You can't, but people DO.

There's that old saying about 'you can't judge a book by the cover', but everyone does. We're a visual-heavy race, and it's that initial attraction in everything that makes people decide whether or not to delve deeper and commit to it. If there's a lack of care in presentation then it doesn't bode well for content. I'd rather see a blank cover than a badly done one. Okay, I know there are lots of levels of artist out there, and some (Myself included) try really hard even if the results aren't masterpieces, but it's easy to tell when someone just couldn't be bothered. This site has links to the Facebook group of Novel Illustrations where you'll be able to see some very good covers and also some that are either badly done or completely inappropriate and yet still managed to get out into the public domain. I realize it's difficult from practical and financial angles to get the cover you'd like, and I know that many publishers go for cheap rather than good as it keeps the costs down. Still, there are standards, and it is possible to find that balance of a decent cover at a decent price. This site is mainly a showcase of sorts, so the general public can see what I do. However it's not just about me, it's also about book illustrating in general, not just my illustrations art and covers. It is a new site, as such it isn't massively stocked with images, links, writing et cetera, but I will be adding to it on a regular basis to keep people up to date with what I am doing and where it can be seen. I will try as much as possible to show rights-expired work here as a rolling record of my successes and excesses as I continue to submit art and stories to various agencies. At present there are a few links that are dead ends, such as Linkedin, Twitter and a few other items that need tidying up as some I haven't set up accounts for yet, so if you find something that doesn't work at the moment please don't honk as I am pedaling as fast as I can. If you're an author, and you're happy/unhappy with a cover let me know. I'm sure others would like to know your experiences. I know I would. Joe.