Judging a book by its cover.

by Joelle Charbonneau

I love walking through bookstores. To me it's like a room full of chocolate coated pretzels without the calories. Or maybe kettle corn. I’m a sucker for kettle corn. And by the number of titles stuffed in my shelves, it’s clear I can’t resist buying books. I love browsing the front tables to see what's new. More often than not, I go into a bookstore intending to purchase one or two specific books and end up walking out with a bag full.

Lately, I’m been considering why that is…aside from my obvious book addiction. Yes, I read the inside flap or the back of the book blurb to see if the book is up my alley. I flip to the first page and see if the book captures my interest immediately. If the book passes those two tests I head for the checkout counter.

But why did I pick up those books in the first pace? The cover, of course. We always hear that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Still, unless it's an author you already know and love, how else is a book supposed to get a potential reader’s attention? Russell McLean led a great discussion on the DoSomeDamage blog not too long ago about how covers affect the way he thinks about a book. Which makes sense. The cover is the first impression for most readers. It’s a lot like dating. While the outside package isn’t as important as the inside, it is the first thing you see. If the person has a multi-colored mullet and smells of garlic, you might not be inclined to get to know them further no matter how smart or funny they are.

And everyone’s first impression is different. One reader’s perfect cover is another reader’s automatic ‘no way’. Sue Grimshaw, Borders romance buyer and all around fabulous person, tells us that romance covers showing bare-chested men fly off the shelves. And I believe her, but those covers don’t speak to me. I don’t know why. I’m not opposed to fantastically sculpted male chests. In fact, I highly approve of them. I just don’t pick up books because of them. Now I’m just guessing, but I’m pretty sure lots of male readers think a sexy woman in a low cut top is interesting, but those guys won’t pick up novels featuring that same thing on the cover.

I guess what I'm saying is each person’s first impression of a book is different. As authors, we hope the cover that wraps around our words speaks to as many readers as possible. I know I’m keeping my fingers and toes crossed that my cover does. After much nail biting, I finally have one. The question is: what impression do you think Skating Around the Law’s cover coveys to a browsing reader? And please, tell me: what kind of covers you are drawn to in the book store? I’ll be taking notes.




Yes...even Phineas and Ferb tackle this issue. It's about 35 seconds into the video. Sorry, I'm not technically savvy enough to edit. And let's face it, Phineas, Ferb and the gang are fun. So please enjoy.