As for the cover, I think the art is beautiful and I like your font. However, I'm not getting a sense for what kind of book it is. Looking at what you have I would think its some kind of religious book, perhaps a historical novel, or maybe a romance. I dont know that the title screams any of those genres.
Maybe if you give us some more info on what the book is and what feeling you're trying to get across we could help a little more.
The story is a romance with fantasy and suspense elements thrown in. The basic plot is that an elderly couple become young again by eating an apple in the orchard where they first met. The middle part of the story is about how they deal with being young again. There are several twists, including one at the very end. There are plenty of Christian overtones - the main characters are George and Eve Adams. That's why I chose that particular painting by Titian.
I'm very open to other ideas as far as the title or artwork.
I'd love to be young again. I was pretty level headed for that age. I want my hot 24 year old body back!
Okay, it wasn't hot, but it was really, really cute. And my legs were hot.
Back to business: You did a nice job on the cover, but I agree that the title might work for the story IF the cover pic matches, but it doesn't. And the title needs to be bigger, and if you want a pretty font for the word Eden, you need to pick something thicker and less swirly. On my book, I couldn't get the pretty font readable, so I went with a swirly S and a very readable digital font for the rest. I think it works for the type of story it is.
But you need a different pic. It needs to say "romantic fantasy". Or would this be paranormal? Your story kind of sits in the middle of a few genres. It's not a romance, from the sound of it. It has romantic elements. In a romance, the primary focus is the development of a relationship, and ends HEA/HFN. It sounds like this revolves around the fantasy aspect, that happens to occur between two people who are married and in love.
Oh, and the naked people hint at a possibility of erotica. My first thought was "okay, was this some kind of experiment that ended up making people extra horny? And if so, is it some kind of historical? Huh." But it did look pretty.
It works for me. I know the painting and it makes sense with the story, and the religious overtones. But, it is interesting to see how different people see different things based on the same image.
Interesting thoughts Juliette. Maybe it isn't a romance .... as the story moves along, George gets older while Eve stays at 19. He, in fact, gets a year older with every day that passes. So, you can imagine the problems that causes.
Perhaps I should market it as straight fantasy or paranormal? Christian fantasy .... help me out here folks
Hmmm. If it's a romance, then it's a romance. You should market it as one. But I'm getting the sense you're not sure if it qualifies as a romance.
Before you do anything with your cover, you need to know what genre your book is.
So...is the central arc about two people who fall in love, how that love changes them and their lives? And does the book end with the two people finding some kind of happily-ever-after together? If yes, then you probably need to pick some different artwork for your cover.
If not, then you need to determine what your book is really all about and who will want to read it/buy it. I suggest you take a look at covers of comparable books for some inspiration. You may be okay with what you have.
It's really hard to say, just from what we've heard. How much faith/spirituality is in it? Because these days, there are a growing number of people who are anti-religion and will flame you in the reviews for any religion mentioned if they weren't expecting it. But then again, if there are just faith-based elements in it, but it's really not a Christian story, then the Christians might get up in arms. Normally I'd say it sounds like either a fantasy or a paranormal, depending on how they became young, and what was the explanation for it. (time travel can be paranormal...but if it's filled with technology stuff it could be sci-fi). But if you've woven a lot of spirituality in, I'm not sure how well that goes over with the fantasy crowd.
How's that for helpful?
I'm thinking you've got your own niche genre going on. You'll have to decide what elements are the most prominent, and base your marketing on that. What you might want to try is a short blurb for the book, then start a new paragraph that says something like this:
"This is a fantasy story with romantic and spiritual elements."
Or whatever you decide works with the story. See, this is the great thing (and also the bad thing) about being indie--a publisher would reject this book because they couldn't put it neatly in a "box" of one particular genre. That's the good part--you can sell it on your own. The bad part is, there's a reason they stick to one genre--it's more work/thought to market it.
I do like the sound of your story. Very interesting concept.
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