When asked to write a piece on representation for Spine, I immediately wondered why I was asked? In my opinion, plenty has been written on the subject. Frankly, I’m often wrangled into similar conversations with my publishing peers. These are always awkward, so did I really want to write a piece on representation in book covers? Call it explanation-fatigue, but I really did hesitate.
Sometimes books can feel like a cozy place we come back to for the comfort they provide. There are books people read because they can predict what’s going to happen. Like B movies, they’re just a fun break from reality, where nothing really unexpected happens. And sometimes we need that noir novel, or easy thriller, to get us through the day.
One morning Eric Wilder sent me an email at 9:00 am. He asked if I had seen a new Guardian article about UK book cover design. Did I mention it was at 9:00 am? I'm not a rational person at 9:00 am, so I knew he had to be serious.
He sent the article, but I was mystified by his urgency, till I read the thing. It was extremely familiar. Some version of this article comes around every so often. To make a long story short, it claimed UK cover design was the envy of the world, and had always been better than US design. And Eric wanted me to pen a rebuttal. I read the piece and sent him my response. I wasn’t interested in getting in the middle of the old rehashed nationalistic argument.
Eric and I have been talking about collaborating for a while. My interest was piqued when a few months ago he sent me an email asking me if I would write semi-regularly for Spine. But I can't tell you the immediate panic that came over me. I mean yes, I’ve been writing my blog for a while. Yes, I wanted to write different kinds of things for different kinds of audiences. But how would it work? So it's funny that when I finally committed to writing something, Eric decides that purple covers were interesting in that week. Because it's a color I literally feel nothing about.
Maria Elias is an inventive and thoughtful designer. She has received accolades and mentions from AIGA, Design Observer’s 50 Books/50 Covers of 2015, and Type Director’s Club Communication Design for her work on the book Convictions.
Here she digs into her process for us and gives us some thoughts on the world of design.
