How much does the cover page influence your pick of a book

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micoleon13
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How much does the cover page influence your pick of a book

Post by micoleon13 »

"End of the Last Great Kingdom" has a wonderful cover page and, as someone who isn't a great fan of fantasy, it made me immediately want to read it.

How much do you think the cover page influences your decision on what book to read and does it affect your enjoyment of the book as a whole?
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kandscreeley
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Post by kandscreeley »

Interesting question. I have to admit that a cover page matters more to me than it probably should. If I see a cover page that isn't really well done, then I have to think that the author probably didn't spend a lot of time or effort on the book either. It doesn't have to be elaborate, but it should at least look professional. That's just my thought, though.
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Post by bluegreenmarina »

I also tend to put a good deal of weight into the cover imagery as it speaks not only to the author’s conception of the story, but also to the amount of faith the publisher has in the success of the book. There have been a couple of times where I was surprised by the quality of the writing as it compared to the cover image, but overall it tends to be a fairly useful way to determine whether I will enjoy a book or not.
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Post by Insightsintobooks729 »

I also put a great deal of significance on the cover. I have been known to get books based on their cover alone at times. I am mostly drawn in by the cover and then read the blurb on the back to see if I might like it.
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Post by CaitlinGonya »

The cover page matters more than it should. It gives my eyes something to catch, then I read the summary and maybe a couple of pages.
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Post by Londera »

A good cover page attracts me to the book. However,if the plot is what determines whether or not I read it.
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Post by Jolyon Trevelyan »

The cover page does not matter to me.
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Post by AliceofX »

I'd like to say that I'm not influenced by trivial things like that, but we all know that an eye-catching cover is what often determines if someone will read a book. It's like any advertising. We all like to believe that it doesn't affect us, but it wouldn't be such a huge industry if that was true.

That said, one has to remember that authors often have very little influence over what the cover, or even the title, of their book is unless it's independently published. Therefore, I don't think having a bad cover means you shouldn't still give the book a chance.
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Post by kandscreeley »

AliceofX wrote: 05 Dec 2017, 10:48 I'd like to say that I'm not influenced by trivial things like that, but we all know that an eye-catching cover is what often determines if someone will read a book. It's like any advertising. We all like to believe that it doesn't affect us, but it wouldn't be such a huge industry if that was true.

That said, one has to remember that authors often have very little influence over what the cover, or even the title, of their book is unless it's independently published. Therefore, I don't think having a bad cover means you shouldn't still give the book a chance.
It's definitely advertising. You are right about that. I will say that if I look at a book and the synopsis is REALLY great, I'll consider reading it no matter the cover.
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Post by Mary Garrison »

Sadly, I do judge a book by its cover. If the cover doesn't catch my eye I normally don't pick it up.
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Post by Kylou »

Londera wrote: 04 Dec 2017, 21:17 A good cover page attracts me to the book. However,if the plot is what determines whether or not I read it.
I agree and make my decisions mostly based on the plot or recommendations.
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Post by Javier Campos »

Way too much, when ebooks have those characters that seem to be taken out directly from the "sim" games, I can't stand it.
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Post by missalice »

My decision usually lies more on the title than the cover. That's not to say that the cover doesn't have any influence but if the title gets me interested then I'll read the summary. If it passes the summary test then I'll go to the first page. Now this is the real test: the writing test. If I like the writing, I'm buying. I guess I'm kind of picky...
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Post by SPasciuti »

I generally hate and love the amount of influence a cover has on my likelihood to pick up and read a book. I'll add a lot of books to my to-read shelf based on cover and genre alone. I feel like it's gotten me to read a lot of books I both love and hate. It's like a cioin toss, really. You're not going to get a good book every time if you're reading based on the cover. But you're not gonna get a bad book every time either.
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Post by Alice Thokchom »

The cover page influences me a great deal. As people say, 'A picture speaks a thousand words', the cover page will do an amazing thing in impressing a reader.
A joke is to entertain people. If it fails to do so, it's something else!
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