A number of great present-day cover artists are blogging now, but Borgman may be the first classic 1960s pulp cover artist to start a blog. He talks a lot about the process of painting his book covers, which frequently used himself as a model. I love the fact that he admits he didn't read most of these books at the time, and says things like, "I have no idea what these glowing round things are, but they were done with an airbrush." I bet Philip K. Dick wouldn't have minded.

Borgman only did a handful of science fiction book covers, but he also did a lot of weird comic-book art and commercial projects, including this great "Plastics" ad, and the slightly abstract astronaut drawing. [Harry Borgman Art]

Compare this "classy" version of The Way Station with these older covers:

Iain M. Banks' publisher, Orbit, says it's giving his Culture books covers that "don't scream scifi," in order to stand out from the rest of the pack. But sadly, the bottom line, says one reader, is that a cover should tell distributors and bookstore clerks where to shelve a book. [Media Bistro]