I quite love this particular piece of yours. As a graphic designer, I find book cover design a fascinating topic, but a daunting task attempting to visually interpret an author's book. Between choosing colors, typefaces and imagery, it's fun to think of design elements that would pull a reader in from the front cover to the pages.
I really do like the current design on your mother's memoir. It does look like you're going to open up a case file on mystery and intrigue, while the photo belies innocence. You wonder just what you're going to find!
For velocity, I like the tone of the painting and the contrast of the colors. With that perspective in the painting, it pulls you to the center inviting you to travel down that street. All the lines are soft and blurred giving it motion.
Having been in Durham, NC last night, I wonder where this exact location is? I want to take a side trip and visit. Maybe take my own photo.
I must say, buying digital books are great, but I do love the smell of paper and ink.
You get it. It's tricky stuff. So much to interpret in that little space, trying to make it both reflective of the written work, and alluring to the reader. And so many considerations as you mention: colors, typefaces, imagery. Not easy!
So glad the case file imagery worked as Teddi imagined. That's wonderful. And Jeff's painting on the Velocity cover, I believe, was somewhere around Brightleaf Square at the time. He painted it in the late '80s I believe, so it likely looks very different now. I'll ask Kristin if she knows exactly where it is.
Like you, I prefer printed books too. I like leafing through the pages, the smell of paper and ink. It feels more substantial too. Plus, I prefer not having to look at a digital screen for a change. I read a lot, so I get most of my books from the library.
Love this book talk and really appreciate seeing the evolution of your mom and sisters books. I lucked out mostly in my own process for the cover for my first book, Technically Food. My publisher and I went through three rounds before we selected one. I don't think the final cover is 100% perfect but it was so much better then the previous iterations. My book has been translated into Chinese - the best cover to date; Simple Chinese - very basic; and Korean -- too fun there are donuts, but I like it. I had no involvement in the translations.
"too fun, there are donuts" made me laugh. That DOES sound fun. ;) Who knows how a foreign publisher decides on the design for their book cover. What they know about their own readers, what attracts them. I do like the idea of the very basic and simple Chinese cover for your book. Would love to see visual comparisons if you are able to share them in a comment? Not sure if that's doable.
ANyway, my two book covers went through a few rounds as well. The one for my mom's book that I show here wasn't totally 'finito' as it's shown here, in the first version, but it was very close. I might've selected the typewriter font. I don't remember now.
Oh and also what we don't talk about but SHOULD is the back cover. Mine was not great and I didn't even think about it and then it was too late. Boohoo.
haha. One thing I learned was that since so many people look at books digitally (or prefer ebooks), they mostly only see the front cover anyway; all the back cover stuff is referenced in the description text and the reviews section of the book page.
As a print book reader and someone who peruses actual books in stores or libraries, I notice and care about the back cover. I'm not 'thrilled' with my books' back covers, per se, but they seem fine.
My book cover designer also designed the front and back cover of the Dare to be Fabulous Journal Notebook (an optional accompaniment to the book). I adore what she did with the back of that journal. It's radiant and fun. No text needed for a journal's back cover, so there's lots of freedom there. I do wonder how many people see it.
Fascinating exploration of the interplay between covers and the stories they hold. So tricky! I feel lucky to have been consulted on the cover of Spy Daughter, Queer Girl. The Greek version was picked by the publisher and is very different from the U.S. cover but I think it's great also. I feel for authors whose covers don't resonate with them. Not easy.
Your book covers are a great illustration of how differently one could interpret a book, based on a particular cover. Your U.S. cover is very documentarian style, serious, spy-focused, with a real photo and your father's redacted eyes. The Greek version is more stylistic, vibrant, speaking to your queer identity as much if not more than the spy daughter one. I like both.
I bought Velocity when it first came out and have read it at least twenty times. My hard back copy might have had a dust jacket at one point, but it’s long gone. Sadly, I loaned it to a friend who lives a couple provinces over a few years ago. I am hoping she still has it. 🤞 Anyway, that meant I had to track down another copy—okay copies— to have when the urge strikes. I really dislike the cover art and always have. It is not indicative of what the book is about. People looking for a cheesy romance (or even a “dark” romance, as the kids seem to like these days), would be sorely disappointed by Kristin’s novel, which is about grief not sex. And a lot of people would pass the book over based on that cover, thus missing a beautifully written and compelling look at loss. I wonder: do book designers ever read the book, or just the blurb?
This was an interesting read. Glad I stumbled upon it.
Thanks so much for sharing this! I will be passing it along to Kristin. I couldn't agree more with your response to Velocity. It's a book about grief, not sex. In fact, Kristin wrote it just after our father died. Her writing is raw and beautiful. (That awful cover did zero to express that).
What a joy to read this! Kudos to your doppelganger mama for knowing to eliminate that attractive (but wrong) Mad Men-esque cover. &, oh my, yes...is Kristin ever right about the North Carolina urban sprawl pic being a stellar cover for the wonderful VELOCITY. All points well taken!!
The Mad Men-esque cover would be fun for something else, right? The colors, the vibe. But not this. 😉 And that NC painting on Velocity is such a nice change from the original.
I quite love this particular piece of yours. As a graphic designer, I find book cover design a fascinating topic, but a daunting task attempting to visually interpret an author's book. Between choosing colors, typefaces and imagery, it's fun to think of design elements that would pull a reader in from the front cover to the pages.
I really do like the current design on your mother's memoir. It does look like you're going to open up a case file on mystery and intrigue, while the photo belies innocence. You wonder just what you're going to find!
For velocity, I like the tone of the painting and the contrast of the colors. With that perspective in the painting, it pulls you to the center inviting you to travel down that street. All the lines are soft and blurred giving it motion.
Having been in Durham, NC last night, I wonder where this exact location is? I want to take a side trip and visit. Maybe take my own photo.
I must say, buying digital books are great, but I do love the smell of paper and ink.
You get it. It's tricky stuff. So much to interpret in that little space, trying to make it both reflective of the written work, and alluring to the reader. And so many considerations as you mention: colors, typefaces, imagery. Not easy!
So glad the case file imagery worked as Teddi imagined. That's wonderful. And Jeff's painting on the Velocity cover, I believe, was somewhere around Brightleaf Square at the time. He painted it in the late '80s I believe, so it likely looks very different now. I'll ask Kristin if she knows exactly where it is.
Like you, I prefer printed books too. I like leafing through the pages, the smell of paper and ink. It feels more substantial too. Plus, I prefer not having to look at a digital screen for a change. I read a lot, so I get most of my books from the library.
Love this book talk and really appreciate seeing the evolution of your mom and sisters books. I lucked out mostly in my own process for the cover for my first book, Technically Food. My publisher and I went through three rounds before we selected one. I don't think the final cover is 100% perfect but it was so much better then the previous iterations. My book has been translated into Chinese - the best cover to date; Simple Chinese - very basic; and Korean -- too fun there are donuts, but I like it. I had no involvement in the translations.
"too fun, there are donuts" made me laugh. That DOES sound fun. ;) Who knows how a foreign publisher decides on the design for their book cover. What they know about their own readers, what attracts them. I do like the idea of the very basic and simple Chinese cover for your book. Would love to see visual comparisons if you are able to share them in a comment? Not sure if that's doable.
ANyway, my two book covers went through a few rounds as well. The one for my mom's book that I show here wasn't totally 'finito' as it's shown here, in the first version, but it was very close. I might've selected the typewriter font. I don't remember now.
Oh and also what we don't talk about but SHOULD is the back cover. Mine was not great and I didn't even think about it and then it was too late. Boohoo.
haha. One thing I learned was that since so many people look at books digitally (or prefer ebooks), they mostly only see the front cover anyway; all the back cover stuff is referenced in the description text and the reviews section of the book page.
As a print book reader and someone who peruses actual books in stores or libraries, I notice and care about the back cover. I'm not 'thrilled' with my books' back covers, per se, but they seem fine.
My book cover designer also designed the front and back cover of the Dare to be Fabulous Journal Notebook (an optional accompaniment to the book). I adore what she did with the back of that journal. It's radiant and fun. No text needed for a journal's back cover, so there's lots of freedom there. I do wonder how many people see it.
Great point. I never even thought of this. I mostly read fiction on my Kindle and I hate not knowing what the covers look and feel like!
Fascinating exploration of the interplay between covers and the stories they hold. So tricky! I feel lucky to have been consulted on the cover of Spy Daughter, Queer Girl. The Greek version was picked by the publisher and is very different from the U.S. cover but I think it's great also. I feel for authors whose covers don't resonate with them. Not easy.
Your book covers are a great illustration of how differently one could interpret a book, based on a particular cover. Your U.S. cover is very documentarian style, serious, spy-focused, with a real photo and your father's redacted eyes. The Greek version is more stylistic, vibrant, speaking to your queer identity as much if not more than the spy daughter one. I like both.
I bought Velocity when it first came out and have read it at least twenty times. My hard back copy might have had a dust jacket at one point, but it’s long gone. Sadly, I loaned it to a friend who lives a couple provinces over a few years ago. I am hoping she still has it. 🤞 Anyway, that meant I had to track down another copy—okay copies— to have when the urge strikes. I really dislike the cover art and always have. It is not indicative of what the book is about. People looking for a cheesy romance (or even a “dark” romance, as the kids seem to like these days), would be sorely disappointed by Kristin’s novel, which is about grief not sex. And a lot of people would pass the book over based on that cover, thus missing a beautifully written and compelling look at loss. I wonder: do book designers ever read the book, or just the blurb?
This was an interesting read. Glad I stumbled upon it.
https://theludicreader.com/2015/07/01/velocity-kristin-mccloy/
Thanks so much for sharing this! I will be passing it along to Kristin. I couldn't agree more with your response to Velocity. It's a book about grief, not sex. In fact, Kristin wrote it just after our father died. Her writing is raw and beautiful. (That awful cover did zero to express that).
I too am so glad you stumbled upon this post. 💗
Kristin and I actually exchanged a few emails back when I wrote that review. I had a serious fan girl moment!
What a joy to read this! Kudos to your doppelganger mama for knowing to eliminate that attractive (but wrong) Mad Men-esque cover. &, oh my, yes...is Kristin ever right about the North Carolina urban sprawl pic being a stellar cover for the wonderful VELOCITY. All points well taken!!
The Mad Men-esque cover would be fun for something else, right? The colors, the vibe. But not this. 😉 And that NC painting on Velocity is such a nice change from the original.
Correct on both counts!! I really enjoyed this warm, unique take on judging a book by its cover.