Among the upcoming novel releases for April, are these genre-ready covers? Do they scream ‘fantasy? Do the thumbnails reach out and grab you?
A list of anticipated releases at A Literary Escape includes several fantasy novels and one science fiction.* But take a look at the covers and tell me that you know what genre they are.
It comes back to the marketing truism ‘never judge a book by its cover but everyone does.’ I love every one of these covers; stylish, creative, individual. But I wouldn’t know what the genre promise is for most of them. Together the authors and marketers decided to take a risk in the hope of standing out in a crowded market. But do they work?
In a cover gallery, which of them will genre fans click on or scroll on by?
Pictured:
- The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon*
- Year of the Mer by L.D. Lewis
- The Tricky Business of Faerie Bargains by Reena McCarty
- Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry (Shield of Sparrows, #2)
- The Demonic Inventions of Aurelie Blake by Mara Rutherford (The Broken Veil, #1)
- We Burned So Bright by T.J. Klune
The ‘Starling cover has rose petals and a sword. Bang on genre.
Bang on, but difficult to see in thumbnail.
The McCarty cover does Cozy Fantasy pretty well.
It’s ok, but not as pretty as the competition.
I’m confused by most of them. The Klune cover looks like a weird X-files pastiche. Or ‘Resident Alien’. Where’s Alan Tudyk?
But apparently it’s fantasy. What sub-genre I don’t know. I’d pass.
This whole thing of covers needing to look a certain way is very frustrating. Where’s the freedom to be creative? Everything has to be cookie-cutter sameness.
It’s true that you have to fit in before you can stand out in today’s market. Everything is driven by cover-appeal; on a page of thumbnails or on the promo-table at the front of the bookstore. Publishers jump on cover bandwagons which is why Quicksilver, Silver Elite and so many of those are indistinguishable.
Remember when all YA looked like Divergent/Allegiant/Detergent/Abhorrent? (I may have made up a couple of those)