As I moved from the Advance Reading Copy to the First Edition of my new novel, I decided to make two tweaks in the cover design.
The photo itself remains unchanged. It’s the typeface that altered.
When I lined the original cover up beside the covers for the related books in the cycle of Cassia’s discoveries, I realized it’s serif typeface was out of step with the sans serif on the other three volumes. As much as I love serifs (they have more character, for one thing), I also saw that a sans would have more punch on the thumbnail size used to display most ebooks. OK, so that changed.
Again, as I considered the four books together, I saw something else happening. The next book in line, Daffodil Uprising, features a prominent daffodil bloom in a bright yellow antique-style drawing. The contrast between its artwork and the photo on What’s Left works, I think, but the white title somehow felt out of step.
That’s when the thought flashed, “You idiot! It has to be yellow! Like the yolk! Like the daffodil, too!”
Here’s the progression. First, the ARC:
Then the sans serif:
And finally color:
So here you have it. Any reactions?
You have also increased the font size for the title on the final copy. Without colour I think I would have preferred the original, but changing the colour of the letters to match the yolk makes the final copy the one that stands out.
Thanks!