In Praise of Book Cover Designers

You can tell a great deal from a book cover if it has been designed well.
My four novels are published by Head of Zeus and cover two genres - contemporary fiction and psychological suspense. Readers are alerted to the genre from the moment they see the covers.

The top two covers are light and bright. In both we see women in a working environment clad in work clothes and going about professional duties. The background is a bank of screens representing TV screens as WOMAN OF THE HOUR and BEHIND HER BACK are set in a London TV station called StoryWorld. The novels follow the trials and tribulations of working mum and TV producer Liz Lyon.

Behind Her Back

Woman of the Hour

Vibrant orange and red have been chosen as the title colours. The covers tell the reader these books are contemporary fiction dealing with women's lives now.

After The Storm

In contrast, the covers for AFTER THE STORM and THE LIE OF YOU are characterised by dark backgrounds with slatted shadows falling across a woman's face and bold title colours. The use of shadows, reminiscent of film noir, evokes danger or inner turmoil. The large close up of a woman's face lets the reader know this book is about a woman and is probably told from her point of view.

The Lie of You

Both these novels are psychological suspense and the covers tell you that before you read a single page. I have a lot of respect for the work of book cover designers.