As a reader I understand the importance of cover art. This is the image that will draw you in either online or in the stores long before you read a single word. It is the device that captures the readers as they peruse random shelves of books. It gives you a quick overview of the story in pictures.
I also know the difference between good cover art and bad cover art. The good will draw you in and the bad will have you passing it by without a second thought. The image on the outside does judge what is on the inside regardless of what is written.
Visual stimulation can make someone pick up your story without even reading the back cover. I know, I’ve done it.
I have three stories up on Scribd right now (which you can access for free through the Writings link above) and none have cover art. Well, I take that back, Dead Winter has some horizontal lines but it looks more like a resume than a short story. I’ve decided to rectify that. I think having professional looking cover art will help my readership. I have also been toying with the idea to publish – at least one- through Amazon for free. I definately need cover art for that.
And editing.
While I’m fairly happy with the story Krista I think it could use a little more polishing. Before any of my covers go live, I plan to post them here to see what others think. I’ve already purchased and downloaded the royalty free artwork through www.fotolia.com which can be used without licence for book cover art as well as edited. I paid $6 a piece and got three images for each of my three stories. If it works out like it looks in my head, I think I’ll have some very nice cover art for these free short stories. Now I need to work on my photoshop skillz.
So what do you think about cover art? Does it impact the books you buy (or don’t buy)? For a new writer does the concept of cover art take a back seat to writing? Is this just “one more” time waster?
The Outlandish Avocado 