Book cover changes are so controversial. Most of the time, people hate them. It messes up the aesthetic of your collection when not all of the cover matches, and often, it's a downgrade from what the original covers looked like. They can be frustrating and annoying (especially if they happen in the middle of a series).
Book cover changes often help sell more copies of the book! It brings interest back to the book, especially if it's a book that's been out for a while.
Not only does it generate buzz for people already fans of the book but it helps that renewed interest spread to more, new people. It draws back hardcore fans of the book to get this new edition while bringing in new readers who likely didn't have that book on their radar, forgot about it or are in a better position to buy it.
It also helps to rebrand the book! This rebranding helps attract new audiences by making the cover more attractive, especially to different/new types of readers. This is true with the kind of rebranding that makes the new cover more accurate for the book it's representing. This means making an Adult book have a cover that differentiates this genre from a YA book, for example. Or, more specifically, having a Fantasy have a cover that is distinguishable to that genre.
Examples of these include the new covers for the A Court of Thorns and Roses which aimed to really establish it as an adult book instead of the original covers which leaned more towards the YA side of book covers. The Winner's Trilogy also went from a very contemporary-esque cover with ball gowns towards a more fantasy cover including more weapons and a more badass-posing character.
Some of thee book cover changes are more successful than others. While a lot can look much better and more appropriate for their book, some can seem more like a downgrade and really deter attention and readers.
Some of my favorite cover changes:
Some of my least favorite:
What do you guys think of cover changes? What are your favorites/least favorites?
I understand the reasoning behind all the cover changes but I still continue to dislike them with the force of a thousand suns. My book shelf looks horrendous after a cover change. The series no longer matches. Yes it's vain but I want them to match and look pretty on my shelf. If at least publishers sold a dust jacket separately I could be talked down off the cliff I'm metaphorically on :)
ReplyDeleteI completely agree! It's so frustrating for cover changes to occur in the middle of the series which forever ruins how your collection looks. Every time I see that on my shelf, I always complain. I never thought about the individual dust jacket idea but it is GENIUS!
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