The Cover that Didn’t Make the Cover

Can I let you in on a little secret?

I almost chose a different cover for my book.

Which, when I think about it, is so crazy because I can’t tell you how many times a reader has told me they were instantly attracted to my book because of the vibrant cover. I even remember thinking when I first saw the cover, “this is really going to stand out.” And it has . . . in fact, last month, my book’s cover won the ECPA Top Shelf Book Cover award in the Fiction category! A true honor.

So why did I almost go a different route?

My editor originally sent me three beautiful options. Truly, I loved all of them (you can see them below). I remember opening the PDF my editor emailed me and gasping when I saw the first of the three options (which is the cover that ending up winning) . . . that should have been enough to tell me that was the one.

But it was a Friday morning, so even though I absolutely loved that first option, I wanted to take the weekend to think about it. I have a tendency to make quick decisions, and oftentimes, it works in my favor. But the cover of your debut novel felt way too important a decision to decide in a matter of seconds, so I did the “wise” thing . . . I waited.

I asked my husband, extended family members, my writer’s group, and a few other trusted friends for their opinions. I listened to their reasonings and tried to see what they saw. After a long weekend of mulling it over, I decided my gut response might be wrong. The orange/yellow cover encompassed a sense of pride, power, and strength, and if you’ve read my book, you know it centers around women who embody those characteristics. I also loved that this image was inspired by a cover that I had designed during a fun, craft project at a writer’s retreat. I sent this image of my fake book to my team at Waterbrook and asked them to create a cover inspired by it. All of these reasons, and more, led me to believe this bright yellow cover had to be it . . .

On Monday morning, I told my editor that I was leaning toward option #3. To be honest, I should have known when I sent that email that my heart wasn’t in it. I wasn’t giddy excited when I emailed her this . . . and looking back now, it’s probably because I was ignoring my gut instinct to follow what I thought other people thought I should do.

When my editor came back to me with news that the sales team really thought option #1 would be best for my book, I remember responding immediately, “let’s do it! I trust their judgement.” I had no qualms or second thoughts—I literally responded with seconds and used an exclamation point. My excitement was back . . . It was as if someone was giving me permission to choose what I really wanted, and not what someone else thought I should do.

I’m so glad I trusted my team at Waterbrook & Multnomah because my cover is gorgeous. It’s a cover I’m proud to have my name on, but that might not be the case had I not trusted myself or my team.

Let this be a lesson to you, my friends, that sometimes, it’s okay to make a quick decision. It’s okay to go after the option that instantly takes your breath away. And it’s okay to disappoint a few people . . . not everyone will like what you choose and not everyone has to.

Okay, without further ado, here are the three options I was given . . . and I’m so glad we (my team & I) made my right choice.