Those Abs! That Bodice! That Pose! The Joys of Romance Covers

They say men are stimulated visually.  It's not what they hear whispered in their ears - it's what they see with their eyes that moves them toward sex and romance.  For the most part, I do think that men are wired that way.  However, when it comes to reading steamy historical romance novels, women are not only moved by the story, but by the covers that give us a glimpse of the hero and heroine.
The historical romance genre bombards readers with bare-chested, muscular males, who have shirts falling off their backs, toned physiques, and six-pack abs. The heroines are women with unbuttoned or unlaced dresses in the back, overflowing breasts from low necklines, and passionate scenes of kissing in provocative poses.  They set the stage for the forthcoming sexual tension between the characters and build the reader's anticipation of what is to come between the sheets . . . I mean pages.
The old adage you can't judge a book by its cover is really only a half truth, because I dare say most books are sold in the romance genre by what is on the cover.  The cover sets the scene, tempts us with what's inside, and reveals the type of book we're about to read, or at least it should. 
As an author myself, I always try and pick my covers to relate to one of the scenes in my book.  The cover picture above was designed by my graphic artist, Robin Ludwig for my awarding-winning romance Dark Persuasion.  I purchased the stock photograph of Jimmy Thomas, a well-known and popular model who is now on over 4,000 covers.  The cover above is actually two photographs. The picture I chose of Jimmy and the female model tells a story.  Darkness behind the man who can see; light behind the woman who is blind. When I saw the pose, I envisioned a scene in my book.  Jimmy loved the final cover and was kind enough to showcase it on his website for a while.
Of course, there are many talented cover designers and graphic artists that produce fantastic work in the industry.  Large publishing houses can afford the best artists and highly paid models to grace their covers.  One artist in particular is Jon Paul Studios.  I love the fact that when you hit his website you hear the beautiful song, "Somewhere in Time."  Check out his gallery and get lost in his works of art that are breathtaking beautiful. He also has a Facebook page where he posts his most recent creations. The cover art to the right is a Jon Paul creation.
Many indie authors and traditional publishers are also turning toward stock photography on sites such as Dreamstime, iStockPhoto, Getty Images, Shutterstock, Fotolio, and many more.  The prices are reasonable and licensing terms are fairly straightforward.  Frankly, I've thought for many years that photographers have a goldmine of opportunity if they would focus more on historical era shots with men and women in the fashions of the time.  I'm happy to see an increase of such photographs on the market.
Jimmy Thomas is a model who understands the industry and what authors are looking for in cover choices. He regularly does photo shoots in all eras from Renaissance, Regency, Highlander, Roaring 20's, and others. However, just purchasing a photograph isn't the end of the design process.  The real artistry, of course, comes when a picture is chosen and then it's turned into a cover story that is unique, such as the one below. Authors, however, are wise to learn the rules about license usage rights, model releases, and copyright law when dealing with photography. Better to be safe than sued for damages in a court of law for infringement.
Since Fabio's earlier days of book cover shots, with his long hair, chiseled face and body, it seems the standard for romance covers hasn't changed very much.  We now have new models and artists on the scene and the advent of advanced design techniques to tickle our fantasies with background scenes. I have noticed, though, a distinct difference between historical romance and historical fiction covers.  Historical fiction uses less exposed flesh it appears than the historical romance genre, as you can see by the slideshow below.
In any event, a well designed cover does the trick.  It will either entice us to purchase or not. Frankly, I remember the days when I loved to buy novels with beautiful covers and keep them on my bookshelves like works of art.  Now, we enjoy them our our high definition digital readers.  Wherever they meet our eyes, on print or screen, the effect remains the same -- you wish you were the heroine in the arms of the hero about to enjoy the fleshly pleasures that await.
Sigh...
Vicki