Digest edition covers

[LifeSong]

Is the content in the digest books the same as the regular ones or did they dumb it down? (I HOPE not.) Because I really like the covers for the digest ones, I don't own the books (though I basically own the library copies ) and I want to buy the whole set, if I can, and I thought that as long as the content was the same I'd get the digest versions, at least for the first 5.

Thanks,
LifeSong

[Draziw]

Yes to the Lemony Snicket covers! Brett Helquist is a GENIUS. But has anyone noticed how Roshaun isn't in any of the covers? Not even WH, which is the scene where Dair, Filif, and Skerret are all at the Sun (unless Roshaun was already in the Sun at that moment in time). But gah! Even a silhouette would've been nice!

[AlidaART]

Oh man Tui those Lemony Snicket redesigns are fantastic. This is making me want to do that with YW. Like real bad. Could be an interesting art challenge...I haven't been doing much creative stuff since I Went Psycho (aka started dealing with things), which is a real shame.

So...if I don't post some cover ideas by say, mid-June, can you guys start bugging me? I'm all inspired now!

P.S. I think the AWoM scene is actually from the War of the Worlds moment, which was before the thing with Spirit.

[Birdhead]

A Wizard of Mars: The only on at this time that really impacts me is a scene where Kit, Darryl and Ronan are standing next to the Mars Rover, Spirit, protecting it from 'attack.' I won't go into any other detail as to that scene since it's not needed for the visual, but you can get the idea.

But... that IS the scene on the WoM cover! I mean, Spirit's not in it, but...

General cover ideas: I'd really like to see a purely typographic cover, or a really super-clean cover design - this is not in general, I don't think that would be useful for marketing the boos, but just, I'd like to see fan-designed covers along these lines. Think Love That Dog, &c. To be honest, I think the present covers are usually pretty good; my favourite covers are the first three Corgi covers - I like the simple, clean art, not overdone, still pretty 20-ish years later, accurate without being slavish or looking like illustrations - but I think the current ones really get the job done and have a strong sense of genre.

What I really would like on the cover, but will never get because it wouldn't be a good cover: Nita. Kit. The moon. Earth rising in the background. (Actually I have an icon that is fanart of this that I really love, so shut up, Tui.) I'd love to see retro redesigns, like these Lemony Snicket redesigns, or these movie poster redesigns. Ummm. And I guess I'd like some really good cover art of Kit. Dairine, oddly, has a lot of the best art; Nita has some; but most covers with Kit on them are either the silhouette ones or some that are just... really bad. (Points to anyone who can guess which one I'm thinking of when I say really bad.)

[AlidaART]

Yes, DW especially is a very "adult" book in many ways. It's even got a bit more sex - or references to sex - than most of the other books. I'm thinking particularly of some of the passages where Ed and Nita discuss their roles in the Song...a lot of those take on a very interesting metaphorical cast that seems to me to reference sexual intercourse. You get a bit of that too in AWA when Ronan kisses Nita and she learns about how wizards experience physical relationships with other wizards.

I honestly think that the books have gotten "cleaner", actually...even allowing for the swearing in AWoM. The early books had some very dark themes, which kind of reflects how teens were treated by mainstream media in the late 80s/early 90s (I'm thinking John Cusack movies and My So-Called Life - dark, revolutionary stuff) as opposed to now (even great shows like Doctor Who are looking a little too well-groomed sometimes). Not that the books are in any way less brilliant - there's just a little less grunge.

[dorotheia]

death.

Frankly, Deep Wizardry was just as "adult" and was all the more emotionally exhausting because Nita and Kit were still kids. Heck, even S'reee was just a calf. "You, young and never loving. I, immortal, and never loved" (Deep Wizardry, paraphrased). If they could digest that, well, they've done the hard part already. Not to mention, TWD and AWAl were both grieving books, a theme explored at a more muted level later. Not at the same intensity anymore!

Maybe it's really a page count problem. Y'know, older teens like bigger books, the reasoning goes. (They could shrink the font size if they wanted, just a little. That's an old mind trick.) Whatever. I liked those covers.

Anyway, other thoughts for cover art? Perhaps we could expand this topic to include "stuff that you would like to see on the cover of any YW book" - include art style, color scheme, etc.

Consider the motion seconded, AlidaART. Scenes are good too.

• A couple epics would be nice, like the moon scene, or the Song scene, or the Balor scene... you get the picture.
  
• A kind of ordinary scene in SYWTBAW, of Kit and Nita spelling together: just relaxing and practicing. I think that kind of visual representation of what Kit and Nita do on their "days off" would be great (AKA, when they're not saving the world, because a wizard's work is never done).

[AlidaART]

That's very interesting. I'm not sure what books they're reading, but I feel like most of the series is pretty "adult" if you really look at what's at stake, not to mention the sheer amount of character death. In fact, in almost every book except for AWoM, WH, and AWA some beloved character snuffs it in the name of wizardry.

Anyway, other thoughts for cover art? Perhaps we could expand this topic to include "stuff that you would like to see on the cover of any YW book" - include art style, color scheme, etc.

[Gibby Gibson]

I may just be a little ambitious, but there are some scenes in the various books I'd like to see used on the covers of some edition. I won't go into all of them, only on the past three books since those are the easiest to remember personally. Fresh on my mind.

Wizards Holiday: There are several scenes in this one, but the main one that would interest me most would one of the situations where Nita, Kit and Ponch are standing in the 'building' that houses the Lone One. It's not the most breathtaking visual wise, and doesn't reflect much of a "wizard's holiday," but those scenes always stuck in my head.

Wizards at War: I'd like to see a cover scene of the moon when all the young wizards join up for the first time to discuss the various plans they have on stopping the problem at hand. I think a cover with all those people in air forcefields on the moon would be striking; not to mention seeing S'reee, Filif, Sker'ret and Roshaun amongst the humans would be quite fun.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS: READ WITH CARE

A Wizard of Mars: The only on at this time that really impacts me is a scene where Kit, Darryl and Ronan are standing next to the Mars Rover, Spirit, protecting it from 'attack.' I won't go into any other detail as to that scene since it's not needed for the visual, but you can get the idea.

EDIT

DD tells me that HMH has decided not to do digest versions of the later books.

The reasoning they gave her is interesting. Apparently they felt that the initial four or five books were more suitable as "entry level" books for younger YW-series readers, but that the later books were "more adult" and therefore didn't lend themselves so well to digest format.

While I can see their point in that the series has grown in maturity, I think it's kind of sad that they aren't going to make digests of the other books. I don't own any of the digest personally, but it was a nice change to see. Hopefully they will change their minds later on.

Gibby Gibson

[Lee Enfield-Burke]

DD tells me that HMH has decided not to do digest versions of the later books.

The reasoning they gave her is interesting. Apparently they felt that the initial four or five books were more suitable as "entry level" books for younger YW-series readers, but that the later books were "more adult" and therefore didn't lend themselves so well to digest format.

[Birdhead]

I just like getting two slices at the cover-art pie - so I'd really like a Mars cover with the girls on it (is that sufficiently non-spoilery? There Are Girls In This Book?) I know that cover art for YA is all about trying to get boys to pick up (because Boys Don't Read Books For Girls And Girls Will Read Anything. Secrets of publishing: you heard them here first), but I want cover art of 'Mela, darnit!

[AlidaART]

So, ever since the digest edition for AWA came out, I've been wondering when/if there will be digest editions of WH and W@W (and AWoM now, I suppose). I really enjoy the art style on these editions; the colors in particular are really lovely. Maybe they're a little...kiddie, but I still think the art is beautiful. Especially for SYWTBAW, DW and HW.

I guess my questions are...

1. Do we know if there are plans for digest editions of the latest three books?
2. As an exercise in creativity, what would you put on the WH, W@W and AWoM covers? Try to keep within the parameters of the style of the previous covers.

For WH, I'd have Nita and Kit and the Lone One on Alaalu. For W@W, something with Dairine and Roshaun. On the moon or otherwise. And Ro had better have a lollipop in his mouth. For AWoM...Nita vs. Martian Princess, or Nita, Carmela and S'reee in, uh, that underground place with the words. Whatever that was called.

Thoughts?

Also, admins, feel free to move this if there's a more appropriate place for it. I wasn't sure.