We often hear people saying ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’. The people who say this are morons.
I agree that, at a metaphoric level, it’s inadvisable to make any decision based on surface aspects. But that’s common sense. If I’m thinking, “That fifteenth cake looks tasty,” or “That cocktail looks tempting”, I have the wit and wisdom to consider the choice for a moment and think, “Do I need those extra calories of a fifteenth cake?” or “Why am I staring at cocktails at 8.00am?”
But we do make many decisions based on surface aspects. And the most ironic area where we make decisions judging books by their covers is when we’re buying books.
All of which his my way of saying thank you to my friend the writer, and cover artist, Colin Davies. Colin is responsible for each of the covers from the Innsmouth series and I think they beautifully illustrate the journey that takes the characters from Fearless to Dagon.
Colin and I regularly chat together about horror stories and you can see some of our recorded discussions on this link to the Ash and Col Podcast.
More importantly, if you want to check out some of Colin’s superb writing, start with Blood Ink and prepare for the forthcoming sequel, Blood Debt. And, when it comes to judging books by their covers, keep in mind that some of the best covers genuinely do contain some bloody good books.
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