After debating the plot for Perry’s (Lord Clement) book, I finally got it. Inspiration came while I was driving through town. It’s weird how I can be bouncing around ideas for months and suddenly find the right idea at the most unexpected time. Anyway, I’m going to have a heroine (probably a widow) who purposely creates a scandal to marry Perry. I still haven’t figured out why she creates the scandal, but there’s going to be a good reason for it.
So what I’m doing right now is trying to figure out a suitable cover to go with the book. I made three mock ups tonight and would like your opinion on them.
Before I get to the covers, I want to quickly add I had a great “aha!” moment with Runaway Bride while I was at my critique group today. I’m really excited with the direction the book is taking and want to feature one of the scene in this Sunday’s sample scene. :D
Now for the possible covers:
#1
#2
#3
Any thoughts?
I love Book Cover #1…seems to suit the title:)…just my opinion! That’s great that you had an unexpected ‘aha moment’…I get those once in awhile too. Kindof wish they would happen more often though…
Oh, I know. I so wish inspiration would strike more often.
Thanks for telling me the cover you like best. 
I love the third cover. fits your tendency to have a bride of some sort on your covers.
LOL I love brides. I think they’re so pretty.
I like #3
Thanks, Dawn.
It is hard to decide because I like them all but I think I like #1 better.
It is hard. That’s why I had to get others’ opinions.
Thanks for letting me know what you think.
I like #1
Thanks!
I love the red dress – I think it says scandal more than anything else; and the woman’s stance in that picture speaks more towards a ‘scandalous’, carefree or mother-may-care attitude. Personally, I like the first background; i think it works better with the dress, but only if it fits with the story.
I agree about the red dress. It sounds like most people like the background in #1 the best. I think #2 might be too busy. Honestly, I pick backgrounds based on how well they seem to go with the dresses the women wear.
Dear Ruth,
Bookcover No. 2 – the letters stand out better and are clearer. In No. 1 the image obscures parts of the title (if my browser is working correctly). The plot idea sounds intriguing. I like the red dress as it (for me, that is) relates better to the title. Also, the white letters are partially obscured by the white dress in Bookcover No. 3.
Covers 1 and 3 do need some tweaking. Cover 2 is probably more set as it is. That’s true about the color of the dress. Red suggests mischief a lot better than white.
I prefer the first cover. The bottom cover is much too demure for the title.
Cheryl
Hehe The title does imply the heroine shouldn’t be so innocent looking. I’ll have to consider that because it’s an excellent point.
#2 isn’t showing up.
1 it’s easier to read the text but I like the layout, etc of 3 better except that the text is hard to read )white on white) maybe a different text color on it? though that might not go with the rest of the series.
I’ve experimented with a couple of colors and white was the best one. Maybe I should try doing the shadow to see if it helps black stand out a little better. Do you think a different color might work better than black?
I like 1 and 3. I love the red dress in #1, but the light pink on the breast area blends into the sky. A thin red line that’s slightly blurred will take care of that. I love #3, however the white lettering blends into the dress too much. If you put a thin black line/shadow around the letters and blur it a little it would make the words stand out and the blur would soften the black.
I appreciate the tips. I’m torn between #1 and #3. Do you know how to put lines around letters in GIMP. I figured out the shadow thing and will try it. I’ll also modify cover #1 and see what I can do there.
I’m not sure with GIMP. I know that in paint.net I usually copy the layer with the letters so I have a bottom layer and invert the color to black. Then I’ll blur it or unfocus it enough to make the words stand out, Like a shadow. Or I make 3 more copies of the black letters and move each layer either up, down, or to either side, to outline the letters.
Thanks for the ideas. I think I can do a shadow effect on the title on cover 3. I’m going to try using a different part of the background behind the woman in cover 1 to see if I can get a better view of her. I’ll try the line idea, too.
I like #1.
I like the background in #1 better than #2, and she doesn’t look scandalous in #3.
It seems that #2 isn’t a good one, probably because the background is too busy.
I’m stuck between #1 and #3. In the end, I think it’s going to be which one makes for the best thumbnail look.
I like #3 A LOT but I don’t like the color of the font. The dress, the pose and the font are all beautiful, but it’s very hard to read. I’d say to either make it a different color altogether or you could outline it so it stands out.
I agree on the color of the font. I’ve been tweaking around with GIMP to see what I can do about it. A shadow or outline on the title might help. I’ll keep experimenting with the color, too. There has to be a way to do it so it works.
I love #3 it looks so elegant I have all of your book loaded on my nook and on my kindle so no matter which I am using I have your book always at hand and also my daughter loves to read them too so if I am reading on one she can read on the other makes us both happy
Thanks for the high compliment! I’m honored.
Also, thanks for letting me know which cover you like most!