What I would like to be able to do is stop the person who put the book back down and ask, politely, so, what is it that made you decide against that novel? Just out of curiosity?

Ah, but I have asked. I owned an independent bookstore for three years, and I made it my business to find out. For better or worse, people make a huge decision based on the cover. I know, I know, bizarre. But I found it constantly intriguing. I had two questions I asked my regulars: "You bought Book X, right? What did you think of it?" and "So what made you pick up this book?"

Nine times out of ten: the cover.

It seems, oddly, that even a lackluster first paragraph or plot description (assuming the genre is already of interest, of course), will be overridden if the cover is 'cool'. I think people figure, well, so the chick on the cover hasn't shown up yet, but it's got a dragon, so maybe by the second chapter that'll show up, so I'll keep reading to find out. When I'd ask for their take on the story's opening, most folks couldn't even repeat but a general impression (some guy at a train station, two kids arguing), but the cover's right there. The cover somehow is a physical representation of what *could* be, regardless of the quick scan given the opening page.

The other thing that makes people buy books, regardless of covers, is recommendations. In the big bookstores, I often get lost and rarely buy random titles, because there's no one around to help me determine if this is a book I'd really like. In my bookstore (which was only about 500 sq feet, and I could See All And Follow All from my desk), people would often turn around and say, "which did you like?" Not saying they'd always buy what I suggested, but I did a number of sales by repeating word-of-mouth (since I couldn't and didn't read every title I carried!). "I haven't read that, but several folks have. Two praised it highly, the third said she wanted more action."

Word of mouth, and the cover art. I hear the latter is out of your control if you're published by a major publishing house, but the first is hopefully more within your scope.

(Oh, and face-outs really do sell more copies.)

Err, I didn't mean to imply that the 9-out-of-10 was across the board. About half the time the customer had fore-knowledge: recommended by a friend, saw it reviewed in a magazine, like the author's work already. The cover seems to only have major impact if the work/author is otherwise unknown.

There are two things that make me want to pick up a book by an unfamiliar author: the title, and the blurb on the back. Generally speaking, an interesting cover can offset a less-than-catchy title and make me flick the book over to read the blurb, but I have put down many a book because the blurb has been poorly written. The irony here, of course, is that a blurb is so rarely indicative of the true nature of the story...

I have also, in recent times, taken issue with the tag line on the front of the book. A selling point, sure, and if cleverly written can lead to me picking up the book to investigate further. But the spoilers! An example: Connie Willis's "The Doomsday Book", which has the line "Kivran wanted to study the Black Death, not live it!". Sure, it caught me...but it also ruined the premise of the entire book, as the process of discovering that she was living through the Black Death was the crux of the novel.

My point...I'm sure I had one...oh yeah. Sometimes those tools designed to sell a novel can ruin it for me.

Sometimes it's all about the personality, the writer behind the story. Sounds like different strokes for different folks. It would be nice to promote a book in a "perfect storm" mentality of promoting the author, the topic, creating excitement about the book through art or ads, and through word of mouth. And given some posts - I wonder what efforts publishing houses make to get booksellers (independent or otherwise) excited about a book, enough to read it. What do they do on that?

Funny....I was just at the "New Fiction" section of BN yesterday. It's the covers that are so great....the alluring pictures. I do look first at the inside blurb to see what the book is about. I have noticed a lot if historical (what looks to me like) romantic fiction. On many covers we see the body of a female figure in whatever period dress and no head....or no face as the woman has looked away. An example of how I work....I see a great cover of a book called "Life Mask" by Emma Donoghue so I see other books at the library....one called "The Woman who gave birth to rabbits" Interesting but weird short stories about 18th century England and Ireland...seems this author researches little weird blurbs she finds in actual old newspapers or writings when doing her research and then makes up stories about these items. The historical context she reveals at the end of the stories. Like when you, Sara, put up some interesting little advertisments you found when in NO. Anyway I finally got to the book....I usually give about 100 pages. I can usually tell if the author (of a Novel) will be able to take me away or not. Life Mask is cleverly written about one low class actress in 18th cent. England trying to move up through the social ladder. I read a little from the last pages where the author has explained where she got the subjest matter. It seems the story ends with a lesbian type relationship and other various endings and although I am no prude I faded away for some reason. But the cover was great. So back to me standing at BN....I wrote a few titles down on an envelope...here they are untried...totally cool looking stories and covers..

"The Serpant in the Garden" by Janet Gellson
The Illuminator" by Brenda Rickman Vantrease
"East Side Story" by Louis Auchincloss
"Pinkerton's Sister" by Peter Rushforth
I can't remember now what drew me to each one so any thoughts from anybody. The story of the one called The Illuminator looked interesting and literary.
Cynthia in Florida

OK! Enough of this nerdy business! Now, you’ve got to understand I’m extremely introverted; so it’s excruciating for me to reach out and ask a stranger for help. But I have done it, usually on the verge of barfing as I do it. So suppose you see someone pick up and then put down your book. She looked to you like someone who would buy it. Internally you’re probably saying dodo head, jerk, etc. But externally you might instead say something along the lines of…. Could I ask you for your help? (It’ll get them every time – yeah, that’s in conflict with sentence #2.) I’m trying to understand better why these books aren’t selling like hotcakes. Is it the cover? Is it the title? Is it the first few lines you read? So she says a few mumbly things, but you know you have her attention. After a few more questions that get you some needed answers, you confess that you’re the author. So now she’s really beaming because THE AUTHOR HAS ASKED FOR MY ADVICE. You may get a useful nugget out of her answers. The purpose behind such an encounter? You really need to have people buying your books so that you can write more books for nuts like me; so you must sell them every chance you get. If you do this often enough, you may also gather enough data to get your publisher to change his focus next time on whatever your research says is wrong. Meanwhile, consider Ms. Mumbly’s point of view. She is enchanted that THE AUTHOR asked her advice. She gets on the phone and the net to all her friends and relatives about this spiffy event of the day and says how NICE and DOWNTOEARTH you are. So she, her friends, and her friends’ friends are all talking about the encounter, and probably making their first purchase of one of your books.

asdfg,

crickey. I simply can't imagine doing this. Or I can, but in my imagination things go terribly wrong.

Me: excuse me, I was wondering...
Her: are you with the Patriot Act people, or something? can't I browse in a bookstore without being observed?

Me: excuse me, I was wondering...
Her: Well, I read Homestead and I was wondering about your other books under the penname. When are you going to write a real book again? I don't do romance.

Me: excuse me, I was wondering...
Her: Hey, I'm just waiting for my mother to come out of the john. I buy all my book used.

.... so, I apologize, but I'm not sure I'll ever be able to conduct this kind of market research. And if I did, there wouldn't be much point to it: I have no control, none, over my covers. If I did they would look very different.

Most of the time when I am in a bookstore to buy (rather than browse), I pretty much stick with authors that I know, with books that I've read something about etc. Books are pretty expensive in Australia so to pick up a new release without knowing anything about it is a bit risky for me. I use the library to "try out" authors that I haven't read before and then if I like their stuff, I'm more likely to buy their books or hunt them down on amazon etc. So while at the library, I do go for cover, blurb and maybe title. Penn/penelope Williamson's Mortal Sins is a case in point. I loved the cover and the blurb was intriguing (New orleans, 1927, murder mystery, police officer with a damaged heart, long lost love etc). I loved it. Its one of my favourite books now and I've since tracked down a lot of her other stuff from the US (not a lot of her stuff is around over here).
I think the Fire cover was pretty good. I can remember the first time I saw it, very bold and it stood out on the shelf. But generally, I'm not a huge fan of the covers of the Wilderness series. They are very staid. As an example, Phillippa Gregory's series of Elizabethan novels have great covers ... a little bit sensual, an element of mystique....and the titles are pretty good ... The title of "The other Boleyn girl" really got me in.
But I do occasionally take a risk and buy something at a bookstore that just simply catches my eye. "Amagansett" is an example. Its got a beautiful cover, very evocative, kind of sad and dreamy at the same time. Interesting title. (What does it mean? Where is it? etc). It had a good blurb as well ... expecially the reference to "Snow Falling on Cedars". (which by the way, I don't think is anything like it but guess publishers will pull any punches). But I still went home and looked it up on Amazon, read the reviews (professional as well as readers reviews which I think are sometimes more persuasive) and then went back and got it. I liked it so guess its packaging worked on me. But also the influence of what I read on Amazon.

I would also loke to add that it is the whole experience of reading a book that I get intoxicated with. I love to hold one for the first time. I love to open and see what's inside. I love to take the book that I am reading with me everywhere I go just in case I have a free few moments. (I confess, I read at stop lights) Sometimes the covers are so beautiful. Shiny lettering...beautiful picture. I see even my kids convinced about the picture. Sometimes when they are reading I see them stop and lok again at the illusrtation. But it is the first few pages and it really is in a way the first sentence. But I have seen my kid (the one who loves anything about knights and crusades) get a perfectly good book about a boy in the crusades and love the picture and start and lose interest after he has read a little. Anyway, I also know by covers what books I would hate. Jackie Collins....those horrible Janet Evonivitch(sp?) those weird Steven King....the new ones....weird covers.....Ann Rice.....so gross......I don't need too many paragraphs of her to flee....I am like Jacqui....I tend to stick to authors I know or have been led to by something I have heard on the radio....I am willing to try anything....but I have authors who I will also never try....cover or no....Sara....about the cover on Fire....not a cover I would have chosen....didnt matter I was already running to the register...
Cynthia in Florida