I held off on writing up this week’s post because I knew we were about to release the cover art for my second book, Infidel, and I wanted to speak about how both the covers for God’s War and Infidel came to be.
Most writers are stuck with their cover art. It is what it is. If you’re lucky, you get to say something like, “Can that white chick with the sword on my cover actually have brown eyes or something? I mean, she’s supposed to be hispanic.” Or you can say, “Can she have a bigger sword?” But there are all sorts of things that happen with covers. Spaceships end up on books that don’t even feature spaceships. Protagonists of the “wrong” gender end up on the front – for marketing purposes.
But if you write the sorts of books I do, which posit worlds that aren’t teeming with white people, more often than not what you end up with is something like what Justine Larbalestier went through, which is that not only does your cover not feature your protagonist, but your brown protagonist magically becomes a white one for “marketing purposes.”
To me, this goes beyond just slapping a spaceship on the cover of a book that doesn’t have spaceships. It’s white washing books, and worlds, and the genre. And it annoys the crap out of me, because it’s an epic failure of imagination in a genre that’s supposed to be all about positing something really different.
I never actually thought white-washing would be a possibility for me, because, you know, there was only one actual white character in my entire book, and he was sort of incidental. All my cover sketches looked great. I asked to have a slightly more buff heroine, as the first was kinda skinny, but in the sketch, her skin tone looked right, and I was pretty happy overall. I had a bad-ass brown heroine, just the way she was in the books. But when my publisher released the initial cover painting on Facebook, I was shocked to find that my brown heroine had… well, turned out a little different from the sketch:
(from here)
To Night Shade’s credit (and the artist’s, David Palumbo), they responded immediately to my concerns and revised the cover so my protagonist actually looked more like she did in the book. Brown and all.
Big difference, right? But here’s the part that’s important: most authors have NO SAY IN THIS WHATSOEVER. A bigger house would have likely laughed at me and said, “You know, we’ll sell more books with a white chick on the cover.” Though likely not in those terms. What you’d likely hear is: “Well, this is just the convention” or “Most readers want to read about someone they can relate to”(!?).
It might seem like a small change to folks who kinda take white chicks on covers for granted, or for folks who actually think authors have any say in this (again, read Justine’s post - it will make you cringe). But it was a BIG deal for me to make sure this heroine was the right color. I was tired of a boring, white-washed future. We talk big in SF/F about how mindblowing-happy-go-lucky-equality-imaginative we are, but then we run off and create these boring, white-Euro-centric futures that all start to sound – and look! – the same.
Another issue that was important to me with covers was to ensure that I had a strong protagonist on the front. In particular, a strong FEMALE protagonist. Who wasn’t wearing leather pants or falling out of her top. I got that in this one, and felt pretty confident about what the next one would be.
Unfortunately, my vision of how the heroine was going to be portrayed was a bit at odds with how other folks thought she should be in book 2. Infidel puts our strong heroine in a bit of a bind, and there was much debate about whether or not she should be portrayed in a prone position or not. I won’t share the initial sketch of the cover, as I don’t have permission, but suffice to say that it looked something like this, with our heroine in the prone position:
To me, this was wrong in a lot of ways for my particular heroine. We like to put women in peril because it’s easier to trigger an emotional reaction from people. Unfortuantely, you start putting your badass heroine in positions like these, and suddenly this character you worked so hard to make into a badass looks like just another woman in need in saving.
After much back-and-forth, David Palumbo created this fine cover for Infidel:
I still had some concerns about it (the heroine looks like an entirely different person to me, and I worried over some of the race politics with my male protagonist there, though looking at the journey he undergoes in the book and their relationship, it does fit the tone of the book), but overall, this cover was far more in the spirit of the type of book it was.
The process with Infidel was a good lesson in why it was better for me to go with a smaller press for these books. Night Shade did actually listen to and respond to my feedback – bigger houses aren’t likely to pull a sketch unless you’re a Big Name or something. I got a lot of input, yes, but I also felt strongly enough about the issues I had with both covers to make a fuss.
And let’s say it right now: sometimes you have to make a fuss. In the case of both of my issues with the initial concepts for these peices, my issues are big enough that I needed to state them head on. No writer wants to be the “trouble” author. You know, that prima donna who complains about every damn thing and emails their editor ten times a day. But on the big stuff, it’s worth taking a stand, even if you don’t “win.”
Because, even if I’d ended up with white chicks and/or dead heroines on my cover, at least I could tell people I had fought to change it. Sometimes I wonder if the white chicks on covers thing has just as much to do with authors not fighting over changes and/or not talking openly about it to audiences as it does with marketing “conventions” (i.e. racist/sexist assumptions).
I was really passionate about not ending up with white, powerless women on my covers. Whether or not I sell less books because of it… well, you know what? I have a day job. I’m in a position where I can actually afford to fight for a position that I believe to be right, to change a convention. And if somebody like me isn’t willing to stand up and say something, who will? It’s a lot more difficult to argue when you rely on book sales to eat.
Sometimes I cherish the fact that I’m not a professional fiction writer.
Man, never thought I’d say that.
Laurissa Grinnell on June 2, 2011
Kameron: What impact do you think e-books will have on the cover art? I’ve been reading a few things on the e-reader David got me for graduation, and it occurred to me after reading this that I don’t think my particular e-reader shows cover art at all.
Kameron Hurley on June 2, 2011
You can actually see the cover on most newer e-readers when you make the purchase and again in a visual display of the library. Older kindles and some other models may not do this, but most of the newer versions do, and I expect that future tech will follow suit.
In fact, you can actually see GW’s cover the way it’d be displayed in an ebook library in this write-up on e-readers at laptop mag! http://blog.laptopmag.com/nook-color-vs-galaxy-tab/3
I actually know a lot of authors commissioning new covers for books for which rights have reverted back to them. It’s the first thing they think to do before getting a book back out there. There are even some designers now looking to specialize in cheap and easy e-book covers.
For better or worse, a cover is pretty much the biggest marketing investment a book ever gets.
INFIDEL Cover Now Unveiled on June 3, 2011
[...] The Politics of Cover Art: Skinny White Dead Chicks and Selling Books [...]
[dave] on June 3, 2011
Yeah, the woman on the second cover looks much less Nyx-ish to me than from the first cover. The art for Infidel is quite beautiful, but I still find the thing that my eye is drawn to on the first is those lovely, disgusting shiny beetles.
Sarah Heitz on June 3, 2011
Interesting article. I find the politics of cover design fascinating (having no experience with it myself). I’m glad you stuck up for having a brown, non-dead protagonist on your covers.
Also, I’m very much looking forward to reading Infidel, probably on my Kindle, as I did with God’s War. I don’t think my Kindle shows the book’s cover art after I buy it. Though I kind of wish it did, the contents of the book are more important to me.
Paul (@princejvstin) on June 3, 2011
I have to admit, the woman on the cover of Infidel does not, to me, look like Nyx. It’s a nice cover…but it doesn’t feel like the Nyx I know.
Tracy Cooper-Posey on June 6, 2011
It was interesting to see that you were successful in your efforts to have your covers changed, Kameron. Congratulations on that.
While working with a small press gives an author more opportunity to provide input on the cover, it doesn’t automatically guarantee you’ll be able to affect changes. From my own experience working with very small and very large “small” presses, I have had no luck getting cover art changed despite incorrect white-washed heroines, and in one case, the major plot turning point being revealed on the cover. In the latter, they kept the cover because the marketing department deemed it “a winner”.
I’ve sinced moved to independent publishing, where I have total control over the cover.
Bliss.
Tracy Cooper-Posey
David Palumbo on August 3, 2011
Hey Kam,
Ordinarily I’m reluctant to answer back or get involved in this sort of issue in a public venue when I’m speaking on behalf of others, though I do want to offer up 2 cents from the other side of the table. The white washing issue is a very touchy subject and has been getting lots of discussion and some times for very good reason. Like you and many others, I have my own triggers and buttons when the subject is raised. The thing that I wanted to write and give some insight on is that, in the case of your cover and every other cover which I’ve worked as artist or art director, the subject has *never* been mentioned of changing or bending a race. Not for marketing purposes or any other reason.
In the case of this book, it happened on that first final by accident. In reading the book, I noted that Rhys was very noticeably darker in skin tone than everyone else (and so stood out in a crowd), though I didn’t make note of much racial detail about Nyx beyond dark hair and so kept her lighter to make him darker by way of contrast. I only go into detail about this issue to make clear that these situations often have more to do with simple misunderstandings or (quite truthfully) the fact that many fantasy artists default to their own cultural background which the majority of the time is Caucasian. Not in a conspiratorial way, but simply as a subconscious decisions in the very long string of decisions which go into composing a picture. Important details can get overlooked sometimes, and it isn’t telling of an agenda so much as the artist’s past experience and comfort zones. One who is Caucasian and grew up mainly surrounded by Caucasians would obviously have had the most practice drawing and painting Caucasians as a result. Never have I personally encountered a marketing or editorial memo instructing to deliberately alter a character’s race.
Of course, everyone wants the final result of a cover to be that everyone is happy. Sometimes changes can’t be made because it would be too expensive, it would seriously disrupt the schedule, or a number of other boring but tangible issues. They are always weighed against the importance of the change requested and, unfortunately, I think that can sometimes be misconstrued as marketing having an agenda.
I won’t go into the Infidel discussion since we already talked this over through emails and I think (hope) we understood each others point of view enough to know that, once again, we both just wanted what was best for the story but may have been approaching the task from different places.
The cover artist has many concerns beyond making their deadline and getting paid. I speak for just about every cover artist I know, and I know very many very well. The artist is also concerned with creating an image with depth and interest, with creating an image which is appropriate and true to the content (though how much access the artist has to the content varies), and the artist is concerned with making an image which the author will be happy with. Remember that, like genre writers, most genre illustrators got into this job because we love and respect the subject matter. We all need to give each other the benefit of the doubt and remember that, from beginning to end, we are all on the same team
Kameron on August 4, 2011
Hi David! Thanks for weighing in. I know I would have reacted a lot differently and assumed it was a miscommunication of some sort (goodness knows writers have ended up with all sorts of weird things on their book covers that aren’t in the books), if it hadn’t been a HUGE fear of mine from the onset. When it happened, I was absolutely floored, and – having knowledge of so many other conversations around whitewashing – I did indeed fear the worst. I realize that wasn’t entirely fair, as it was my first time working with you and the NS team, but after reading what so many authors have been through (and Justine in particular), it was my immediate response.
At the end of the day, I know it’s something we’re all working hard to fix, these sort of immediate assumptions. For me, that was assuming I was getting a white chick for marketing reasons, and perhaps, for you, it was assuming I was writing about a white chick
There’s a lot of work to do to overcome this stuff, and it’s really encouraging to see all the thought and discussion around it. I do know that we’re all on the same team, and I really appreciate the fact that you and NS have let me have so much input into these covers.
It means a lot.
jeffliveshere on August 4, 2011
” I only go into detail about this issue to make clear that these situations often have more to do with simple misunderstandings or (quite truthfully) the fact that many fantasy artists default to their own cultural background which the majority of the time is Caucasian. Not in a conspiratorial way, but simply as a subconscious decisions in the very long string of decisions which go into composing a picture. Important details can get overlooked sometimes, and it isn’t telling of an agenda so much as the artist’s past experience and comfort zones.”
At the risk of violating the spirit of cooperation, which I think is alive and well in this post and its comments, I’d like to point out that the above is exactly why folks who examine racism as cultural critics note that racism isn’t just individuals pursuing agendas–it’s institutionalized. So, artists aren’t encouraged, either in their own art worlds or by capitalism, to examine their own context in order to go out of their comfort zones–which are often places of racial privilege. If there are fewer black cover artists (for now), and cover artists only ever work from within the confines of their comfort zones, folks will continue to be used to seeing skinny white chicks on covers forever. So, not all racism is overt, or conscious–it’s deeply ingrained, and I encourage folks (including myself) to venture *consciously* out of our comfort zones so that we don’t stay subconsciously racist, which is a default in institutionalized racist societies.
kameron hurley on August 4, 2011
@jeff Absolutely. The first step to changing is admitting there are cultural assumptions in play. For me, acknowleging my own preconceptions was the first step. I’m constantly interrogating my own choices and assumptions. It’s hard, and it’s uncomfotable, and I fail a LOT, but my work is better for it. Asolutely imperfect, but reaching for something better. The same goes for all creators, and I do think this conversation ties in well with the DC creators debate. If we all bring our cultural assumptions to the table, it behooves us to seek out voices with a different view of things – as well as challenging ourselves to work outside our comfort zone.
David Palumbo on August 6, 2011
Kam and Jeff,
Speaking personally, this is definitely something that I’ll be more conscious/aware of in future jobs. I can’t answer to society or the world that I was born into other than to say that, to me, intentions do make a difference and we all come from different places and experiences. We need to be sensitive from all sides. Just as being more sensitive to racial and ethnic diversity is important, it’s also important to remember that not everyone has thought extensively on these issues and that’s not the same as being against them. We’d all do well to try and keep level heads rather than jump to conclusions, because conversation is much more productive than knee-jerk argument.
Kameron, off the subject, but are you going to Reno?
Kameron Hurley on August 6, 2011
I am not, alas! (as for the rest, yes, but with reservations. I will not get into debate on privilege here, as I do not have the spoons. Will save that conversation for in-person someday!
)
David Palumbo on August 9, 2011
fair enough