Comments on: On Book Covers and Race

By: Tamara

Tamara — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 13:43:40 +0000

Even though I usually tend to like pictures of the main characters on the cover, I think the cover of the original book is a million times better than the one of the German version: http://www.randomhouse.de/book/edition.jsp?edi=304416
At first, when I bought the book, I instantly liked the cover because I thought it was nice that it gave an idea of how Yeine looked but still left space for your own imagination.
But when I started reading I noticed that she actually looked completely different and was very disappointed that they (whoever designed the cover for the German version) made her look like an Amn on the cover (and also pretty confused why they did that), which is really misleading.
Luckily, I could still imagine Yeine how she really looks (or more precisely the way my imagination formed her picture after how she is described) for the rest of the book =)

By: It’s Not the Same Story | Epiphany 2.0

It’s Not the Same Story | Epiphany 2.0 — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 15:30:57 +0000

[...] spending money on it. The race issue is part of this, of course. I’ve previously referenced the film’s whitewashing (which fans call racebending), and yeah, it pisses me off. Film!TLA is not the same story as [...]

By: Book Covers Explained | Epiphany 2.0

Book Covers Explained | Epiphany 2.0 — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 13:02:04 +0000

[...] attention, which is why they decided to remove some of them (Yeine most noticeably, which I’ve discussed before) and focus the reader’s eye on the palace. Since dammit Jim I’m a writer not a design [...]

By: Boycott? No, thanks. | Epiphany 2.0

Boycott? No, thanks. | Epiphany 2.0 — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 17:41:49 +0000

[...] For those who haven’t heard, there’s been a big to-do in the past few days over another instance of cover art whitewashing re a YA novel called Magic Under Glass by debut author Jaclyn Dolamore. Like the last instance, it turned into a big thing, with some big-name editors and authors in the field weighing in on the issue. And a whole lot of readers got pissed off — again — as they should, IMO, because the problem of whitewashing has gone on for literally decades in the book industry (and other media, as I mentioned when I blogged about this before). [...]

By: This “whitewashing” covers thing has to stop. Period. « Katie Ellyson

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 22:26:04 +0000

[...] have been better. With that ammo in hand, I set off to research other cases of “whitewashing” covers for my [...]

By: susan

susan — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 03:08:23 +0000

NK,

Thanks for coming by Color Online. I’m pretty sure I’ve said somewhere let’s talk about Color Online promoting and supporting your work. You need more than praise. You need readers. Please drop me a note at cora_litgroup@yahoo.com

By: Folklore Fanatic

Folklore Fanatic — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 04:23:33 +0000

I found your ‘pro’ blog! Heh. And to think all I had to do was follow discussions of racism outside of el-jay… *Sigh*

I will definitely be buying your book, as soon as I can find a copy or order one. Knowing Cambridge and Boston’s selections, I’ll probably have to order it, as they have almost as little respect for fantasy as they do for romance (in the basement of the COOP, and they created a single half-row for romance with about six shelves sometime between 2004 and 2009). I will support you not only because the cover art would be an automatic sell otherwise, but because I share your convictions and I want you to continue to succeed.

Orbit blew me away with its cover art for Black Ships by Jo Graham. I really am a sucker for good cover art; it’s so important for me to be able to look at a cover and imagine the story and be happy. That’s why Orbit’s softcover books are so wonderful — they don’t look cheap or ugly or clichéd.

When I complain about how adult genre fiction should have covers more like Melissa Marr’s and Laurie Halse Anderson’s and even (*shudder, shudder*) the first of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, people say that readers buy what they recognize as fantasy and like the garish, busy covers on Robert Jordan books, for example.

I think it’s utter horseshit. Just look at the results of the cover contest and a Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. It took me three seconds to glance at them and tell you which one I liked, which one would win, and which two would never win over cross-genre readers.

We can have our cake and eat it, too. Diana Gabaldon is an amazing historical fiction writer, and her covers have the most boring symbols on them. Chuck Palahniuk’s Haunted was a national besteller for weeks, even with a haunted house looking Munch’s scream face on the cover. The Twilight series has sold millions because of two hands holding a red apple. I BOUGHT that cursed book BECAUSE OF THE COVER ART! Look at Prep by Curtis Sittenfield. Wicked by Gregory Maguire, BEFORE the musical, when he was still selling a ton of books.

It isn’t about whether the cover is a symbol, a landscape, a person, or some combination of all three. What matters is whether or not it’s striking. It’s so hard to be striking when you’re a “chick in chainmail” or a “guy in armor on a mountainside,” just like ten thousand other covers before you.

I do not understand why the S & M people DO NOT UNDERSTAND THIS.

*clears throat* Ahem.

Anyway, I will be supporting Orbit more because of what you’ve just said. Don’t think of it as giving Orbit a cookie. Think of it as social justice inspired disposable income redistribution. ;)

By: Eric Jordan

Eric Jordan — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 18:38:56 +0000

White man, long time fan, and…you’ve hit on one of my issues.

I grew up watching Nichelle Nichols as Lt. Uhura, and she was one of the women who helped define “beauty” for me as a pre-teen/early teen boy. I learned early that Sci-Fi/Fantasy should be as diverse as Real Life, except Real Life has William Shatner in it, and Sci-Fi/Fantasy probably shouldn’t. Oh, well.

I remember in college when somebody showed me a picture of a guy making something in a forge, and they said, “That’s Theros Ironfeld forging the Dragonlance.” I said, “Um, dude, no. That guy is white.” “So?” “So *read the books!* He’s from *Ergoth!* He’s *black*!”

I finally had to haul out the books and point to the description. Theros Ironfeld is not African-American: the world of Krynn has neither Africa, nor America! But some white guy with a hammer, he is NOT!

This picture comes much closer: http://step.polymtl.ca/~coyote/picturesd/dragnlnc/forging.jpg
This one, eh: http://www.lucifer.tw/dragonlance/001intro/pic/warrior4.jpg
(It’s not just him in that picture, the whole style makes me go “eh”).

Neither quite captures all he did: Master Smith, Resistance Leader, Forger of the Dragonlances, and General. But at least he’s not white!

I feel your pain, I do. I’ve had this argument since the early 90s, and I just buy the stuff!

By: tricia sullivan

tricia sullivan — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 04:55:22 +0000

I can’t wait to read your book. I am with Orbit in the UK and I’m waiting for just that right moment when I can wheedle my editor into an ARC of it. And not because it’s free! Because I can’t wait.

By: Karen Miller

Karen Miller — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 04:01:08 +0000

As a fellow Orbit author (Hi!) I’ll echo your sentiments. My recent trilogy has many non-caucasian characters in it, and when we discussed covers — and I knew the main cover design element would be of a single character — I stressed how important it was that there be no ambiguity about that. And nobody at Orbit blinked an eye. I got nothing but a resounding chorus of, Yes, of course. Which is why I adore them all.

I’m really looking forward to reading your debut novel.