Designing a book cover means that we need to work in close partnership with each other. It’s central that there are clear lines of communication, as well as good understanding of the book concept and how the author wants to portray the book.

To do this, I like to either read the manuscript or read a full synopsis of it before I start doing the work. The reason behind this is so I can get a good feel for the author-voice, the themes, and the characters. If I can’t read the whole book or the synopsis – I should at least read the first chapter. This ultimately helps me find images that best represent and market the book to its full potential.

When designing a cover, I am well aware that the designs I do are effectively a ‘means to an end’ – as in generating sales. That’s what I’m here for. To help writers sell their books. And a well-designed cover sells. It’s that simple.

I don’t have a problem if an author has already found imaging that they would like to use for the cover as it gives me good insight into what the author is thinking in terms of visual representation for their work. However, if I read the book or the synopsis, and discover that the image selected misrepresents the book, I will go in search of something more effective for the ‘selling and marketing’ of the book to suggest that option to the author. 

If I can, I like to use a design brief. This is especially important if the book is part of a series, and then I can follow the previous book cover specifications. The design brief is written by both me and the writer, and it covers a lot of ground – fonts, restrictions, images, ideas, timeframes, spine width, and major deliverables dates or milestones.

 

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