A Tale of Two Proofs

Most of the subreddits I follow that are devoted to writing, self-publishing, indie publishing, book cover design, and so on, stress me out more than actually providing useful information. Not to say they haven't opened my eyes to some very important things I never would have thought of as a debut self-publisher in the online realm. But most of the time, Posts in those threads pique my anxiety and make me feel overwhelmed and that I'm approaching this all wrong.

I can't remember what subreddit or thread or post I encountered about whether to apply a matte or glossy finish to a book cover. I hadn't even thought about it until then. But the gist of the post and the comments on it was that the cover finish generally depends on the category/genre of the book. The consensus was that matte is the preference for most fiction, and that glossy is generally the style for YA and non-fiction.

At the same time, there was some discussion about the physical qualities of each finish. Stuff about fingerprints, cover paper quality, and the way colors come across. That particular point stood out to me. The point that matte covers absorb light and so darker colors tend to become muted, whereas with a glossy finish, the colors pop more due to the way the finish reflects light. That was intriguing.

However, the majority of posters in that thread were of the opinion that matte was the better choice. It's the standard for general fiction, I guess. Seen as more serious, more sophisticated. Since I want to be considered an author of sophisticated fiction and I want to be taken seriously, that made my mind up for me. Maladaptive would have a matte cover.

My proof arrived earlier this week, and I've been reading through it to catch any straggling errors and tidy it up before I upload the official manuscript (non-sequitur: the eBook was originally scheduled to release April 1, but after receiving the proof I realized I wanted a bit more time with it before it goes live, so I pushed the eBook release back to April 7).

Honestly, the proof looks fantastic. The interior looks pretty sweet, and I'm impressed with the overall quality of the cover and the cream paper. Nothing about it seems cheap or amateur. It's pro and I love it. But I did note that the dark teal on the cover reads almost black. And that got me curious what the glossy version would look like.

So I ordered a glossy proof as well to compare. It arrived yesterday and... HOLY MACKEREL. I mean, look at the difference...

The difference in the vibe is astounding, to me at least. And I don't mean the matte version is more sophisticated or serious or reflective of the genre. I mean the matte version is so inhibited, and it just literally faded into the background, as the glossy version is so vibrant, sparkling and shining and gleaming in my hands. It looks so friggin' amazing that there is no doubt in my mind (well, except for the people on Reddit nagging in the back of my mind) that glossy is the way to go, at least for this book.

It actually got me feeling a little emotional and verklempt. Rhianna's "Diamonds" started playing in my head. It's really stunning. And that's what matters, I think. It should be less important whether or not its the standard finish for the type of book that it is, and more about the unique needs of the cover itself and what serves it best.

And so, I think I'm breaking up with matte to go with glossy. It's screaming to me that this is the right decision. Reddit might tell me I'm wrong, but I don't care. Well, I care a little. But not enough to be dragged back down to a finish where light and color go to die.

It's feeling pretty real now. Today I will upload the final official manuscript to Amazon KDP. I feel a little dumb for pushing the eBook release back but, I didn't have any pre-orders anyway and approximately five people in the world are aware this is even happening, so the impact of that is minimal. 

I may decide to move the print version release up. I mean, why not? What's the value of holding it back until the scheduled April 28th date? If the interior is ready and I've decided on the cover finish, then I might as well just push the button, right? I suppose I could use the three weeks to "build buzz" but let's be serious, building buzz is not exactly my strong suit. So stay tuned for me to change that date as well. Trying to predict the release date felt like closing my eyes and pointing at a calendar. It's like I said before. It's a snow globe, not a crystal ball.