What Makes a Book Cover Good?

I've been thinking a lot about book covers lately, mostly because I don't want to think about balancing my checkbook.

So . . . what in the world makes a great looking book cover? A hunky shirtless guy with six-pack abs? A Picasso type of abstraction that makes people go, "hmmm?" Bright colors? Or a minimalist look because our world is crazy enough as is? No, really, have you been on Drudge lately? Seriously cray-cray.

Sorry for the whiplash. Back to covers. Design is subjective, but that doesn't mean there aren't some basic principles to consider when choosing a front for your book . . .
The cover must communicate what the book is about AND what it's like.
Text and graphics need to deliver a message (either subliminally or all-up-in-your-business) that clues readers in to what is contained on the inside pages. The cover should suggest the tone, mood and narrative quality.

A book's front plays a critical role in giving a book an identity different from the crowd.
Thousands upon thousands of new titles hit the shelves every year. To stand out from the rest, a fresh cover has to reach out and grab a reader by the throat.

A great book cover evokes emotion.
Whether through color, design, or typography, a potential buyer should "feel" something when they set their eyeballs on the cover of a book -- and hopefully that's not nausea. Oh yeah, and a cover's only got about a second to do that.

Don't make the reader work.
If the font is too fancy and frilly, a reader isn't going to take the time to decipher it, no matter how cute you think it is. If it's too small and they have to squint, nope. That won't work either.

The spine is the backbone of your book.
An equal amount of attention should be given to the spine. Think about it. How many books are displayed with their covers fully exposed on a shelf? Most are crammed in there with only the spine showing, hence the importance of an easy-to-read yet stunning spine.

Think big AND small.
When shoppers are perusing books online, they're probably going to see only a very small picture of the cover--an inch tall, if you're lucky. That one inch better be bright and legible or yours will be the one a reader skips over.

Think of the cover of a book as an entrant in a beauty contest. There are plenty of gorgeous covers out there. What will make yours different?