My Professional (and Possibly Unpopular) Opinions about Book Covers
- Jenna Moreci
- May 11
- 8 min read
HelloOoOo everybody!
Today, we're covering common beliefs about book covers that I don't particularly agree with, as well as some of my personal unpopular opinions about book covers. Some people will get upset by this video. But what else is new?
Most of these points are relevant to the publishing industry as a whole, while some are fixated more on self-published books or pretty much any book where an author has some degree of control over their cover. AI covers, cover art trends, cover models who have lost their shirts—we’re talking about them now.
This video is sponsored by GetCovers. As always, all opinions are my own.
If you haven’t already, don’t forget to also subscribe to my YouTube channel for more writing tips, sarcasm, and of course, more of Princess Butters!
Number 1: I Don’t Think Book Cover Trends Are a Bad Thing
Some of you are already clutching your pearls. And to be honest, there was a time when I would be right there with you. But the longer I've been in this industry, the more I've learned, and I've come to realize that book cover trends are a real asset to writers and even to readers.
Now, I'm not the type of person who usually cares about trends. I'm neurodivergent. I like to march to the beat of my own drum. But book cover trends are an exception. I have found them super helpful to my writing journey because they easily communicate very important messages to readers at a single glance. If your cover matches a particular trend, whether it's a modern trend or an older one, it communicates three things at a minimum:
What genre the book is
Around what time the book was released
What age range the book is meant for
This is valuable information for readers, especially because not everyone reads the back of the book.
"But Jennaaaa, book covers are about creativity. I want to design something unique.”
Actually, the book is about creativity. The cover is a marketing feature. If you wanted to be creative, you were supposed to do that while writing the story. And besides, you're not supposed to design the cover. That’s the job for a professional cover artist.
I just think when writers mope about book cover trends, it usually comes from a lack of experience. Yeah, it sucks when a trend isn't your favorite, but outside of that, they work in your favor. You get an instant guide to what readers are looking for in your genre. You have a perfect blueprint for producing a marketable first impression of your novel. You can either complain about it, or you could put that knowledge to use and sell a whole bunch of books. Study the trends. Check out what your readers are gravitating toward. And when you get together with your cover artist, allow them to create an image that will give your book its best chance.
Number 2: I Like the Cartoony Rom-Com Covers
If you're not familiar, the current trend for a typical rom-com novel is an illustrated cover featuring the two main lovebirds in what I would describe as a semi-realistic digital art style. And a lot of people hate that shit. I'll admit, when the trend first started, I hated it too. But that's because at the time, the style was a lot more minimalist. The characters were usually faceless. They looked like paper cutouts of people. And that creeped me out. But now that the illustrations have evolved to be much more detailed, I think they're cute, and I don't see where all the hate is coming from.
“But Jennaaa, my child likes cartoons. They're going to see this book and think it's for them.”
Why exactly is your child perusing the adult romance section of a bookstore or a library, let alone checking out books or making purchases? When I was a kid, my parents would regularly take me to the local Blockbuster (because I'm old). I loved dolls. So I'd see the Chucky movie on display, and without fail, I'd say, “Mom, let's get this one.” You know what she'd say? “No, Jenna, you wouldn't like that. It's for adults.”
Be a grown-up and pay attention to your kid! That means paying attention to what they consume. If these rom-com covers were featuring cartoon pigs in red dresses or ducks wearing sailor caps and no pants, then yeah, I'd understand there are some mixed messages going on. But the artwork on these covers doesn’t look childish. I've seen one featuring a vibrator!
Have we forgotten that illustrated and animated media isn't just for kids? I mean, hentai exists. I'm just saying. The argument that these covers are confusing isn't a great one. It's very important for writers to be cognizant of their audience when they're writing for children. But it's not their job to babysit other people's kids when their books are written for and explicitly marketed to adults.
Number 3: You Can Absolutely Judge a Book by Its AI Cover
We already know that generative AI is sucking up all our water and making people stupid. It's destroying our planet and our brains, which should be all you need to prove that you shouldn't use it for a book cover. But even if none of that was true, it's still a horrible idea to use generative AI for your book cover. For starters, generative AI creates by plagiarizing real living artists. We writers should be very concerned and empathetic about plagiarism, because that's something we never want to have happen to us. If you're using the plagiarism machine to make your book cover, you're basically cosigning the theft of creative work. And writing is creative work.
Not only is this a huge slap in the face to other creatives, like writers. But it also sends a very clear message to your readers, which is that you have no problem with copying. This brings the content of your novel into question. If your cover is plagiarized, who's to say that the inside of your book isn't as well? It's easy to assume that the content of your novel isn't of high quality if you didn't bother to ethically produce a quality book cover.
“But Jennaaa, I hired a cover artist, and they used AI art.”
That's super unfortunate, but also potentially negligent. Did you ask this artist if they use AI? Was that information readily available? Because it usually is. On top of the fact that AI is really easy to clock using your own two eyes.
“But Jennaaa, some traditional publishing houses are using AI cover art.”
When I met with my traditional publishing team to discuss my book cover, the very first thing I said was that I would not allow any AI art for my book cover. We got that cleared up before we even pitched concepts. It was that easy. Obviously, everyone's experience is different, and we all make mistakes. But if a powerful, popular author comes out with an AI cover, I can almost guarantee they had the power to veto that decision.
Number 4: What’s the Big Deal With Shirtless Guys on Book Covers?
Shirtless guys on book covers is a huge running joke within the bookish community, and I will admit, it is extremely common. But I also don't think it's that big of a deal. Some people take issue with it because it's the blatant sexualization of the male body, and that's undeniable. But our society sexualizes the shit out of women on a constant basis. Does society sexualize men, too? Of course. But not nearly to the same level, which has been proven statistically. Everywhere we look, we are greeted by nearly-naked women. Abs on a book cover is pretty tame in comparison.
Some people take issue with this trend because they have an issue with the genre as a whole. You usually see shirtless men on erotica or romance covers, and seeing as these genres are predominantly written for women, they are often written off as baseless or stupid. But people read for entertainment, and erotica and romance are no different.
And why wouldn't women want to read genres where good things happen to other women? Where they're worshiped, respected, and adored? Why is your pew-pew space opera any more valid than a story of two people falling in love in the countryside, and one of them just so happens to lose their shirt every once in a while? It's perfectly fine if you don't enjoy these genres. But if you think they're inferior to other genres, your misogyny is showing.
And lastly, there are people who are just afraid to read these books in public. They think everyone's going to be looking at them and thinking, “Oh shit, she's reading about ding dongs!” And to that I say, yeah, I see your point.
Number 5: We Can Always Tell When You Designed It Yourself
“But Jennaaa, I used professional software to design mine.”
We can still tell.
“But Jennaaa, graphic design is my passion.”
We can definitely still tell.
“But Jennaaa, that one super popular author designed her cover.”
And literally everyone could tell. We've already talked about this. Your book cover is a marketing tool. It's the first thing your readers are going to see. You want it to be perfect. Which is why, if you're publishing your book yourself, you need to hire a cover designer. I have known people who were great with Canva and Photoshop, who were digital artists and web designers, and they thought they could totally design their book covers themselves. And all of their book covers sucked because they weren't cover artists.
Book cover art is its own design specialty. It takes a specific skill set and knowledge. Even if you're fantastic with stock photos and illustrations, what about the layout and dimensions? What about adjusting for paperback and hardback? What about the typography? The number one thing you guys mess up is the typography.
I'm a thrifty woman. I wouldn't recommend you spend your money frivolously. But if you're self-publishing your novel, this isn't a frivolous expense. It's a necessary one.
So that's all I've got for you today!
Thank you to Getcovers for sponsoring this post. GetCovers is a company consisting of book cover artists, graphic designers, and managers dedicated to making your self-publishing journey easier. They create affordable visuals on strict short deadlines to help you get more readers, and their goal is to give you the best quality-to-price ratio the market has to offer. What exactly does that mean? You get a quality professional book cover for package prices starting at just $10 to $35. And that's before discounts!
On top of that, GetCovers offers free unlimited revisions. They're not stopping until the author is 100% satisfied. And covers are created using fully licensed fonts and images, which are super important. They also offer additional services, including author logo design and book marketing materials, to help promote your book. Because let's be real, half of an author's job is self-promotion.
If you're looking for a professional, affordable book cover, look no further. GetCovers has you covered. See what I did there? I got them linked right here. Get on it.
*This post is sponsored by GetCovers. As always, all opinions are my own.
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