A Picture is Worth....by Janice Carter



....a thousand words, as the old chestnut goes, but in this case, the picture is the sum total of 70K words, the average count for a Heartwarming romance. No, this post isn't a shameful promo of my upcoming July release - you'll have to wait for that! - but a look back to some cover art of Harlequin novels through the years.
    My first romance, an Intrigue, came out in the late 80s and I remember being surprised by the cover. Granted, it did represent a scene from the book, but it looked as though it should have fronted a comic book (what we called graphic novels back then). The characters were wearing clothes I hadn't pictured at all; in fact, my heroine's dress was described as 'jade green' in the book and after the cover art was done, I was asked to please go through the galleys and change all the 'jade green' references to 'turquoise'.

                                                 
    Shortly after the book was published, I was excited to be invited to tour the former Harlequin head office in Toronto. The halls were lined with large framed posters of cover art through the years - from old Mills & Boon covers to later Harlequins ones. They were typical of the eras in which they were published and the style of my book fit right in. I also learned how the covers were done: a tableau of a scene was created using actors, photographs were taken and finally artists completed the process by painting the scene.
    My second book cover was an even more obvious shout-out to pulp fiction, with flashy gold trim and characters who could have been action heroes. I got used to it eventually!  :)



    To my surprise, a couple of my covers didn't feature people at all. The setting of this one looks serene and peaceful, but the dark night hints otherwise, evoking the ominous undertones of the story inside.


   







The trend shifted at some point to the use of real people on the covers and I liked that.


 Nowadays apparently, stock images are used as cover art. That can lead to both positive and negative results, as sometimes images don't accurately reflect written descriptions. But perhaps that isn't the important part of a cover at all.
    Notes from the recent Heartwarming Summit indicate that covers are crucial to sales. Something has to compel a person to take a particular book off a shelf and to then read the back blurb. And that something of course, is the cover.
   So while I've sometimes had mixed feelings about my covers, I've always come to cherish and love them. The represent the hard work and the unbelievable thrill of all 'births', don't they?
  What are some of your favorite covers?

My current favorite naturally, is this one.



Thanks for joining!  Janice Carter

Comments

  1. I don't blame you for choosing this one as your favorite. Our book covers are so up-to-date, aren't they? Her Kind of Hero has such an inviting scene to lure readers in! All the best with it.

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  2. Like you, I have come to love most of my covers (with a few notable exceptions.) I really love Heartwarming covers. They fit really well. I still prefer covers without people, but have come to accept that I'm in the minority there.

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    1. I like the Heartwarming covers too Liz. And would also like to see some without people, but.....:)

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  3. Thanks for sharing all your older covers. I love them!

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  4. Wow, think of all the work that went into hiring actors, photographers, and then painters. Some of those covers remind me of my Nancy Drew books. I do love the couple at the lake. It looks like the new covers coming next year will have more picture showing, so even better, I think.

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    1. Nancy Drew! Of course Beth! That was the comparison I was looking for. I’m excited to see the new Heartwarming covers too.

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  5. Heartwarming covers are some of the best!

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  6. My dh started framing my covers and putting them up on a wall in my office. Looking back at them really shows the variety over the years and with the different lines. I don't have any I really dislike. One they got the medals wrong on a military hero, but mostly I like them a lot.

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  7. As a little girl, I loved going to the drugstore with my mom because while she waited in line at the prescription window, I could study all the different romance novel covers. I really do love the Heartwarming covers right now. So many of the scenes are so beautiful and I almost always prefer a cover with people on the front. Your new book cover is charming!

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  8. I love the Heartwarming covers. I’m drawn to read the books because of the inviting covers. I have to admit that it’s the cover that I notice first when looking for a book, unless it’s a cherished author. I love yours!! Her Kind of Hero is definitely an attention grabber!! ( :

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