What Covers Are They On?

[telophase]

The drawback to using stock images for your covers is that if you grab a really popular one, it's used on many, many books.

This guy, titled "Monk, old," has been used as a grizzled warrior, monk, or warrior-monk type on many a cover.



Pagan, an anthology

Plantation Origins, an alien invasion book

The Keeper M/M shifter

The Chrysanthemum Trilogy: Tragedy I have no idea what this book is. Time travel?

Santa Claus: The King of the Elves a children's fantasy

The Chronicles of Luxaar Part 1 a fantasy short story

Tunnel X-19: A Deadly Skirmish a dystopian story

The Toymaker an 1860s London horror story

Page 50 in this GM's D&D sourcebook


There's probably more that didn't get caught by Google's reverse image search because the cover designer didn't just slap text on and call it a day but instead incorporated the image as part of a larger picture.


The other image I see everywhere is this striking picture of a sword hilt with a swash of red fabric sweeping around it. I can see why people are drawn to it.



Sun Tzu's The Art of War

Techromancy Scrolls: Avalon LGBT fantasy

The Prometheus Wars: Beyond Hades Mythology meets the modern day

Poster for Infidel some sort of Christian play put on by a Bible college

Swords of Darkness Sword & sorcery anthology

War of Darkness Children's Minecraft story

Exiles Christian fantasy

On every book in the Highland Moon series shifter romance

The Gift of Knowledge Christian fantasy

How to Do Spiritual Warfare Christian how-to


Basically, that one's a wonderful image that I wouldn't ever use. If I had a client who insisted on using it, I'd first try to talk them out of it and secondly incorporate it as a very small part of a larger composition.

Comments

[dhampyresa]

The different ways the stock pictures are really interesting! Why so much Christian stuff with the sword one, though.

[sholio]

OMG, yes, that sword; it immediately pinged "familiar!" as soon as I saw it. It is a very striking image, though.

[misbegotten]

Santa Claus: The King of the Elves

Best. Use. Ever.

[delight]

Oh no, yeah, I recognize all of those. D: I wish I had known Lindsay when Balanced on the Blade's Edge came out, because the cover she picked (the 99designs submission had some WONDERFUL ones that didn't get chosen) has that girl who is everywhere on it and doesn't look like Sardelle.

She stuck with the designer (they're great, they actually made the cover of my Fallen Empire book as well) and they made composites for all the other characters, and so every other cover has someone on it who looks right, but that one ... *cringe*

It probably says how much I don't know about Christianity, but that sure is a LOT of Christian stuff for a sword picture.

[telophase]

"Onward, Christian Soldiers"? I got nuthin'.

[telophase]

There's several covers that I think used to have the sword on them, but they got redesigned. Several of the images in Google's search ended up going to the Amazon page for the books with different covers. I guess the authors realized how over-used it was. :)

[telophase]

I didn't read the description closely enough: the version with this cover is apparently a more adult version. There's an abridged version with a dragon on it for kids. XD

[telophase]

I can only assume they were all humming "Onward, Christian Soldiers" when picking that one!

I'm starting to see this girl everywhere (and I have committed her myself, since I have a subscription to that stock site and have access to a free gallery with her in it XD). I've lost track of the book, but a cover designer I saw used her but put another face and hair on her, which is what I'll probably have to do once I use her again. I can't unsee those two swords, though.

[selenite0]

And I thought it was bad when one spaceship picture appeared on two different SF novels.

[telophase]

Yeah, that's the risk you run if you're not paying large amounts of money for your cover art. XD I ended up buying several 3D models so I could manipulate and light them for premade covers, and I expect I'll probably find versions of them elsewhere, but at least they won't be in the exact position mine are.

[qem_chibati]

It's a particularly cross like sword, and the red cloth is reminiscent of a robe that's drawn in a lot of Jesus art like this: https://www.popcorntreeproducts.com/brent-borup-card-christ-in-red-robe-3x4.html

The cross and red robe is also done in a lot of Easter liturgy type things; basically the Christian art is trying to channel this imagery: https://www.derryandraphoe.org/resources/item/82-what-we-believe

[thawrecka]

There was one male stock photo model I kept seeing on romance novel covers constantly for months, in approx. two different poses. That's just how it is with stock photos, I guess.

[dhampyresa]

Infidel made me think Crusades, but then I got to the How-to and ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[dhampyresa]

Wow, yeah, now that you point it out, I can see it. Thank you!

[telophase]

There's a few I've used on Zoe covers that I now find all the time. Especially Griff from Firefighter Griffin. He gets around!

(I've also seen bears I've used!)

[chomiji]

I agree!

[viridian5]

I had to share this with you. Amazon sent me an e-mail of books suggested for me, and thanks to me checking out the links on this DW post, "monk, old" was on the cover of three of them--The Keeper, The Chrysanthemum Trilogy: Tragedy, and The Chronicles of Luxaar Part 1--in one case one right after the other.



This was a surreal moment, followed by a "what!?" as the third book appeared at the bottom of the e-mail. We seem to have corrupted Amazon's ideas of what books it should suggest to me.

[telophase]

MY EVIL PLAN HAS SUCCEE-- er, cough, I mean Hahahahaha!


(my Amazon recs have been all kinds of effed up since I do research for Augusta Scarlett covers while logged in!)

[viridian5]

...today Amazon sent me an e-mail suggesting five books that only have that face on the cover. Just that face, five times over, though at least the Santa Claus one changes the color of his hair and beard.

[telophase]

LOL!