Romance Book Covers
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I don't generlly care what the cover looks like, but I am put off by anything pink or overty girly, and also by any halfnaked men or cringe inducing embraces that look like one of the old mills and boon covers.
I don't like covers that attempt to portray the characters; especially if they're in a cheesy embrace. <ugh> However the artist renders the characters, they're never close to my imagination! I find those kind of covers, at best, irrelevant.
I prefer simple graphics, or if not that, a landscape scene that evokes a feeling of depth.
I confess, I'll pass up a book if the cover is the typical romantic cliche--Big hulking heroes and swooning heroines. Right or wrong I'll picture the story as stale and just as cliched.
I prefer simple graphics, or if not that, a landscape scene that evokes a feeling of depth.
I confess, I'll pass up a book if the cover is the typical romantic cliche--Big hulking heroes and swooning heroines. Right or wrong I'll picture the story as stale and just as cliched.
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Colors draw me to covers. I love turquoise and will take a second look at anything with turquoise. I also like contemporary and light so I prefer a cover that matches the tone of the story. I absolutely love the cover to my latest book and so did Sue Grimshaw, the buyer for Borders. She did special features in her stores b/c of the cover alone. It's cute and girly and those you only do dark will probably hate it. lol
For whatever reason, I can't get a pic to post correctly, but you can see it on the Home page of my website.
For whatever reason, I can't get a pic to post correctly, but you can see it on the Home page of my website.
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I like torsos.
(only in a romance cover thread can I say that without being)
True, they work well and you can 'insert fantasy face of your choice' to complete the picture.
I don't like naked/ semi-naked people on covers. I prefer subtle, which means bodies with clothes on them, and graphics rather than photos. Having said that, I am not deterred by unsubtle if I'm attracted to the blurb and/ or excerpt.
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I'll take the half-naked men, preferably with long hair. Other than that I like the background and props to express the setting (space? fantasy? historical? urban? rural?) I'd also be perfectly happy with anime-art covers, I keep wondering why ebooks always seem to go for those awful 3D ones instead. In the past when I sketched a cover design for one of my stories I chose an anime art style and the subject was the 2 main couples of the story arranged in a casual way with their body language showing their personalities and relationships to each other. The character with the formal personality had a more stiff/closed upright pose and his clothing was all in order, the character with the easygoing personality was laying sprawled with some of his buttons unfastened, the sneaky character was looking sneaky, the shy innocent character was blushing, etc.
This is actually a post card, not a book cover as far as I know, but I always thought it would make a great erotic romance cover:
Other than that I like the background and props to express the setting (space? fantasy? historical? urban? rural?) I'd also be perfectly happy with anime-art covers, I keep wondering why ebooks always seem to go for those awful 3D ones instead. In the past when I sketched a cover design for one of my stories I chose an anime art style and the subject was the 2 main couples of the story arranged in a casual way with their body language showing their personalities and relationships to each other. The character with the formal personality had a more stiff/closed upright pose and his clothing was all in order, the character with the easygoing personality was laying sprawled with some of his buttons unfastened, the sneaky character was looking sneaky, the shy innocent character was blushing, etc.This is actually a post card, not a book cover as far as I know, but I always thought it would make a great erotic romance cover:
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Blimey! Doesn't leave much to the imagination, does he My poor, repressed, Victorian-esque eyes. Too muscley for me, though. I prefer my men weedy-which goes a long way to explaining my aversion to naked torsos on romance covers. They all have too many muscles.
My poor, repressed, Victorian-esque eyes. Too muscley for me, though. I prefer my men weedy-which goes a long way to explaining my aversion to naked torsos on romance covers. They all have too many muscles.
I generally prefer not torsos - I want to see a face, preferably yummy and with long hair . I prefer with clothes tbh ( though I make an exception for the book in my sig, because it is very close to how I imagined him, and, well, he's hot)
Other than that, as long as it doesn't scream Mills And Boon, or is pink, I'm easy.
Other than that, as long as it doesn't scream Mills And Boon, or is pink, I'm easy.
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That's true, I would rather he were more slender too. But I think the naked torsos successfully make the reader feel an intimate connection with the vulnerable character, while a fully-dressed character seems too distant and doesn't promise that the book will have good sex scenes.Blimey! Doesn't leave much to the imagination, does he
I also agree with IdiotsRUs, I'd really prefer to see a face, I'm not so keen on headless bodies.
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It's funny to see all the different opinions.
Pink, frilly type covers repel me.
Torsos or hawt half naked men are good. Tats are good. I hate long hair, lol.
Pink, frilly type covers repel me.
Torsos or hawt half naked men are good. Tats are good. I hate long hair, lol.
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I like tats if they are tribal or otherwise tasteful. Don't really care if it's pink or not - I l went over and looked at my book shelf and the only covers I disliked were two that were brick red with a really boring squarish san-serif font. But I hate short hair, lol.
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Rarely does a cover entice me to buy or not buy except for this one:
Julia Quinn's Mr Cavendish, I Presume
Granted, I had already read most of Ms. Quinn's stuff but this was an extra draw.
and Jill Myles two Succubus books.
I don't like 'em too nekkid or too Fabio looking. I prefer shorter hair also.
Julia Quinn's Mr Cavendish, I Presume
Granted, I had already read most of Ms. Quinn's stuff but this was an extra draw.
and Jill Myles two Succubus books.
I don't like 'em too nekkid or too Fabio looking. I prefer shorter hair also.
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True, they work well and you can 'insert fantasy face of your choice' to complete the picture.
Exactly. When I see a face on a cover, I'm prone to thinking of that face when I read.
This is why I don't much like photograph covers. At least with an illustated character on the front you know that, like a painting, it's only an impression of what the character looks like and the imagination can always enhance the rest. When those guys don't have any heads at all I feel the focus is too much on the body (objectification, maybe)and I think that's kind of shallow, because, even erotic romances can have depth right?
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I like heads on the covers! I don't like the headless guys or the disembodied torso floating in the sky.
Some of my favorite covers are the color-wash ones like Larissa Ione's first 3 Demonica books (LOVE those) and the JR Ward books. Subtle but sexy.
I also really love Kresley Cole's KISS OF A DEMON KING. Hot guy, big sword, muscular back. Yum. Oh, and Gena Showalter's LORDS series has some smoking hot covers.
I really like the non-traditional clinch if it's done well - like Kresley Cole's first one or the last Liz Carlyle book.
Some of my favorite covers are the color-wash ones like Larissa Ione's first 3 Demonica books (LOVE those) and the JR Ward books. Subtle but sexy.
I also really love Kresley Cole's KISS OF A DEMON KING. Hot guy, big sword, muscular back. Yum. Oh, and Gena Showalter's LORDS series has some smoking hot covers.
I really like the non-traditional clinch if it's done well - like Kresley Cole's first one or the last Liz Carlyle book.
Okay... admission time. I buy Showalter's books for the covers. 
Love the books, but the covers are what grab me.
Love the books, but the covers are what grab me.
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I prefer drawn illustrations where the characters are part of the scenery and you can only see profiles of their faces, or even less, especially for the male. I like to sort-of see what they may look like, but keep it open enough for my imagination to work its wonders. These kind of covers are a rarity so I usually try to ignore the pictures I don't like all together, which is most of them because I hate long hair on a man. Shaggy? Sure, but long and flowing ugh, no thanks.
I am also open to torsos though
I am also open to torsos though
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Here's one. Kinda creepy lol
ETA another one, and the title alone is noteworty.
Yeah, kinda creepy.
I totally forgot about that point...I don't buy books with babies/kids on the cover. I have enough of that in real life, lol. I need an escape!
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