This is a fun favorite—a son of the Lone Star state stumbles his way to the top of the wide world of sumo, finding love along the way. The book is an indie success, but was in need of a new look to help it find new audiences. Optioned for a film, the new trade paperback deserved a more grown-up cover, this time with a hint of mystery and a bit more punch.

On the other hand, the first paperback edition went entirely the other way—big, cartoony, and obvious. The problem is, it feels like a kids’ book, which actually narrows down the audience. I have a great interest in Japanese culture and history, but this cover actually drove me away from a story that I had really enjoyed. Where is the exotic mystery of the Orient? Where is the competition, the romance, or the self-discovery? A cover shouldn’t try to tell you the whole story, but it ought to at least hint at some of the good stuff.

The five covers above are the initial batch of re-designs. The first takes on the original hardcover, and tries to solve some of its problems. Okay, it’s not great, but I had to get it out of my system. The next three get more to the point, and the last is an experiment—a bit of a gimmick. (I tried to make English letters look like Japanese characters.) Interesting maybe, but it suffers from the same poor readability as the original.

What can I tell you? They can’t all be winners. You know what they say about laws and sausages, right? It’s best not to see them being made. Yeah, well, design can be like that too. But sometimes even the weaker designs can inspire new thinking when you give them a little exposure. Or they reveal new elements that you can use. It’s all about making it better, and an extra set of fresh eyes on the problem can often help.