I want a big beautiful bare manly chest on my next cover. Why? Because sex sells. Flesh tones, no matter where they fall in the spectrum, are as enticing as a siren's song. We're all drawn to them. Add a hand or two, or please God yes ... three or even four strategically placed, and let's see what we can accomplish.
I brush up against our biological need to breed in my latest release (release, insert juvenile chuckle here. Oh no, insert? What is wrong with me tonight?) Grading on Curves. The truth is, we are programmed to respond ... and we do.
What happens when a cover fails to express the passion, the emotion, the intensity of a book? Sadly, these otherwise wonderful reads are passed over like the wallflowers they are, never to be appreciated for the depth they might hold.
I admit it, I've bought and rejected countless books based on cover art. It's the first impression a book makes. The critical make-it or break-it moment they're given to win a reader. When it fails to deliver? Darkness and despair. Yep, I'm an author. But trust me, I know about this issue.
A good cover is our winning smile, our hearty warm handshake, our best outfit and our wittiest comment all in one. It's our crucial first impression and what we show will either entice a person to read our blurb or it will make them scan right on past what we have to say for ourselves. Do we all have to show up in panties and a garter belt? A push-up bra and sexy hosiery? Well yeah. What did you think? To discount the importance of this first impression is to discount the underlying biology that influences all of us.
- Tara Mills
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