Cover Talk with R.C. Lewis

I love talking to authors. Our experiences are so similar, yet so very different, that every one of us has a new story to share. Everyone says that the moment you get your cover it really hits you - you're an author. The cover is your story - and you - packaged for the world. So the process of the cover reveal can be slightly panic inducing. Does it fit your story? Is it what you hoped? Will it sell? With this in mind I put together the CRAP (Cover Reveal Anxiety Phase) Interview.

Today's guest is super-special because she's also my critique partner and my keeper - which means she takes care of my reality-based needs, like reminding me periodically of what time zone I live in. RC has an amazing debut in STITCHING SNOW, which I'm allowed to say because I was with her through editing and have probably read it at least four times - and I liked it every time.

Did you have any pre-conceived notions about what you wanted your cover to look like?

Not really. I thought a girl-in-a-dress cover might be a little strange given my main character—her personality and her circumstances—but beyond that didn’t have any ideas.

How far in advance from your pub date did you start talking covers with your house?

During the first round of edits, my editor mentioned they were thinking of incorporating an apple somehow in the cover design. Nothing detailed, but it gave me a little idea.

Did you have any input on your cover?

Sort of? My editor sent an early rough version of the concept—what they would give to the illustrator they hired to show the direction they wanted—and asked what I thought. I loved it, sooooo ... I didn’t have much else to say.

How was your cover revealed to you?

My editor emailed it to me and my agent.

Was there an official "cover reveal" date for your art?

My editor told me I could reveal it anytime after January 15, and that it would be sent to various places like Amazon, B&N, etc. about a month after that. So I did a reveal with YABooksCentral on January 22.

How far in advance of the reveal date were you aware of what your cover would look like?

The early comp was sent back at the end of Summer 2013, and the pretty-much-final version was emailed at the end of November.

Was it hard to keep it to yourself before the official release?

Kind of! A few people knew I had my cover and were really anxious to see it, so I had to do a lot of “Soon, I promise!”

What surprised you most about the process?

I’m not sure anything really surprised me. My publisher didn’t like the results of the first illustrator they hired (I never saw that version), so they went with someone else and tried again. It was nice to see they were willing to make extra effort to ensure we got the best possible result.

Any advice to other debut authors about how to handle cover art anxiety?

Don’t think about it too much? That’s kind of what worked for me. It helps when you love a lot of your publisher’s other covers, because then you have confidence they’ll do a good job for you. If you do have issues with your cover (and I have several friends who’ve experienced that), talk to your agent before sending a rant to your editor. If you and your agent decide it’s appropriate to speak up, either let your agent handle it, or make sure you voice your concerns in a calm, logical manner. Above all else, covers are a business tool, so rationality speaks louder than emotion, I think.

Behind the Scenes of a Cover Shoot with Erica Cameron

Today's guest for the CRAP (Cover Reveal Anxiety Phase) is Erica Cameron, author of SING SWEET NIGHTINGALE, available March 4 from Spencer Hill Press.

 Did you have any pre-conceived notions about what you wanted your cover to look like?

While I knew I wanted my cover to be representative of the story and not just some pretty, but pointless, image, I wasn’t really sure what I wanted it to look like. My creative brain just doesn’t work like that!

How far in advance from your pub date did you start talking covers with your house?

The very first conversations I had with my editors were almost two years out. Just after they bought the book, they mentioned a few things about the plan for the cover. Over the next few months, we began clarifying our plans as the cover designer, Jeremy West, read the existing draft of Sing Sweet Nightingale. The cover shoot happened in March of this year, almost exactly a year away from the release date.

Did you have any input on your cover?

Yes! Spencer Hill was really fabulous about this. They asked for my ideas and my descriptions of the charters and the world as well as my thoughts on concepts they developed.

How was your cover revealed to you?

The first time I saw it was as a PDF attachment in email during a Skype call with my editors. They wanted to see my reaction!

Was there an official "cover reveal" date for your art?

Yes! I had a fabulously fun time revealing the cover and reading half of the first chapter at Book Expo America (BEA) in New York this past May. On the same day, the cover went live online and the response was amazing. Everyone loves Jeremy’s work.

How far in advance of the reveal date were you aware of what your cover would look like?

I saw it for the first time about a month before the reveal.

Was it hard to keep it to yourself before the official release?

OMG YES. I managed not to show it online, but pretty much everyone I see on a daily basis got to see it before the official reveal.

What surprised you most about the process?

For me, I was surprised when my editors and my cover designer invited me to the cover shoot. From what I understand, the authors aren’t generally there for that part of the process, but I wouldn’t change that experience for anything! It was so fantastic to see it in person and talk to the cover model. The whole day was a blast!

Any advice to other debut authors about how to handle cover art anxiety?

If you have concerns about the direction of a concept, be honest. In a polite, respectful way. Depending on your house, there’s no guarantee the art team will listen to you, but not saying something won’t help anyone. Often, the best way to go is to bring your agent into the mix and let them voice your problems. They’re more likely to handle the situation without getting emotionally invested in the answer, which is good for you in this case!

Below are Erica's pictures from the cover shoot session. What a lucky author to be present during the creative process!

Cover Talk with AdriAnne Strickland

Today's guest for the CRAP (Cover Reveal Anxiety Phase) is AdriAnne Strickland, 2014 debut author of WORDLESS, coming August 8th, 2014 from Flux.

Did you have any pre-conceived notions about what you wanted your cover to look like?

Like quite a few people, I had at least a vague idea—somewhat dark, no pink or purple, sleek and suggestive of the speculative-fiction nature of the story, no characters’ faces revealed. And then I came up with a couple of specific ideas that ended up being nothing like the cover I have now.

How far in advance from your pub date did you start talking covers with your house?

Well-over a year beforehand. WORDLESS is slated to release August 8th, 2014, and my awesome editor, Brian Farrey-Latz, broached the topic of covers in April 2013. But then, I was set to vanish to do the random commercial-fishing-in-Alaska-thing that I do every summer, so he wanted to talk to me about it before I fell off the edge of the earth for a few months.

Did you have any input on your cover?

Sort of—Brian certainly asked my in-depth opinion, and we were actually on the same page for much this conversation. But in the end, it’s up to the publishing team.

See, before I even showed Brian the dorky cover I made myself in MS Word (and I wouldn’t have, had he never said this), he told me during our brainstorming session: “One thought was a field of letters (almost like a search-a-word puzzle) with the title and your name bolded. It’s an OK idea… it could end up really cool or really meh.” And so I sent him this:

To his credit, he didn’t laugh at me, but perhaps I uninspired that idea right out of him. No, in all seriousness, we also came up with some other ideas, involving a shadowy silhouette of the main character being cast by the block letters “WORDLESS.” 

But Brian said anything they tried along either of those lines ended up looking too contemporary. So the team went with something completely different that I didn’t see until it was already done and decided. Good thing I loved it.

How was your cover revealed to you?

My editor sent it to me through email. I couldn’t open the darn thing fast enough, and then I proceeded to carry around my laptop for the rest of the day, staring at it.

Was there an official "cover reveal" date for your art?

Yes, through YABC on October 3rd!

How far in advance of the reveal date were you aware of what your cover would look like?

A couple of months. It was torture.

Was it hard to keep it to yourself before the official release?

(See previous answer.) Kidding. It was a bit difficult, but I “cheated” and showed close family and friends, and also the OneFours on our private forum, so that made it feel less like I was trying to contain a crazed cat inside my chest.

What surprised you most about the process?

That even though my cover didn’t turn out anything at all like I’d imagined (and I have a really active imagination—I was already signing imaginary books with this imaginary cover in my head), I still love it.

Any advice to other debut authors about how to handle cover art anxiety?

Try to trust your publisher. And even after you see your cover, sleep on your immediate opinions… or at least give it a little time. Because here’s how my reaction went:

One second: WHAT?!?
Five seconds: WTF, they didn’t listen to ANY of my suggestions!
Thirty seconds: It’s so… so… GREEN!
One minute: Not sure how I feel about this…
Three minutes: Wow, look at the crazy tendrils of energy, and the combo of metallic and organic in the title font, and the title echoing across the whole thing, almost disintegrating, and the marquee-like style of my name, and…
Five minutes: LOVE.

Much like in relationships (and in my book, thank goodness), love doesn’t always come at first sight. Sometimes it takes a whole five minutes.