The Wonderful World of Mirrors Forum BOOK COVER... For now that is

Luximir	BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago Been thinking of ways to do this... and here is the end result for a book cover (not final of course) Let me know what you think!
jjwilbourne	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago I like this. It doesn't give me the impression of fantasy, but it does give an impression of horror. His glasses are cracked. Broken glass is considered a bad thing and even though it's not a mirror technically, it still feeds the idea of broken mirrors mean bad luck. Cracked glasses in general are considered bad, so it gives a tone of something gone wrong or perhaps a dystopian society. There's a guy behind and out of focus. It makes me wonder if that guy is someone who's threatening the guy who can't see properly. Playing mind games because his distorted vision has rendered him offenseless. The glasses and haircut makes me assume the book is set in a modern construct. Not sure if this was helpful, but this is my impression of it. Covers are the number 1 biggest thing you can do to attract the attention of a reader and make sure they have an idea of what they're going to be reading. That's my impression and what I would think before considering opening it/buying it.
Cordelia Kaye	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago Hm... To me, it gives a different vibe than what you're trying to go for. Just as jjwilbourne said, it doesn't give me the sense of fantasy, but it doesn't really give me the sense of horror either. It feels too modern - as if you're going for a modern-day drama in a business or sort. I don't feel tense or captivated by it like a horror or a fantasy cover should be doing. I think what you should do (which is typical of most fantasy books, but effective) is find a relic or talisman in your story and use it as the main point of your cover. Maybe have it reflected in a mirror (a cracked one would be cool!) so it could keep with the title. Or maybe use some landscape from your story! Like a statue in the main capital (that would be a tough one because it would require more artistic skills, but there are several artists around the Internet that do commissions and maybe you could ask them to do one for you!). Just some suggestions! It is a nice, clean cover, but I just think it gives a different vibe to the reader than what they would expect to find in your story.
Luximir	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago I agree with you.. this current cover is not really.. the best for a fantasy novel. And I am realizing this more and more as I continue to write. The cube would be a cool cover, since it is the main symbol of the Order. Sadly, I have no money for a designer currently, so I will try and maybe find another way to do it for now :)
Luximir	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago Thank you and yes I also agree that the cover is the thing that gets people to buy the book. If you have any suggestions just let me know :)
jjwilbourne	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago Though you don't have any money, I would say the two things you should invest in are: editing and cover design. Everything else is secondary. Editing because you don't want to turn off your reader by a sentence of poor grammar. Though errors may still slip through, don't give people a reason to doubt your writing skill or fail to comprehend a piece of your story. Cover design because it is the single most effective thing you can do to get someone to read or buy your book. If you really think about it, most people DO judge books by their cover. If no one has suggested a book to you, how do you go about picking a good one? I'm willing to bet that you're going to pick up or click on one that catches your eye for the cover first. That first impression means volumes. It can be the difference between finding a hardcore fan and losing them forever. Once you've sold someone on the book, don't disappoint them with a poor edit. Two great places to look for cover art: 99designs.com - You can have people audition to make your cover. If you don't like any of them, you don't have to pay anything. deviantart.com - I posted a listing in the form on this site for design... I've received over 100 people sending me examples of their work and are wanting to work on it. Some of these people are really cheap and really skilled. I found several people I want to work with. Again, you said you don't have a budget for it. That's okay. Do the very best you can. But definitely save up if possible.
Luximir	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago Yes very true, these are the two things I do need to focus on. How much do you think an editor would cost? For the finance I have been thinking of doing a Kickstarter Campaign with the Novel (That is after I am publishing my first official book "First Steps in Western Occultism & Becoming a Modern Magi concerning Ancient Traditions; A Neophyte Guide to Magic" to gain a little 'fame' prior for making a campaign for the Novel. [Which should take over the cost for a good editor]. The Cover, I agree, it IS the first thing people look at when picking up a book. So, I will have to contact an artist and make sure that it looks awesome prior to starting the Campaign. I think a white background with mathematical shapes (a cube) with numbers and a red rose in the center would be a good start. Will think about it once I start to get closer to the end of the first book. :) Thank you for your great time and advice, it is very inspirational!
jjwilbourne	Re: BOOK COVER... For now that is 9 Years Ago Editors vary in price. Some editors will charge $200 where another would charge $1000. It will also vary based on the kind of edit you receive (Developmental, Line, Copy, Proofread). I think you'll mostly see rates that are between $0.009 to $0.035 per word. Simple Proofreading tends to be the cheapest followed by Copy, Line and Developmental. I have an article about each type of edit here: Some editors have slightly different definitions of each, but that's pretty much the breakdown. Some editors calculate their time per hour, but many calculate per word. This sucks if you're like me and your novels end up on the long side. I honestly wouldn't just seek out the cheapest editor though. If someone charges you $200 to line edit a 100k word novel, I would be wary. A couple other tips I've picked up: Ask for a sample edit and don't just do the beginning of the book. Pick a place in the middle. Every editor is different. This will be a way to see if you like their methods and if you seem to jive well. Try to find someone who likes the genre and style of your book. Maybe check to see if some of the books you like have their editors listed. Try to clean up your manuscript as much as possible before handing it off to them. You don't want to pay for mistakes you could have avoided yourself. The cleaner the draft is, the more time they can spend on making your words more powerful (instead of fixing stupid stuff). Also, Kickstarter is tricky. I've not tried it, but I've heard it works best when you have a platform. Sometimes there is kick back too. Some people don't like when people publicly ask for money. Most kickstarters fail, so I would be sure to look at the kickstarters that are like your project that are getting successfully funded. Study what they're doing and figure out a comparable plan. I hope some of that helps.