tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post471879111754683430..comments2024-03-18T03:45:38.190-05:00Comments on Lou Anders: Matte vs GlossLou Andershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00694362734492222851noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-8503149114459356542009-12-21T16:52:04.675-06:002009-12-21T16:52:04.675-06:00This was very well written. In my opinion, it alw...This was very well written. In my opinion, it always comes down to preference in the situation at hand. I myself am a big fan of glossy because, to me, it enhances the quality so much more. But it is what it is.Photo Paperhttp://www.shoplet.com/office/paper_inkjetphoto.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-55401455016084280472009-12-15T09:07:26.092-06:002009-12-15T09:07:26.092-06:00Having been making numerous trips to the bookstore...Having been making numerous trips to the bookstore since the initial post, I'm really flummoxed.Lou Andershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00694362734492222851noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-6266173065393494172009-12-15T06:41:03.088-06:002009-12-15T06:41:03.088-06:00Looking around the general fiction section yesterd...Looking around the general fiction section yesterday, there's quite a mix of glossy and matte covers.<br /><br />I wonder if she's referring to the new idea of some publishers using POD copies for older books rather than doing small print runs? At least, I assume these are POD copies. The covers are glossy but look more like photocopies than conventional covers, and are by major publishers (ie, they LOOK self-published because the covers don't have a professional look to them anymore.) There are only a few titles like this, the first one I noticed being Michael Marshall Smith's ONLY FORWARD (once we had a POD version and a normal version - they're identical except for the quality of the covers). I've since seen it done with other titles in sci-fi and fantasy.Jessica Striderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13375221959854098665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-9843544901419643902009-12-14T10:41:31.189-06:002009-12-14T10:41:31.189-06:00Interesting. Sitting here at the office, I must ad...Interesting. Sitting here at the office, I must admit I can't even picture the difference between matte and gloss. And I worked in bookstores for 20 years. Maybe I'm not very observant. To me, self-published books are betrayed by sloppy cover design and the use of blurry photos or clearly amateurish artwork (usually a friend of the author's). Design and use of space on the cover is much more tell-tale than paper finish. But as I mentioned to Lou before, I think we should all go back to 1980s die-cut and hologram covers! I love flipping a book so the picture of the cat becomes a skeleton! cat-skeleton cat-skeleton. Money well spent.clay griffithnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-13988439294117797612009-12-14T09:30:10.831-06:002009-12-14T09:30:10.831-06:00Went to B&N this past weekend and just looked ...Went to B&N this past weekend and just looked at what was on the front table right as you walk in. Now, being front table this is hardcover, but it was still interesting.<br /><br /> <br />Jeff Shaara's WWII historical novel - gloss. Jonathan Lethem's new one, matte. Patricia Cornall and David Balcacci's latest- gloss. As was <br />Steve Berry's <i>The Paris Vendetta</i>, as was Charlaine Harris' latest. <br /><br />John Grisham got matte with spot gloss, but George Carlin just gloss.<br /><br />Dan Brown, of course, is matte, gloss, embossing, yada yada yada.<br /><br />Andre Agassi's bio was gloss. The new Stephen King and Sarah Palin both gloss. But Margaret Atwood got matte. <br /><br />Michael Connelly and Clive Cussler are both gloss. <br /><br />From this small sampling, I'd say that biographies and mysteries were pretty much universally gloss. Historical works, and that category of "Not SF" tended to be matte. <br /><br />"Important" literary books tended to be matte. But most books on the front table were gloss or gloss and embossing.Lou Andershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00694362734492222851noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-50945444329520130442009-12-12T10:49:53.324-06:002009-12-12T10:49:53.324-06:00I've never noticed people in the bookstore whe...I've never noticed people in the bookstore where I work avoiding PYR (or other) titles because the covers are glossy. I've seen them avoid books that have bad cover art or are poorly designed (by larger and smaller presses). While Canadian chain bookstores may carry more books by smaller presses (which get subsidized by the government) then those in the US, they don't carry that many self-published books. Certainly not enough for readers to concern themselves with wondering if glossy = self-published. <br /><br />I think the real problem here would be more with bad looking covers, not the quality of the paper or the glossiness. <br /><br />Then again, Bakka Phoenix is a specialty, independent bookstore, so maybe it's clientele is different then what I'd see and they'd be more apt to question the nature of publication more than other readers.Jessica Striderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13375221959854098665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-46648771422371678792009-12-11T17:51:47.399-06:002009-12-11T17:51:47.399-06:00Lou already knows what makes me pick up a book, so...Lou already knows what makes me pick up a book, so I won't repeat myself.<br /><br />Gloss versus matte? When I started developing my own photography film & printing it, in black-&-white, I printed 2 copies of each photo - one on heavy glossy paper & one on heavy matte paper. I quickly learned that you couldn't, for example, say that all landscapes should be printed on matte & all cityscapes on glossy.<br /><br />The choice of which paper to use for a book cover, and whether or not to use foil or raised type or other techniques, is dependent on the art cover. That paper which makes the artwork looks absolutely gorgeous is the one that should be used. And definitely use the highest quality heaviest paper you can!<br /><br />I have never found that glossy or matte lasts longer or stays new-looking longer. Of course, I love books books & am careful when reading them, so fingerprints for example aren't a problem.<br /><br />Having said all this, I do tend to slightly permaprefer matte finishes on photos, book covers, art prints, etc. as I find the matte finish more elegant looking. But it says nothing about the quality - or source - of the photo, book cover, art print, etc to me. (Let me put in a plug here - I do prefer the larger-size paperback books to the smaller size. And leading that allows the lines of print to not bump into each other.)<br /><br />Thank you so much Lou for refusing to compromise - keep it up! Your books are always top-notch quality!ceshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02228169390182512752noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-18861352482194206302009-12-11T16:44:24.624-06:002009-12-11T16:44:24.624-06:00Hi Warren,
You're the second person to sugges...Hi Warren, <br />You're the second person to suggest I look beyond genre category and see what I find. As the first was a buyer for a major chain, I think I'll be doing that this weekend. (The buyer himself made no distinction between gloss and matte in his purchasing decisions).Lou Andershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00694362734492222851noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-23281541053975190582009-12-11T16:37:11.574-06:002009-12-11T16:37:11.574-06:00Lou: very interesting stuff, but I wish you'd...Lou: very interesting stuff, but I wish you'd expanded your capture in the bookstore. What if that disgruntled shopper who thought all the glossy books were self-pub <i>was only in the sf/f section of the bookstore?</i><br /><br />Which is unlikely, I grant, the idea just amuses me. That said, it might have been instructive to see how many glossy covers there were in general fiction.Warren Ellishttp://www.warrenellis.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-19851529504786640002009-12-11T15:11:26.460-06:002009-12-11T15:11:26.460-06:00I have to agree with most here and say that I alwa...I have to agree with most here and say that I always check the publisher for that information. I see trade paperbacks from many publisher in both glossy and matte and have never given a thought to the decision behind the choice. Seems odd for her to get all het up about it...Holley Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02938123435712583518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-83323261642493929092009-12-11T08:26:42.097-06:002009-12-11T08:26:42.097-06:00I've never taken into account a book's glo...I've never taken into account a book's glossy or matte finish. It's the cover art itself that matters.<br />Good for you for not compromising your standards!Alex J. Cavanaughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09770065693345181702noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-82660404928374200432009-12-11T07:55:10.667-06:002009-12-11T07:55:10.667-06:00I myself think this is more of a quality of the ar...I myself think this is more of a quality of the artwork/presentation of the book rather than the finish. As John D. points out, Boneshaker, a matte cover, is an absolutely beautiful looking book. On the other hand, I have all three Robert E. Howard Conan trades and couldn't imagine them without the glossy covers, which really makes the artwork stand out. <br /><br />I may be naive here, but I would tend to think that most American genre fiction fans know enough about publishers to be able to discern what is a vanity press book and what isn't.Carl V. Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15948764216438379394noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-12237691085667312522009-12-11T07:05:14.192-06:002009-12-11T07:05:14.192-06:00So there's a very real degree to which I am un...<i>So there's a very real degree to which I am unwilling to make our books look cheaper, less durable, and, well, uglier if that's what it takes to "blend in."</i><br /><br />That is a rare and refreshing sentiment from a publisher.Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01345781894610597191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-46298760941219602822009-12-11T01:12:42.055-06:002009-12-11T01:12:42.055-06:00In general, I think that I prefer (good) matte fin...In general, I think that I prefer (good) matte finishes. By the time I'm done reading a glossy-covered title, there's definite fingerprints on the cover, which aren't as noticeable (or maybe not even there?) on matte covers.<br /><br />That said, it does definitely depend on the cover art/design. There's a mass-market tie-in series from Pocket that has mostly-matte covers but with some really effective spot varnishing. Best of both worlds, really. :)Andrew Timsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10695912397762180933noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-52438707589980116912009-12-10T21:55:21.436-06:002009-12-10T21:55:21.436-06:00This is fascinating (to me) conceptual conversatio...This is fascinating (to me) conceptual conversation. <br /><br />Looking around at my bookshelves, I've got both gloss and matte around from most of the publishers you mentioned and neither paper stock choice to me is a turnoff or looks unprofessional. <br /><br />American reader here.<br /><br />I do suspect, though, if most of the respondents on this post (and on Facebook) will be readers who are in some way plugged in to the industry. We've got bloggers and writers here and we know who the publishers are and probably who most of the lesser known writers are. <br /><br />Outside of one particular anthology of non living animals by one particular publisher, we know what's professionally done and what isn't (which is to say that one particular anthology is perhaps the only professionally published book that I'm aware of that I would mistake for self-published).<br /><br />But what you say might be right - it's a matter of what national marketplace you're coming from. <br /><br />As a plugged in American reader, I think I'm less likely to be turned off by a cover (though likely to be turned on by an awesome cover), but I don't have a preference between gloss or matte. You mentioned, Lou, Night Shade as a Matte publisher and Pyr is obviously a Gloss publisher and I mention each simply because I think both are examples of extremely high quality cover work. Choose between them? No thanks, I'll take both.Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16094675116398769415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-47121817519729860932009-12-10T18:06:33.005-06:002009-12-10T18:06:33.005-06:00Finally, a convincing reason for the success of th...Finally, a convincing reason for the success of the First Law.Joe Abercrombiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04096316583998199176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-59764778409589827682009-12-10T17:39:28.587-06:002009-12-10T17:39:28.587-06:00I honestly can't remember ever picking up or p...I honestly can't remember ever picking up or putting down a book because of cover finish. I look for authors I like, titles that have been recommended to me, and after that, if it has a title that clicks in my brain that day, I'll pick it up to read the back cover or the opening pages. If I'm still in doubt, I'll look at the publisher. If it's a house I trust, I buy the book.Kat Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05426428902443086057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-53821884301444780612009-12-10T16:03:27.000-06:002009-12-10T16:03:27.000-06:00Just for reference, I'm currently reading Alan...Just for reference, I'm currently reading Alan Deniro's Total Oblivion, More or Less. I believe it is a matte cover. Is this correct? <br /><br />I don't appreciate the way it curls up, particularly on thinner TPBs.<br /><br />Are all MMPBs glossy?Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03473405698318766392noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-80060588153730497742009-12-10T15:05:06.034-06:002009-12-10T15:05:06.034-06:00Minor side note: besides being a Canadian booksell...Minor side note: besides being a Canadian bookseller and blogger, Michelle Sagara is also the author of over twenty novels.Tedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00799259633965559067noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-79166090669551721032009-12-10T14:25:20.734-06:002009-12-10T14:25:20.734-06:00When it comes down to it the finish should complim...When it comes down to it the finish should compliment the art. <br /><br />One reason that many big name authors have gloss is they have a higher propensity to being returned and if it is gloss it therefore has a chance of being resent out by the publisher than a skuffy looking matte which ends up pulped.<br /><br />Pyr seems to have a lot of Steampunk related books and the majority of recent titles in that area have had interesting things done to the covers that have attracted me. George Mann's Newbury & Hobbes comes to mind. Tor did an amazing job with the US release of The Affinity Bridge and I just got Snow Book’s edition of The Osiris Ritual which was amazingly intricate with its mix of matte/gloss/foil it was something to behold and admire.<br /><br />I'd keep the same paper through as I want my copies around for years. But now that you mention it I met one of your sales people at BEA a couple years back and commented how heavy The First Law books were. I may have sprained my wrist reading Last Argument, but it was worth it.<br /><br />I'm in the US.The Mad Hatterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14135107584625716128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11303103.post-76339339551511621872009-12-10T14:09:53.902-06:002009-12-10T14:09:53.902-06:00>>...this is not a discussion of quality but...>>...this is not a discussion of quality but of perception.<br /><br />That sums it up quite nicely, I think.<br /><br />If I wanna know if it's a vanity work, I look at the publisher, not the finish of the cover.<br /><br />I don't think I have a preference between matte and glossy finish for trade paperbacks. Both Pyr's glossy cover for THE QUIET WAR and Tor's matte cover for BONESHAKER look awesome. When it comes to covers, I'm more interested in the artwork itself than the finish.<br /><br />Regarding paper: keep doing what you're doing. Higher quality paper last longer is certainly appreciated by this reader.John D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/03315231512528211559noreply@blogger.com