The Importance of a Good Spine

You might think I will now lecture you on the importance of good posture for a writer when sitting at her keyboard and typing away. Sure, that’s important, however, I would much rather talk about book spines.

The other day I had the extreme pleasure of spying my book on the shelf at a local bookstore; a very exciting moment, until I realized why it had taken me a while to spot it.

The spine doesn’t jump out!

There it was tucked in between a couple maroon colored spines and some black and brightly colored ones. I’d never given much thought to color or font use on a book spine, but suddenly I found it very important.

When I came home the first thing I did was browse my own many bookshelves (yes, way too many. How am I ever going to move all those books to Colorado next month?) to explore the spine issue in greater depth.

What I found is that most of the books on my shelves had clearly readable words on the spines and most made good use of font size, contrast and/or color. Some even have a small picture of the front cover on the spine. My Terry Pratchett paperbacks immediately spring to mind, or popped off the shelf if you prefer.

Even the Penguin classic paperbacks stand out with their old orange spines and more recent versions with black and yellow spines.

It’s given me something to think about as I progress on my journey as published author. In particular, what information and color options to give to the cover artist.

Getting a book on the shelf in a store and then having it get picked up by a reader requires a true synergy of talents. So I’d like to give a big ‘thank -you’ to everyone who helped make that happen for Out in theDark. 

A Car for Jake in the Sequel

Based on reader feedback and my own desire to write more books featuring Jake and Shelley, I’ve started researching and writing the next book in the Out in the Dark series. Book 2 will be an even wilder ride than the first book.

First order of business is a car for Jake. He had a lot of fun with his father’s 1965 Pontiac GTO, but now it’s time he has one of his own. Together with my muscle car loving offspring and a spreadsheet put together by a car fanatic brother, I’ve been narrowing the choices down.

Imagine my delight when I spotted a bunch of 1960s muscle cars lined up at a local gas station. Just waiting for me! Very considerate of them.

So, what would an almost 18-year old boy like to drive? The Plymouth Barracuda? The Impala? 

Or how about that sweet little black 1968 Camaro Super Sport (top picture)?

Judging by the flutter in my chest and the grin on the offspring’s face, I’m picking the Camaro.

So stay tuned for book 2 and more crazy car chases!

Full confession, which I know you all will keep a secret: I have a weakness for 1960s American muscle cars, Italian sports cars and Ford trucks. Not sure what a shrink would make of that, but it’s part of who I am.

Enjoy the ride and please leave a review of  Out in the Dark!