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| OLD COVER |
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| NEW COVER |
Think about it. If your books are available online, all people see is a small little picture representing your novel. It better be good. It better capture people’s attention. Or it could be a deal breaker.
This created a great deal of anxiety for me. I had already chosen my covers and I was quite happy with them. I have them hanging on my office wall. Even though I wasn’t published as yet, looking at my covers gave me a feeling of accomplishment. They encouraged me when I was down.
“Your covers are good, Mom,” my daughter said. “But, they’re boring.”
Ouch.
She was right. While they matched my stories beautifully, they were not eye-catching.
I decide to send out an e-mail to close friends and family and ask their opinions. Would my new cover choices catch their eye? Or would you pass? The answers surprised me.
It was 50/50. Some loved the old covers. Some loved the new covers. One even said she’d hang the new cover pictures on her wall! Some said the new covers looked to young-adultish. Some said they’d be drawn to books with my new covers. Some said they would look at my new covers and have no idea of the genre.
I had a decision to make. In the end, even though the old covers were a perfect representation of the inside of the books, I decided to go with the new covers. It was a marketing decision. I felt they would be eye-catching. And I loved the new images, they just spoke to me, from the moment I laid my eyes upon them. Love at first sight. I look at them and feel happy.
Another thought. Going back a few posts, I talked about my novels not being like your average romance novel. (no explicit details) If my covers look DIFFERENT, then they ARE a representation of what you are going to get on the inside. Something different.
Perfect. The decision was made.
What do you think? Which one do you like better?
