Somewhere Along the Line
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Synopsis
Piper Paulson has painstakingly put her life back together. She has a new job, a BFF roommate, and a commitment to avoid dating after an ex cost her her peace—and her former career. She may not have two nickels to spare, but she’s happy. Anxious, for sure, but happy.
James Newhouse doesn’t have time or energy to deal with…well, anything. A hotshot banker with a complicated family, he’s determined to keep people at arm’s length. His attraction to the beautiful stranger on his commute isn’t part of the plan. Neither is adding her to a Family Fares commuter pass as his “wife” to save money, but his judgment is speeding away faster than their train.
Thrown together by chance (and a handful of Elvis impersonators), James and Piper find themselves witnesses to an incident on their commute—“married” witnesses, who may be asked to testify if the crime goes to trial. Can they keep up the charade to avoid being outed for their lie? And perhaps more importantly, can they protect their hearts in the process?
Exploring the journey to build a future when the path you planned no longer exists, SOMEWHERE ALONG THE LINE is a heartfelt and humorous story about leaning into what you want… and finding what you never thought you needed.
Example Book Cover Descriptions
The Co-Op: I love how saturated the color is here, and I love the tone of the colors themselves. The white title stands out (though I’m not in love with the font).
The Ex Vows: This one feels romantic with a focus on the setting. I like the sunbeam coming through and that you can’t see the characters’ faces head-on.
One Golden Summer: Love the saturation, love, the sunset, love that it looks painted. I like the font for the author’s name significantly more than the font for the title.
Ready or Not: This cover made me buy the book! It’s super vibrant and playful, and I like the pointilism-ish style on the trees. Of all the script fonts on these covers, I like this one best.
Summer Fridays: I love the vibrant colors on this one, and that it also looks drawn or painted. I like that the title is nested in front of/behind the background. The leaves floating add a nice touch of movement.
When I Think of You: Again, the colors here are dreamy and look watercolor-y. I like that you can’t see their faces straight on, and that the setting is implied but not a focus.
Wild and Wrangled: Super saturated colors, can’t see the faces straight on, and the font is super distinctive of this author– this cover style and font is immediately recognizable as this author. It also feels a bit vintage.
Wrong Direction Book Cover Descriptions
Last Call at the Local: I don’t love the green and brown together, I don’t love the script font, and the author’s name is small compared to some of the others. You don’t get any real sense of what the book is about from the cover– these two people sitting in a bar could be anyone.
When in Rome: The illustration here looks really childish to me. I especially hate the man’s beard. The yellow and purple doesn’t feel good to me. “When in Rome” doesn’t align with pies or baking in my mind.
Hook, Line, and Sinker: The author name font is hard to read and doesn’t stand out very well. The illustration looks cheap. I don’t love the single color background.
General Likes & Overall Vision
1. General descriptors:
- I love bright jewel tones and a really bright saturated look
- I have noticed that I really like a horizon with lots of colors (sunrise or sunset).
- I like something that looks painted or hand-drawn but not amateur.
- I think I prefer block letters (a more modern font) over scripts or cursive.
- I like when the characters are present but not necessarily the first thing your eye is drawn to on the cover.
- I often think faces look bad so I tend to prefer side profiles or faces at a bit of a distance.
2. My vision for the cover:
- The book takes place in a city modeled after Chicago, and the two main characters meet on the train (the El– above ground/outdoor/elevated commuter subway). I’d like the cover to have some reference to a city and a commuter train.
- The season is early fall. They meet during the morning commute, 7:30am-ish.
- The man in the story has brown hair, not long but not super short– a bit of wave to it. He is a banker and would typically be found in slacks, a button-down, and a peacoat (not a blazer). He carries a messenger bag-style cross-body briefcase. He’s “buttoned up” in personality.
- The woman in the story has strawberry-blonde hair, is a few inches shorter than the man and is likely wearing a sweater and a long skirt. She’s more of a free spirit and could be carrying a tote bag.
I want the cover to feel romantic and wistful and full of possibility, like change for the characters is afoot along with the changing seasons. I want it to feel like they’re going to get on the train and head into a shared future together.
Dislikes & Things to Avoid
- No AI used in the creation of the cover.
- No super dark colors nor pale pastels
- No really script-y title fonts
- While the book is set in a city, I don’t want it to feel “grimy” or cold.
- Sometimes illustrated covers for romance books really skirt the line of looking like children’s or middle-grade books and I do not want that!
