So... Who Chooses Your Book Cover?

A while ago I wrote a blog called So - Who Chooses Your Book Title? based on the common misconception that authors choose their own titles. (If you'd like to take a look, here's the link.)

I also wrote a blog based around the idea that professional authors only write when inspiration strikes. As if! (If you haven't read that blog, here's the link.) Incidentally, this blog includes a piece of advice for all writers, professional and not-yet-professional, that everyone finds helpful.

Another common misconception loved by readers is, "...and of course, you design your cover, don't you?"

Er... no.

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Sorry to disappoint you, but it really doesn't work that way if you are traditionally published. What usually happens is that your publsher will present you with the almost-finished cover design and say, "We hope you love this as much as we do."

At that point, you can ask for very small - and I do mean very small - alterations, but that's it. An example would be to point out that a character on the cover should have a wedding ring. Or there might be something that is wrong for the year of the story that needs to be airbrushed out.

But essentially, the cover you're sent is the final one.

That doesn't mean an author never gets the chance to have meaningful input. For example, with the Railway Girls eries (written as Maisie Thomas) I was asked for physical descriptions of the girls and then I was sent photos of possible models - though it wasn't up to me to make the final choice.

When I wrote the descriptions of Joan, Mabel and Dot for book 1, I said Joan should have a young-looking face - and she certainly does. There she is, in the centre.

Because the Railway Girls covers featured trains, my husband, who knows his stuff where trains are concerned, was always asked to check that the train that was used was historically correct.

The train used for the cover of book 3 was actually the Royal Train from earlier in the century - which is why the roof of the train is slightly misted. The Royal Train had skylights in the carriages, and these needed to be faded out in order to give the train a 1940s look.

I was also consulted over the covers for books 2, 3 and 4 in the Surplus Girls books, my 1920s series (written as Polly Heron).

Book 2, The Surplus Girls' Orphans, and book 3, Christmas with the Surplus Girls, shared an original 1920s image, which, after some discussion was chopped in half to share out.

Here's the original picture:

So there you have it. No, authors don't usually get to choose their own titles... and they definitely do not work only when inspiration strikes... and they're lucky if they get to have serious input into their covers as well. You heard it here first!