I posted a topic regarding my story’s cover right here, and people left some much appreciated feedback.
Let me share the feedback with per cover. So you can help me decide. Please keep in mind, that Option 03 hasn’t received feedback yet. My notes will be in the blue shade I often put my titles in.
Person 01: “I like the first better… The Moon and the Tiara (if that is what it is) is much more fitting in size and shade. The Title also looks fitting in the tone overall with it’s moody shading…”
Person 01: “To be totally honest here… If I saw this cover on a bookshelf, I’d pick it up and take a read of the blurb… Even if it was not the type of tale I was looking for… The Look alone would have me reach for it. The simplicity is stunning, and I don’t really like overly colourful and detailed covers anyway, but this speaks of subtle class…”
Person 02: “The first one is a bit simple, but the way the words are at the bottom makes it pop in its own way. Showcasing the moon and tiara only works and brings in potential readers.”
Person 03: “(…) but I like the placement of the crown and I really prefer the typeface choices better in the first one.”
Person 03: “(…) Overall impression is that I like the first one better because it conveys the information better and that’s more important than the graphics for any design that has both text and images”
I really understand where these people are coming from. Sadly I haven’t saved the PSD file I was working in for this specific cover and don’t remember which PSD colouring/filter I used, nor do I remember the font I used. Which led me to create cover option 02.
Person 02: “The second one feels like there is too much going on and having the words in the moon makes it a bit hard to look at.”
Person 03: “I like the colour, added butterfly elements, and background beneath the moon and tiara better in the second one.”
Person 04: “In the second one it’s really difficult to read the title.”
Again, I can see where they’re coming from. I tried all the shiny metal styles in my “inventory” in Photoshop. I used butterflies because I heard somewhere they represent a new change, a new beginning. Since I didn’t like the way the butterflies looked without the sparkles, I added the sparkles. Which added some whimsical vibe to the cover. I decided to recreate the cover as best as I could, not realizing until I posted the third option, that I used a colour filter I had downloaded from DeviantArt.
This is the third and final option so far. While it doesn’t have the colour filter I tried finding the font, but couldn’t find it. I opted for the second best which was Optimus Princeps. I simply used picture editing options to gain the not so bright tiara/crown. I didn’t resize it either, but I like this overall black/white cover. Especially with the topics this story mentions: civil war, murder, poverty, crime, etc. It’s looking bleak for Sabree in the very beginning of the story. Until she meets Lorcan.