Whatâ€™s Wrong with this Cover?

January 12, 2012 by marianne h donley in category Archives tagged as Charlotte Carter, Charlotte Lobb, Love Inspired with 0 and 0

Home > Writing > Archives > Whatâ€™s Wrong with this Cover?

The creation of a book cover is a collaboration of the author (most of whom claim their suggestions are ignored), the editor, art department and marketing. Sometimes things go wrong.

One of the most infamous cover calamities happened to Christina Dodd, author of Castle in the Air, an historical romance. The hero on the cover is standing behind the heroine in a lovely red gown, holding her with, um, all THREE of his arms. Amazing fellow!

Jill Marie Landis, who writes western historicals circa 1880, got an early peek at one of her covers. It featured a cabin in the woods with a TV antenna. Oophs! The publisher had to reprint ALL of the covers. Boy, was that an expensive mistake.

I think my cover for Big Sky Family is both appealing and charming; the colors are positively lovely. Itâ€™s hard to beat a cowboy hero (Arnie), the heroineâ€™s young daughter (Torie) and a golden retriever (Sheila) for getting reader attention. But thereâ€™s just one small problem.

Arnie, our hero, is sitting on the porch steps. Heâ€™s a paraplegic. In every scene in the book he is sitting in a wheelchair (with the small exception of rounding up cattle on a specially equipped ATV).

Iâ€™m guessing, and I really donâ€™t know, that marketing has â€˜discoveredâ€™ that heroes portrayed in wheelchairs donâ€™t sell. Okay, I really want to sell lots of copies of Big Sky Family.

But what will readers think when they get to page 10 and find Arnie in his wheelchair? Will they blame me for the misleading cover and write nasty notes? Ouch!

And what about readers who read Big Sky Reunion, a previous book which featured Arnieâ€™s brother Daniel? Wonâ€™t they remember that Arnie was a paraplegic in that book? When they see the cover will they think heâ€™s been cured? And write nasty notes? Oh dear . . .

So do you think marketing is right? Would you be more or less likely to buy a book with the hero on the cover in a wheelchair?

Let me know.

Happy reading…….

Char…..

Big Sky Family, Love Inspired, available 10/19/2011

Written With Love, working title, Love Inspired, 10/2012

Books that leave you smiling by

www.CharlotteCarter.com

Author Bio

Marianne H. Donley

Author Bio

Marianne H. Donley writes short stories, funny romances, and quirky murder mysteries. She also owns and manages the multi-author blog, A Slice of Orange. Marianne makes her home in Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and a really sweet, bad dog. She is a member of Bethlehem Writers Group, Sisters in Crime, and Charmed Writers. You can follow Marianne’s various social media here: https://linktr.ee/mariannehdonley

http://www.mariannedonley.com

Marianne H. Donley

I Have Become a Tale Faery by Ransom Stephens

January 23, 2021

That’s right, not a fairy tale, a Tale Faery. A genuine hetero, cis Tale Faery. We’re rare.

It started with dragonflies on a magic summer day in Gainesville Florida. One of those 100+ degree, 100+% humidity (seriously, a clear blue sky supersaturated with humidity, a state of dew), my five-year-old daughter and I rode our bikes around a swamp, and I discovered what faeries are.
Visual Content Marketing for the Confused and Terrified Writer

February 3, 2017

The creation of a book cover is a collaboration of the author (most of whom claim their suggestions are ignored), the editor, art department and marketing. Sometimes things go wrong.One of the most infamous cover calamities happened to Christina Dodd, author of Castle in the Air, an historical romance. The hero on the cover is […]
Making Ads and Amazon Rankings Work for You

August 17, 2016

The creation of a book cover is a collaboration of the author (most of whom claim their suggestions are ignored), the editor, art department and marketing. Sometimes things go wrong.One of the most infamous cover calamities happened to Christina Dodd, author of Castle in the Air, an historical romance. The hero on the cover is […]
Who Wants to Be a More Productive Writer?

March 8, 2016

The creation of a book cover is a collaboration of the author (most of whom claim their suggestions are ignored), the editor, art department and marketing. Sometimes things go wrong.One of the most infamous cover calamities happened to Christina Dodd, author of Castle in the Air, an historical romance. The hero on the cover is […]
March’s OCCRWA Online Class is “Speed Writing: Which Plan Works Best for You?”, with MM Pollard

February 26, 2016

The creation of a book cover is a collaboration of the author (most of whom claim their suggestions are ignored), the editor, art department and marketing. Sometimes things go wrong.One of the most infamous cover calamities happened to Christina Dodd, author of Castle in the Air, an historical romance. The hero on the cover is […]

AN ELEMENT OF MYSTERTY: SWEET, FUNNY, AND STRANGE TALES OF INTRIGUE

$17.99eBook: 99¢

Dare you read our latest Sweet, Funny, and Strange® Anthology?

More info →

FUR, FEATHERS AND SCALES: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Animal Tales

So cuddle up with your favorite pet-real or imaginary. No matter. You’ll find just the right story to share.

More info →

ONCE UPON A TIME: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales for All Ages

$18.95

Authors: Marianne H. Donley, Carol L. Wright, Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC, Diane Sismour, Emily PW Murphy, Jeff Baird, Kidd Wadsworth, Ralph Hieb, Christopher D. Ochs
Series: A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology, Book 4
Genres: Children’s Books, Children’s Literature, Short Story Anthology
Tags: 2016, Anthology, Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales, The Short Story Award

Step through our castle doors into a world of imagination!

More info →

LET IT SNOW

$8.99eBook: 99¢

Authors: Marianne H. Donley, Carol L. Wright, Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC, Diane Sismour, Ralph Hieb, Jerome W. McFadden
Series: Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Collection, Book 1
Genre: Short Story Anthology
Tags: Anthology, On Sale, The Short Story Award

Tales as different as snowflakes.

More info →

ONCE AROUND THE SUN: Sweet, Funny, and Stranges Tales for All Seasons

$14.95eBook: $3.99

Authors: Marianne H. Donley, Carol L. Wright, A. E. Decker, Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC, Diane Sismour, Emily PW Murphy, Jeff Baird, Ralph Hieb, Sally Paradysz, Courtney Annicchiarico, Jerome W. McFadden
Series: A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology, Book 2
Genre: Short Story Anthology
Tags: Anthology, Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales, The Short Story Award

Stories about winter, spring, summer and fall, and seasons of life, seasons of love, and even seasons of discovery.

More info →

UNTETHERED: SWEET, FUNNY, AND STRANGE TALES OF THE PARANORMAL

$17.95

Stoke the campfire and get ready for some chills and goosebumps when you open this paranormal addition to the award-winning Bethlehem Writers Group’s “Sweet, Funny, and Strange” anthologies.

More info →