Since so many people here were involved, I asked the cover artist, Kirk DouPonce, to share his perspective on the occasionally contentious process of creating the cover for A THRONE OF BONES. It turned out to be so interesting that I suggested posting it at Black Gate to John O’Neill, who readily concurred:
Over the past 17 years, I’ve gotten to design a pile of book covers, well over a thousand if my math is correct. And if I learned anything at art school, it was math. So when I say A Throne of Bones is my favorite cover so far, it does mean something….
Scientifically speaking, women read approximately a lot more books than men do. This is especially true when it comes to fiction. So when I design fiction covers for publishers, no matter what the genre, I know how important the female demographic is. Covers need to appeal to women. Simple enough.
Or not. I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start at the beginning of the process.
Read the rest at the Black Gate.