Should writers have the option of choosing their own covers?

I would like some say, but if it makes me difficult to work with, I'll keep out of it.

Both of my publishers so far have at least asked for my input, though I haven't seen the resulting covers yet.

I don't have a problem with leaving it up to publishers, since they know marketing better than I do (what attracts/repels buyers, etc), but I *would* like to be able to say "No, please, for the love of God, don't put that on my book". I've seen some HIDEOUS covers out there, and I cringe at the thought of having one attached to my book. So, mostly I'd just like a little veto power.

Input is fine, but authors typically know jack about what kind of cover well sell their book the best.

Some publishers will ask for input even from first-time writers, though that is rare. The thing is, some writers do have a marketing "eye," or at the very least come up with interesting concepts the publisher's art department can turn into fantastic covers.

So it never hurts to ask -- politely and professionally -- if you may submit for their consideration a paragraph or two describing the cover image you see in your mind.

It also doesn't hurt to spend some time in bookstores just studying covers and figuring out why one cover appeals to you more than another.

With all that said, however, be aware that some pubs are so very market-oriented that neither the author nor the editor will have much, if any, say in the cover design.

And, yes, you will get sucky covers. Accept that as a fact of publishing. If a cover is completely horrible and you have a good reason for thinking so, asking -- again, politely and professionally -- for changes may be allowed.

Or you may not see the cover design at all until it's too late to change.

If I could offer one piece of advice, it would be to make sure your agent knows the publisher's schedule -- when covers are being designed, when a jpeg of the art might be available, and when it's too late for changes -- and ask him or her to nudge your editor to keep you in the loop.

Being professional and polite goes a long, long way in publishing.

Throwing hissy fits because you don't like something earns you nothing except a bad reputation.

I think the author should have some input, but I don't have the marketing experience to say "I should design the cover." But, as TT42 said, there are some horrendous covers out there that I can't imagine the author was very pleased with.

I'd rather have something a little vague (read as "Not a depiction of the MC") instead of totally hideous artwork. (SF/F novels seem to suffer from this in particular.)

But I doubt I would make a big stink about getting approval over the cover if it meant not selling the manuscript.

Should I ever get so lucky as to be published, I think this will be hard for me b/c my day job involves so much graphic design. I'm not under the delusion that I know more than the pros, but I know just enough that it will be difficult not to be a control freak.

No kiddin'. As a semi-pro artist myself, I have my own notions.

input? sure. but marketing is a whole different skill set than writing. kind of like capitalization.

No. Marketing aside, the publisher is paying the writer, and may have needs that don't match the writers. For example, the publisher may choose to brand the book as part of a line that all have similar covers. If the book were not part of that line, the line's cover scheme might not make much sense, so the author's point of view will not fit with the writer's.

Input is more than good, but the writer shouldn't have final say. I suppose if the cover is absolutely awful, the writer can change his mind and find a different publisher.

The cover for the first edition of my first book was awful. For the second edition, the publisher went with a design I suggested all along.

For my second book, I made a suggestion and the marketing department agreed to my change (it was a minor change, but I think a significant one).

In both cases, the contract indicated that I would be consulted but the publishers had the final word. I realize that's standard so I don't sweat it too much (just a little).

HelloKiddo said:

My view: I don't care much. .

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I think you should care - a lot. Have a look at my cover. It stands out. I have a large poster printed on durable plastic that I use in my book signings. People walk over to look at it. People ask questions about it. And this gives me the chance to sell the books to them.

Until I'm hugely famous, I have to use every ploy I can to get buyers. The cover of the book is very important in that respect. It filters out people who don't read my genre. It attracts people's attention who do, and I can easily see if they are interested. So when I start my 1.45 minute spiel, I'm fairly sure I'm talking to people who want to hear what I'm saying.

By the way, the picture of Stonehenge (where my story starts) is a photo taken by my daughter and the publisher's artist dramatised it. My first publisher asked for my suggestions and followed my ideas very closely. My second publisher has sent a copy of the cover they will be using. They asked for ideas but the result is not very near what I suggested although they used another of my photos. It is a good looking cover, though.

I had a very dear friend, who was a famous fantasy artist - he was 'assigned' the covers of books to do. (I posed for a number of them) Often, they would hand him a sample scene and then say "Illustrate this" - he wouldn't even get to read the whole book. Still he always tried to capture the feeling of whatever he read - and then he'd have to work with the publisher and art director for the changes they needed.

Later, as he began to do more 'famous' authors - he would get the manuscripts DIRECTLY from the authors - and talk to them about what they felt the characters looked like. He'd still have to submit the designs for the editors final say - but he worked very closely WITH the authors to develop a specific look for thier story lines.

Oddly enough - I found MYSELF on the cover of a book last month. I had no clue I was on it.

I was sitting at home, when I got a text message from a friend in Colorado. It appeared to be a picture... but I couldn't make it out. I handed it to my son, who said "It looks like YOU! On a poster? A cover? Looks like it says "Fall of Thrones?" No - "Fall of Thanes".

I got up, went to the google - and sure enough - there I was in living color on the cover of this book.

I was distinctly peaved. I didn't give the publisher permission to use my image, HOW DARE THEY! With righteous indignation - I went out and bought a copy the next day. Sure enough - it was no doubt my face gracing the cover. I was wearing chainmail - it was obviously taken at some festival or another where I was performing ... but which one, when was it taken?

I kept looking at it... and looking at it... and finally it looked vaguely familiar. So I did a search of my hard drive - for photos of me.

Sure enough - I found the exact picture. Taken on location in 2005 while I was working on a short film. I recalled signing a release for the photographer - but couldn't locate it. I sent an email to him - asking if he worked with the publisher, (Which is located in the UK)

He responded - He had NOT seen the cover - but he HAD put my photo on one of the 'stock photo' sights - and was paid for the use of it. He was kind enough to send me the copy of the release I signed - and yes, I gave him the right to 'resell' the image beyond the use on the film. SO he was within rights. He also sent me a nice 'royalty' check - which worked out well for both of us.

Meanwhile - I contacted the writer on his facebook page - because he remarked on how happy he was with the cover. I told him I was the knight on the cover - he was tickled pink to hear from me - and wound up doing an 'interview' for his webpage!

So - all in all - it turned out good for everyone involved.

http://www.brianruckley.com/2009/06/ive-always-been-fascinated-by.htm

It's true that publishers in general have a better idea of what type of cover will help sell a book than does the writer. But not everybody who works in the marketing department knows what they're doing, and not every artist is equally talented. They can occasionally come up with some truly horrendous concepts and designs. I've seen them on bookstore shelves. We all have.

And of course, one bad cover won't ruin the publisher, or even get cause the people responsible to lose their job, but it can ruin your book and set back your career.

So yeah, I think the writer should have some input. They are the ones who have the most to lose. The publisher is not going to care as much as we do.

That said, a writer's idea of the perfect cover may well be completely idiotic in terms of attracting buyers.

I've been lucky -- my covers have been pretty good, and on the one particular thing that was important to me, they actually listened and accommodated me.

veinglory said:

Input is fine, but authors typically know jack about what kind of cover well sell their book the best.

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Exactly. A lot of writers aren't worth bird poop in a full moon even at making good titles, let alone cover art. The titles F. Scott Fitzgerald chose for his novels are legendarily hilarious; even the soap-operaish ones they wound up with (This Side of Paradise, Tender Is the Night, The Beautiful and Damned) were an improvement over the ridiculous one he proposed for his most famous novel, which became The Great Gatsby.

caw

I think trying to sell a book by its cover, isn't a writers job. If you're a writer and an artist, that's a different deal, but when the writing is done, so am I.

I would like to see the cover prior to publishing and I'd like it if the publisher accomodated any minor changes that I suggest but I'm aware that it's the publisher's right to promote a product that he is investing in and agree that those with more skill in that department are best employed for cover designing.

Generally, no. I don't. Writers are good at writing books, not designing them. (In general. There are obviously exceptions )

The few self published books that my work has ordered in have all, without exception, had appallingly bad covers. Probably chosen completely by the writer. Even though I know what my characters look like and I have a good idea of what the most striking images in the book could be, I am pretty unlikely to do a better job at designing a cover than someone whose job is designing covers and has probably spent years at art school and doing design work.

I do think that writers should be able to make suggestions and share opinions, but in the end, cover design isn't usually a writer's job.

I do, however, believe that writers absolutely should have the right to veto things when they are completely and utterly wrong. (Although really an editor should catch that).) Sometimes there's a situation where someone has to say dude, you made the main character the wrong colour.

If I ever get published, I'd like to be involved in the process. And I think it's right to get the author's input because they've come up with the concept and will at least be able to say if something is completely wrong or not.

But I'd also be really pleased to have professional design people working on it and I wouldn't want to get in their way because, basically, my talents don't run in that direction.

I guess if we want to be successful, we shouldn't get too precious about our work.

Although, if things are really awful, Nathan Bransford did make mention in his blog of the last recourse: Agent Freakout.

I'd like to see it before they put it out there. I'd be peeved if they put a picture on there that changed a character from a brunette to a blonde, for example. And I don't want a picture so cheesy I'm embarrassed to admit it's my book.

I'd be happy to let the publisher get most of the say in the cover. Marketing is their field, after all. But if I'm really not happy with the cover, I'd expect them to change it.

I'd like a little say in the cover, but I'm happy for the publisher to do their job.

I have always been provided with provisional cover art and asked what I think about it--do I like it, have suggestions for change? On one I exercised that option and they made changes. I'm kind of surprised to hear that publishers produce cover art without consulting the authors.

KTC said:

No. I don't think it should be a different deal even when you are a writer and an artist. I'm an artist. If I ever get published--which I doubt will ever happen--I have no intention of having anything to do with the cover. When the writing is done, so am I.

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So we're two unpublished peas in a pod.

thethinker42 said:

I don't have a problem with leaving it up to publishers, since they know marketing better than I do (what attracts/repels buyers, etc), but I *would* like to be able to say "No, please, for the love of God, don't put that on my book". I've seen some HIDEOUS covers out there, and I cringe at the thought of having one attached to my book. So, mostly I'd just like a little veto power.

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This'll do for me.

I think the writer should have some say to avoid situations like the cover for Liar but I don't think they need to be overly involved in the process.

Heck, I have a degree in graphic design, have done some freelance work for a Canadian publisher, and I don't want to be overly involved in the process.