{"id":1358,"date":"2013-05-13T10:24:48","date_gmt":"2013-05-13T10:24:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomastaylor-author.com\/?p=1358"},"modified":"2022-01-17T12:22:00","modified_gmt":"2022-01-17T12:22:00","slug":"haunters-cover-comparison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.paulkirkdesign.co.uk\/devblock\/ttaylor111\/haunters-cover-comparison\/","title":{"rendered":"Haunters Cover Comparison"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s hard to believe it\u2019s been almost a year since my debut novel \u2013 Haunters<\/em> \u2013 was published. Now the book is beginning to appear in other countries — some with that distinctive British cover, and some with a different cover altogether \u2013 I though it would be interesting to compare how different publishers have interpreted the book. Especially as the three covers I\u2019ve seen so far are so very different from each other.<\/p>\n

Haunters in the UK (and Australia and New Zealand)
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"I was impressed by this design the moment I saw it. I felt the designer (the brilliant Steve Wells<\/a>) had found a striking way to evoke the ghostliness of the story whilst still hinting that something other than a conventional ghost story would be found between the covers. If it\u2019s true that a good cover tells you not just what a story is about but also how a story will feel<\/em>, then I think this is successful. The acid yellow text in a band down the side wraps the whole thing up nicely, but in a way that\u2019s also unsettling.<\/p>\n

I did have some initial concerns that the skull didn\u2019t read very clearly through the boy\u2019s face \u2013 it looked more like someone wearing glasses \u2013 but I can see that this is about the best that can be done without using some very expensive printing technique.<\/p>\n

Haunters in the US<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"When I first saw this, I was taken aback by just how differently Scholastic<\/a> had chosen to brand the book. Here we\u2019re firmly into the realms of action, adventure and sci-fi, with strong hints of Back to the Future<\/em> or the film Jumper<\/em><\/a>. Not that any of this is inappropriate \u2013 the book is certainly all these things. This is a great cover image (by the award winning illustrator John Picacio<\/a>), and one that should play well with the core readership (10+, mostly — though I hope not exclusively — boys). I can\u2019t wait to see a copy of the book in my hands. The best way to account for the wide difference between the US and UK covers is to say that the book draws on a very broad base for its inspiration, with traditional ghost story themes woven into those of time travel and dreamwalking.<\/p>\n

I have no real criticisms, but the blue of the title blends into the blue of the background in a way that makes it hard to read. This does have the effect of creating an iconic, textless cover image viewed from a distance, though, which is striking. But personally I would have expected the text at the top to pick up red\/orange\/pink tones from the colour elements in the bottom part of the image.<\/p>\n

Haunters<\/em> will be published in the US<\/a> next month, in hardback initially. I\u2019m looking forward to getting feedback from readers there on the cover, as well as the story itself (I’ve already been shown a good Kirkus review). Keep your eye on this blog for a giveaway in the next few weeks.<\/p>\n

Haunters (Dromenjagers) in the Netherlands<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Here we\u2019re different again, with a cover that is very dark and contrasting. And if the UK version emphasises the ghosts, while the US one the time travel, then the Dutch publisher, The House of Books<\/a>, have gone straight for the dreamwalking\/near-death\/out-of-body aspects of the story. And I\u2019m pleased because these were precisely the elements that were strongest in my mind when I wrote Haunters<\/em>. The fact that the \u2018light at the end of the tunnel\u2019 motif also looks like an unblinking eye (an image used in the book) is a really nice touch.<\/p>\n

Using a lot of black does have its risks though, and the Dutch edition certainly isn\u2019t as eye catching as the British or American ones, but once spotted, I believe the cover is more than intriguing enough to draw potential readers to at least read the blurb on the back. Let\u2019s hope they want to read more.<\/p>\n

Dromenjagers<\/em> (love the title in Dutch!) is due out in September.<\/p>\n

In conclusion, I have to say that \u2013 while I slightly prefer the UK cover overall \u2013 I\u2019m delighted to see such strong visuals on my book. When I\u2019ve seen more of the designs for the German and Spanish editions<\/a>, I\u2019ll update this post. I\u2019m looking forward to that. In the meantime, please let me know what you think, and \u2013 of course — which is your favourite.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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