A book cover is often the first thing a reader notices about your book. That's why you want it to be eye catching and appealing. Sometimes a cover will grab a person's attention, but not for the right reasons. It might be garish, gross, hard on the eyes, or contain other qualities that make a reader grimace after first glance. A good cover needs staying power to make it connect with your audience on a personal level. In a Blood-Red Pencil post on February 5, 2013 , I recommended my own cover designer, Stephen Walker . To decide whether or not a good cover is the best criteria for choosing a book, you may wish to check out Linda Lane's thoughts in her post . Today, I'd like to mention what I look for in a cover, and get feedback on your preferences. As in our prior  What's Your Answer features , I'll ask a few questions, and invite you to reply in the comment section. Q: In a choice between a cover featuring one or more inanimate objects, or a cover high...

I designed my own cover for my first indie published book, Killer Career . Let me tell you, it was a chore! Then Robert W. Walker 's covers on Amazon caught my eye, and I asked who did them. Turned out, it was his son, Stephen. Fortunately for me, Stephen was taking on clients! Stephen Walker is always up for a challenge! Here he is enjoying his favorite sport, kayaking! Stephen is very patient and easy to collaborate with. I like to scout for stock photos, and e-mail them to him. Then, by magic, he figures out how to put them together exactly the right way. He suggests backgrounds, he adds special fonts, he moves figures around, and makes a cover all that it can be.  Here are the ones he designed for me: Just to let you know, Stephen is quite amenable and adaptable. If I suggest a change that would take me forever to accomplish, he says, okay, like there's nothing to it. Before I know it, I've got the new version. His prices are also very reasonable,...