If you're a bibliophile like me, do you wonder how publishers chose a book's cover design? Are there photographs or drawings on the cover? Are there bright colors on the cover? Is the cover clearly targeting a specific audience?
Book covers are important because they can influence reading choices; convey information such as a book's genre; generate interest and entice readers to learn more about a book; set the tone for the reading experience and create an emotional connection with a reader; stand out from the competition (other books); and be a marketing tool that helps sell a book.
According to Tim Kreider's article, "The Decline and Fall of the Book Cover" in The New York Times, "The main principles of design - in books, appliances, cars, clothing, everything - are: (1) Your product must be bold and eye-catching and conspicuously different from everyone else's, but (2) Not too much!"
According to Clare Thorp, "Covers can be a swift way to signal genre, but the good ones do more than that. They give face to a book's personality. They're what will make you pick it up in the first place, then keep it on your shelf to remind you what it meant to you."
According to Marielle Segarra in an article entitled, "Why It's OK to Judge a Book by Its Cover" from NPR, "I am the queen of judge a book by its cover. The reason you can [do that] is because there is a lot of effort and marketing that goes into making covers that tell you what's in the book, what kind of person it's for and what to expect. When you start to look at the books that you've loved in your life, you might notice some trends. When I look at my bookshelves, I have the most black books and the most red books, but I don't have a lot of green books. Whatever they're doing with the marketing for green books, not for me. I don't know if you should use a cover to pick a book 100 percent of the time. I have read books with gorgeous covers that I did not like. I have also read books that had embarrassing covers that I loved. But if you're at a bookstore trying to decide which of the three or four books to buy, pick what speaks to you and jumps out at you."
As I picked up a recent book to read, I wondered about this topic because there were many different covers based on the country where it was sold. The book is LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY by Bonnie Garmus. And if you've already read the book or watched the Apple+ television series, then you know what all the buzz is about. The simple plot line is this, "In the 1950's, Elizabeth Zott's dream of being a scientist is challenged by a society that says women belong in the domestic sphere; she accepts a job on a TV cooking show and sets out to teach a nation of housewives way more than recipes."
But back to this post's topic, the book's covers. According to The New York Times, "The United States edition, with its bubble gum pink cover bearing a stylized woman's face peering over a pair of cat-eye sunglasses, reads as overtly feminine, a light beach read for a day off. One can, of course, read any number of things at the beach. But some readers, at least, have been surprised to open it and find the story of Zott, a brilliant woman whose fetching chignon is secured by a No. 2 pencil also intended to ward off sexual assaults."
James Daunt, Barnes & Noble's Chief Executive Officer, explained, "Aiming the novel at a female readership is a bit pigeonholing, ultimately, the book has dominated the cover. And whether because of the cover or in spite of it, sales have been off the charts."
The covers in other countries paint a different picture: primary colors in Britain, sober in Germany, and surreal in Estonia.
Based on the letters the author received, LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY struck a chord with a wide range of readers, although the American cover might have scared off men. Garmus recalled talking to an all-male book club whose members were initially dissuaded by the cover's palette. According to Garmus, "The book is not anti-men, it's anti-sexism."
And according to Garmus when asked if she was furious about the pink chick-lit cover, "All I can say is, the publisher did let me have input, and I told them I thought it looked like chick-lit (nothing against chick-lit, but this book isn't that). Still, publishers have a lot of experience knowing what an audience will respond to, and they thought this was the best way. They've been great to work with; we just didn't see eye-to-eye on this. You can Google other covers from other nations and see if you think anyone else got a little closer. I think Germany and the UK both did a nice job."
According to The Publishing Post, "The US and UK cover designs, whilst both striking, are also quite different. The UK Cover is separated into four bright block squares, reminiscent of the periodic table, and can also be found under the hardcover jacket. The word "In" is stylized to look like the element Indium on the periodic table, providing another clear nod to chemistry, while a woman wearing a dress and heels is holding a television set. The screen shows a woman wearing a lab coat using a chemistry set, depicting Elizabeth’s job as a television cooking host during which she incorporates chemistry, her true love. By contrast, the US edition is pink with a woman's face peering over cat-eye sunglasses. This cartoon style design is especially popular for the romance genre. Whilst there is a love interest, this book is not a romance. In the US cover, the more light-hearted design contrasts with the contents as the book incorporates very serious themes such as sexual assault. However, there is still a nod to chemistry: a chemistry set is reflected in Elizabeth's glasses indicating that chemistry is constantly on her mind. The number two pencil which secures her hair references a pivotal scene and makes the character appear studious. Overall, the UK cover more accurately matches the book's tone but both are eye-catching."
In addition, here are two other books whose covers presented questions about content and target audiences:
AMERICAN DIRT by Jeanine Cummins featured blue birds, similar to traditional Mexican Talavera tiles, that were surrounded by barbed wire. Birds are symbols of peace, freedom, and hope - while the barbed wire kept people away from those things. The protagonist was on a journey to be free, like the birds, as she tried to escape her version of barbed wire.
THE LONELY HEARTS BOOK CLUB by Lucy Gilmore featured the illustration of a woman with bold colorful lines intended to be books. At its core, the book celebrated the power of friendship, the magic of books, and the unexpected joy found in unlikely connections, and while some men may think that the cover only appealed to women, there is no doubt that the cover's colors conveyed joy.
Have you read LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY? Did the cover entice you to read the book?
Since marketing is such an integral part of book publishing, what can your brand learn from this analysis to improve your brand storytelling?
SHARE THIS: Books are amazing - but do you choose them because of their cover design? ~@DebbieLaskeyMBA #DebbieLaskeysBlog
Image Credit: The Publishing Post (UK cover on left, US cover on right).
If you'd like to join the next Leaders Who Fiction virtual book club meeting (today at 1pm Eastern, 10am Pacific - we'll be discussing LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY), check out the club's website for details: https://www.leaderswhofiction.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for your comment!