Booksquare points to Publisher's Weekly article "Judging a Book By Its Cover" which tells us that (surprise, surprise) covers matter.

I love science fiction book cover art. Liking any individual artistic style is subject a personal taste. One of my favorite cover artists is the award winning John Picacio who does a lot of cover art for Pyr.

One of the reasons I like physical bookstores over online ones is because cover art is more easily browsed that way. Locus Online does an admirable job showcasing a year's worth of science fiction/fantasy book covers side by side, but rare is the online bookstore that does this and I still want the bigger images without having to use the slower method of the click-through.

According to poll SF Signal did last year, only half of respondents said they purchased a book solely on its cover. That surprises me in that people would base a decision on that alone. Sure covers matter, but I find a bad cover drives me away from a purchase more than a good one will ensure it.

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Posted by John DeNardo at Sunday March 26, 2006 at 11:07 AM
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