Cover Art Discussion

[Gravy]

The cover art of a book, whether plain, flashy, or somewhere in between, should give some clue as to the content of the story within it...but really good cover art can set the mood of the story before you ever even pick it up.

So let's talk cover art.
Do you have a favorite artist? I do: Chris McGrath (seriously...check out his covers...they're awesome )

So what are your thoughts on cover art?
Do you have a favorite font? Color?
Do you prefer a simple cover? Or a more detailed one?
Do you like covers with people on them?

Is there any particular feature a cover can have that will draw your eye? Or maybe one that will put you off?

To start off I thought I'd post this cover that caught my eye in a recent cover reveal.



I like this one for a few reasons. I like the detail with the title, and the key. I also like the color choices, and the light effect.

So what do other people think of this, or other covers? Or do you think it's just a waste of time? (I'm sure there are those here who do, and there's nothing wrong with that )

All opinions welcome

[Artiste8]

I do like the cover you picked, but I usually don't like covers with people on them. I do think a cover should give an idea of what the book is about. I also love a beautiful cover, but I can't think of one right now. They say don't judge a book by it's cover, but it's hard not to.

[Ryan]

I LOVE the formatting on the front covers of Penguin and Oxford University Press books. I also really love the first edition covers of the Harry Potter books. I also love this, which I received as a gift one Christmas:

Great Expectations -- Hardback.jpg (28.18 KiB) Viewed 1138 times

The image can't do it justice; the gold parts shine and the blue has a kind of quilted feel. It's probably my favourite

[Gravy]

I LOVE the formatting on the front covers of Penguin and Oxford University Press books. I also really love the first edition covers of the Harry Potter books. I also love this, which I received as a gift one Christmas:

The image can't do it justice; the gold parts shine and the blue has a kind of quilted feel. It's probably my favourite

We are geeks
And it is very pretty

[rssllue]

Boris Vallejo is a classic artist who I grew up seeing so many of his covers for fantasy and science fiction. Here is one of his more tame ones.

image.jpeg

[Gravy]

Boris Vallejo is a classic artist who I grew up seeing so many of his covers for fantasy and science fiction. Here is one of his more tame ones.

Oh dear! Tame?
It sounds like I don't want to see the others

I like those...whatever they are

Here's one by Chris McGrath (he does a lot of UF covers...so my shelves are full of them )

I love it! There's always so much to notice on his covers...and after reading the book you can look at the cover and see it completely new.
Yes...I'm guilty of being a geek

[literarycat]

Larry Elmore is one of my top favorites; he did the art for the Dragonlance Saga. There are a lot of great artists being mentioned as well. Nice.

[rssllue]

Boris Vallejo is a classic artist who I grew up seeing so many of his covers for fantasy and science fiction. Here is one of his more tame ones.

Oh dear! Tame?
It sounds like I don't want to see the others

I like those...whatever they are

He has a tendency to draw very few clothes on his human subjects. But he does have a lot of talent and there are some great family friendly ones out there too!

[Gravy]

Larry Elmore is one of my top favorites; he did the art for the Dragonlance Saga. There are a lot of great artists being mentioned as well. Nice.

I had a look and very interesting!

Boris Vallejo is a classic artist who I grew up seeing so many of his covers for fantasy and science fiction. Here is one of his more tame ones.

Oh dear! Tame?
It sounds like I don't want to see the others

I like those...whatever they are

He has a tendency to draw very few clothes on his human subjects. But he does have a lot of talent and there are some great family friendly ones out there too!

Fantasy books are pretty much known for those covers

[rssllue]

Indeed.

[Gravy]

Especially those written at a certain time

[rssllue]

Oh dear.

[zeldas_lullaby]

I love covers! Hold on, let me upload one of my Jane Eyre editions... Gothic! And it's top-quality paperback with folded over covers (like a dust jacket).

[rssllue]

Very nice!

[zeldas_lullaby]

Thanks!