I don't really like the cartoon-like covers, but wow, they are everywhere. My Gen X nature is also to reject any trends, sooooooo….this is probably why my author career was short-lived, hahaha.
OMG! I have been looking for a take down of these new romance covers. I am perplexed at how much people "love" them. I find them A) infantilizing and B) too suspiciously corporate.
The blocky, sterile cartoon covers seem to be catered to children, not adult women, and lack...art? Though older hand-drawn "bodice-ripper" covers of the 80s/90s though a bit too explicit they were actually really beautifully drawn with a lot of different shades/tones and 3-dimensional depth to them. Some older romance books actually had a plain front cover, and then you flip the page to see a colorful insert of the characters that was beautifully hand-drawn. There's so much room for tasteful creativity in book covers. And they could pay artists to do them.
Goodreads might be a good resource to check out maturity level of a book; people leave tons of comments/reviews of the books.
I believe trigger warnings should be placed in all books. Ironically, the only stories I've seen with trigger warnings are fanfictions and dark romances. A lot of sensitive topics can be covered in a 300 page book. It isn't a "spoiler" to know that graphic sex or suicidal ideation is featured in the story. It allows the reader to prepare or decide not to read. People who don't have triggers can simply ignore it.
I've heard about this, but did not realize how bad it truly is. I agree, I think an age rating system would be good or to at the very least mark when something is for a mature audience when its cover appears to be targeting a younger audience at first glance
The description of you going through the books had me laughing out loud. Funny not funny! That's actually a brilliant idea to put an easily accessible age-rating on the cover. I used to check amazon for the age rating but you can only get that on computer not mobile and sometimes they only give you reading level. It was always so time consuming for a busy, tired parent.
I had the exact same reaction! I had no clue about cartoon covers containing such adult content. Sneaky romance writers.
With my boys I often run into cartoons committing acts of graphic violence in a casual manner. Luckily, I have two good hearted children but my wife and I have to constantly monitor.
Thanks for bringing this to my attention. And I 100% agree with you. I can see why those covers tested well with a broader audience as they appear to be pretty clean and harmless, but they definitely look like something for children. But since humans and AI are infinitely creative, this is no excuse. Publishers need to do better.
I don't really like the cartoon-like covers, but wow, they are everywhere. My Gen X nature is also to reject any trends, sooooooo….this is probably why my author career was short-lived, hahaha.
I can relate!
OMG! I have been looking for a take down of these new romance covers. I am perplexed at how much people "love" them. I find them A) infantilizing and B) too suspiciously corporate.
The blocky, sterile cartoon covers seem to be catered to children, not adult women, and lack...art? Though older hand-drawn "bodice-ripper" covers of the 80s/90s though a bit too explicit they were actually really beautifully drawn with a lot of different shades/tones and 3-dimensional depth to them. Some older romance books actually had a plain front cover, and then you flip the page to see a colorful insert of the characters that was beautifully hand-drawn. There's so much room for tasteful creativity in book covers. And they could pay artists to do them.
Goodreads might be a good resource to check out maturity level of a book; people leave tons of comments/reviews of the books.
Yeah and there just seems to be more and more these days. 🤯
I believe trigger warnings should be placed in all books. Ironically, the only stories I've seen with trigger warnings are fanfictions and dark romances. A lot of sensitive topics can be covered in a 300 page book. It isn't a "spoiler" to know that graphic sex or suicidal ideation is featured in the story. It allows the reader to prepare or decide not to read. People who don't have triggers can simply ignore it.
That’s not a bad idea at all. Reading is such an immersive experience that I agree trigger warnings could help people.
I would also recommend downloading an app called StoryGraph. Users can list trigger warnings with their reviews.
Sometimes I'm glad my kids are grown and I'm not responsible for my grandkids.
🤣
I've heard about this, but did not realize how bad it truly is. I agree, I think an age rating system would be good or to at the very least mark when something is for a mature audience when its cover appears to be targeting a younger audience at first glance
The description of you going through the books had me laughing out loud. Funny not funny! That's actually a brilliant idea to put an easily accessible age-rating on the cover. I used to check amazon for the age rating but you can only get that on computer not mobile and sometimes they only give you reading level. It was always so time consuming for a busy, tired parent.
I had the exact same reaction! I had no clue about cartoon covers containing such adult content. Sneaky romance writers.
With my boys I often run into cartoons committing acts of graphic violence in a casual manner. Luckily, I have two good hearted children but my wife and I have to constantly monitor.
Joy, great, well-written post!
Thank you! And yes the hidden or glorified violence isn’t much better.
Yes! It’s tricky to find the age info on Amazon, too!
Thanks for bringing this to my attention. And I 100% agree with you. I can see why those covers tested well with a broader audience as they appear to be pretty clean and harmless, but they definitely look like something for children. But since humans and AI are infinitely creative, this is no excuse. Publishers need to do better.