Category: Covers

Freamhaigh

The author says:

The realm of Belkin is now in open civil war. The southern county of Turgany rises up to try to defeat the self-proclaimed President and end his tyrannical rule. Will Arbor, Freamhaigh to the druids, must find a way to counter the threat of Erebus. Gaea has been wounded and no longer responds to her druids. Meanwhile, the Sect of the Church of the New Order rises with greater power and threatens to destroy the unstable harmony of the Realm. Will Arbor and the druids are all that stands between Erebus and the land of Belkin. As Freamhaigh, Will must be ready to sacrifice all he holds dear.

Nathan says:

I looked at the previous three volumes up on Amazon, and they all show consistent branding. Unfortunately, those consistent parts are the biggest problems.

  • Your title font is the plainest, most non-evocative font imaginable.
  • The white type disappears against the light brown background.

In addition, while I understand the progression of the central tree from a sapling on the first cover to a full-grown tree on this one, the tree in the center clashes with the foliage behind it.

Now, I also saw that you have some combined volumes up on Amazon, one with the first two volumes and one with the last two:

I think these covers are a lot closer to what you need.  Simply switch out the title font with something a bit more evocative of ancient Britain, and I think you’re good.

Other comments?

Blythe of the Gates

[Apologies for the absence; the day job has been Six Weeks O’ Bedlam.]

The author says:

Can the gates of perception be bypassed? A rash love affair with a member of the Irish Mafia catapults Luna Mulkerrins into scandal, murder, scorn and decadent friendships in Ragtime Manhattan. Escaping from the blaze of publicity, a new Luna emerges: Blythe of the Seven Gates. Her meteoric rise as a magician leads to fame, vaudeville, silent movies and the notoriety of a damaging court case. Can Luna reclaim her reputation and reinvent herself as an independent woman of the time?

“This book is as enchanting as the magic tricks within. Heartbreaking, thrilling and powerful, it’s a journey you won’t want to miss.” — Jo Niederhoff, Seattle Book review

Nathan says:

Underwater shots are a hot flavor right now, so I don’t think you can go wrong with it.  It doesn’t matter that the image doesn’t relate directly to your story; it draws the attention of non-genre-specific habitual readers, and that’s good.

Beyond that:

  • The typeface for your tagline at the top is completely without charm. Find something that’s got at least a hint of magic.
  • The “A Novel” badge is entirely unnecessary; no one puts a cover image like this on a nonfiction book.
  • Oddly enough, the HE ligature doesn’t bother me in “BLYTHE,” but it sets my teeth on edge in “THE,” and I don’t know why. To be safe, it might be better just to use separate letter in both cases.
  • RE: “The Brambles” — Usually, titles of other books are put in italics rather than quotes.

Other comments?

Amberee: The Millionaire’s Best Asset

The author says:

Amberee The Millionaire’s Best Asset is a fictional autobiography / industry exposé, which fits into the Contemporary Fiction genre and is about how a young woman came to work as a porn film and live action actress. Amberee’s life comes under escalating danger, and she secretly penned her autobiography to get the truth out into the world, because her life differs greatly from the business savvy marketing. (The book is Adult Content Only due to the nature of the content as well as the graphic descriptions within, so I’ve chosen to include a small warning on the cover.) I will understand if you don’t wish to critique the cover on your website because of this – but would love to gain some great feedback. I have tried to capture looking at Amberee through a video camera viewfinder, because (to me) it conveys the subject matter of the character being filmed as well as outsiders looking in (which is what she is trying to address).

Nathan says:

I can see where you’re going with this, and I like the basics.  Here’s where I’d go:

  • Lose the “Amberee” from the title and just go with “The Millionaire’s Best Asset.”
  • Punch up the colors and contrast — use warmer colors, especially the skin tones, and make it pop with better highlights and shadows.
  • The pink-against-black of the byline makes it almost invisible in thumbnail, and still hard to read at full-size (overspacing a cursive font doesn’t help, either).  If you must have the dark bar at the bottom, use a bolder, less fancy font that’s more easily readable.
  • Nothing on the cover points toward it being fiction — in fact, the subtitle works against that.  If you don’t want confused readers — and you don’t — you need a subtitle that doesn’t make it seem like nonfiction.  (Part of the solution would be to set it in present tense; past tense definitely makes it seem like the account of an actual event.)

Other comments?

Freeforce: The Gryphon Saga [resubmit]

 

The author says:

Hi again, New name, blurb, and cover. The author did the cover art, this was finally acceptable after many collage-type attempts. Freeforce is set in current time, on earth, a spaceship, then mostly on the planet Tarin. The genre is soft, biological,science-Fiction with a tinge of fantasy. The target audience is adult females who enjoy reading epic (this has 180000 words), character-driven, space adventures

The blurb draft: All Humans live on Earth Aliens don’t exist. It’s easy to believe in lies. Ruthless aliens enslave veterinary student, Lianndra Ross, and force her to take part in an archaic planetary war. Amid chaos and death, she discovers the only chance of freedom lies with the very beings she is fighting against. After all hope seems lost, an unexpected meeting offers her an opportunity to rebel. With the help of her fellow captives, Lianndra pursues the one thing most people on Earth take for granted. There is a catch—if the rebellion doesn’t succeed, life on the planet Tarin and possibly the entire universe will be decimated.

[original submission and comments here]

Nathan says:

You know what? My only problem is that the moons don’t look like they’re lit from the same light source. Other than that, well done.

If anyone else has other comments, have at it.

Rebirth: Birds of Change

The author says:

It’s set in a Hellenistic world where people who have exhibited supernatural abilities are known as Tallents. Its an Urban fantasy/Dystopian novel. The target audience is young adults both men and women between ages 12 and up, mainly those who are into fantasy elements like vampires, demons, werewolves, etc.

Nathan says:

It’s a good start — the artwork is obviously snazzy, although I’d take the color saturation down a titch.

The biggest problem is with the text.  As you can see especially in the thumbnail, the title and subtitle merge with the background, and the beveling on the letters hinders rather than helps.  And there’s no reason for the byline to be the only part of the cover not aligned to the center (and in italics to boot).

I would actually make the title and subtitle larger (recrop the art so that the figure is lower if you have to) with a clear drop shadow or outside border to set the letters off from the art, and then have the byline in the same font, centered and extending almost fully side to side at the bottom.

Other comments?