Feathers of Fire

I created this cover for Devochka303's contest, found here. The deadline is November 30th, 2011. Graphic design is not my forte. It's more of a hobby... something to do for fun, I guess. With that said, I'm not looking for too much critique. I just needed somewhere to post this for the contest submission. Thank you.

ENTRY:

Wow, very nice! I really like the swirling kind of look in the hair and feathers- and actually, just everything, overall, looks awesome.
My only critiques are:
1) The feathers(?) in the right bottom corner are kind of distracting, since they are bright and "The Secret" is bright. It kinda places the girl's face in the background. From just glancing at this cover, my first impression is that the important things are those feathers and "The Secret," and the girl's face is really not that important.
2) The white coloring of "Feathers of Fire" doesn't really go with the rest of the cover- I don't really know what color it should be, but with white, it seems to be competing with "The Secret" and also makes the face less noticeable.

That's it! Keep up the good work!

1) The feathers(?) in the right bottom corner are kind of distracting, since they are bright and "The Secret" is bright. It kinda places the girl's face in the background. From just glancing at this cover, my first impression is that the important things are those feathers and "The Secret," and the girl's face is really not that important.
2) The white coloring of "Feathers of Fire" doesn't really go with the rest of the cover- I don't really know what color it should be, but with white, it seems to be competing with "The Secret" and also makes the face less noticeable.

This cover is frickin' rad, and I must respectfully disagree with you. I feel like the feathers on the cover make it interesting, and I don't think it was his or her goal to elaborate on the face of the young woman (it's clearly placed in the background as opposed to the feathers in the foreground). Also, the title (the Secret) POPS out at you. It's bright, yeah, but I think that's the point of any cover. The title shouldn't be darkened or buried into the background. It's a shame when you can't even read the text on a cover. The same thing goes for the "white text". If the text was black or red, it would clash with everything else. It's a neutral color, and it can be read clearly. I think this cover is splendid. Do NOT change a thing.

I would LOVE for you to design a cover for me! I hope this does well haha it's a great cover. Good luck!

Wow, thank you guys. I wasn't expecting such instant feedback. I greatly appreciate your time; while I didn't request any critique, I am thrilled you took the time to look at it so closely. Both of you hit it on the head -- I didn't want to give the girl a prominent appearance. Or, in other words, I didn't want the girl's image on the cover to, in any way, interfere with the author's description. Personally, I like covers that do not dictate a character's appearance. When Starhunter said that the girl's face doesn't seem important, I was mostly relieved. I hope this makes sense.

As for the color of the text, I tried many colors and fonts. And as Kelsey said, it stands out and is easier to read. I don't know -- what more can I say about it? I was trying to create the "glowing" effect. You know, when charcoal is on fire, it stands out; the charcoal glows.

Again, thank you both for your comments. Your perspectives are important to me. I hope my post justifies my thinking. And Starhunter -- are you a Hunger Games fan?! WE NEED TO TALK.

Hey,
I really love your cover. This is exactly something I was looking for. Unless I get something better (which I probably will not), You are in First place. I really like it.

This cover is amazing! Just stumbled upon it and was very impressed! For something you do as
a hobby you've got some pretty good skills going on!

Ben

This cover is hot. I mean it's truly wonderful. I am in a graphic design class at my school and if I know anything...you did a fantastic cover. The font,colors, and placement are absolutely perfect. Like another said don't change anything. This looks like a real book cover. You should definitely win.

Hey, KFMATA!

This is a great cover and you should totally win!

Keep that creative juices flowing!

Murtuza

Benrobertringrose wrote:This cover is amazing! Just stumbled upon it and was very impressed! For something you do as
a hobby you've got some pretty good skills going on!

Thanks, Ben! I say it's more of a hobby because I haven't taken any formal classes. That, and I don't think I would go into graphic design professionally. I greatly appreciate your comments! I am glad you are impressed.

nativecatcher wrote:This cover is hot. I mean it's truly wonderful. I am in a graphic design class at my school and if I know anything...you did a fantastic cover. The font,colors, and placement are absolutely perfect. Like another said don't change anything. This looks like a real book cover. You should definitely win.

I don't know what to say... I'm truly flattered. Seriously, I am so happy to read these comments. I have a lot of fun with graphic design, and I'm glad it's been working out. Thank you!

murtuza wrote:Hey, KFMATA!

This is a great cover and you should totally win!

Keep that creative juices flowing!

Murtuza

Thank you, Murtuza! You keep those juices flowing as well. We're all here to help each other out!