stepback cover Archives

Stepback Covers Part VII: Stepback & Modern Romance Novels

March 11, 2022May 8, 2022 jacquelinediaz No Comments

By the dawn of the 21st millennium, the stepback was the pinnacle of cover art in the romance genre. The combination of a best-selling author, a prominent artist, and fantastic design aesthetics meant quality all around. The stepback was an acceptable middle-ground and proved to be constant in an era of transformation. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Stepback Covers Part VI: Stepback Saturday

March 10, 2022March 12, 2022 jacquelinediaz No Comments

A fun way to show off old and new stepback cover art is to post them on "Stepback Saturdays" on bookish Instagram or Bookstagram. Using #stepbacksaturday bookish Instagrammers upload pictures of cover art. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Stepback Covers Part V: 1990s Stepbacks

March 8, 2022March 12, 2022 jacquelinediaz 1 Comment

By 1990 every established publishing house was rethinking the way they did cover art. The stepback was starting to mean something special. Rising stars--both authors and artists--would combine for a winning combination, and no publisher could ignore that. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Stepback Covers Part IV: 1980s Romance Stepbacks

March 7, 2022March 13, 2022 jacquelinediaz No Comments

Throughout the 1980s, romance publishers would use various tricks to catch prospective buyers' eyes: embossing, foil lettering, bright colors, explicit embraces, big-named artists, superstar cover models, and more. Nevertheless, the stepback was not commonly utilized until the mid-1980s. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Stepback Covers Part III: The First Stepback in Romance

March 6, 2022May 10, 2022 jacquelinediaz 2 Comments

I've searched around to find which was the first mainstream paperback romance to use a genuine stepback cover. I'm not 100% sure but it looks like Pocket Books published it in 1979. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Stepback Covers Part II: The History of the Stepback

March 5, 2022April 30, 2022 jacquelinediaz No Comments

The history of stepback covers goes back to the early-to-mid-20th century. Bantam, Warner, and Pocket Books would be among the first paperback publishers to use this innovative cover design in the 1970s. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Stepback Covers Are Back & Why We Love Them

March 2, 2022April 22, 2022 jacquelinediaz No Comments

Conversations about romance covers always draw strong opinions. Are they a source of cringe or are they a form of art? The stepback cover has been popular in the genre for over 35 years. One reason for that is due to discretion. With stepbacks, you can have your clinch and eat it, too. Read more

Covers, Discussion, Romance

Covers of the Week #6

May 17, 2021January 12, 2022 jacquelinediaz No Comments

A pair of Pino covers! For the week of May 17 to May 23 let's admire some historical romance novel stepback covers illustrated by Giuseppe Dangelico Daeni, aka Pino, a legendary artist we will explore at length very soon here at SweetSavageFlame.com! Read more

Cover Artists, Covers of the Week, Pino

Historical Romance Review: Escape Not My Love by Elaine Coffman

April 2, 2021May 21, 2022 IntrovertReader No Comments

Elaine Coffman's Escape Not My Love is a fantastic old school romance with a dominant hero and spunky, defiant heroine. This western historical is set in Mexico & Texas. Read more

5 stars, Bodice Ripper, Book Review, Historical Romance, Historical Romance Review, year 1990

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