Help me Choose my Cover

8/28/2012

I'm only about a third of the way through a piece I'm working on, and as I plan to publish it on Amazon in a shameless display of artistic greed -- those artists, buncha money-grubbers -- I've jumped the gun and designed a few book covers.

Okay, actually I've SERIOUSLY jumped the gun and designed 27 book covers. In penance for my gluttony, my punishment is to not-so-proudly display the first cover I tried to make here on the right.

Just look at it ... mocking me.

In truth, though it's awful, I'm actually not that put off by it. I had to teach myself how to use Photoshop. My talents are limited by not knowing what the majority of the buttons actually do.

So I turn to you, the popular eye of the populace. I could really use some opinions and feedback. I'm out of ideas and, frankly, tired of photoshop. Time, then, to choose!

Okay, so, without further ado, my story is a SCIENCE FICTION/ HORROR INVASION story. Bear that in mind, please. A new star appears in the sky, bad things start happening, and people hole up in an ancient crumbling monastery. That's the basic plot.

Fonts can always be changed.

Any feedback you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

With heartfelt thanks in advance.

4 Comments

Anu link

8/28/2012 06:30:38 pm

Hey, I enjoyed them all, they're very nice. The planet picture in numers 3-5, 23-26 best conveys the sense I got from your description and captures the genre best too, the sense of emptiness typical of most sci-fi covers. I wasn't perfectly happy with the layout of any of them, but number 25 came closest. The rest of the covers are fine (except 11 and 12 that are too busy), but combined with the title they give me a notion of an environmental essay. Of those covers, number 20 is best, but perhaps the planet in the sky (or is it that?) could be a bit larger so that the sense of extraterrestial is clearer. That one has a very good layout overall too, althoug I would crop the picture so that the tree is more to the right (it's a bit off balance now). I would perhaps go with that, as long as the genre is made a bit clearer.

I hope these comments were at least a little helpful. It's never easy to have outsiders tear at hours of hard work. :)

Anu

Lee

8/29/2012 02:45:20 am

I appreciate the input. The more, the merrier. Getting criticism is the nature of the industry, so no worries there. It's only bad if I ignore it haha

Linda Pressman link

8/29/2012 02:58:08 pm

First of all, I really like your first cover even though it's not finished, etc. The letters, made up of earth-appearing colors, are what I tried to describe, through about 50 revisions, to my designer with no success, except mine was with clouds. As far as the others, I like #2 because I think it conveys some of the desolate feeling of what you've said of the story, except I'd probably try to get that star in the black sky above the earth. One note: it's "hole" up in a monastery, not hold up. :)

Lee

8/30/2012 06:39:50 am

haha, Thanks for the correction, Linda. Really. I wondered that at the time, but it was 3am and I said 'good 'nuf' and went to bed.

Having the land inside the words was my first thought, and first choice. I made the image in photoshop using a tutorial about the 'Clipping Mask.'

I believe I used this page: http://graphicssoft.about.com/od/photoshop/ss/Image-Inside-Text.htm

Too bad your designer seemed a bit dense. Maybe that'll help you some in the future.

Thanks for the input. Much appreciated.