{"id":9506,"date":"2013-01-08T05:30:37","date_gmt":"2013-01-08T00:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/?p=9506"},"modified":"2014-12-24T17:28:27","modified_gmt":"2014-12-24T11:58:27","slug":"how-to-design-your-book-cover-no-experience-necessary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/how-to-design-your-book-cover-no-experience-necessary\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Design Your Book Cover – No Experience Necessary"},"content":{"rendered":"

You know the deal:\u00a0a modern day writer is more than a writer.<\/strong><\/p>\n

We publish, format, sell, market, and yes, design our own book covers. Some people will scold me for saying this, but sometimes it’s okay for a writer to design their own Book Cover.<\/p>\n

There is a gigantic BUT, though.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Only do so if you’re 100% sure it’s the right decision!<\/p>\n

When Is It Right?<\/h3>\n

If this post does anything, I hope it provides clarity.<\/strong>\u00a0By the end of this article you should know whether creating your own cover is the right decision, and trust me, for most people it won’t be.<\/p>\n

I myself am no superstar designer, but I have got plenty of experience using photoshop, creating flyers, and other such things. HOWEVER, I will only create my own Book Cover if I believe I can do it justice.\u00a0If there’s a doubt in my mind, I’ll pass it over to a professional.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Therefore if you have zero design experience, have the money to do so, and little time to spare, it shouldn’t even be a question.\u00a0Hire a pro and create the best cover you can!<\/strong><\/p>\n

BUT if money’s tight and you know a little about design,\u00a0<\/strong>creating your own Book Cover might be okay<\/strong><\/p>\n

How I Created My Own Book Cover<\/h3>\n

I always wanted to create the cover for\u00a0Beyond Parallel<\/a>.\u00a0I had an idea and simplicity was key<\/strong>. I honestly believed I could do it justice. I’m not for one second saying a professional couldn’t have done a better job,\u00a0but I was confident in what I could create.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here are my five tips for crafting your own Book Cover:<\/p>\n

1: The Right Tools<\/h5>\n

Your first step is to get the right tools for the job<\/strong>. Creating a cover in Word or Paint is the biggest NO NO you can do. It will look amateurish and people will see straight through it.<\/p>\n

I use Photoshop, but it’s an expensive programme. Free alternatives like\u00a0Gimp<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0Inkscape<\/a>\u00a0get good reviews, but I urge you to do your research and demo everything first.<\/p>\n

Using the right tools is important.\u00a0<\/strong>A cover may seem simple, but they rarely are.<\/p>\n

2: Think Outside Of The Box<\/h5>\n

Get creative and have fun with the process.<\/strong>\u00a0In the beginning allow your mind to wander and consider the most whacky and out-there concepts you can. It’s okay, you can rein it in later, but to start with you should let your creative juices flow.<\/p>\n

This opens up your mind and gets you excited.\u00a0In my experience this leads to some cool-ass designs.<\/strong><\/p>\n

3: Bring It Together<\/h5>\n

Once you’ve had your creative fun,\u00a0bring it all together and simplify the process.<\/strong>\u00a0Consider your Author Brand (what colours do you use, font, style, etc<\/em>) and most importantly, your book.<\/p>\n

You know your story better than anyone.\u00a0<\/strong>What can you demonstrate on the cover that shares the entire premise in an instant? This is where you\u00a0may<\/em>\u00a0have the upper hand over a professional.<\/p>\n

4: Research!<\/h5>\n

Once you have a concept you’re happy with,\u00a0put it to one side and head online.<\/strong>\u00a0Read sites like\u00a0The Book Designer<\/a>\u00a0and spend an hour on Amazon studying the covers in your genre.<\/p>\n

What stands out?<\/strong><\/p>\n

How do the cover come together?<\/strong><\/p>\n

What role do text and images play?<\/strong><\/p>\n

You may have a good concept at this point, but I’m certain it can be improved by abiding to some rules set by those who know what they’re doing.<\/p>\n

5: Involve Others<\/h5>\n

Finally, don’t dare release this cover without involving other people. My suggestion is to create at least three versions and email them to your readers, reach out to a few respected books designers,\u00a0and upload your ideas to a community of some kind.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I did this with the\u00a0Kindle Boards<\/a>\u00a0and they helped me make some much needed improvements. Here’s the process the Beyond Parallel cover took.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Uploaded to the Kindle Boards<\/h5>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Alterations made after feedback<\/h5>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The final design<\/h5>\n

As you can see, my cover took on some big transformations.\u00a0<\/strong>Chances are yours will too.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To Conclude – Be Realistic<\/h3>\n

Like I say, most people SHOULD NOT design their own Book Cover.\u00a0<\/strong>It’s a vital part of your book, and although people say you shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover, we do\u2026all of the time.<\/p>\n

Your cover is the first impression and your writing deserves the best. Most of the time –\u00a0me included<\/em>\u00a0– that requires a professional.<\/p>\n

HOWEVER, some of you will read the above and know a Book Cover is in your grasp. This is fine, but be sure to take it very very seriously – and don’t for one second believe you, and you alone, can make it perfect.<\/p>\n

Use the right tools<\/strong>\u2026think about it a lot\u2026research a great deal<\/strong>\u2026.and seek feedback as often as you can.<\/p>\n

Have you created your own Book Cover before?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Have you any tips to add to the list?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Share it below, or simply showcase your favourite Book Cover of all time.
\n_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
\n\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Matthew Turner is a young writer from Yorkshire, England. He writes both Fiction & Non-Fiction, but his latest project is Beyond Parallel, a coming-of-age novel that focusses on two young twenty-somethings.<\/p>\n

After years of playing with the idea of writing, he decided to take things seriously in 2010. He took his four year old manuscript and ripped it apart; refining it, editing, and learning until the final copy was ready. That time is now!<\/p>\n

As well as writing, Matthew acts as a consultant, speaker, and coach to fellow writers and entrepreneurs. With a passion for storytelling and creating brands with soul, he finds himself working with innovative, 21st-century minds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You know the deal:\u00a0a modern day writer is more than a writer. We publish, format, sell, market, and yes, design our own book covers. Some people will scold me for saying this, but sometimes it’s okay for a writer to design their own Book Cover. There is a gigantic BUT, though. Only do so if […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":9562,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[720,718],"tags":[763,764,761,762],"class_list":["post-9506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guest-posts","category-how-to-guides","tag-beyond-parallel","tag-how-to-create-my-own-book-cover","tag-how-to-design-your-book-cover","tag-matthew-turner"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookbuzzr.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}