Making fun of cover art

[rolanni]

Not well yet.  Nor king.

Steve labors under these exact conditions, though about a day ahead of me on the symptom train.

We here in Central Maine are looking forward to the Winter Weather on the overnight, which is to bless us with 1-3 inches of snow finished with a tenth of an inch of ice.

But that's not why I called you all together today.

A couple days ago I got a tweet from someone who was going to talk about the Liaden books, which was cool and gratifying and all like that.  Not only where they going to talk about the Liaden books, but they were (so it said) going to mock the "90s cover art" because that was always fun.

. . .and so I didn't retweet the announcement of the talk, even though it was to my benefit, and even though someone had taken the time to talk about my books on the internet.

I was just going to content myself with not retweeting, but I realize that this thing is still bothering me, so here I am again, displaying my wrongheadedness and lack of humor.

Those mock-worthy "90s" covers?  Were created by professional SF artists, most of whom are still working today.  Human folk who take pride in their work, and who have survived in a very tough field.  They are not the enemy; and their work -- even given that everyone is an art critic -- ought not to be held up for laughs just to make oneself look cool -- or for any reason, really.

For the record, Steve and I have been very fortunate in the cover art for the Liaden books from the very first cover (which appeared in the 1980s), to the eighteenth cover, revealed only yesterday.  Stephen Hickman, Michael Herring, Alan Pollack, Melisa Michaels, David Mattingly have all done splendid covers for us.  And, while I'm on a roll,  let's not forget the artists who have covered our non-Liaden work:  Colleen Doran, Tom Kidd, Eric Williams, Chris McGrath, Thomas Peters -- all of whom have done fine work for us, for our characters, and, ultimately, for the people who picked up our books and took a chance on them -- very likely because the cover -- something in the cover -- drew them.

Maybe the world had changed that much since the "90s" -- maybe every book now is sold through word of mouth, maybe browsing bookshelves is so last century that covers aren't even needed any more.

But even if that's so, politeness counts, gratuitous mocking is rude.

And cover artists are not the enemy.

Comments

[bandicoot.livejournal.com]

The whole idea of mocking - the mocker presenting themselves as superior to the mockee - seems rather juvenile at best and certainly doesn't reflect well on the mocker. I normally manage to ignore it.

And I forgot to add that I always enjoy the art for the imagination and execution, especially given the constraints of cover design. Mock? I think not. Damn fine work on the whole.

distributions

[furballtiger.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm glad to see you speak up for the cover artists, and the basic decency behind your argument is part of why I read your books; there's a reflection of lovely values in the telling (despite the truth of separation discussed earlier). And, as you once observed with good humor "Someone on the internet is wrong! oh no!" In this case, someone with a mote of technology in hand is being a jerk. Well, w/ 7B people or so, some few of them simply are jerks. And others, while generally decent, periodically have their moments (we all do). And, slightly further afield, there's tons of evidence that (and why) modern tech often brings out worse behavior. As noted above I'm glad to hear you speak up eloquently for those who have worked with you, but I do hope you don't let the inevitable tail of the distribution ruin your mood or your morning (day, by now, back East).
It would be a loss to have everything redone in the fashion of the day; we would lose so much. I enjoy seeing work from different eras, and all (including today, which is obvious to any thinking person) are inherently dated by an attempt to be current. Finally, of course, dated covers (or art of any sort, really) eventually become cool again; I used to collect those old 2-novels-back-to-back from the alleged golden age of sf (which wasn't, really, but was nice in it's own way).

happy trails,

Them as can't become critics

[aska-kettlingur.livejournal.com]

I find condescending art critics especially hard to take. They ridicule people who say "I don't know much about art, but I know what I like." I find it much more deserving of ridicule to hang something on your wall that you don't like because someone else has told you it is 'art.'
I like the original 1980's cover art of your books more than anything you've had since, but that's a personal choice, and I don't ridicule the other artists. Given the opportunity, I'd hang the original 'Agent of Change' artwork in my living room. (Don't come looking here if it disappears.)
Best hopes for your continued recovery from the con crud.

[martianmooncrab.livejournal.com]

there is some 2014 cover art that could be mocked too.. its all about perspective... but, I have always appreciated that your covers showed something that is in the actual books, not some clip art cover. How can one resist a book with a 6ft Clutch Turtle on the cover? I couldnt.

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

I'm trying to remember. I am pretty sure I was in Japan at the time, looking at a store that I knew carried English language books from time to time. Amid the other covers, there was one with a giant turtle... And that was the start of my love story with the Liaden Universe. I really don't remember any of the other covers from that time, but I suspect that was the abstract art phase of book covers, perhaps. So the actual scene from the book, with a turtle... Was outstanding!

[martianmooncrab.livejournal.com]

I know, and I keep hoping for a Clutch Turtle story.. but then, they do take forever to transit space, and they take the long view.

[muirecan.livejournal.com]

I like the Agent of Change cover.

[thewol.livejournal.com]

Talk about a back-handed compliment! The lesson here is, mock not, lest ye be mocked -- and deservedly so. This persona non grata evidently thinks you are held hostage by the publisher's and their marketing department, and that they can foist substandard/laughable art down your throats with impunity and no salt. Did it occur to this yahoo that the publishers have as much of a vested interest in selling your books as you do? The cover may catch my eye, but I read the blurb also, and I also go by an author's previous track record both with me (did I like other books they've written?) and others (did the reviews/blurbs describe a book I think I might enjoy?)

I came late to the party, actually. I got started reading your books by a reference made to your blog, which I started following a couple of years ago. Your discussions of your work suggested to me that I would like your work. I read Agents of Change to test the water, and that was that. I now own a copy of every Liaden book I can get my cute little fingers on, and am seriously jonesing for the next one . . . I thought the Carousel Seas cover was gorgeous.

In a way, the Liaden books strike me as hard books to do covers for. Yeah, they have action and excitement and deeds of daring do, but they are as much "internal" -- about the characters and their relationships to and with one another (and how do you show that on a cover?)-- as they are "external" -- about the things that happen to them and what they do about them. Personally, that's why I like them.

cover art

[mark leigh (from livejournal.com)]

no "era" of cover art is laughable. tho' the occasional cognitive disconnect twixt cover and content can be hilarious.