Jayne Ponders Ladies in Leather

What is it about ladies in leather? If you've been paying attention to book covers of late you will have noticed that a lot of the new paranormal/urban fantasy paperbacks feature women in leather -- often with tattoos. The interesting thing about this, of course, is that these books are being marketed mostly to women, not men. A lot of romance readers buy them. One editor (who shall go unnamed) told me recently that she could sell just about anything these days if she got the art department to put a lady in leather on the cover.

I've been pondering the phenomenon recently because I've never had a cover that featured a lady in leather. I've got nothing against men in leather, of course, although I haven't had many of those, either, come to think of it. The closest I came was the cover of my last Jayne Castle novel, GHOST HUNTER,
which is illustrated with a guy clad in a leather vest. Guess the art department couldn't afford the full leather jacket. But, hey, it worked so I'm not complaining.

Nevertheless, I'm still waiting for a lady-in-leather cover and while I wait, I've been doing a little research. I can't help it. It's the librarian in me. Anyhow, it was my sister-in-law (an expert on ferns) who first opened my eyes to the possibilities. See, her husband (my brother) owns a Harley-Davidson. He, of course, gets to wear a lot of leather as well as one of those cute little bandanas. That all goes with the territory when you're a guy and you own and ride a bike. However, turns out that -- for safety reasons only, you understand -- my sister-in-law also gets to wear the full outfit -- leather chaps, jacket, boots, the works. And a while back, she stuffed me into the gear because my brother wanted to take me for a ride on the back of the Harley. Safety first, right?

Seeing myself in the mirror dressed to the nines in leather was a real eye-opener, let me tell you. In a flash, my entire self-image underwent a dazzling transformation. Talk about Urban Fantasy! I was ready to head straight to the nearest tattoo parlor.

It took a while to strap on all that leather and while she was assisting me, my sister-in-law let me in on the Big Secret. Men, she said, are absolutely fascinated by the sight of a woman in full leather motorcycle gear. She explained that when a woman in leather dismounts a bike at a rest stop, whips off the helmet and sashays into the restroom, she can rest assured that every male eye in the vicinity will be trained on her. Talk about a rush.

As for wearing the stuff, well, I admit it isn't particularly comfortable but, boy, howdy, does it give you a sense of feminine power. I highly recommend the experience if you happen to be in need of a little boost of the spirits.

And that, I think is the real appeal of the ladies-in-leather covers. We women look at them and presto, it puts us in touch with our inner goddess or our inner witch or our inner sorceress or Buffy. Whatever. Leather covers work. I want one.