Cover Stories: Small Town Sinners, Part 1

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As you know if you read this blog, I'm kind of into covers. So when it comes to the subject of my own covers, I feel especially, um, assertive. I like to give inspiration images, write random things down, and generally insert myself to a point that might be annoying.

When my editor Caroline asked me if I had any cover ideas for Small Town Sinners, I sent her this email:

"I'm going to attach some images and give a little explanation of why they're in the mix for me.

"If we show LACEY: I picture her sort of like an early Sissy Spacek:

 

"The FEEL: I love the late sunset, dusty, small-town feel of the NYLON cover, the 'portrait' (really small, sorry), and that GUARDIAN ANGELS book. The color and tone of these images is really appealing to me.
 

**I do really love the close-up on one girl kind of cover, and an American gothic 70s feel seems right to me.

"Another Layout thought: The JAMAICA INN cover is a little random, but the grouping of the figures over this 'town,'the way it's laid out, appeals to me too, if we were to show a few characters and maybe some hint of Hell House (not sure how to do this!). OR Totally different direction: The Valley of the Dolls cover is obviously very graphic with text, but I do really like it, and I can see something like this working for Small Town Sinners just because the title feels geometric to me somehow, if that makes sense."

Caroline wrote back to me and said, "We’re definitely on the same page. The first thing that had come to my mind was the description of Lacey from chapter one and the idea of showing her in sort of a dusty sunlight—perhaps a light coming from behind that feels almost spiritual?"

The first version they sent me blew me away! But I felt like the coloring might make the girl seem a little dead (left) so the art department agreed to brighten it for the final (right). Now I love noticing that there's a sun spot in the lens--it's on the bottom right of this close-up (you kind of have to see it in person) and I adore that detail!

 

Also, I just noticed that the apple bite got bigger (and better, I think)! Remember to enter the apple bite contest to try to win a copy of the book.

So in the end we got a gorgeous cover that went with the first idea and I'm so glad that everyone was really into that concept! I have an interview with the cover designer and then one the photographer of that shot coming next week in Parts 2 and 3 of this Cover Story (you know I have to milk my own!).

What do you guys think of the small changes, the original ideas, etc? I'd love to hear!

Release is just a week away! Yay! Pre-order from your local bookstore or amazon or bn.com or anywhere and I will be super happy!

Cover Stories: The Summer I Learned to Fly

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Happy Fourth of July! I spent my weekend curled up with Dana Reinhardt's The Summer I Learned to Fly (finished last night) and it's just an enchanting summer story. Here's Publisher's Weekly's starred review. Read, read, read! And isn't that cover just all twilight and fireflies and wildflowers and good things? Here's Dana to talk about it:

"I never have any idea of what my covers should look like.  I fully recognize that it’s not what I do—I’m not a designer, I’m a writer. I do have strong opinions, though. I know what I like and I know what I don’t and I’m usually pretty good at articulating why.

"They typically ask me if I have any ideas and I typically say no. Then I hold my breath and wait to see what they come up with and hope that I think it’s on the right track. If it’s not, they’ve been great about listening to my reaction.

"With this cover, I fell in love.  Immediately.  This hasn’t always been the case, but it was absolutely the case with this particular cover. It’s just perfect. And it obviously doesn’t hurt to have Markus Zusak’s name on the cover.  In fact, it might even be better if they just took mine off…

"As a reader I always want to understand the cover and how it represents the story inside. Sometimes it’s obvious out the gate, but sometimes it takes awhile before I can make that connection, and sometimes the connection is subtle, tenuous, and occasionally non-existent.  In this case, the cover is, in my opinion, a perfect representation of what this book is about at its heart.  I won’t say more because I don’t want to give too much away, but there will be an aha moment when this cover makes perfect sense, and I love that about it."

Yes! I had my aha moment with this cover as I read the book, and you will too. Amazing. And I love that they're redesigning Dana's other covers. Here's this one, one more time, in the context of our rented Fourth of July house porch:

Dana again: "I’m pretty sure this one is stock photos photoshopped together to create the right effect.  Random House is currently redesigning all of my titles and re-releasing them in the Fall of 2011.  The idea is for them to have a cohesive look—not a box set or anything—but a look that tells you that these books are by the same author.  The Summer I Learned to Fly is the first cover with this new look.  Part of it is the typeface and my name appearing almost as a signature, but also the new overall effect is going to be more photographic like it is here. I haven’t seen all of the final covers yet, but the ideas they’re working with are really great.  Some have required photo shoots and some will use stock footage.

[Note: Dana gave me this Cover Story a while ago, so I've found the redesigned covers! Take a look at the original books (top row) and the redesigned covers (bottom row)]:

What do you guys think?

Photo Friday: Girls in Grass

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I've been thinking a lot about my cover (mainly because I'm loving this apple-bite challenge--keep the entries coming!) and then I started to muse about girls-lying-in-grass and all the pretty covers I've seen with this theme. Here are four:

So that's my own Small Town Sinners, Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (Cover Story), Between Here and Forever by Elizabeth Scott (Cover Story) and The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder (this one's brand new! I hope to do a Cover Story soon!). Despite the similarities, I think they all have really different tones. Do you guys know of any more?

Happy 4th of July weekend!

Cover Stories: Wolves, Boys & Other Things That Might Kill Me

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Kristen Chandler's Wolves, Boys & Other Things That Might Kill Me (read Book Harbinger's great review) got a paperback makeover this year, and I love the new cover! So I asked Kris how it came to be, and what she thought about the redesign. Here she is: "I was thinking that the paperback would be like the hardback cover (below right)--urban angsty--but I was wrong. Now it's wilderness angsty. Doesn't it just give you the shivers to look at it?

"I didn't give any input for the paperback. I think that's the way it usually works. I was so used to the hardback cover as the face of the novel... It was like having your friend get a makeover that includes their skin color. But the new cover grew on me quickly.

"I was so consumed with the writing of my next book and the marketing, sharing of the WOLVES I didn't even realize that the paperback would have another cover. So it was sort of like... SUR-PRISE! We hope you love it!

"It's a much different look, but the people at SPEAK wanted to show off the title and do something really different from what is out there on the shelves. I think they succeeded.

"I think the hidden meaning on this cover is that you should buy the book. But don't tell any one that. Let's see if it works."

Thanks, Kris! The original cover stands out to me, but the paperback is completely charming in a different way. Doesn't it seem like the title is echoing off the mountains?

What do you guys think?

Win-It Wednesday: The Apple Challenge

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Last week, I offered up five copies of Small Town Sinners, and this week, I'm offering up five more! (Last week's winners, chosen at random, are... Julia, Storybound Girl, Meghan Caprez, Nancye Davis and The Brain Lair!) Send me your addresses, guys! This week, another task is at hand. You've seen the heart-bitten apple on the cover. You've wondered: How did they do that? Well... photoshop. But that doesn't mean we can't try to heart-bite an apple. We can! And I have, more times than I care to admit since seeing my cover for the first time last fall (I'll share my attempts too... later). It's kind of fun.

So, to win one of the five ARCs up for grabs over the month of July, go get yourself an apple and try it! Then, email me a photo of your heart-bite attempt (melissacwalker2 AT gmail). I'll post the best pics and choose winners based on skillful heart-making.

I feel okay about letting you send as many photos as you like, because after all, apples are good for you. Get your whole family in on the apple-bitin' fun. Good luck!

PS-The book is out July 19th, and then you can just buy it instead of jumping through my silly hoops to win it, but isn't this fun?

PPS-Here's a closer look at that bite:

Cover Stories: OyMG

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Amy Fellner Dominy's debut novel had me laughing as soon as I heard the title and tagline: OyMG "Jewish Girl. Christian Camp. Holy Moly." Now Amy's here to share her Cover Story: "I hate to admit it, but I had no clue what would make a good cover for this book. When my editor asked if I had any suggestions, I drew a complete blank. (Literally.) I’m guessing I did what many authors do:  I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

"In truth, my cover was all the things I didn’t want: An actual face for my main character; Religious symbols—including a cross; And no cute guy.

"But I took one look and immediately LOVED it.  Truly!  It just felt 'right.' Thank goodness, because my editor told me that was the 16th version I was seeing. (And no, I didn’t ask to see all the other ones.)

"The only request I made was to have them bump up the romantic elements on the cover. The relationship is such an important part of the book, I didn’t want that to be lost.

"So if you look up near the title you’ll see lips and a heart with 'DY' (for Devon Yeats). In the original cover, they were smaller and green, so they blended more. In the revision, they got bumped up to a larger size and turned pink. It was just enough to give added emphasis without creating too much chaos on the cover.

"I believe it was a stock photo. And we’ve had some discussions about the model in my own family. I think she looks perfect. My husband thinks she’s looks older than fourteen (her age in the book). And my daughter thinks I should have written about a blond girl so she could have posed for the cover.

"I still love the cover for a few reasons. For starters, one of my main worries going in was the title.  A lot of times when I tell people the title is OyMG they’re lost for a moment until they think it through. I wanted the understanding to be immediate at first glance of the cover. And I think it is. Also, I think the bubble treatment is so cute, I’m making OyMG t-shirts.  That’s a sign of love. Finally, I do think the cover reflects the story and Ellie’s struggle with religious identity.  So all in all, I’m feeling pretty lucky."

Thanks, Amy! I am a big fan of illustrated elements on a cover (remember this illustrated cover I found for Lovestruck Summer? Still adore it), so I'm really into the way this one is done (though I would have 100% asked to see those earlier versions, if only for Cover Stories fodder)! The book concept is hilarious and I'm excited to see religion as a part of more YA books this year. Read more about the book, and see the trailer, at The Contemps.

What do you guys think?

 

Cover Stories: Possession

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Elana Johnson's Possession has great buzz. For example: “Emotion pumps through every scene of this thriller. Given all the urgency and action, the novel’s ending may surprise readers as the heroic adventure turns into a tragic love story.” –School Library Journal

The book also has a simple but captivating cover. Here's Elana to talk about that:

"I didn’t dare dream of a cover. That way, if it wasn’t what I’d pictured, I wouldn’t be disappointed. And luckily, someone much smarter than I am designed my cover—and I love it!

"I got to give input after I saw the design, and something I suggested actually got changed. It was something little about the font on my name, which used to be a much tighter, more Zaner-Bloser, type of cursive. I didn’t like the cursive at all. But my editor explained that cursive is actually used to convey romance in a novel. (Who knew?) They did change the tight tight cursive to a much looser, freer cursive. And I love it.

"Truly, the first thing I thought was, 'Holy crap, I can’t breathe, it’s awesome, and holy crap! It’s white! And that butterfly! I love it!'

"The second and third things weren’t as exciting. But I have always loved my cover."

Thanks, Elana! I didn't know about the cursive-romance link, but it does make sense. I like the whiteness of this cover, and the blue/green.

What do you guys think?