Torn between two cover designs - your input?

[Foxee]

Even though the minimalist one is slicker I find that I like the first one better. It looks like something actually happens at this 'Dawnpoint' that I want to know about. I agree about cleaning it up a little but that would be my choice.

[CyberWar]

As they are, I'd go with the right one because it's easier to read. I would've picked the left one if only it had bigger, clearer letters that the broken glass pattern didn't interfere with and make them difficult to read.

[Kyle R]

I like the minimalist one more. Though the title looks small. Almost apologetically so. It doesn't seem powerful or compelling.

And the lowercase author name seems a little odd (to me), too. Plus, the large vertical separation between the names makes it seem like it's written by three different authors.

If it were me, I'd stick with the minimalist design, because it's clean and it pops. But I'd tweak the typography some more.

[Xander416]

I like the one on the right, though I'd make the letters a little larger so they don't get lost.

The one on the left, imo, is too chaotic and confusing.

My thoughts exactly. I can barely make out "Orson Hartley" on the glass one.

[indianroads]

I've heard that the 1st thing that starts to draw a potential reader to your work is the cover, the 2nd being the product description (blurb). After that they may read a few pages (Amazon free sample), and if that works they'll make the purchase. A good cover is key because it starts the purchasing process.

For me - these covers tell me nothing about your story. You say it's a thriller, but I see nothing explicit in the design that tells me that. Who is the MC and what sort of world is your book set in? Give your potential readers something that intrigues them enough that they'll give it a closer look.

[Razzy]

Out of the two, I'd pick the minimalist one. The glass is too chaotic to make out properly. I think the name takes up too much space on both. I suspect this is because there is not much else going on in either so you need to fill space. Dawnpoint needs to be bigger in order to stand out more (having it more central can help too). I know this would disrupt the 'fit' with the faded letters, but just make the letters bigger altogether. Rather than shattered glass, I would have cracked glass. With the numbers running in the background this gives much more of a computer screen feel. It would also look 3D to catch the eye. I think it also needs colour to stand out, maybe in the title or the background numbers. The cracked glass could solve this on its own, though. You could throw some other generic line (above the title but smaller) if the space still feels empty, like 'Only One Can Survive' or whatever relates to your story.

[Eicca]

Based on feedback, I have created another draft with 1) the title more pronounced and 2) the glass cleaned up so it's not messy but still gives a sense of something happening. I need to find a bullet hole in glass to use, because that'll fit the story better, but this is the result of the test run:



I think the bullet hole in the glass should be centered on the O, and the blue dot does have significance to the story so it'll stay.

[Eicca]

I also tweaked the minimalist design because I don't have to pay royalties to anyone on this one. In addition to lifting the title text to the foreground, I made one tiny tweak that I feel helps sell the genre. Spot it? Does it work?

[Razzy]

I think the new cracked design is much better, well done! I would definitely choose that one over the others. A slightly off center bullet hole for the cracks will look very nice. Using the O as the hole is a neat idea, but may require more effort to 'clean up' around the title. The sight on the O is a nice touch. I still think your name looks a little odd, Brady is too far from Orson. Maybe try lowering the entire name so Hartley is at the bottom and bring the words closer together? You could also try lining up brady and hartley for symmetry. I'd play around with it and see. It could even line up with the cracks from the bullet hole in an eye catching way.

[RWK]

The one on the right would turn me away. 'If the author can't think of a cover image, what does that say of the plot', would be my thought.

The broken glass on the left is better (especially after the clean-up), but it doesn't grab me. Shattered glass tells me nothing. It is a treatise on auto safety? The cover should give you an idea of what the book is about; it should catch your eye and make you pick it up or click on the blurb.

You're trying to stand out from among thousands of choices.

That's my two cents.