperback version. I read the book after I saw the movie, which is one of my very favorites. SO great. Yes, the graphic is great on the cover.
A weird suggestion: you mentioned that you were inspired by something you read in the newspaper and a strong character is a realtor? How about a house made from the real estate section in the newspaper?
Okay, Lauren, that is extremely clever!
I love old books, so I’m attracted to the linen covers with fancy gold lettering – the more the better! My first thought for a cover for your new book would be the photo of your lake house view — looking away from a house instead of at the house . . .
Interesting idea!
How about an actual black and white of either your own farm house or a semi-lake/house pic of your “eye sore”??? Either of them fits your title.
I always gravitated toward book covers like Ken Follett’s “The Pillars of the Earth” and “World Without End.” Simple and almost mysterious – makes you wonder what’s inside.
I may be biased, but I think Michael Korda does a brilliant job with his book covers – from his novels to his books like “Country Matters” to the biography of Ulysses S. Grant, they are really striking covers. Even if it’s a subject I may not think I’m interested in reading about, the cover grabs me and I end up fascinated.
I absolutely love the cover of “Falling Man.” It’s beautiful.
Those are all great covers too.
I’m forwarding your post to my friend Jane, a talented designer who enjoys revamping bookcovers for books that she has read…
She might be the next Chip Kidd, they’re great!
Cool, thanks
A photo of Mark…because why not? And he’ll have something to brag about to friends.
I will very often pick up a book because of its cover, and sometimes end up buying it. I recently read a novel called “The Things That Keep Us” by Carla Buckley. I liked the novel, but I still can’t figure out what the title or the cover design had to do with it. I read it because I of the story.
What would make me most curious, and likely to pick up the book, would be a child’s drawing of a house, in crayon, on a white background.
The crayon lines should be embossed. Your name should be in an ‘adult’ font (not child’s writing) on the bottom under a heavy black line.
There is a reason every refrigerator in the nation has had some child’s drawing hanging from a magnet. Isn’t there?
P.S. You may the rights to one of those pictures right now… I am sure you have one in the house.
Randy, I like that idea. Interesting
I really like all the above but “White teeth”, I do not like all that red, way too much for me. The last one is my favorite, I just love that cover.
Oh boy. I wouldn’t know where to begin. I am almost always attracted to blue book covers. I don’t like the White Teeth cover. It looks too harsh. It doesn’t say “read me.” I love the second cover. I imagine your cover should somehow reflect the story, or am I wrong? I think the simpler, the better. The Good House. Hmmm. One would assume there’d be a house on the cover. But I think the cover should reveal a bit of the story. Water always catches my eye. Again, simple is best, in my opinion. I’m anxious to hear what you decide upon.
Interesting question. There are two book covers that I particularly like – one because it happens, coincidentally, to be an image of a building in the rural hamlet near where I live, and the other because it was featured in an ad for the book in the New Yorker magazine 30 years ago and drew me in. The image was the subject of a short story in the book, whose author was a such wonderful writer whose work I thoroughly enjoyed.
The first is the cover of Anne LaMott’s “Grace (Eventually)” which is an image of a former Methodist church (now the hamlet’s nonprofit community center): http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/grace-anne-lamott/1100315012.
The other is the cover of the late Laurie Colwin’s first collection of short stories titled “The Lone Pilgrim”: http://www.amazon.com/Lone-Pilgrim-Laurie-Colwin/dp/0060958936#reader_0060958936
“The Good House” has such great potential for compelling imagery. I, too, will look forward to seeing your choice.
LOVE The Lone Pilgrim cover. I like that the image doesn’t take up the whole cover
When I think of “The Good House” I ask myself, what’s so good about it? Maybe the cover should be an interior shot of a room in a house that is significant to the main character? For example, a kitchen nook with some coffee cups, or a cozy den with a lit fire….I dunno but I wonder if there is a particular room that resonates with the main character and tht would give prospective readers a feeling for the mood of setting?
sorry…meant mood or setting…
This is right up my alley. The cover of a book absolutely makes a difference. I use to observe customers when I worked in a bookstore. Covers with outdoor scenery or bright colors always seems to attract women. Men I noticed go more for the”White Teeth” kind of covers, simply and basic (not that I’m making any judgements!).
For me personally, a cover will make me pick up a book and read the jacket even if I’ve never heard of it or the author. If I’m just browsing, a good bright colored cover sucks me in. Just my two cents!
A shot of a clean, chrome toaster, with a reflection of a breakfast table.
Oh, oh, and maybe in that reflection of the breakfast table, the “toast ghost” is eating a bagle with cream cheese.
HAHAHAHA Colleen!
An Amanda, I like the idea of a simple household item. You guys are all brilliant!
I don’t have a favorite cover. For me that would be like having a favorite face.
The color scheme for “Say You”re One of Them” fits with my notion of your book. There’s some undefined feeling about a certain time period on “the north shore” that makes me feel this way. Various things you’ve mentioned bring a quasi Andrew Wyeth type Image to my mind.
I don’t know what sells though! Good luck with all the details.
Looked at em again this morning and “Say You’re One of Them” still stands out.
It’s the bold image, warm color scheme and simplicity–that iconic quality of A.W.’s Pennsylvania farm paintings.
It’s interesting that as an artist, you don’t have a favorite color. And one of the images I chose from a stock image site has a very Andrew Wyeth feeling to it.
A few more memorable covers:
The floral appeal of “The Shell Seekers,” the whimsical graphics of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night,” the bold, intense yellow of “The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo,” the blue wilderness of “Cold Mountain.”
All the right covers for the right book No easy task.
The Breakfast at Tiffany’s book immediately gets my attention. Very classy.. It is one of my favorite movies and the book well, good, but completely different from the movie.. great cover. It’s true what’s stated about what attracts a person to a book. Sometimes I won’t even know who the author is or what the book is about, yet when I see an interesting cover, I’m immediately drawn. A great deal of times I actually bought them and the books were great. Strange but true. I think the cover is vital..attention grabbers. I like the namee of your book already. Sounds like it’s going to be interesting..
Name of your book.. excuse the mistake.
I agree with you about the cover with the girl running..It implies freedom,fun, running to meet friends for a great day in the sun. I feel this is a book that many people would be drawn to because it looks like it could be a number of things. I would pick up the book and definitely read the jacket and find out what the book is about. An excellent example.
The Good House.. with that title it should be warm. I do like the blue above. That’s an eye catcher. Maybe sunshine, enjoyable things to look at such..flowers, an old French watering can, you could almost say shabby chic for the cover. Sometimes you see those great homes with the furniture in Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard style and have simple things on it that immediately draw attention. I have cards that look just like that and I always get complements on them when I send them to people for whatever occasion. I love to send cards to family and friends once in a while instead of always using the computer for everything. Just a thought..It almost looks french. Lilac or those gorgeous dark lavender flowers on a white, shabby chic table that would be outdoors and have the blue sky showing in the picture. Just a thought.
I bought and read Say You’re One of Them b/c of the gorgeous cover. I also love the covers of The Paris Wife and Where Rivers Change Direction. I do think covers make a big difference when I’m browsing in a bookstore. There are so many ways to go with The Good House. I’m sure you’ll find the perfect art for your prose. Can’t wait to read it!
Once I sorted my bookshelves according to color & found the jacket covers were similar according to type book (like this http://bit.ly/99xMZA). Those having to do w/Europe, cozy homelife & summertime were largely blue; humorous, orange; intellectual/serious, blacks & golds. See if you can find a visual pattern common to your fave novels, and then connect it w/the theme/feel/energy you want to convey w/ your book.
Interesting
Though I call myself a writer, what I most identify with is being a storyteller; which all began of course, with being a lover of stories. My father was a photographer, I married a photographer, and I dabble in photography as well. Images are powerful sources of story, and I very much believe that a book’s cover should reflect the story within it. The image on the cover is what invites me (or the opposite) to the journey of the book within, and it should “match.” I think of a book cover as the silent, single-frame version of a movie’s trailer. The cover should convey to me the tone and voice, characters and themes, the look and feel of the places, the flavor of the “world” that book holds within its pages.
I’ve noticed that poetry books have some of the most evocative covers and I think that’s because poets live from a place of connecting words/story and images–the best of which involve as many of our senses as possible.
In the Say You’re One of Them cover above, I can feel the heat of that clear sunny day, smell the dust she’s kicking up into the air and feel the grit as she breathes it into her lungs. I’m able to imagine the rough crunch of the sandy dirt road underneath her feet and the whispery swishes of white dress-skirt brushing back and forth against her bare legs as she runs. The cover of Breakfast at Tiffany’s and White Teeth (even more so) are cold and sterile in comparison. Ukpan’s book cover also beckons because it raises in me the question, is she running to something/someone–or away? All of a sudden, I feel that girl’s desire, her need, and I want to know more about it. I want to follow her on her journey. I want to take her hand and run with her.
That, makes me want to read the book. And I’m going to go buy it, right now :0)
Hope this helps? And, again, congratulations–choosing your book’s cover is exciting stuff, Ann!
Personally I am attracted to the author’s name and the title of the book being almost similar in size and bold print, not script. I like bold colors, two or three, and then a picture of a house, vaguely portrayed….giving the book an air of mystery. You want to pick it up and see what it is about. I, too, can’t wait to read it….I enjoyed your other two so much.
Where are the posts about the new horse???? Where is he? where is Mark?!! Bring back the horses!
Amy, I’m taking Zidane to a big nature preserve today with a few friends and their horses. I will post about him soon. I am head-over-heels in love with this horse. Yes, I love Mark and Denis, of course, and the kids, but, you know, Zidane is the real thing.
Just kidding.
Sort of.
what about using one of the lovely pictures from your blog? I like the video of you with your “dancing” horse because it’s joyful. Maybe get a photographer to follow you around and gets shots of you with the horses you obviously adore?
best wishes,
tina
But, what do I know! Good Luck, I’m sure you will find the perfect cover for your book. Peace, Tina
Thanks ALL!
LOTS of great ideas here for the cover of Ann’s upcoming book (why am I not surprised by all the creative energy that flows into/out of this place?). For whatever it’s worth, I myself am partial to Lauren Malone’s inspired suggestion (see #3 above).
Ann,for your book cover, how about a big victorian house? Maybe the way the house looks (well kept or spooky; light or dark, etc) could provide a clue to the story line. Whatever you decide, I can’t wait to buy it and read it!I also want to share what happened last week when I went to H&R Block to get my taxes done. The woman who was doing my taxes just happened to mention that she has written a couple of books. As an avid reader, I asked what kind of books she writes. She writes murder mysteries, which I enjoy reading. So, I bought her books and I started reading one of them today. I am already hooked. I love the fact that I walked in there just looking to get my taxes done, but I got an unexpected gift of meeting an author whose work I can enjoy.
How about an abandoned dollhouse in disrepair. I may be getting the books you are working on confused. Wasn’t one about witches? The dollhouse could look really spooky
Just listened to Hash hags with guest Henry Alford, loved it. I really enjoyed listening to this show. Good job hags.
Based solely on the title of your book, and not knowing anything about the content, might I suggest a cover featuring the work of this artist. I find her portraits of homes (and yes, I really think of them as portraits, not landscapes) very arresting.
http://www.joanalbaugh.com/houses_08/houses.php
I love these – so ominous with no windows or doors
I’m a little late to the party, but I love the idea of a dollhouse. One of those very real looking dollhouse interiors. Below is a link to Queen Mary’s Doll House. It’s amazing and intriguing!
http://www.luxurylaunches.com/other_stuff/queen_marys_royal_doll_house_on_display_at_windsor_castle.php
That was what I was thinking of Catherine…something very real but somehow a little off to create a creepy feeling like over turned chairs with a broken dish on the table or something rather odd.
I thought of a dollhouse because reading a story is like being a voyeur in someone else’s life. Although it is sort of an imaginery life which is what happens when you loook into a doll’s house…you have to believe in make believe!
Yes, Kathy! I couldn’t quite put it into words. I like how you said it being a voyeur in someone else’s life.
I was thinking to have the picture of ghost girl on the swing, perhaps in front one of the houses from Patty’s suggested website.
Ann,
As always a littlle late to the game but look at Wally Lamb’s “the hour I first believed” three different covers. Not an easy title to grab a reader. I was drawn to the boy in mid air.
be well!
I wait and search Wally Lamb often, he is one of the great fictional writer’s of our time. He doesn’t write as often as I would like, however, that’s probably why he is such a good writer.
Uwen Akpan’s book cover is beautiful. Titles and favorable book reviews influence me in choosing a book. “The Good House” brings to mind a large white clapboard house, semi-rural location in the Midwest.
I just reread “The Edge of Sadness”, a forgotten Pulizer winner by Edwin O’ Conner – Perhaps the most exquisite writing I’ve ever read. Despite the title it has alot of humor. I have yet to start “The Paris Wife.” It’s on the list. Also just finished “We Need to Talk About Kevin.” It’s very disturbing. Although at times I wondered if this is simply an “evil kid, bad seed” horror story or if it is more profound. It’s good writing so I considered it worth my time.
Gloria
ALI IN WONDERLAND. Funny book.
How about a photograph (even an illustration) of a house for sale….and the realty sign is in the foreground with the title and author’s name? You can adjust the colors or house type to suit the content of the book.
I have to admit and I’m very ashamed, I do judge a book by it’s cover unless I’m already a fan of the author. If it’s a cheesy cover, I automatically think that the content is the same. Color is also a big thing for me and the fonts have to have a clean appearance. I can’t believe I admitted to this!
I have faith you’ll do a good job! I loved your other book covers.
Hey Ann,
Our anniversary is coming where have you been????
Wally Lamb’s “She’s Come Undone”… great book and great cover!
I’ve been working on book revisions. New blog entry coming TODAY!
Finally! I was experiencing symptoms of BDS (Blog Deprivation Syndrome) these last few days….
Hope the revision process is going well — SO excited about the upcoming new book!!
Regarding the search for good book covers, today I serendipitously happened upon this — a book-cover contest for the month of march, where every day two tomes are paired up to battle it out:
http://www.abebooks.com/books/March-Madness/book-bracket.shtml
Okay, TODAY!