I read this awesome blog post about YA covers and the female body. It's sort of fascinating. Although I do like some of the covers she points out, I will say that I prefer a stronger and confident teenage girl on the cover than a lost, broken one. Click here to check out the blog post. It's really worth the read.
What do you think a good cover entails? What do you hate/love about YA book cover trends? Personally, I'd like to see more guys on covers. Also,there are a lot of girls in flowing beautiful dresses with long luscious hair. Not that anything is wrong with that, but it would be nice to see more normal looking girls on book covers too. You know what I mean? I also love symbols. Like the Wings series.
Simple, but pretty. And I can picture what the main character looks like instead of seeing her on the cover. I do like people on covers as well, if they're done right. Take Paranormalcy for example. I love how she looks. Strong, brave, yet insecure at the same time.
And this one. The girl's hair alone, makes me want to read it. :)
What cover trends do you love? Which ones are you sick of?
18 comments:
I haven't read the top one, but have read both the bottom ones. I love the whole Paranormalcy series. And think the covers are gorgeous and rich. I liked Lola, but not as much as the first book - Anna and the French Kiss. Both Lola and Anna have great, happy covers!
Like you mentioned, I'm kind of sick of the ones with girls walking away in a long flowing dress. I'm not sure I like the covers with the character on the front, because I kind of like imagining the characters myself.
I'm glad your daughter is doing well! I hope recovering goes quickly.
I like...covers that are cool. :) I actually have really eclectic taste in covers, though I'm also a little tired of girl-in-pretty-dress covers. These can work for me if they're done well, though like Paranormalcy or Everneath.
I like slightly more abstract covers, too-- one of my favorites is Incarceron. It's so cool!
I LOVE symbolic covers like the Twilight series. I don't love close up on faces. I really want to picture the characters.
Going to the bookstore and browsing the covers in the YA section is an education. I would say more than 75% feature a hot girl, scantily clad. Some have the female looking hot and tough. Others just have her looking hot. Which is interesting, as boys won't pick up a book with a hot guy on it!
Tired of all the Twilight copycats. Black and white with splash of red. I have lots of friends in marketing that make fun of that.
I like a cover that represents something about the book - the Matched triology does this well - so does The Hunger Games.
I'm also a fan of symbol covers. The Wings cover is really quite pretty.
I like symbols. I love if it looks like a piece of art too, abstract. I really wish YA didn't have so many super pretty hair flowy covers. And there aren't a lot of guys on covers but I would hate if the trend was to put manly chests and abs on the cover, but I love Lola's cover. So cute.
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I am so tired of the girls in flowy dresses and the flowers on black or white backgrounds. So long as the flower relates to the story inside, great. But if it doesn't and it's just there to try to capitalize on the Twilight fanbase, I feel like it's a cheat.
I really prefer covers that relate in some way to the words on the inside, be that through an actual illustrated cover or the clever use of symbols in a strong image.
Absolutely no idea, but I enjoyed reading the post. I'm not that creative. If I like something artsy, I have no conscious reason why.
I really like your description of the Paranormalcy cover. That's what I tend to look for. I'm a big fantasy fan, so I also love covers that capture those "epic moments" that make me want to scoop the book up off the shelf immediately!
I had to click over to read the article. Quite interesting. I like a strong female character. I don't mind dresses. The "laying down" thing is kind of more popular than it needs to be. Doesn't really bring me into a story much. I do like the cover for Lola and the Boy Next Door. Not that it's perfect, but that Lola is intriguing. :)
I love all the covers; but the boy next door one kind of gets my interest the most. Like you say, the hair alone is awesome, but even the background is fresh and unique. Looks like a fun read. :)
I like people on the cover too, but I agree that the dress thing is overdone. I really like the wings one, symbols are great!
Love-Love-Love Lola and the Boy Next Door. Very approachable/relatable cover. I prefer "Image" covers like Elana Johnson's Possession and Surrender.
Love something on the cover that after you finish the book you're like, "Oh, I get it!".
I'm so sorry your daughter had to have surgery. It's so hard for us moms to see our kids go through hard things. And I'm so happy she's home and doing well.
You know, covers are a fascinating thing. I know a good one when it gives me the delicious chill of, Oooh, I want to read that!
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