Furry Book Covers

Have a flair for poetry, stories, or even write songs? Need some advice or looking for a beta-reader? This is the place for you!

Moderator: Erdwolf_TVL

Post Reply
User avatar
Erdwolf_TVL
Posts: 94
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:41 pm
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Straight
Species: Aardwolf
Region: Western Cape
Location: Cape Town
Contact:

Furry Book Covers

#1

Post by Erdwolf_TVL »

A good cover can sell a book. My experience, however, is that furry books sometimes miss the mark and do a disservice to the actual writing.

This is often the case when the author commissions the art, but sometimes even small time publishers get it wrong. And neither is it a reflection on the competence of the artist.

Where does the breakdown occur? There certainly isn't a lack of talent or thought that goes into these things.

...

I have a few theories. But first I am going to show some examples.

This, in my opinion, is a GOOD cover...

Image

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Sails-Fallou ... he+fallout

So, what have we here? A lab rat with a laser chainsaw and another critter (a quoll if I remember correctly) dodging explosions and kicking glowing green skeletons in space suits in the face. Boom!

It is immediately clear that this is an action book with anthropomorphic characters. They are literally leaping off the page!

The font and the layout fits the theme, too. I would buy this book. In fact, I did. And I gave it 5/5.
User avatar
Erdwolf_TVL
Posts: 94
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:41 pm
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Straight
Species: Aardwolf
Region: Western Cape
Location: Cape Town
Contact:

Re: Furry Book Covers

#2

Post by Erdwolf_TVL »

This, in my opinion, is a cover that does not reflect the true character of the story in any shape or form.

Image

https://www.amazon.com/Edward-Highlands ... +book+2%29

A male feline stands uncomfortably between two teasing leopards on a stage. There are curtains and a piano. It whispers awkward romance novel, but actually, there is a nauseating amount of action sequences in this book.

Fans of furry romance may be disappointed when they start reading. And folks looking for an action piece... well... they may never pick this one up.

The font and choice of black as a colour doesn't do this cover justice either. I bought this book and enjoyed reading it. I gave it 4/5.
User avatar
Rakuen Growlithe
Fire Puppy
Posts: 6718
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2008 2:24 pm
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Bi
Species: Growlithe (pokemon)
Region: Other
Location: Pretoria
Contact:

Re: Furry Book Covers

#3

Post by Rakuen Growlithe »

I agree with what you have said about both covers (assuming that your description of the contents is accurate as I haven't read them) but I wonder how much of it is down to taste. For example, reWritten's cover was done by a South African artist (fur?) so I presume it was your choice. But Thurston Howl called the cover inappropriate for the genre. He also described the art as "stellar" but never really went into detail with what he found inappropriate; I assume then it is mostly a disagreement in taste.

I like how furry books generally show some of the characters and situations from the book itself. I guess that comes from a subculture where visuals are dominant. However, it's not necessarily the most common way of illustrating books. At the end of January there was an article all about book cover design which claimed that modern design trends are for bold and blocky. Here are some of the examples they show.

Image

For Black Leopard Red Wolf, which I am currently reading, the cover does reflect the contents in some senses. But I would guess that most of those covers don't really make an attempt to reflect the true character of a story. I don't see a very strong connection between the covers of Mostly Dead Things and Ginger Bread with their blurbs. Perhaps there's some abstracted symbolism which is only clear once you read the book but, for me, those covers aren't telling me much about the books.

Perhaps most covers are just trying to attract attention so that someone will read the blurb. If that's the case, then maybe reflecting the true character of the book is really only a secondary concern?
"If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind."
~John Stuart Mill~

“Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties.”
~John Milton~
User avatar
Erdwolf_TVL
Posts: 94
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:41 pm
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Straight
Species: Aardwolf
Region: Western Cape
Location: Cape Town
Contact:

Re: Furry Book Covers

#4

Post by Erdwolf_TVL »

I agree with Thurston... The cover for reWritten probably could have been done better.

Image

I am happy with the artwork, but overall it doesn't grab a potential reader as much as I had initially thought and hoped it would.

The problem with reWritten, was deciding whether it should present itself as a horror, or as an adventure piece. It was a bit of both, to be fair, so the cover was a compromise.

In reviews, I've had complaints that it is too light on the horror side. Looking back, I tend to agree with Fred Patten that it feels more like an imitation Indiana Jones with animal characters.

I think Thurston expected it to be more of a horror-themed cover, which would not have been hard to do had we selected a different scene for the cover.

The good thing, however, is we can all learn from our past mistakes. I'm hoping to get some professional input on the Greenfields cover.
User avatar
Erdwolf_TVL
Posts: 94
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:41 pm
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Straight
Species: Aardwolf
Region: Western Cape
Location: Cape Town
Contact:

Re: Furry Book Covers

#5

Post by Erdwolf_TVL »

Now, here is an interesting one. Kismet by Watts Martin. The book was issued with two distinct covers, each printed by a different publisher.

Image

(Published by FurPlanet Productions)

Image

(Published by Argyll Productions)

The book's contents is exactly the same in each case. The first cover was printed for furry-centric audiences. The second cover was printed for mainstream publication.

It is an amazing novel, by the way. Highly recommended. I gave it five stars.

Honestly, I like the mainstream cover better. It does a better job of portraying the eerie silence and desolation of space. It draws me in and makes me curious.

What do you think?
User avatar
Adagio
Warm Hearted
Posts: 3589
Joined: Tue Feb 07, 2012 7:06 am
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Other
Species: Snow Leopard
Region: Gauteng
Location: Pretoria, Silverton
Contact:

Re: Furry Book Covers

#6

Post by Adagio »

It makes me wanna read it... I'd agree. I dislike the furry-centric version, it looks... Disproportionate... But that's artistic... Where as the mainstream version looks more dramatic and well drawn...

Chances are it's the same artist...
Post Reply