My Survey of Readers’ Opinions on Styles for Book Covers

 

Earlier this month, I asked my newsletter subscribers to vote about their preferences for book covers for epic fantasy stories. Most epic fantasies have people/characters on the covers. Some stories have landscapes or scenes without people. Other books like Game of Thrones have more abstract images.

I offered three options for books covers and gave the examples shown in the header image.

 

Survey Question:

What type of book cover do you prefer?

A.            A picture with one or more characters in the story.

B.            A landscape, castle or cityscape from the story.

C.            An abstract symbol such as the ring in Lord of the Rings.

 

Survey results:

176 people voted on the question about style of book cover.

35.2% voted for a picture of one or more characters.

49.4% voted for landscapes, castles or citiscapes from the story.

15.3% voted for an abstract design.

The landscape style of cover image had the most votes (almost half of all votes). The abstract symbolic design had the fewest votes.

The results of this survey suggest that I should change the cover on my new epic fantasy to a landscape or setting from the story and omit pictures of the characters. The current cover is shown below.

 

Bridget Bramble and the Wandering Elf

Fantasy romance. A young witch flees the destruction of her home to seek the fabled land where elves and humans live in peace.

In a land threatened by cruel invaders from the east, Bridget Bramble barters medicinal herbs and buttons for a living. When marauders target her village and murder her family, she flees into the woods. Armed with her Granny’s advice and a bag of magic buttons, she sets out on the perilous journey to Oakenwald, the fabled land where elves and men live in harmony. On her travels, she encounters malicious creatures from the worst kind of folktale.

Lost in the foothills of the mountains, Bridget meets the elf, Windswift the Wanderer. He offers to guide her across the mountain range. But what is the elf doing in human lands? Can an ordinary, or almost ordinary, human girl trust a cold hearted elf to lead her to safety? 

99c at Amazon   iBooks   B&N   Kobo  GooglePlay   Other

 

A different perspective? - Excerpt from Bridget Bramble and the Wandering Elf for #WeWriWa

 

Relax for the Labor Day holiday! 

Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday. Sample the work of a new author. Read snippets of stories in different genres.

For this holiday weekend, I’m revisiting an earlier book. My new epic fantasy, Bridget Bramble and the Wandering Elf, is discounted to 99c for September to generate interest. I’m currently, albeit slowly, writing the second book in this series. Also I’ll need new covers since the initial cover cannot easily become part of a series with consistent images. I’m considering a switch to more abstract, symbolic covers for this series instead of images of characters. What type of cover do you prefer?

Here's a teaser excerpt from the book: The elf, Windswift, is guiding Bridget on a difficult path through the mountains to the haven of Oakenwald. 

The path curved around a ridge out of sight of the main road. Beyond the ridge, it narrowed and cut across a precipitous slope. In many places, the track simply disappeared among the rocks.

Bridget bit back a groan. The track, scarcely wide enough for one person, was not a road in her way of thinking. Elves had a different perspective as well as their mysterious magic. Windswift seemed to be following a clear path, familiar from earlier journeys or marked by secret elvish signs.

Careless of the rattling stones, she hurried up the final stretch to join him.

He merely nodded and walked on.

Nine lines and a little more: 

Past the next curve, the path grew worse. It became a thin rock bridge spanning two mountainsides, a knife edge scarcely wide enough for one person’s feet. Sheer cliffs plunged down for hundreds of feet on either side of the track. 

Bridget gasped in dismay.

Terrified of falling, she slowed to a shuffle, placing one foot at a time with desperate care. Her pulse thudded in fear. She dared not look down past the surface of the track.

A violent gust slammed against her, knocking her off balance.

She stumbled.

Her foot slipped over the edge. Tottering over the precipice, she shrieked in terror.

A vice-like grip on her arm halted her descent. With a strong tug, she was pulled into the elf’s arms.

“You are safe,” he said. “I will hold you secure.” 

She laid her head against his chest and wrapped her arms around him. He felt warm against her cold cheeks and his back was firm under her clutching fingers. Her initial rush of gratitude shifted into a new emotion. His warmth tickled her senses and sparked desire for his embrace. But he would reject her. Elves despised humans.

Gradually recovering her wits, she said, “I’m sorry. I’m scared of falling. I can’t go on.” 

“Don’t be afraid, Bridget. We have only a little farther to go. I’ll hold your hand and steady you on the path.”

 

Fantasy romance. A young witch escapes the destruction of her home and embarks on a perilous quest for the fabled land where elves and humans live in peace.

In a land threatened by cruel invaders from the east, Bridget Bramble lives in a small village where she barters herbs and carved buttons. When marauders target her village and murder her family, she flees into the woods. Armed with her Granny’s advice and a bag of magic buttons, she sets out on the perilous journey to Oakenwald, the fabled land where elves and men live in harmony. As she travels farther from home, she encounters malicious creatures from the worst kind of folktale.

Lost in the foothills of the mountains, Bridget meets the elf, Windswift the Wanderer. He offers to guide her across the mountain range. But what is the elf doing in human lands? Can an ordinary, or almost ordinary, human girl trust a cold hearted elf to lead her to safety? 

Epic fantasy adventure and romance with darker overtones. This story weaves elements of folklore and a quest for a safe haven in a land where magic is real.  

99c at: AMAZON   iBooks   B&N   Kobo  GooglePlay   Other

I’ll be happy to reply to your comments. 

Please return to http://wewriwa.blogspot.com/ to sample the works of the other writers.

 

Find a catalog of my published stories HERE.

Join me on Facebook and Twitter 

September Specials – Discounted and Free Stories in #Sci-Fi and #Fantasy

 

Sep 1-30: New Frontiers #Sci-Fi #eBooks - https://books.bookfunnel.com/newfrontiers/l1ryd1ec8c

 

Sep 1-30: Feisty Heroines Deserve a HEA – PNR/Fan/UF/Sci-Fi - https://books.bookfunnel.com/feistyheroinesheasept/p5fr1qg2qh 

 

Aug 29-Sep 29: Genre-Bending Fade Into Fall Giveaway - https://books.bookfunnel.com/fadeintofallgiveaway/nn9gsy3hgs

 

Baswin, the alien merman - excerpt for #WeWriWa and #SnippetSunday

 

Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday. Sample the work of a new author. Read snippets of stories in different genres.

I’m posting excerpts from Baswin, the fifth book in my Sci-Fi Romance series, Taxyon Space. Baswin is an alien Warrish ‘merman’ who is living in secret on Earth disguised as a human. After masked men searched his brother’s apartment, Baswin decided to take precautions. He has flown to a wilderness region and landed by a creek. You can read about it in last week’s excerpt at https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2021/08/no-signs-of-habitation-exercpt-from.html

This week, you can read about the alien attributes of Baswin, the amphibious ‘merman’.

Confident that nobody was watching, Baswin slipped out of the flyer onto the rock. A bird screeched an alarm from a branch overhead. He looked up. The towering trees with dark green foliage were unlike anything on his home planet. They exuded the scent of pine resin, peace and solitude.

He jumped off the rock slab into the layer of brown needles at the base of the trees and laughed in delight. It seemed an ideal place to make his next transition. He and Alarik had arrived on Earth disguised as wealthy Belters, Rick and Basil Kent. Now, he would become Ben Brown. Ben Brown was a common name in the northern Americontinent, although not so common as to rouse suspicion.

Ten lines and a little more for you to read:

Strolling down to the creek, Baswin stood on the bank and eyed the water longingly. The dry atmosphere at this altitude tended to irritate the delicate filaments of his gills. Crouching on the bank, he splashed a handful of water over his face. Upstream and downstream, sunlight and shade dappled the rippling water. Much of the creek was too shallow and rocky for a swim. But the rock spur where he had landed dropped into a deeper pool, an enticing place for an amphibious Warrish man. If he jumped in, he could wet his gills.

Without further delay, he removed his shirt and boots. He unfastened the lightweight armored vest concealing his alien attributes, his gill slits, four nipples and the unhuman contours of his chest. He stripped off the remainder of his clothes and plunged, feet first, into the pool. The splashes scarcely washed his chest. When he stood erect, cold water lapped at the middle of his thighs. Grateful for the chance to submerge, he flipped onto his back and sank under the surface. His gills opened, filtering oxygen from the water. He stretched out his legs and wiggled the six toes of each foot. 

An alien spy on the run.

Two human sisters chosen to train as astronavigators.

Their paths are destined to converge.

Psychic sensitives, Holly Moon and her sister Rosie, are chosen as candidates for Warrish training as hyperspace navigators. The sisters are eager to promote humanity’s advance into space. Will they succeed? They must pass a series of rigorous tests and adapt to the alien neuro-implants.

Alien merman, Baswin Kenton Tallis, Second of his Triad, lives on Earth disguised as a human. When Earth agents discover the secret identity of his older brother, Baswin must flee to the Warrish embassy in the Pacific Ocean.

Holly and Baswin are swept together on an island in the Pacific Ocean, but their destiny lies farther away and many forces threaten to drive them apart. Can they overcome the obstacles and find a haven?

Follow the adventures of the three brothers of the Flaming Comets Triad in Baswin, Book 5 in Taxyon Space.

Available at: Amazon   iBooks   Kobo   B&N   GooglePlay  Other

I’ll be happy to reply to your comments. 

Please return to http://wewriwa.blogspot.com/ to sample the works of the other writers.

 

Find a catalog of my published stories HERE.

Join me on Facebook and Twitter 

 

No signs of habitation - Exercpt from #Baswin for #WeWriWe

 

Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday. Sample the work of a new author. Read snippets of stories in different genres.

I’m posting excerpts from Baswin, the fifth book in my Sci-Fi Romance series, Taxyon Space. Baswin is an alien Warrish ‘merman’ who is living in secret on Earth disguised as a human. He has just warned his brother Alarik about two masked strangers searching his apartment. Alarik plans to travel to the Asteroid Belt, or possibly to Europa, to elude their unknown enemies. You can read Alarik’s story in the previous book, Alarik.

You can read the end of their conversation in last week’s excerpt at: https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2021/08/swim-in-calm-seas-excerpt-from-baswin.html

The final line in Baswin’s pov is: Whichever direction his brother chose to swim, he must take precautions to protect himself.

This week, you will learn about Baswin’s plan to “disappear”.

Pursuing his escape plan, Baswin, under his alias of Basil Kent, had acquired a permit for backcountry camping and traveled to the transit station on the eastern border of the wilderness. When he arrived, he was suitably garbed with hiking boots and a backpack. Instead of taking the trail into the forest, he had hired the rover, a sturdy standard model. Once he flew out of signal range, he had disabled the rover’s route tracker. By now, he had flown three hundred kiloms away from the station. He made a cursory check on the displays. His monitors had detected no drones or any sign of habitation since he left the highway.

He exhaled in satisfaction. So far, his plan had flowed smoothly. This wilderness could become his refuge if necessary to escape any pursuit.

Ten lines and a little more:

Like many Warrish men, his triad of brothers had honed their survival skills in the wilds of Obelle. This forest had fish in the streams and plenty of other animals he could catch and eat. The local carnivores were puny creatures compared to the scaled monsters that roamed the planet of Obelle.

His immediate destination was a small river indicated on the map. Ahead and below, a long sinuous break in the foliage marked the path of the river through the forest.

Baswin angled the rover into a shallow glide toward the creek. Carefully maneuvering under the higher branches, he descended into the space above the water and searched for a safe landing site. A flat-topped spur of rock on the sunlit bank of the stream looked suitable. He lowered the rover onto the hard surface and cut the engines.

Silence descended, broken only by the faint gurgle of flowing water.

He set the monitors to search for infrared signals and watched through the windows for a count of six minutes. Few people lived in this preserved wilderness along the central spine of the northern Americontinent. He was untraceable unless somebody had seen the rover land. The larger animals, bears, elk and wolves did not scare him, although strange humans did.

Nothing stirred outside. The sensors indicated no large sources of heat, confirming the absence of larger animals in the vicinity.

 

An alien spy on the run.

Two human sisters chosen to train as astronavigators.

Their paths are destined to converge.

Psychic sensitives, Holly Moon and her sister Rosie, are chosen as candidates for Warrish training as hyperspace navigators. The sisters are eager to promote humanity’s advance into space. Will they succeed? They must pass a series of rigorous tests and adapt to the alien neuro-implants.

Alien merman, Baswin Kenton Tallis, Second of his Triad, lives on Earth disguised as a human. When Earth agents discover the secret identity of his older brother, Baswin must flee to the Warrish embassy in the Pacific Ocean.

Holly and Baswin are swept together on an island in the Pacific Ocean, but their destiny lies farther away and many forces threaten to drive them apart. Can they overcome the obstacles and find a haven?

Follow the adventures of the three brothers of the Flaming Comets Triad in Baswin, Book 5 in Taxyon Space.

Available at: Amazon   iBooks   Kobo   B&N   GooglePlay  Other 

I’ll be happy to reply to your comments. 

Please return to http://wewriwa.blogspot.com/ to sample the works of the other writers.

 

Find a catalog of my published stories HERE.

Swim in calm seas - excerpt from BASWIN for #WeWriWa

 

Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday. Sample the work of a new author. Read snippets of stories in different genres.

I’m posting excerpts from Baswin, the fifth book in my Sci-Fi Romance series, Taxyon Space. Baswin is an alien Warrish ‘merman’ who is living in secret on Earth disguised as a human. His brother Alarik, another covert agent, has traveled to Mars, partly to escape their unknown enemies.

Baswin has called Alarik to warn him about the masked men searching his apartment. You can read last week’s excerpt at:  https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2021/08/swim-clear-of-earth-excerpt-from-baswin.html

The final lines were: Offering a confident smile, Alarik said, “Assuming the captain isn’t sent an order to net me, I’ll change my destination to Europa. Explain I’m planning to sell ores to the mermen.”

Their conversation continues in this week’s snippet:

“Might flow smoothly.” After a short pause, Baswin said, “I’ve already dived into cover.”

His First invoked the usual good wishes, “May you swim in calm seas.”

Hiding his fears behind a smile, Baswin said, “You also. Call from the Belt if you’re free.”

“I’ll transmit in code first. It’s safer.”

“Urish.” Baswin flattened the palm of his hand on his cheek in a farewell gesture.

His brother echoed the gesture and shut the connection.

Ten lines and a little more:

Baswin frowned at the blank screen. His brother risked discovery if the searchers found DNA evidence of his alien origin. But, Alarik hadn’t seemed overly concerned. As First of their Triad, his brother was always optimistic, even overconfident to the point of plunging impetuously into dangerous whirlpools.

He gave a mental shrug. He could not control his brother’s actions. Alarik might be diving into trouble by taking the space ferry to the Asteroid Belt. Whichever direction his brother chose to swim, he must take precautions to protect himself.

Last week, many of you expressed the same concerns about Alarik’s confidence in his plan.

 

An alien spy on the run.

Two human sisters chosen to train as astronavigators.

Their paths are destined to converge.

Psychic sensitives, Holly Moon and her sister Rosie, are chosen as candidates for Warrish training as hyperspace navigators. The sisters are eager to promote humanity’s advance into space. Will they succeed? They must pass a series of rigorous tests and adapt to the alien neuro-implants.

Alien merman, Baswin Kenton Tallis, Second of his Triad, lives on Earth disguised as a human. When Earth agents discover the secret identity of his older brother, Baswin must flee to the Warrish embassy in the Pacific Ocean.

Holly and Baswin are swept together on an island in the Pacific Ocean, but their destiny lies farther away and many forces threaten to drive them apart. Can they overcome the obstacles and find a haven?

Follow the adventures of the three brothers of the Flaming Comets Triad in Baswin, Book 5 in Taxyon Space.

Available at: Amazon   iBooks   Kobo   B&N   GooglePlay  Other 

Please post a comment and I’ll be happy to reply. 

Please return to http://wewriwa.blogspot.com/ to sample the works of the other writers.

 

Find a catalog of my published stories HERE.

Join me on Facebook and Twitter 

 

Post 2: Southbound Travels on Vacation

 

Last month, my husband and I took two weeks vacation. We drove from Atlanta, Georgia, to visit our son in Willimantic, Connecticut. You can see pictures from our northbound trip at https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2021/07/summer-travels-part-1-north-to.html

On our return trip, we stopped for a couple of days in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia, and in Asheville, North Carolina.

Harper’s Ferry lies at the junction of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers. The right header image has a view over the Potomac from Harper’s Ferry.

A railway bridge and another bridge for pedestrians cross the river. The Appalachian Trail follows the pedestrian bridge (see image). 

When we visited, ospreys had nested on the bridge. We saw an osprey fly to the nest carrying a fish. The image below shows an osprey on its nest. If you look closely, you can see the wing of a second bird.  

One of the historic attractions in Harper’s Ferry is John Brown’s Fort (see left image on header). This building originally housed a fire engine and now stands by the Potomac River.

Our next stop was in Asheville. We walked around the town and ate at different cafes with outdoor seating. We ate at a restaurant with Appalachian foods, a brewery and a French bistro. The image shows the colorful flowers and seating area of the French bistro. 

Unfortunately, we were in Asheville too early in the week for the musical entertainments. Maybe next time we visit!