Jul 17, 2017

A Collection of Covers...with Stefanie London

Even though I'm a writer, I'm an extremely visual person. So, getting a cover for my book is really one of the most exciting moments of the process for me. Seeing how a cover artist has interpreted my story and brought it visual life is fascinating! 

My editor shared this awesome image (which you can see better here) which shows the process of how Harlequin covers used to be made. Very cool!


These days the Harlequin covers are photos, and could either be a custom picture or a manipulated stock images. 

With my first book, Only The Brave Try Ballet, the original photo was a stock image with a woman's bare feet wrapped behind a man's back. The team digitally included the pointe shoes and tutu to suit my story.

  

The are the English language versions (Australia with the red banner, US with the pink, and UK with the blue) which all use the same image.

Personally I LOVE the pink KISS covers - not just mine but all the ones they made when the line was still around. They just had such a fun, bright, flirty tone to them. It was a perfect match to the books.

  

Here are the non-English versions (Lithuanian with the orange, Hungarian with the red, and German with the dark red.)

Which ones do you prefer?

And I'm curious, for covers in general, what draws you in? 
  • Do you like a couple on the cover or a single person? 
  • Does it bother you if the people on the cover don't match what's inside the book?
  • Anything that makes you just go "no way!"?
I'd love to hear which covers you love, if you have a favourite, then leave it in the comments below so I can check it out.

16 comments:

  1. It must be so much fun seeing your books in different languages, Stef.

    I think I like the Kiss one the best as you can see more of that gorgeous tutu. I love a good cover but once I'm into a story I have created my own picture of the characters so forget the images on the front in favour of the image the author has created in my mind.

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    1. I wonder if this is even more true when reading an ebook because you don't see the cover every time you pick it up? Definitely allows the reader to create their own image even more :)

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  2. Stefanie that article on the M&B covers back in the day was fascinating! Loved it.

    I loved the KISS covers too (aside from a couple of notable outliers :-) I'm a real fan of that Lithuanian cover, though. There's something intensely sexy about it!

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    1. I agree, the way they're holding each other like that... *swoon*

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  3. I think all of those covers are gorgeous, Stef. But I like the Kiss version best of all. I think, as a rule, I prefer couples on a cover. Something I'm starting to seriously get over is covers of over-inflated male chests that have been so muscle-pumped (they have to be photoshopped, surely) that they look...wrong, deformed or something.

    And thanks for the article about how M&B covers used to be created -- so interesting!

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    1. I really adore the old painted-style covers - something so wonderfully dreamy about them.

      I have mixed feelings about the shirtless man covers, a lot of readers love them but I'm more partial to a sexy guy in a suit :)

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  4. Hi Stefanie, what an interesting post! I really enjoyed reading the back-in-the-day cover process article, also noted the different titles then, not the trope driven ones these days.
    Of all your cute covers, I like the Kiss one the best. That hint of purple tutu is really cute.

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    1. Yes, the titles were SO different back then!! I love some of the super old school titles, but they tell you nothing about the story. So I get why they use the tope-driven ones today, but some of those drive me batty too lol

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  5. Hi Stef,

    Thanks for sharing. I hadn't seen that article on how the old covers were made either. Really interesting!

    I can't choose a fave - though I like the Kiss one and the German cover in particular. I like people on the covers, and some hint of intensity between them. Like Michelle I'm not a fan of over-muscled heroes that look like they spend more time at the gym than with the heroine. It's a fine line sometimes. :)

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    1. It was such an interesting process back then! Although I did see how they make the newer Harlequin covers (not the stock photo ones) when I went to their office and that was fascinating too. So much artistry!

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  6. Hi Stefanie

    Yes I too love the Kiss one as well, for me the colour will often grab me first then I look at what is one it and I don't think I have a favourite type I tend to like most of them :)

    Have Fun
    Helen

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    1. The pink is very eye-catching isn't it? I used to love how the pink spines looked all lined up :)

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  7. I like the Kiss cover best. I do get perturbed when the cover photo doesn't match the description of the character in the book. And overly muscle bound guys don't do much for me. Couples or singles are fine, and sometimes, just a picture with a hint of a face is pretty sexy!

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    1. The Kiss covers were really nice, they had some gorgeous ones! I do like the couples photos but I seem to get a lot of guys by themselves. I agree, it bugs me when the people on the cover don't match the story!

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  8. I like the Sexy cover best, Stefanie. But the Kiss one is right up there. That line always did well with covers, for sure. I do get disappointed with the Medical covers as often they seem totally unrelated to my story. Of course when there are two stories in one book it is impossible to please both authors.

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    1. The little cityscape across the bottom is cute - fun fact: you can almost see the apartment building I lived in while I wrote the book! It's frustrating when the cover doesn't match the story - especially given how much time the AFS takes!

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