This is a few days old but I don’t know how I previously missed it since Daniel Woodrell is one of my favorites. But, some lucky reporter from The Independent got to travel to the Ozarks to interview Woodrell.
Man, I can still remember the exact moment that I saw Give Us a Kiss in the bookstore. I’ve always been a bit ambivalent about the descriptive subtitles that publishers often tack on. The whole colon followed by “a novel” kind of left me cold. But this book had the coolest design I’d seen in a long while and it carried with it the description “a country noir.” Fantastic. We sold the hell out of that book and it turned into a real staff favorite.
And the most exciting thing about that book was that Woodrell’s writing lived up to, and even exceeded, the cool design and packaging of the book. As does all of his work. I have a couple of writing deadlines this week, but this interview really makes me want to take some Woodrell books down off the shelf and re-lose myself in the Ozarks again.
I completely agree – the visual and textural arts had a perfect marriage with that particular design.
The days of the single-color, fabric encased, novel are long gone. In an culture increasingly concerned with visual summation and concision, a book cover comes to symbolize, as you pointed out in your own way, everything that is contained within, for good or ill. Although, in general, I do not find the current landscape either benefits or hinders both writers or readers. Each find their own in whatever age. However, there is a dramatic shift occurring which is interesting.
As a writer with computer consultancy in my past, I can take on the mantle of design that I feel best represents my work, without the fear of cryptic ‘software suites’ that may make other writers feel like the task of staging another moon landing would be easier. For a person like myself, obsessed with every aspect of their work, including tasks that are usually left to whole departments, this era does allow complete control. Although this may lead to writers taking on too much, jobs better left to specialists, I think overall it may free creative marriages from stale standards.
I studied successful book covers for weeks before designing my own and Woodrell’s was a clear standout. It draws you in … and that’s half the battle won.
Regards,
GC
This may be a ‘duh’, but here it is : http://covers.fwis.com/