The author says:

This is a fantasy story with wolves as the focal point. Monok is the dead wolf god. They have been separated from humans for a long time and suddenly a ship lands on their island and what everyone knows as ‘history’ begins to unravel. “Watership Down” meets “David Gemmell”. Book 1 of 3, other 2 will be called Transgression and Redemption.

Nathan says:

The cover art is professional, but unremarkable. I don’t know what details of wolf culture are in your book, but if there is any detail you could add to help distinguish it, that would help.

And with the art being fairly generic, the text needs to carry more weight.  I’d pick a font with more character. Instead of using italics to set the volume title apart from the series title, I’d use either a different font or style treatment, or a line or some other simple ornament.  And lose the “by” on the byline; it’s unnecessary.

Other ideas?

The author says:

A Hospital Bed at Home is a linked collection of true stories about the experience of being a carer during the weeks, months and years that can stretch between the day someone you love is diagnosed with an incurable, fatal disease and the day of his or her death. Couples facing separation after forty years together; a workaholic with three small children and a dying, angry wife; an Irish immigrant called home to nurse an ailing father who cannot, or will not, eat; a Buddhist couple striving for serene acceptance of a brain tumour… The patients and carers profiled in these stories bring to their challenging situations the gamut of typically human strengths and weaknesses, plus all the baggage of their pre-existing relationships. The narratives are intensely personal and biographical, but the insights and information they contain about illness, caregiving and dying at home have profound and general relevance. The author’s reflections on these topics are woven throughout, linking the individual stories and concluding with a gritty memoir about caring for her own mother, an anxious optimist who was ravaged by cancer.

Nathan says:

I like the idea of a view through the window from the implied bed.  If I were going to go with that, I’d use one image that shows the full window frame (or most of it).  I think the image-upon-image here is distracting, especially when both of them are essentially the same idea.

Don’t be afraid to go larger on the fonts; there are no specific details in the cover photo that you risk obscuring.  You can see from the thumbnail that the title is awful tiny, and both the subtitle and byline are almost not there.

I’d also find a font or two with more character.  The first thing I’d try is something with a handdrawn vibe to it (but still clearly readable), to support the idea that this is home-based, almost do-it-yourself medical care, as opposed to an institutional setting.

Other thoughts?

The author says:

What if Paris’ infamous party girl didn’t die of consumption at 23 in 1847? Blood Diva is a sometimes humorous, erotic look at love, sex, romance, celebrity, destiny and the art of seduction, that asks a simply question – Can a one hundred ninety year old French courtesan find happiness in 21st century Brooklyn without regular infusions of fresh blood?

Nathan says:

I like both the concept and the artwork chosen, but the resolution is too low; you can see the fuzzy pixelation that’s a dead giveaway for an image found on the web and blown up.  The contrast is especially obvious when comparing any straight lines in the artwork with the lines of the font.

And speaking of the font… Too, too dull. You don’t need something ornate — the artwork takes care of that — but explore try to find either something period or, for contrast, something very current and edgy to indicate that the story takes place in the present.  (I’m not sure how well my second suggestion would work; it would depend a lot on the specific font.  You’d have to try and see.)

Also: The modifications to the art to make the fountain flow red are really, really primitive. Take the time to do it right.

Here are other things I’d do:

• Reduce the unused space at the top and bottom of the poster, either completely or to a symmetical border.
• Play with the color balance, upping either the green or blue, to give the image a slightly unsettling/otherwordly aspect — you don’t want the cover on a vampire story to be too warm and sunny.  (But make sure that the blood still looks like blood.)

Anyone else?