Why Book Covers are So Important
There’s
marketing, of course, but I don’t want to get too hung up in that. For
me, my book cover was so important because it gave me a way to like my
book again.
In
general, I like what I write because I write things that I’d like to
read. But the process of soliciting feedback, editing, and otherwise
sitting with your book in an analytical way can drive away a good chunk
of that affection. Especially when you’re about a year deep into the
project and you aren’t feeling quite the same rush you did when you
blazed through the first draft. And after you’ve been grappling with how
seriously to take the 1 out of 40 beta readers who ended up hating your
book and tearing it apart. I faced this scenario with my book, and I
was having a very, very hard time liking my book right when I was
finishing it up and getting ready to publish it.
But
working with a good friend of mine to design the book’s cover pulled me
out of this funk. The process and the final cover design helped me
like, and then even love, my book again.
Why?
Because instead of worrying about the text, I got to sit back and work
with her to create a piece of art that was beautiful in its own right,
but which also tapped into the book’s overall theme and tone.
What’s
more, I got to bring someone else in to help work on the book with me.
So I wasn’t just sitting by myself worrying about whether everyone was
going to hate what I wrote. Instead, my friend and I just chatted on the
phone, sent a lot of emails with pictures of book covers we liked, and
talked about art. And then we talked about what we liked about the book,
and why it resonated with the two of us. And suddenly I had this great
avenue for thinking about, and appreciating, the book, while remembering
why it meant so much to me in the first place.
Even
better, I was able to give my friend a great opportunity—she got to
design her first book cover from scratch. She’d worked on many book
covers before mine, but she didn’t get to take full ownership of a cover
design before. So no matter how I felt about the book, I knew that
putting it out there would at least help my friend take a step forward
in her career.
And
ultimately, the whole process gave me something to love about the book
that didn’t come from me. It’s always hard to feel totally positive
about something that you made with your own two hands. Even if you like
it, and even when you fall in love with it again, you still look at it
and see the seams. And hear everything negative anyone has ever said
about it. And think about all the worries, and concerns, and anxieties
that went into it. But I can look at this cover that my friend designed
and love it unconditionally. And that means there’s at least something
about this book that I can approach without doubt.
When
you die, your spirit wakes in the north, in the City of the Dead.
There, you wander the cold until one of your living loved ones finds
you, says "Goodbye," and Sends you to the next world.
After her parents die, 12-year-old Sophie refuses to release their spirits. Instead, she resolves to travel to the City of the Dead to bring her mother and father’s spirits back home with her.
Taking the long pilgrimage north with her gruff & distant grandmother—by train, by foot, by boat; over ruined mountains and plains and oceans—Sophie struggles to return what death stole from her. Yet the journey offers her many hard, unexpected lessons—what to hold on to, when to let go, and who she must truly bring back to life.
After her parents die, 12-year-old Sophie refuses to release their spirits. Instead, she resolves to travel to the City of the Dead to bring her mother and father’s spirits back home with her.
Taking the long pilgrimage north with her gruff & distant grandmother—by train, by foot, by boat; over ruined mountains and plains and oceans—Sophie struggles to return what death stole from her. Yet the journey offers her many hard, unexpected lessons—what to hold on to, when to let go, and who she must truly bring back to life.
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – Middle Grade
Rating – PG-13
More details about the author
Website http://craigstaufenberg.com/
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