The Devil is in the Details

I got my cover art last week. Or at least the sketch. I can’t post it here yet, since it’s not technically for public consumption. (But soon!)

And I’ll admit there were a few things I didn’t like, most of which have been remedied at the point, thanks to the art department at Pocket. (And thanks to Danielle for going to bat for me.)

Some of them were nit-picky, and some were rather obvious – i.e. wrong eye color for the heroine, etc. And truthfully I think it’s probably hard for most writers to see someone else’s portrayal of their “vision.”  However, with the changes made, I’m feeling much better about it, even if it’s not quite what I expected.

Part of my issue is that I’m very much used to the painted covers seen on most fantasy tomes – the ones that depict a scene from the book. But it seems UF covers aren’t always structured that way – and if there’s a bit of formula to them (i.e. the sassy hot chick in leather), it’s because that’s what sells and what readers of modern UF have come to expect. And seeing as I’d really like my book to sell, I’m going to trust that my publisher knows of what they speak. 😉

However, there was one small snag, as the depiction of Abby –  while quite smexy – also sports a rather large and glowing necklace. It’s big and blue and magical.Full of sparkles and mystery. 

Problem?

There is no such necklace in my story.

As a reader, how important are details on the cover? If you picked up a book with a glowing amulet around the character’s neck, it would probably be reasonable to assume said necklace might actually  have something to do with the story.

At least, I would. So I took steps.

Lucky for me I had plans for a magical necklace in the second book, so while it’s not a major plot point in BoD, it didn’t take much to at least juggle things so that it does make an appearance at the end. We’re in the middle of copyedits right now, so this is really my last chance for adding these sorts of little details, and thanks to a lucky conversation with Danielle I was able to tie things up very neatly and to my immense satisfaction.

+4 against incubus seduction, indeed.