The Back Cover waiting for its moment in the spotlight

There is always a debate about judging a book by its cover, but what about the back cover?

The cover will most likely have started as a wraparound image, with just as much thought going into the left half of the cover, which will become the back cover, as the right half, which will become the all important front cover. Of course the front cover gets the title, author’s name and main cover image to grab the attention of a perspective reader. But with many books displayed showing only the front cover, whether it’s in a bookshop display, or cover image in an online shop, the back cover won’t be seen until the book is picked up, or a screen is swiped to show more images.

A back cover has its moment in the spotlight when the book is picked up and flipped over. This is when it can back up the work done by the front cover by revealing the blurb, where the reader can find out what the book is about, and if it lives up to the title and front cover image that grabbed their attention enough to pick the book up. The text must be clear and easily read, complimented, but not obscured by the artwork. There needs to be space for a barcode, price and publisher and possibly other information such as previous books by the author or books in a series. The information should be well laid out and not cluttered, so that the reader can quickly make a decision if this is the book for them.