This is a perfect illustration of why most publishers’ cover development processes are deeply inadequate.

Sure, that shadowy figure on your spine probably looks fantastic on a print-out in the marketing director’s office. But the reality of a crowded shelf is very different. We counted eleven near-identical spines  in a single metre of crime fiction at our local indy — these are just a few of them.

None has anything at all to distinguish it or to catch the eye. Even the big author names lose all their traction. When so much time and effort are spent on front covers, this feels like a terrible waste of talent… and of potential backlist sales.

The cover process needs to change. Get out of the office and put your books on real shelves in real shops. You’ll soon see what you need to do to stand out. And keep going back to test and refine. Talk to booksellers and spend some time watching people browsing your genre. Half an hour of  observation is worth so much more than those agonising hours of cover approval by committee.

Finally, buy everything the competition has to offer and create your own genre shelf in the middle of the department. Make it as messy and chaotic as possible then challenge yourselves to make your spines stand out. Ask visitors and other staff members what they think — and act on their feedback.

As you know, we at Fixabook are nerdy champions of the spine. Creatively and commercially, giving them the attention they deserve can make a massive difference.