Question on Back Cover Descriptions

Hey, everybody. As I write my fifth volume, I've been pondering this question for a while. I'm wondering: it is a good idea or a bad idea to start a back cover description with a quotation?

Princess Aurora is underrated, pass it on.

I'd say bad. Every time I see those, they're either confusing, something that makes sense only in context or spoiler-y.

Rejoice!

Pretty much this. However, you could do something like have an unknown character "quote" something that's NOT out of the story. So, have the unnamed character give a kind of general description of the main conflict.

Level 3 Social Justice Necromancer. Chaotic Good.

All you have to say is "This isn't real, John. We need you to wake up." Then you can freak out anyone named John, which is a lot of people.

INSIDE OF YOU THERE ARE TWO WOLVES. BOTH OF THEM WANT YOU TO SHOOT ELVIS.

Level 3 Social Justice Necromancer. Chaotic Good.

@Demetrios: What sort of quotation are you referring to? Do you mean a quotation from the prose within the book, an in-universe quotation, or an external quotation?

If an in-universe quotation, does it appear in the book?

If an external quotation, does it discuss the book, or is it simply relevant to the book?

, I've seen at least one instance that worked for me, I believe: the blurb for The Name of the Wind appears to be spoken by the protagonist, and I feel that it does a pretty good job of teasing certain plot-points without giving much away, while also giving the reader a glimpse of said protagonist's character, skill, and storied nature.

That said, it may be an exceptional example.

[edit] If you're unfamiliar with it, I see that the quotation in question seems to be the page-quote for the page to which I linked above.

I think that part of what makes it work so well is that it's fairly vague, and is partially written through the veil of being Shrouded in Myth. The descriptions thus hint at events, but don't quite spoil them.

edited 19th Sep '15 8:54:18 AM by ArsThaumaturgis

My Games & Writing

A quotation as in something some character in this particular book actually said, word for word? Potentially good if you play it correctly.

A quotation as in something that isn't actually said by any character in the book, but is written in a way that after reading the book makes it clear that it's being said by this-or-that character in the story? The same as above.

A quotation as in something from outside the book? Give it a break, and that's it on this topic.

And having just read the quote in question, it does the job extremely well - it's got me wanting to read the book and I'm pretty picky about any fantasy I read.

To answer your question, I thought of using James Baldwin's quote that we have on the page for Knight Templar, because I thought it would be an accurate description for The Illuminati.

Princess Aurora is underrated, pass it on.

With this particular quote, I have to say I think it to be a bad idea. Because even ignoring the potential issues that might or might happen because of use of someone else's words, the quote doesn't really make me want to read something that is supposed to be a book presented by the quote in question.

Thanks, everybody. :)

Princess Aurora is underrated, pass it on.

You could probably get away with (legally, anyway) a quote that's in the public domain - for, example and sticking with the Knight Templar theme, Nietzsche's quotes on hunting monsters and the abyss - but even that probably wouldn't be a good idea.

If I may stay off-topic for a moment, I'll add that it's a book that I found to be excellent, and very much one of my recent favourites, I do believe. Whether it will be to your taste I don't know, naturally, but it was very much to mine.

Fair warning, however: The Name of the Wind is the first in a trilogy, the last book of which has (to the best of my knowledge) not yet been released.

My Games & Writing