Publishers may think a cute animal on the cover is what sells in the supermarket, but ask around online and those who buy pet books will tell you otherwiseThe moment of receiving your first book jacket is one that every author remembers. I was so excited when I got mine – a jacket, for a book, written by me, that was going to be published – it took me a while to realise it wasn't quite right. When the time came for the smaller, mass market paperback edition of the book concerned (a memoir about my golfing adolescence, called Nice Jumper) and my agent and I suggested a change of image, my publishers were only too happy to work towards something that suited everyone. That was 12 years ago, though, and the publishing industry has changed a lot since then, with supermarkets becoming increasingly dominant and power swinging away from editorial and towards sales. It had already changed a lot by early 2009 when Simon & Schuster, the publishers of my fifth book, Under the Paw, sent me their proposal for the book's paperback edition. I instantly knew I hated the cover and instantly knew there was not a lot I could do about it.In Under the Paw, I'd written about the chaos of more than three decades living at the beck and call of several of the world's most demanding felines. I was realistic about the book's marketing: although proper writers such as William Boyd, Kate Atkinson and David Sedaris had said nice stuff about it, it was, after all, a memoir about some cats, and no... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2013-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pantone's Color of the Year for 2023 is Viva Magenta, and we've got a roundup of books fit for celebrating the new color. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-12-16 11:38:00 UTC ]
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For what is now the seventh time in a row, I am pleased to present the best book covers of the year—as chosen by some of the industry’s best book cover designers. This year, I asked 31 designers to share their favorite covers of the year, and they came back with a grand total of […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-12-13 09:55:52 UTC ]
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Two petitions sought to block Barnes & Noble and independent booksellers from selling “Gender Queer” and “A Court of Mist and Fury” to minors in Virginia because of the books’ sexual content. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-08-31 19:12:46 UTC ]
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The judge in two obscenity cases in Virginia that targeted two books—Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas—has dismissed the cases, saying that the books are not obscene under the law and the law that pertains to the litigation is itself flawed.... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-31 13:48:46 UTC ]
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Another month of books, another month of book covers. The hazy rainbow trend is back for August, in among a series of bold and mysterious cover treatments. Featuring a whole lot of red and some I-wish-this-was-a-poster standouts. Here are my favorite book covers of the month—as always, feel free... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-31 12:51:26 UTC ]
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In The Association of American Publishers and Authors Guild had filed an amicus brief in the case, which sought to limit sales of two books. The post Virginia Judge Rules Against Book-Banning Attempt appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-08-30 22:31:10 UTC ]
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Designing a book cover is challenging, even more so when the work contains a raunchy subject matter. How do you convey, in a single glance, that the book is sensual, even sexy, without falling for pornographic tropes? My debut novel, Little Rabbit, is about a sub/dom relationship between a... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-06-30 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Cheek and irreverence abound in my favorite book covers this month. I also noticed an unusual number of interesting textures at play, some excellent uses of text as image, and at least a few geometric echoes bouncing around in there. But as ever, though I love to try to draw connections here in... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-03 08:51:46 UTC ]
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Last year not only marked the twentieth publication anniversary of Jonathan Franzen’s The Corrections, it also saw the release of his first novel in seven years, Crossroads. So it was only fitting that Picador would embark on a redesign of the author’s backlist. We spoke with Alex Merto, the art... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-03-17 08:54:52 UTC ]
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Another month of books, another month of book covers. This February, while short on days, was long on eye-catching cover art—from the moody to the playfully nostalgic to the downright naughty. Below, my favorite book covers from February. Colorful blobs are a certified cover trend, but it’s the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-02-28 09:51:41 UTC ]
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Let's take a peek at a handful of YA book covers with different, compelling, and interesting designs outside of the US. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-02-06 11:32:00 UTC ]
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"The Books of Jacob" is an incredible epic by recent Nobel Prize winner Olga Tokarczuk Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-02-01 13:00:00 UTC ]
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While 2022 may have started with a whimper when it comes to the things that really matter—voting rights, filibuster reform, vaccines for children under 5, a robust and timely government pandemic response—it also started with some pretty nice-looking books. This month, my favorite book covers are... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-01-28 09:51:39 UTC ]
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On January 14, 1963, poet Sylvia Plath published her first novel in England under the pseudonym “Victoria Lucas.” The book had a positive but relatively quiet reception; only a few weeks after its publication, on February 11, Plath would die by suicide. It wasn’t published in the US until 1971,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-01-14 09:50:32 UTC ]
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BBC News journalist and broadcaster Reeta Chakrabarti is to chair the panel of judges selecting the Costa Book of the Year. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-20 21:51:05 UTC ]
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Lit Lists The past year and a half of being stuck inside and working from home has led many of us to turn to our pets as consistent conversational companions. For some, we have even adopted the peculiar social practices of our furry friends. If you are... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2021-12-09 15:24:00 UTC ]
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Here's what it's really like to judge a children's book award, including the surprising best part of the process (it's not the free books!) Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-12-08 11:33:00 UTC ]
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Last week, the Electric Lit team stayed glued to our phone screens as we tasked our social media followers with anointing the best book cover of 2021. The tournament was full of close calls determined by razor-thin margins (Mona at Sea prevailed over Black Girl Call Home by just five votes in... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-12-06 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Back by popular demand, Electric Literature is hosting our second annual “Best Book Cover of the Year” tournament, where readers determine which cover designs impressed in 2021. Just as the Italian Renaissance was born of the bubonic plague, will covid’s enduring grasp on society inspire... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-11-29 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Over the past few years, there’s been a lot of heated discourse surrounding a trend in book covers in which many new releases opt for variations of the same colorful abstractions: The Blob. Somehow deemed appropriate for everything from dystopian debuts to literary fiction bestsellers, these... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-11-05 11:00:00 UTC ]
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