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From: brust@hyper.UUCP (Steven Brust)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: Art in True Names
Message-ID: <171@hyper.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 26-Apr-85 12:04:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: hyper.171
Posted: Fri Apr 26 12:04:43 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 3-May-85 03:13:06 EDT
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>      First of all, you must recognize that very few sf artists have as muchj
> control over their work as you seem to think, Mark.  Art directors often tell
> artists precisely which scenes they want illustrated, from what perspective,
> and so on.  When such limits are placed on an artist, they can prevent some
> of his or her talent from showing through.  ................................
> 
> --Dave Axler

This is correct.  Furthermore (I know I'm getting off the subject), it is
often the the marketing people who decide on the artist, as in "This guy
should have a Whalen or Rwena cover," or "keep the same artist he's had
before since his other books are selling so well."  The result can be
that a scene is selected that doesn't fit the book and an artist is
selected who can't do that sort of scene well.  If you think I'm taking
this personally, I am.  The cover of the paperback of To Reign In Hell
sucks the big one, dispite excellent covers, by the same artist, of
JHEREG and YENDI.

For examples of GOOD cover art, there is: THE BLUE HAWK, by Peter Dickinson,
and the two books by John DeChancie (which are excellent books, by
the way).

				-- SKZB