tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post503076706145913079..comments2024-03-27T22:25:42.129-05:00Comments on Reading the Past: Book designs along gender linesSarah Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-72913638933662459352007-07-16T13:28:00.000-05:002007-07-16T13:28:00.000-05:00I've never noticed it, so I suppose either it does...I've never noticed it, so I suppose either it doesn't bother me or I've never read a book with that kind of design. Or I'm not a girl.Carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11901028520813891575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-89158917754768570702007-07-16T11:27:00.000-05:002007-07-16T11:27:00.000-05:00It used to take me a while to pick out the most at...It used to take me a while to pick out the most attractive Trapper Keeper back when I was in school. (Do they even exist anymore?)Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-46738406093032683492007-07-16T09:13:00.000-05:002007-07-16T09:13:00.000-05:00I do think it's a girl thing to pay attention to (...I do think it's a girl thing to pay attention to (and appreciate) stuff like that.<BR/><BR/>Although not totally analogous, my husband couldn't understand the extent to which my 15 year old daughter went to pick out "cute" school supplies (folders, notebooks etc)that matched. Anymore than he understands me picking out just the right calendar to hang on my wall each year or my insistence on writing with purple, pink and teal pens. I told him it's a girl thing. He just rolled his eyes!Daphnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12838072651419264066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-73843230819863396772007-07-15T20:50:00.000-05:002007-07-15T20:50:00.000-05:00Susan - I suspect the text of the novel you review...Susan - I suspect the text of the novel you reviewed wasn't typeset. Happens sometimes with smaller presses, because it's cheaper not to do so, but it's usually pretty apparent (did it look more like an MS Word printout than a real book?). Some ARCs I get are like this, too.<BR/><BR/>Tracy - it sounds like they did a good job with your upcoming novel. I never used to pay much attention to this either, but I have a couple friends who used book designers in publishing their own books. It is more complex than it seems!Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-82156983395218775952007-07-15T17:55:00.000-05:002007-07-15T17:55:00.000-05:00One of the books I reviewed for the Historical Nov...One of the books I reviewed for the Historical Novels Review's forthcoming issue has, for reasons best known to the designer, a ragged right edge. I found this irritating, though I liked the book well enough.<BR/><BR/>Otherwise, all I really ask is that the designer make the typeface big enough for my poor old eyes.Susan Higginbothamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13517907583894026599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-37197556706761067002007-07-15T12:44:00.000-05:002007-07-15T12:44:00.000-05:00I like interior book designs that evoke a period f...I like interior book designs that evoke a period feeling (as long as they're not completely overdone and get in the way, and it sounds as though this one doesn't). Before I was published, I didn't pay much conscious attention the the interior look of a book. Now it is something I pay attention to. I just got the advanced copies of my book "Secrets of a Lady" , which has a nice sort of period looking design framing the chatper (sort of like a fleur-de-lys, but not). It's nicely evocative, im, without being overdone. I'm also finishing up a non-fiction book on the first 50 years of the Merola Opera Program (an opera training program I'm on the Board of), and I've been involved with a lot of production and design decisions, which gives me a whole new appreciation of how much work goes in to the production of a book and how many design decisions are involved :-).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com