Cover Stories: Masque of the Red Death

Bethany Griffin is here today to talk about her cover for Masque of the Red Death, which is a twist on Edgar Allen Poe's gothic short story (cool!). The cover has atmosphere in spades. Here's Bethany: "I think that covers are the most exciting thing, seeing a visual interpretation of your work, and every time we've sold a foreign right, a part of me is jumping up and down going, Another cover! Another cover! But, I didn't have an image in mind as I wrote.

"In retrospect, I'm not sure that there was much discussion with my publisher, but one thing we did discuss during revisions was having some symbols for different groups in the story, because through a good part of the story evil is sort of amorphous, and since there are multiple groups vying for the city, it made sense to give the reader some visual clues. I think it was great editorial advice, and added to the story, but...in my mind I was picturing a more gender-neutral cover, perhaps using some of those symbols, so I was surprised when I got the cover, initially.

"I thought it was beautiful, but I wasn't sure about it. First, it didn't seem like it would appeal to male readers much, and though even the first draft was wonderfully atmospheric, and there are scenes in the marshes, the book is essentially about saving a city, so the setting of the cover threw me at first. Also, the color and style of the font changed later, into something really beautiful and special, but in the first draft, they weren't as striking, so I liked it, but I wasn't in love!

"We made some suggestions, but none of them worked. I suggested that the parasol be more tattered, and we suggested some sort of city outline in the background (and I'm going to agree that might not have looked good, particularly if it was worked in later) but I do like tattered things! But no, they had purchased the beautiful artwork for the cover, and I don't think it could be manipulated very much.

"In some ways I would say the final cover was unchanged from the first version I saw, but in fact the final hardcover is very different. The font color changed, and the font itself improved dramatically, and is really just beautiful. And the effects that were added, first the glowing depth that the ARC had, and then they left that and put embossed foil on the cover, and added in deckled pages...I am really pleased with everything about the book and the cover!

"I may not have been in love the first time I saw it, but now that the book is on my shelf, I'm definitely in love! I think the cover is very representative of how dark the book is, and that even aspects that I questioned at first, the parasol for instance, helps the reader see immediately that the book has a historical setting, the misty background is mysterious, and the red dress suggest glamour, all of which are a bit part of the book. I think the feel of it is just right, and the color, well, it's Masque of the Red Death! I know there are other books with red dresses (I own quite a few of them!) but red was the absolute right color for the dress on this cover.

"Oh, and another cool cover related thing that Greenwillow did was that instead of a trailer, they created an interactive book cover for the book. (Be sure to click for lightning and scroll over parts for creepy vines).

Um, that is my favorite thing in the world. An interactive book cover! What do you guys think?

Cover Stories: Torn

Stephanie Guerra's debut novel has a cover that really tells a story, especially when you look at the entire jacket. Here's Stephanie to talk about the process:

"I love the cover of Torn, because by some amazing coincidence, the model looks like the friend on whom Stella, my narrator, is based (see the picture of 'Stella' and me in high school, below right). I also like the model because I can see both Latina and Eastern European characteristics in her face, and Stella is biracial Mexican and Croatian.

"The art department used stock photos, and I’m grateful for the level of input they allowed. While I wasn’t consulted about the original design, I was given seven possible head shots to choose from, and asked for feedback about framing. The whole process was fun, collaborative, and stress-free.

"As far as the design itself (the close-up of Stella on the front is mirrored by one of Ruby on the back--see full jacket below), I feel it's perfect. Torn is about what it means for a woman to be a true friend, and what it sometimes requires from us. There’s a lot of YA romance in the marketplace right now, but when I was a teen, my friendships defined my experience more than my romances did. That comes through in Torn; there are men in both girls’ lives, but ultimately their friendship is deeper and more sustaining than their respective romances. I think the dual head-shots keep the spotlight where it belongs: on the girls.

"While I had choices around Stella’s headshot, the art department only offered one option for Ruby. At first I thought she looked scary (those eyes!), but now that I have the actual book in hand, I see that she was a good, dramatic choice. Ruby's character is fiery, and it makes sense that her image should reflect that intensity. The only quibble I had was that Ruby's red hair is a dye job, while the model is clearly a natural redhead. Not a big deal in the grand scheme of things! By another stroke of luck, I met a young mother at a playground who resembled the Ruby model. I asked the woman if she’d like to act in my trailer, and she agreed (thank you, Michelle!).

"The cover came together fortuitously in so many ways that I feel a sense of peace that it’s just right. I even love the end papers. Maurice Sendak once compared the end papers of a book to the curtains of a theater, and I think it’s a great analogy. My end papers are a delicious, candy pink—not quite bubblegum, not quite cherry blossom. The pigment is rich enough that the color feels strong, but not shocking. Somehow it reflects both the estrogen and the edge of Torn.

"And now I could go on about why I love the type-face… but I have to stop somewhere. I’ll close by saying that as a lifelong book lover, it’s very satisfying to have my first book feel aesthetically right, and I’m grateful to the designers at Marshall Cavendish (now Amazon Publishing) who made it happen. Thank you!"

Thanks, Stephanie! Below are various headshots for Stella, below. I love the final pick! And check out the Torn trailer too. How cool that Stephanie found a real-life Ruby lookalike to use for the filming!

What do you guys think?

Cover Stories: Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols

Jennifer Echols has some great covers. (Remember the makeovers of her illustrated-cover books into photographic covers? Love that!) Her new book, Such a Rush, is no exception. Jennifer's here to share her latest Cover Story as part of her GCC tour:

"When the publisher asked me for my input on the cover, I told them a big sky would be good, but we would also need to see the characters Leah and Grayson to make it evident to readers that the book is a romance. They came back with two possibilities. One looked like the back cover, showing the small-town airport with an airplane overhead, except that Leah and Grayson were also lying in the grass. The other looked like the front cover.

"At first, I wanted the back cover, because I thought it conveyed the contents of the book better, but it was too sleepy-looking (see below right).

"I thought the front cover was arresting, but it didn’t make clear to readers what the book was about. But my editor really loved the front, as did the art department. They tinkered with the fonts until I got my beautiful flowy title, and I compromised by flat-ironing Leah’s curly hair in one scene in the book so she would 'match' the girl on the cover. I’m really happy with the results, and I’m grateful to my editor for caring so deeply about what I thought."

Thanks, Jennifer! Here's what I love: The way her hair sweeps in a way the matches the font of the title. Also: the almost black-and-white coloring with a pop of color for the title. And it's cool that the back cover got to tell a little bit about the small-town airport aspect of the story. Oh, and yay for writing straight hair into the story--so worth doing that for readers, I think!

What do you guys think?

Cover Stories + Win-It: Never Enough

Denise Jaden was here in 2010 to share the Cover Story for Losing Faith, and she's back on her GCC tour for Never Enough, which has a cover with amazing light! Here's Denise: "I didn’t have much in mind for the cover of this book. I feel like there are lots of things I wanted it to encompass, and because I don’t have much of an artist brain, I didn’t know how to do that.

"With my first novel, I was told I would have time to make some suggestions, but then it never came up again. With this one, the cover was not mentioned until they had a final version to show me.

"I really love my cover, but to be perfectly honest, the girl on the cover doesn’t look like either of the main girls in my novel. I was a little bothered by this initially, but I must say, I think they’ve chosen a picture that covers a lot of the themes and fits the tone of the book. The image is a stock photo, which is fine with me. I hope that one day one of my novels will have a live model, but this photo works so well with the tone that I don’t think one was needed for this. I really think the people in the art department at Simon Pulse are masterful!

"I did mention my concerns over character congruity. We discussed it, and eventually both agreed that capturing the tone of the book is more important.

"The original version said 'Title Here,' because my book did not yet have a firm title, but otherwise it is exactly the same, with an added tagline.

"I’m thrilled with the cover overall. I think Simon Pulse does an amazing job with covers, and I really think mine is eye-catching in its final version."

Thanks, Denise! It bugs me when the cover model doesn't resemble a character, but I agree with you that the tone is most important. I have to say that I love the light play in this cover. The branches almost obscured by sunspots, the green tones with blue title font--lovely.

What do you guys think?

PS-Denise is holding a contest on her blog for four boxes of great books! If you comment here, you're automatically eligible to win. HOORAY.

PPS-Check out the trailer!

PPPS-Last week's Win-It Wednesday winner of Tara Altebrando's latest is... Brianna! Send me your address, B.

Cover Stories: Eve by Anna Carey

I'm a sucker for bridges. And running. And flowing hair. So the cover of Eve? Kind of up my alley. Here's Anna Carey to talk about the cover of the first book in the Eve trilogy (the second, Once, is out this month!). "I had a vague sense of what the book might look like. The name--Eve--conjures so much. We all know Adam and Eve, and there's so much imagery associated with their story. Originally I saw the cover as having a lot of lush greenery. I sometimes saw a pale girl lost in the forest. It's funny, the book trailer captures a lot of those original images and ideas that were left behind as the cover evolved.

"The designer asked for a list of images or words that appear in the book. I can't seem to locate that list, though I'm 99% sure the designer came up with the bridge idea, which I love. It's hard to go back through your book and decide which imagery is meaningful and/or metaphorical--so much of that is folded into the manuscript unconsciously. I'm pretty certain all my suggestions were fairly basic. Thankfully she didn't put a wall or a cluster of trees on there. I don't think it would've had the same effect.

"There were so many amazing covers in this process, I've thought of framing them and hanging them on my wall. So much goes into finalizing the cover--publisher's approvals, comments from sales and marketing teams. The team went through several different options before getting it just right. So when I did see the cover I loved it, but I wasn't sure if it was FINAL FINAL, so I didn't want to get too attached. Side story: One of the covers involved an underwater photo of a girl in a white dress. She was kicking her legs, the skirt blooming out around her. It was gorgeous, but thankfully we didn't use it--it would've been too close to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer or Imaginary Girls. (See those covers at right).

"The actual image didn't change at all. But when I had the physical book in my hands, it was so much more beautiful than I could have imagined. You can't tell from the picture, but the sky is actually much darker, and the book jacket has a metallic sheen to it. The hardcover beneath the book jacket is black, with gorgeous, metallic green type embossed on the front and spine.

"The image of the girl was shot by Merisa Okic, a photographer. She does some really interesting, evocative portraits. You can check out her work here. I wonder if you'll guess which model is the real Eve...

"I love the cover, and owe endless hugs and thanks to Elizabeth Clark, the designer. What first struck me was the sky, how it fades from green to blue to purple. I like that there's something beyond the bridge, though you can't quite see what it is. It's almost as though everything is covered in fog. I hate to admit this, but I didn't originally connect the bridge on the cover to the very famous bridge featured at the end of the book (I associated it more with the first bridge in the book, which is inside the compound walls). So much of this book, and this series, is about crossing thresholds. It's about going places you never thought you could go, and becoming a person you never thought you'd become. To me it seems fitting that the girl on the cover is crossing over, headed for the unknown."

Thanks, Anna! I love the details you've mentioned, and I also really like how the font makes the three letters flow together in the title. And, the girl's stance/movement reminds me of the original cover for Nancy Werlin's Extraordinary, which I also loved.

What do you guys think of this one?

Cover Stories: 52 Reasons to Hate My Father

Jessica Brody has shared two previous Cover Stories here (for My Life Undecided and The Karma Club). She's back for a GCC tour, telling the tale behind the cover of 52 Reasons to Hate My Father. "I’m terrible at envisioning covers. So no, I didn’t really have an idea in mind. But I knew I wanted it to show the contrast of my main character’s two worlds (spoiled heiress and working girl) which I think they ended up doing really well!

"Honestly, I was surprised when I saw the cover. It was SO different from the light, pastel, girly looks of my other YA book and my publisher had told me they were going to keep with the same look. So when I opened this, I almost thought that they sent me the wrong cover! It was all edgy and kind of punk rock-ish. I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about it. It took me a few days to really come around to it. My publisher explained that they’d decided to change directions with this book. And go with an edgier look (because the book is a bit older and edgier than my other titles). But once I got over the shock of how different it was, I could finally see how awesome it was! And I’ve loved it ever since!

"It really didn’t change at all. They added a few more 'paparazzi flashes' in the background and the Meg Cabot blurb that we got (SQUEEE!) and that was about it! I guess they felt they got it right the first time!

"Apparently they used a model to shoot a photo for a first version of a cover concept that I never saw. I did get to choose the model, though! My editor sent me photos of about five different girls and asked which one I thought looked the most like Lexi. I was told the original concept was something about a girl in a maid’s uniform, holding a mop, but wearing all sorts of shiny, blingy jewelry.

"But then I guess the marketing and sales department didn’t end up liking the way it came out so they scrapped it and went with this concept instead. Which is really just the reverse of the original concept. In the original, it was Lexi in a work uniform, with heiress accessories. In this version, it’s Lexi in heiress clothes, with work accessories. I can see how this version might play better on the page.

"With the current cover, they didn’t have time to do another photo shoot so they used a stock photo instead. But what’s funny about the whole thing is I actually think this girl (the stock photo) looks more like Lexi than the model I chose! So I guess that worked out!

"When they sent me the cover, I noticed that the girl in the picture was wearing a donut shop hat. I found this odd because in the book, my character never works at a donut shop (she works just about everywhere else though!) But my editor explained that they wanted the heiress to be wearing a hat that distinctly contrasted the 'heiress' look and represented her new working status. They felt that the donut shop worked the best. I agreed so I went into the manuscript (which was still being revised), deleted one of the other jobs and replaced it with a donut shop job. It was a job that only had a few sentences of description so it was easy to replace but I actually ended up liking the donut shop job better than the original."

Thanks, Jessica! I have to admit that I had 100 questions upon first glancing at this cover, so I love hearing the explanations. And I think it's so great that the book reflects the donut job, because as a reader, I really want to see the cover image reflected inside.

What do you guys think of the cover?

PS-Jessica always has amazing trailers. This one? No exception:

Cover Stories: For Darkness Shows the Stars

Diana Peterfreund tends to have great covers, and when I saw her new one, For Darkness Shows the Stars (a post-Apocalyptic take on Jane Austen's Persuasion, hello!), I fell in love with the starry sky. So I asked her about it, and here she is:

"I always have an idea in mind for my covers, but since I’m not an artist it’s probably best that my publishers ignore me. They did ask me to send inspiration pictures, though. I sent in a lot of pictures of harsh seascapes and rocky cliffs and beaches beneath a sunset/sunrise and a starry sky. Sometimes there were forlorn women standing on these beaches. I think Harper and I were totally on the same page about the direction we wanted to go in, which mostly makes me feel like I’m finally getting a hang of this imagery thing.

"I asked for something very lush and romantic, to fit the feel of the book. Also, because this book has such a distinctive title that bucks the trend of the one-word YA book titles, I asked for a fun font treatment that really highlighted the title.

"I was super excited when I saw the image. After eight books, I’m a bit of a pragmatist about covers. The job of a cover is primarily to make the reader pick it up – and this cover is swoonworthy and gorgeous. A secondary goal is to communicate to the desired audience what kind of book it is. We’re very thoroughly trained to respond to particular cover cues: illustrations are children’s books, photos are young adult books, a man and a woman is a romance, a shadowy figure is a thriller…

"I think this cover says that the book is going to be lush, romantic, and otherworldly, and that fits the story perfectly. And I went gaga for the title treatment!

"When I first saw the comp (the early, unphotoshopped version) the girl had some rather wild makeup and hair, which didn’t fit my homespun farmgirl heroine. So they warned me in advance they were planning on toning that down, probably to pre-empt my 'holy eyeshadow, Batman!' comment. They also hadn’t decided completely on the font/color for the title. One of the things I asked for was to incorporate some dawn colors, perhaps down at the base of the cliff where her eyes are focused, to indicate the whole 'post-apocalyptic' nature. I love that they ended up using those colors on the amazing ombre effect on the title. It’s like the words are on fire.

"It’s two stock photos: one of the girl, and one of the stars. I’ve been in contact with the star photographer, whose work is amazing. (I’ve seen the work of the other photographer online, but we haven’t communicated.)

"I may be in the minority on this, but I tend to prefer covers with stock photography to the ones that have been photo shoots. I think sometimes designers have more to choose from if they aren’t constrained by whatever they manage to get in photo sessions. The downside of stock usage is that you may be one of many who ends up with a particular image/model/shoot on your cover, but so far, that hasn’t happened with this model. (Fingers crossed!)

"This is my favorite cover yet. I think it’s highly metaphorical – obviously my heroine doesn’t have glowing blue skin with galaxies shining through her body and starlight in her hair, but the stars are such an important motif in the book that I love the way they are incorporated into the images. She looks sad, but she looks strong, and that’s Elliot. As to whether I think it’s an illustration of any scene – I’ve spent enough hours gazing on this cover that I’ve gone there, too. I see my heroine Elliot standing at the top of the Very Important Cliff in my story and looking down onto the beach where her Lost Love is building a ship to take him away from her forever. At other times, I think it’s meant to be a nod to another scene in my book, where Elliot ventures into an underground cavern filled with stars. She actually wears a black dress in that scene, so maybe that’s closer. (In passing, I love the unusual construction of her dress – it says 'futuristic' to me.)"

Thanks, Diana! This is a cover that I've seen on shelves and been drawn to, so I think it works. Any thoughts from you guys?

Cover Stories: Timepiece by Myra McEntire

I have long been a fan of Myra McEntire's gorgeous cover for Hourglass, below, and now that Timepiece is hitting shelves, I'm taken aback again by the movement and wonder of these covers. Here's Myra to share her perspective: "I loved the Hourglass cover so much (below right), and I hoped my publisher would stick with that photographer. There was an original image I didn’t think did the story justice, and when I expressed my concerns, they listened.

"Once we’d worked out some kinks, I was blown away by the cover they showed me. When I saw it on the book, actually held it in my hands, it was even more beautiful than I thought!

"The cover was shot by the girl in the picture! Her name is Lissy Elle, and you can check out her work here (prepare to lose yourself for a few hours!)."

Thanks, Myra! I love knowing that these are self-portraits by the photographer-model--even cooler. What do you guys think?

Cover Stories: Sophie's Mixed-Up Magic Series

Amanda Ashby has been here before with the GCC to share stories about her covers, and she's back today with the story behind the Sophie's Mixed-Up Magic covers, her first middle grade series. "I’ve been lucky with my covers and I’ve loved them all, but without a doubt the covers for my Sophie’s Mixed-Up Magic series are my favorite! And I’m not just saying that because they are my first covers to have a head (though heads are cool!) but it’s rather because as soon as I saw them, I just knew that the girl on the cover 'was' Sophie!!!! From her straight blonde hair, her expressions through to the clothes that she was wearing, it was all the Sophie of my mind!

"Sometimes I get asked if I have any thoughts on the cover, but this time I wasn’t and I hadn’t even realized that there was even a shoot until after it was all over. Anyway, I immediately emailed my editor to tell her how thrilled I was. She told me that the girl who had played Sophie was an absolute delight and had totally embraced the shoot. She also told me that the art director was Jeanine Henderson who also did the covers for two of my other books, Zombie Queen of Newbury High [read that Cover Story] and Fairy Bad Day [read that Cover Story]. I love Jeanine’s covers so I was thrilled to discover that she had worked on the Sophie books as well and I immediately asked my editor to pass on my thanks and let her know how much I loved the covers (that's book 2 on the right).

"Then a few weeks later I got an email from the girl on the cover of the books. She was so lovely and I swear she is even more excited about the books coming out than I am! It was nice to get the chance to tell her how brilliant I thought she was and as soon as I got my arcs for book one, I sent her a copy (not all arcs have the real cover on them, but these did and I knew she would want to see it!)

"Anyway, a few months later I got a Google alert and I stumbled onto Jeanine’s blog, where she was talking about my Sophie covers!

"The post was about how she had been commissioned to do some hand drawn covers and that even though everyone had loved them, in the end it had been decided to do a photo shoot for the covers (which Jeanine was the art director for it).  I’ve attached two of the original covers (below, books 1 and 3 have an illustrated comparison) and I love that her hand lettering was used in the final version!

"As for any surprises, I actually only received my author copies last week and while I had seen an arc for book one, I had never seen one for book two, so it wasn’t until last week that I realized that the ring Sophie is wearing on the cover IS the djinn ring I described in the book (an apple shaped rhinestone ring. Because obviously if you are going to have a djinn ring, it should be pretty and sparkly and shaped like an apple!!)."

Thanks, Amanda! I think the photo versions are great for Middle Grade, and I like the photo shoot versions--so glad the model looks like Sophie!

What do you guys think?

Cover Stories: Surrender by Elana Johnson

Elana Johnson was here last year to share the very cool cover for POSSESSION (read that Cover Story), and she's back now for a GCC tour to talk about SURRENDER, the second in this series. "Honestly, my first thought when I saw the cover was 'No. No, that can’t be the cover!' The POSSESSION cover was so perfect, with the butterfly in ice (below, right). The SURRENDER cover seemed so pedestrian in comparison. I lovingly call it 'when taxidermists make mistakes.'

"My editor and agent and I had quite the discussion about the cover. Everything from the color of the hummingbird to the shape of the jar. It’s a fascinating process, this cover making. But... the cover you see now is the same one I was sent in January.

"I’ll admit that I like the cover now. Something happens when you actually hold the real product in your hand. Things on-screen are COMPLETELY different than things in real life. It took holding the book and stroking the cover for me to come around to cover love.

"My series got a cover redesign in January. So the blue one is the new cover, and the white one (right) is the old cover. The images are the same, but the fonts and such are obviously different."

Thanks, Elana! I think the covers together--POSSESSION has a new cover too--are pretty striking (see both below). I wonder if there was a conscious decision to move away from white covers? Are people over them?

 

What do you guys think?

About Elana: Elana's work including POSSESSION, REGRET, and SURRENDER is available from Simon & Schuster wherever books are sold. She is the author of From the Query to the Call, an ebook that every writer needs to read before they query, which can be downloaded for free on her website. She runs a personal blog on publishing and is a founding author of the QueryTracker blog.

GIVEAWAY: Elana is hosting a Spectacular Seconds giveaway this week! You can enter to win one of five signed sophomore books by Beth Revis, Ally Condie, Veronica Roth, Kristi Cook, and Kim Harrington. CLICK HERE for all the details and to enter.