The author says:

This is a double-volume for books one and two in a historical mystery series set in the 40s. They are NOT cozies, but soft-boiled (harder crimes, some sex, light swearing) Audience is historical fiction/mysteries, probably 40-60 year old women will be the target. The individual covers are those used on the double volume, but I decided to package together.

Nathan says:

There’s nothing wrong with it as such, but I think you could do a series of tweaks to see if anything jumps out at you as a grand improvement, such as:

• Make the individual titles larger (while shrinking the accompanying image commensurately).
• Balance how much “noise” (texture) the two covers have.
• Put the “Express Investigations Series” banner on the diagonal.

Other suggestions?

The author says:

Axly, the Starlight Company’s premier seductress-thief and assassin, will do whatever it takes to keep her brother hidden. The secrets of his origin and hers could tear their world apart. High fantasy, fantasy romance, medieval setting, adult, dark fairytale retelling. Target audience is probably women who enjoy high fantasy and fantasy romance. Somewhere between the audience of Robin Hobb and SJMaas. This is a screenshot jpeg of the adobe file.

Nathan says:

The artwork is good. I think the existing weaknesses become apparent in the thumbnail:

• The title is far too small.
• The semi-transparent tagline and byline disappear; the byline especially becomes hard to read, even at full size.

All of these are easily corrected.  There’s enough space at the top to enlarge the title and have it break across two lines (especially if you left-justify it), and put the series title below it.  The tagline and byline just need a change to transparency.

Other comments?

The author says:

Matt Evans’s world crumbles when his father unexpectedly dies. Consumed by grief, he vows to keep the family business afloat and takes a risky loan from local thug, Jeff Holden. Once Jeff realizes he won’t be getting his money back, he pushes for an alternative deal. Matt is to assist a scientist with his covert projects to cover the debt. Although unconventional, the deal seems to be the only possible solution. But underneath the scientist’s pleasant demeanor lies a minefield of secrets and personal crusades. With every visit to the underground lab, Matt’s sanity is put to the test. The only one who can put an end to it is Jeff, but he has money on his mind. Matt must fight the growing flames of madness before they consume him, but can he survive the chaos that follows?

Nathan says:

There really isn’t anything wrong here — it looks competent and professional, which means that my suggestions are less necessary than usual, even.

• Make the byline bigger and easier to read.
• If possible, let the flames fill a larger proportion of the body silhouette; the fire gets lost in the thumbnail.
• Even if the novel itself is in first-person, I’d change the tagline to third-person; first-person taglines always seem like nonfiction memoirs to me.

Other comments?

The author says:

Alien Seeding is the story of an architect, returning from a project in Mexico. Somewhere north of Laredo, a pale illumination bathes his car in light. He’s abducted by aliens, endowed with a magnetic attraction for women, and sent out to be an ‘alien’ seeder. Art by Gabe McIntosh, fontwork is mine.

Nathan says:

The biggest problem that I see is that the byline placement seems more like “Oh crap, where am I gonna fit this?” rather than planned. If there is any more bottom margin in the original artwork, I’d put it across the bottom; if not, in the bottom right corner.

The other problem is that the font chosen seems corny.  If that’s your intention, great; there’s nothing wrong with a tongue-in-cheek alien abduction story.  If not, something more serious — epic, even — might suit your purpose better. (I tried to find covers to some serious alien abduction novels on Amazon, but it’s awash in alien-abduction romances — not the same thing.)  Here are some ideas:

Other comments?

The author says:

It’s an alternate-history novella about ancient Carthaginians from North Africa settling on the shores of North America in 200 BC and getting embroiled in a conflict between the Native American nations. It should appeal to fans of ancient history as well as the “alternate history” genre in general (think the works of Harry Turtledove).

Nathan says:

I’m probably going to suggest more work than you think a novella is worth, but here goes:

I think the main problem with the artwork lies in the initial stages, with the layout.  What you’ve got here looks like a snapshot by tourist watching a staged spectacle: All the figures are in the middle distance, the perspective is roughly perpendicular to the action, and it’s just… there.

For contrast, here are three Frank Frazetta paintings featuring elephantine beasts, and sure, it’s unfair for me to compare anyone to the master, but just look at the dynamic layout, independent of paint on canvas:

S-curves. Foreshortening. Focal points. The mammoths are a menace not only to other figures in the scene, but to the viewer. And nobody cares about the feet that aren’t attacking or inflicting violence.

Plus, there’s intentional space for the title. Not just “Oh, by the way, here’s the title, hope it doesn’t distract anybody, carry on.” Remember, the text on the cover is as much a part of the design as the artwork — it needs to contribute to the whole.

(And all of this is independent of whether this cover signals to the readers of Harry Turtledove that this is a book they’ll enjoy.)

Other comments?