The Self-Publisher Book Cover Design Guide

Posted by Melody Clark on June 18, 2010

There are those who hold that the book cover is the most important element of your book because it’s the first thing the reader sees. The back cover, they say, makes the decision solid. What kind of cover your book needs depends on a lot of different things. It’s an important decision to make. When your cover is the first thing your reader is going to see, obviously you want o make a good impression with it.

Ideally, you want to appeal to everyone, but the reality is the self-published author may need to cut back on certain design aspects on a first title. Cover design is one you should not cutback on, however, if you can’t spend money, spend some time investigating the hows, whats and whys.

There are many places where one can get royalty free art or photography which may be used on a cover. One of my favorites is: http://www.sxc.hu Be careful to read and abide by the usage conditions which are typically quite liberal. Most allow for use on the covers of books, but make certain that is the case by reading the conditions. It’s always good business practice to credit the photographer, too.

There are myriad places where you can find low-cost book cover design or cover art help. http://Elance.com is but one. You do get what you pay for, but not all self-publishers can afford to pay for everything they need.

There are always templates available that can be used, along with royalty-free cover content, to create a good quality cover design. If you don’t have an artistic sense yourself, you may well have a friend who does. Be sure to observe the technical demands of any market you’re seeking to sell in. Whether you’re going to only sell online or target bookstores, you will have to address different requirements.

There are also many pieces of good software (though some pricey) that may work into an excellent investment for the multi-book author. Book Cover Pro is a good example.

Looking to find the best deal on self-publishing, then visit http://newpublishblog.com to find the best advice on cover graphics design for you.