Dithering on covers

[sholio]

Doing edits for the second novella in the Dragon & Detective series, and tweaking covers. Do you have a preference?



(Click for bigger.)

Other suggested edits are also welcome if you have any.

Poll #24869

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 61

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Favorite?

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#1 (plainer)
9 (14.8%)

#2 (more colorful)
18 (29.5%)

#3 (hybrid of 1 & 2)
28 (45.9%)

No preference
0 (0.0%)

Other! (see comments)
6 (9.8%)

Comments

[affreca]

I prefer 3, but with the gun effect of 2.

[sholio]

Mmmmm, an excellent point! You're right, it's less distracting; I like that. (I have been staring at these for much too long.)

[affreca]

I know how that goes. Thankfully, I love to give quick, off the cuff opinions.

[leesa_perrie]

Ditto!

[ambyr]

This is exactly what I was coming here to say. I think the slightly subtler gun effect from 2 makes the title easier to read, and the amount of color in 3 is just right (though I might fade out the color just a little under your name? The "O" gets a little muddled in the gear-work as is).

I like 2 a lot in general, actually, it's just the red + green + ghosts make me go, "Is this a Christmas story?" and I think the answer is no.

[ellenmillion]

A fourth? vote for this.

I maaaay also play with giving Dolly a slight glow - her dark gloved hand holding the cigarette really gets lost in the dark of his coat. It's one of those things I'd have to try to know if it worked, though. Possibly just adjust her levels.

[schneefink]

Same; with possible a little more of the rune circle lines in the lower right corner.

[sovay]

I prefer 3, but with the gun effect of 2.

+5.

[booksarelife]

Seconding this-I feel like the green flare confuses the title a bit too much in 1 and 3 as is

[edenfalling]

Oh! Yes, that would be perfect.

[vicki_rae]

I much prefer and marked #3. But I agree with this about preferring the gun effect on #2 added to #3.

I had an instant visceral NO! reaction to the orange effects on #2. Made me think of hellfire reflected onto her. Unless that was what you're going for?

[brightknightie]

I would prefer #2, but it needs more light on the woman's face (not so in the dark).

This same preference could perhaps also be expressed as preferring #3's lighting, but #2's color scheme.

[cornerofmadness]

Any of these would be a fun cover whatever you decide

[bironic]

Chiming in with the votes to dim or lower the green glow to make the title easier to read, as in #2. I do like the layout where the series tag goes above your name.

[lunabee34]

I prefer 1 or 3. 2 is too busy for me.

[tamsin]

Same here.

[sholio]

Yeah, that's my general reaction to it as well, tbh. But I like the colorfulness!

[lunabee34]

I like what you eventually decided on!

[rachelmanija]

If you go with # 3, I would enhance the little lines and stuff inside the steampunk thingie a la # 2, because without them and at first glance I thought it was a tentacle.

[sholio]

LOLOL, what has been seen cannot be unseen. Thanks for this. I suspect that's not where most people's minds will go, but enhancing it for more zing is probably a good idea.

[sheron]

I don't like the gun effect of 2, but i like the more colors part of it. So I'd personally go with 3 but brighter.

[lunabee34]

You should know that I was talking with my older daughter, and she was all, "I have finished all the Danny and Ward are best friends fics on AO3. Woe, woe." And I was all, "Which ones did you like best?" And she was all, "The ones by Sholio. Every single one by Sholio."

<3