Do Hot Covers Sell Books? by Jannine Gallant

Hot summer nights bring to mind a wealth of images. Some straight out of a romance novel... A couple standing in silhouette on a back lawn, hands clasped as they gaze up at  a star studded sky. Young lovers swimming beneath the moon in a secluded pool, just their heads visible as they look into each other's eyes. Tangled sheets revealing sweat dampened bare legs twined together... Three completely different images. I can picture them all on a book cover. But which one would sell the story?

Call me boring, but I tend to be attracted to scenery covers. A glimpse into the setting of the book. I may be boring, but I am versatile. I'm equally drawn to sweeping landscapes with dramatic mountains or a windswept, wide open plain or a homey scene featuring a back porch complete with a rocking chair. Yawn.

When my first few books were published, this is the type of cover I requested. The artists did add the inset of floating heads in several cases, apparently their attempt to liven things up. I was somewhat unnerved at first, but I got used to them. When my books released, I sat back and waited for my babies to sell. Okay, maybe I didn't just sit. I promoted. I blogged. I tweeted. I bored my friends on Facebook. Still, sales were dismal.

Then something happened that made me rethink my love affair with gorgeous scenery covers. For my cowboy book, Nothing But Trouble, I requested a barnyard scene complete with a bull in the background. The cover artist completely ignored me. When I got my first look at the cover, I nearly had a heart attack. No red barn. No fenced in bull. Instead, a hot cowboy with bulging muscles in an embrace with a very pretty girl. Yikes!

As hot covers go, this one is actually pretty tame. Remember what our mothers called books with bare chested heroes and women in undone dresses? Bodice Rippers. What would my friends and relatives think of this new book? They'd think I write smut, that's what! With trepidation, I boldly set out to promote this new book. And what do you know, it started selling! Okay, maybe not like Nora Roberts sells books, but sales for this one double all my others combined.

Is the story any better? I don't think so. Did I do more promotion? I'm not sure. Maybe. But a year and a half later, I still see a sale or two each week. Not great, but it's something. So, could it be that hot cowboy cover is selling the book? I'm not sure, but when the sequel comes out sometime next year, you can bet I'm going to ask for a good looking man on the front--hold the shirt!

Alright, ladies, let's hear it. Do your books with hot covers sell better? Or is my experience a fluke? What do you want to see on a book cover?

Find all my books with their tame covers on my website, and enjoy the rest of your hot summer nights reading a good book!

A Walk on the Beach on Hot August Nights by Amber Leigh Williams

Lil Jake showing the tourists how to
stay cool on the beach....

I live on the Gulf Coast and today the heat index was 107 degrees. Having lived here all my life, I know a thing or two about hot August nights. August happens to be my least favorite month of the year, not because it usually means summer is coming to a close. Around here, summer weather doesn’t begin to fade into the autumn months until mid-October if we’re lucky. August is hard because it tends to be the hottest month of the year. Humidity might make summertime air feel like soup around these parts. In August, it’s more like molasses. I look forward to football season for more than just sport. Those cool, crisp days of autumn are something I dream about from the end of May through September.

August nights however do offer somewhat of a reprieve. As the sun slips beneath the horizon, the mugginess might hang around in the air in its absence but the temperature drops to the balmy mid-seventies or low eighties, and suddenly it’s the perfect opportunity to take a walk on the beach. We bring our flashlights and our sense of wonder as the waves whisper to us in the dark and the sand cools the bottoms of our feet. We look for not just shells but we comb the beach for crabs, sea turtles and starfish, which are more likely to be out and about now that the multitudes of people have vacated their natural habitat.

Lil Jake enjoying a summer
weekend on the lake...

Night fishing is something else we do here on the coast. I remember August nights on a brother-in-law’s boat weaving our careful way through the bayou to the sea where we could drop our shrimp net. There’s a bridge that straddles the line between Alabama and Florida not far from home where night fishing was once very popular. It wasn’t just a chance to catch some grub, however. It was an opportunity to rub elbows with people from all walks of life. With the current running fast through the channel and the lights shining on the water from above, it was easy to see all manner of sea creatures floating by: eels, sting rays, crabs, and hordes of shrimp. The best part was making it back home late into the night for a midnight feast.

While the brutal heat of August chases anyone with any common sense into the comfort and air conditioning of their homes, it’s hard to stay indoors at nighttime. My favorite thing to do on hot August nights? Sit on the back porch in Adirondack chairs or a wooden swing with family members and friends sipping ice-cold sweet tea and enjoying the moment. Especially blissful are August nights at my family’s lakeside cabin in northern Alabama. Late night boat rides through the butter-smooth, warm, fresh water underneath a sparkly curtain of bright, silvery stars might even put one in the mood for romance! It certainly does for me....

It’s your turn, Roses! What is your favorite summertime activity to do by night? 

ALW

www.amberleighwilliams.com