Okay – I’ve blogged about Bronwyn Parry’s As Darkness Falls before. I love so much about this novel. I especially love the cover. There is nothing better than what I call the colours of Australia. Forget green and gold. Australia to me is sunburnt orange and blue. When I travelled around Australia at 24 years of age (yikes, that’s 24 years ago as well) – just me and my girlfriend in a big old F100 and tent – it is these colours of Australia that I remember the most. Magical mornings camped on bright orange/red earth under the crisp blue sky of a desert dawn and awe-inspiring sunsets, like a dusky blue blanket covered in glowing embers of orange, pink and red.
Now what does any of this have to do with Bronwyn Parry’s book?
Well…As Darkness Falls is releasing in the UK and the Brits have changed the cover. When I heard (even before I looked at the cover) I thought – damn, I hope it doesn’t change too much.
Well it has……..and it’s great. Very different – they’ve really hooked onto the thriller aspect of the story. It is quite mesmerising and definitley grabs your attention. I’ve only seen it on the web (of course) but I think it will be a real attention grabber on the shelevs. Take a look for yourself on http://bronwynparry.com/blog/
This has been a bit of an eye-opener for ‘lil old unpubbed me with big dreams. I mean, I know you’re not supposed to get attached to your titles (as publishers are bound to change them) but I didn’t stop to think the book might undergo a transformation with a new cover and new tag line. I think this might have horrified me once (I can be soooooo precious). Now it’s sort of exciting. To think, your novel could have a whole new look and readership. I, of course, can only even dream of having a book published at this stage (let alone an o/s release). But it adds yet another exciting dimension to this business we are in.
PS I thought I’d add a pic form my travels to show the colours, but after blowing the dust off the album cover, I saw the colour from the photos had faded terribly. Luckily for me my memory hasn’t (not yet anyway LOL)
It's terrible how possessive we get over things as simple as our title. But I agree Jenn, they have done a great job with the UK cover of Bronwyn's book. Fantastic read, so I hope the UK embrace it too.
Hi Jenn
The cover does look amazing. All that vast space and red earth. Scary and unpredictable.
I hadn't even got as far as thinking about covers.
And is the bottom pic yours? Spectacular.
Thx. Yes the sunset is from my house near Coffs Harbour, actually. But Ayres Rock (in case no one recognises it) is me 24 yrs ago.
Ah, When I posted the first comment I could only see the thumbnail of Uluru and didn't recognise it. But now I've returned I can see it! And it's you!
I finally got here 🙂 Thanks, Jenn, for your comments about my covers – I love them both. They're two quite different approaches, each focusing on a different element of the book, and conveying that in a 'language' that the target audience can relate to.
I suspect images of Australia are even more evocative when you've actually experienced the vastness and wilderness – whether deep in the bush, in the red desert, on the edge of a gorge, or at the base of the escarpment. Few photos can really capture the awe, but they can serve to remind us.
One of my favourite, most awe-inspiring places is Sturt's Stony Desert, in northern South Australia. The red gibber plains stretch forever, all around, under a huge clear sky, and the emptiness and stillness is that quality that lets you hear the tiniest of sounds. We were there in winter, a week or so after rain, and here and there amongst the red gibbers were small new gray/green plants, fresh new life that would not last for long – but beautiful in their contrast to the harshness around them.