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Forum -> Hobbies, Crafts, and Collections -> The Imamother Writing Club
Cover design



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amother
OP


 

Post Tue, Jul 09 2019, 9:45 pm
For those who have self-published: How did you do your book cover? Did you hire a cover designer or do it yourself? If you did it yourself, what programs or websites do you recommend? If you hired someone, who do you recommend, and how much did it cost?
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amother
Amethyst


 

Post Tue, Jul 09 2019, 11:52 pm
Is self publishing the best way to go financially?
I don't want to lose the rights to my own book.
I really want to publish a book I wrote for children but $$$ is a big issue.
Do you know about Amazon publishing?
I don't know how to go about it but I know it's a necessary book
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amother
Amethyst


 

Post Tue, Jul 09 2019, 11:53 pm
Sorry double post
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singleagain




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 09 2019, 11:58 pm
OP, I've never published. But if you are the type to be very picky, and I'm going to use the term micromanage the cover, don't hire someone. Do it yourself.

I have a friend who's an artist and once got a commission to do a kids picture book. The author was very particular about what the illustration should look like. And I believe had my friend known that in advance, she would not have taken the commission.
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 5:40 pm
Bump. Still looking for recommendations. I don’t micromanage on design work.
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singleagain




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 5:44 pm
Price can vary project to project. And you don't want to low-ball the artists...
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 5:47 pm
singleagain wrote:
Price can vary project to project. And you don't want to low-ball the artists...

Can you give me an approximate range for quality work?
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singleagain




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 5:50 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Can you give me an approximate range for quality work?


I'm not sure .. but I've seen on line, artists post
screenshots of ppl who ask for discount or free drawing to get laughed at. Some artists will also charge by the hour.. like 50 bucks an hour

Can you describe the style you are looking for?

Are you wanting something abstract? Realistic? Faces? Animals? "Set design"... Like a Shabbat table, without ppl?
Is cartoon ok?
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 6:03 pm
singleagain wrote:
I'm not sure .. but I've seen on line, artists post
screenshots of ppl who ask for discount or free drawing to get laughed at. Some artists will also charge by the hour.. like 50 bucks an hour

Can you describe the style you are looking for?

Are you wanting something abstract? Realistic? Faces? Animals? "Set design"... Like a Shabbat table, without ppl?
Is cartoon ok?


I’m obviously not a designer, and even though I appreciate good design work, I have a hard time conceptualizing what it should look like ahead of time. I’m the type of person who needs suggestions of where to put furniture because I have trouble envisioning the potential of what it’ll look like when it’s just an empty room. I would want to describe the emotional tone of the book and what it’s about and ask the designer to make suggestions.
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singleagain




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 6:31 pm
I haven't done anything professional. But I can show you some of my work and if you like it I could try
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amother
Amber


 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 6:45 pm
I’m a graphic designer and illustrator.
It very much depends what you’re looking for.
There are book covers for kids that usually have illustrations and then there are book covers for adults/non fiction that are either photographic or totally abstract.

I would say if this is non fiction you’re probably looking for an abstract cover design—which usually include a visual metaphor. Google image search “abstract book cover” to get an idea. Same with an adult book—it’ll have abstract or photography-based visuals (like a diamond or passport or whatever.)

Most kids books (and some adult books) require heavy illustrations to pull someone in—of the main characters or the setting. It’s much more labor-intensive than simpler graphics where there’s no artistry involved.

So definitely decide which route you want to go down. I suggest creating a Pinterest board and searching the web and Pinterest for book cover ideas, and pinning whatever interests you. That will give whoever you hire a good idea about how much to charge and what to do.

Pricing is extremely subjective. It really depends how expert a person you’re looking for and how much they value themselves—there’s no industry standard. I can tell you that I would charge at least $500 for the first type (graphic, no artistry) and at least $1200 for the second type (illustration based.)

Whatever you do, if you have no experience in design or marketing strategy, you probably shouldn’t do it yourself
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 10:17 pm
amother [ Amber ] wrote:
I’m a graphic designer and illustrator.
It very much depends what you’re looking for.
There are book covers for kids that usually have illustrations and then there are book covers for adults/non fiction that are either photographic or totally abstract.

I would say if this is non fiction you’re probably looking for an abstract cover design—which usually include a visual metaphor. Google image search “abstract book cover” to get an idea. Same with an adult book—it’ll have abstract or photography-based visuals (like a diamond or passport or whatever.)

Most kids books (and some adult books) require heavy illustrations to pull someone in—of the main characters or the setting. It’s much more labor-intensive than simpler graphics where there’s no artistry involved.

So definitely decide which route you want to go down. I suggest creating a Pinterest board and searching the web and Pinterest for book cover ideas, and pinning whatever interests you. That will give whoever you hire a good idea about how much to charge and what to do.

Pricing is extremely subjective. It really depends how expert a person you’re looking for and how much they value themselves—there’s no industry standard. I can tell you that I would charge at least $500 for the first type (graphic, no artistry) and at least $1200 for the second type (illustration based.)

Whatever you do, if you have no experience in design or marketing strategy, you probably shouldn’t do it yourself


Thanks for explaining the different types of covers. I think it would probably be best with photography-based or abstract visuals. I have some basic ideas but nothing concrete enough to tell a designer, "I want A, B, and C." I'm looking around to see if I can find a directory of designers, I seem to remember there's a Jewish version of freelancer...?
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amother
OP


 

Post Wed, Jul 10 2019, 10:45 pm
Quick question - what is your professional opinion of purchasing a premade book cover? I see many sites selling them inexpensively.
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amother
Amber


 

Post Thu, Jul 11 2019, 8:48 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Quick question - what is your professional opinion of purchasing a premade book cover? I see many sites selling them inexpensively.


They won’t necessarily be lower quality than if you hire someone, but it sounds to me like you need a confident and informed designer who will be able to flesh out what you want and need.

Consider that your book’s cover is the most important thing actually selling this book. If it doesn’t appeal to the correct audience, their eyes will roam right past it—they won’t even pick it up to read the blurb. In my opinion, it’s not worth potentially alienating your audience if you’re very unsure about what you need.

If it’s a Jewish book I can find a list of Jewish designers somewhere
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amother
Amber


 

Post Thu, Jul 11 2019, 8:53 am
amother [ Amber ] wrote:
They won’t necessarily be lower quality than if you hire someone, but it sounds to me like you need a confident and informed designer who will be able to flesh out what you want and need.

Consider that your book’s cover is the most important thing actually selling this book. If it doesn’t appeal to the correct audience, their eyes will roam right past it—they won’t even pick it up to read the blurb. In my opinion, it’s not worth potentially alienating your audience if you’re very unsure about what you need.

If it’s a Jewish book I can find a list of Jewish designers somewhere


https://docs.google.com/spread.....05150

Here is the link to a lot of designers. All the way to the left it lists their specialties. There are a lot Smile
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jul 14 2019, 7:29 pm
Amber amother, thank you for the spreadsheet. You raised the point about marketing to the right audience, and not just making sure the design is of high quality. I'm looking into what you suggested. Thank you!
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