Judging a Book by its Cover

Walk of Shame

I have a confession to make…I judge books by their covers.  I know I shouldn’t, we are warned against doing it our entire lives, but I just can’t help it.  I admit to having bought a book just because of the cover (The Harry Dresden Files are case in point (the old covers, not the new ones)) I like my books to be pretty, I like nicely designed covers and above all, I like the covers of books in a series to match!

I also judge books by their names.  I have been known to buy a book simply because the title was intriguing (The Name of the Wind is a perfect example).

I have also bought books because of the author’s name (insert Joe Abercrombie here).

There is so much that a book has to say with just the front cover…BEFORE the buyer turns the book over to read the back cover.  I will buy a book if the cover is ugly, but the synopsis is good, but I always have a preconceived notion of what the book is going to be about.  A lot of the time I am pleasantly surprised, but occasionally I’m not.

It is true that a good cover does not guarantee a good read, but having a good cover will increase the likelihood of someone taking a chance on reading your novel.

So with all that in mind, I have spent the last few weeks designing the cover of my first novel (see above).  I am kinda happy with it.  I have a background in design and created all the elements myself without using royalty-free resources.  Let me know what you think!

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.