{"id":21903,"date":"2019-07-22T03:00:17","date_gmt":"2019-07-22T10:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?p=21903"},"modified":"2019-07-21T09:22:41","modified_gmt":"2019-07-21T16:22:41","slug":"how-to-spot-a-professional-cover-designer-introduction-industry-standards-by-mary-neighbour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2019\/07\/22\/how-to-spot-a-professional-cover-designer-introduction-industry-standards-by-mary-neighbour\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Spot a Professional Cover Designer: Introduction &#038; Industry Standards by Mary Neighbour"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/How-to-Spot-a-Professional-Cover-Designer_-Introduction-Industry-Standards.png\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-21907 size-medium\" title=\"How to Spot a Professional Cover Designer: Introduction &amp; Industry Standards by Mary Neighbour\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/How-to-Spot-a-Professional-Cover-Designer_-Introduction-Industry-Standards-300x300.png\" alt=\"How to Spot a Professional Cover Designer: Introduction &amp; Industry Standards by Mary Neighbour\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/How-to-Spot-a-Professional-Cover-Designer_-Introduction-Industry-Standards-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/How-to-Spot-a-Professional-Cover-Designer_-Introduction-Industry-Standards-160x160.png 160w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/How-to-Spot-a-Professional-Cover-Designer_-Introduction-Industry-Standards-320x320.png 320w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/How-to-Spot-a-Professional-Cover-Designer_-Introduction-Industry-Standards.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Please welcome back guest author\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?s=Mary+e+neighbour\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mary Neighbor<\/a> as she shares with us \u201cHow to Spot a Professional Cover Designer: Introduction &amp; Industry Standards.\u201d Enjoy!<\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<p><strong>Writers often hear, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.urbandictionary.com\/define.php?term=Kill%20your%20darlings\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u201cKill your darlings<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>\u201d (attributed to William Faulkner)<\/strong>, meaning that you can\u2019t afford to be too attached to your personal favorites\u2014words, scenes, character traits\u2014even whole characters. This advice is equally true when it comes to book cover design.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Choosing a Cover Design and a Cover Designer<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Arguably the most difficult part for an author in choosing a cover design is to adopt an objective viewpoint. Your own sense of aesthetics may have (probably has) no place in the design of your book\u2019s cover. Your personal photo of that gorgeous Bermuda sunset won\u2019t mean much to the average book buyer. And the purpose of a good cover is to sell books. Period.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy.jpeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21904 size-medium\" title=\"Godwin Artist\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy-300x193.jpeg\" alt=\"Godwin Artist\" width=\"300\" height=\"193\" srcset=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy-300x193.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy-768x493.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy-1024x658.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy-640x411.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-1-copy.jpeg 1048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>The professional cover artist\u2019s aim<\/strong>, then, is to produce a design that helps your book sell, and he brings a specialized skill set to the job. Cover designers may address all or just one or two areas of design, so you may need to hire more than one professional to accomplish these various tasks:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Developing an integrated design concept for front, back, and spine<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adhering to standards and trends in your genre\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Choosing images, typeface, and colors<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Executing the design\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Working with the printer to achieve the desired results<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(Note: the design of book interiors will be addressed separately in future blogs.)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Naturally, subjectivity eventually plays a role. The cover is <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">art<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">work, and so the author will weigh the merits of one design over another. First, though, make sure the cover meets publishing industry standards and expectations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Industry Standards for Cover Design<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another common maxim writers hear: you <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">must<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have a <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">professional<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> cover design. But how can you know that it is? Even an award-winning graphical designer\u2014with honors from the Royal College of Art\u2014may not be the right choice to design your cover, if his award was for a body\/mind\/spirit book and you just wrote a time-travel thriller.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fully understanding the industry standards, plus doing a little research on comparable books, will help you confidently choose a professional cover designer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Tip<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: In addition to scanning covers on Amazon, consider any number of cover design awards, even <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebookdesigner.com\/2011\/08\/monthly-e-book-cover-design-awards\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ebook covers<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> will provide insight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy.jpeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21905 size-medium\" title=\"Godwin Artist\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy-300x271.jpeg\" alt=\"Godwin Artist\" width=\"300\" height=\"271\" srcset=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy-300x271.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy-768x693.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy-1024x924.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy-640x577.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_artist-5-copy.jpeg 1064w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>On How to Spot a Professional Cover Designer<\/h3>\n<h3><b>Standard #1: The cover fits within its genre<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From the outset, consider the book consumer: consciously or unconsciously buyers have expectations about what a book should look like. They know a sci-fi book should not look like a memoir. Before you interview a designer, do online research within your genre so that you can see for yourself what buyers are buying. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your nonfiction book is about business or money, the design should be straightforward, conveying reliability. If your fiction novel is suspenseful, bold type and colors will attract your readers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Understanding the psychology of typography, color, and imagery are all part of the designer\u2019s skill, and he will undertake to satisfy reader expectations. He will also endeavor to keep the design functional, so that it serves readability and comprehension. He, too, will kill his own darlings, never allowing the design to intrude upon the desired impact.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Standard #2: The cover suggests the type of reading experience\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even within a genre, two different book covers will broadcast different <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tones<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, reflecting the type of reading experience the writer intends; for example, humorous or ominous. Your online research will help you recognize the emotional tones of the stories in your genre. Consider aspects of harmony and contrast, as well, in making your determinations.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Standard #3: The cover provides basic information<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The book title, obviously, needs to be on your cover, along with a subtitle, if applicable. The author\u2019s name is also unfailingly placed on the front. Read on below to learn what other cover elements are traditionally included on the front, back, and spine of a book.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Standard #4: The design employs hierarchy\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is the primary focal point of the design? This will vary, book by book. It may be the author\u2019s name, as is frequently seen with Stephen King books. For authors not of his stature, the focal point more likely will be an image or the combination of imagery, color, and typography, and the author name will not be as large or as prominent. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hierarchy also implies the elimination of clutter and distracting elements. Designers often employ \u201cthe rule of thirds\u201d (see next week\u2019s blog) to create hierarchy and balance.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Tip<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Not only does clutter distract the eye, but it doesn\u2019t allow for the eventuality that your book may win an award, and you will want to display the award sticker in a manner that doesn\u2019t obscure important aspects of the cover\u2019s design.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Standard #5: The cover provokes interest and excitement<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Duh! Like writing, cover design should include a hook, an inducement to the browser to seek more information about this book\u2014and ultimately, to buy the book.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>What Else Belongs on a Cover? (Hint: Your Cover Designer Would Know&#8230;)<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are conventions followed by professionals in the publishing industry. In terms of text, aside from the title, subtitle, and author name, very little should go on the front. Use this excellent rule of thumb to decide whether to add something to the front: If it\u2019s famous or essential, it can stay:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">An award or prominent book club sticker<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A brief endorsement by a recognizable authority<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A discreet notice about a series or that supplemental material is included (usually for academic works)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Tip<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: No unsubstantiated claims are to be used. It\u2019s not the \u201cbest ever\u201d unless someone like the <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">New York Times<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or Oprah is saying so.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your front cover does its job, the browser will flip the book over to peruse the back. While no mandate exists that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">anything<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has to appear on the back, you want to continue to deepen the consumer experience. So, your cover artist also needs to design the back cover. These elements commonly are put to that task:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Brief synopsis, hook, or blurb<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Endorsements and reviews<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Author bio and photo<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Book category or genre<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Price (sometimes in foreign denominations as well)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Age range (seen mostly with children\u2019s book)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bar code with ISBN<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Trademarks, URLs, or publishing logo<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Bear in mind, though<\/strong>, that you don\u2019t want the back cover to look dense; it, too, deserves a hierarchy. Be discerning in what you choose to include. Again, ask yourself if this element or that will lead the browser to purchase the book.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, let\u2019s not ignore the spine. Most retailers and libraries will display your book on a shelf, wedged between other books, with only the spine visible. What will make it stand out? Here again, a little research into your competition can help your designer create a spine that attracts attention. And he has to accomplish this with very few elements. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In addition to color, typography, and imagery (less commonly used on a spine), his design needs to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">legibly<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> accommodate:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Title (often without the subtitle)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Author name (often just the last name)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Publishing imprint or logo<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_man-in-library2.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21906 size-medium\" title=\"godwin_man-in-library\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_man-in-library2-271x300.jpg\" alt=\"godwin_man-in-library\" width=\"271\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_man-in-library2-271x300.jpg 271w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/godwin_man-in-library2.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 271px) 100vw, 271px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many trade books have only about a half-inch spine width, so you can see how challenging this gets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Have you ever wondered how the width of the spine is calculated?<\/strong> Some cover designers will do this; others will expect the author or publisher to work with the printer to determine the width, and then they will adjust their design to that specification. Since you don\u2019t want the spine \u201cslipping\u201d onto the front or the back covers, this width needs to be precise.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Tip<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: In these days of print-on-demand (POD), it is common that two spine widths are needed. For example, KDP Publishing and IngramSpark use different weights of paper, resulting in each company requiring a different spine width. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before embarking on the design, have a discussion with your cover designer about the methods of printing and binding you intend to pursue.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next week in this series: \u201cBook Cover Design: Terminology.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The following week: \u201cBook Cover Design: Telltale Signs You\u2019ve Hired a Professional.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>Mary\u2019s previous posts are\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?s=Mary+e+neighbour\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">here.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<h2>ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/h2>\n<p><a class=\"\" href=\"http:\/\/www.medianeighbours.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"http:\/\/www.medianeighbours.com\/ noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-21650 tc-smart-load-skip tc-smart-loaded\" title=\"Mary Neighbor\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Mary_3x3.jpg\" alt=\"Mary Neighbor\" width=\"150\" height=\"171\" \/><\/a>Some call\u00a0<strong>Mary E. Neighbour<\/strong>\u00a0a \u201cbook shepherd,\u201d though Mary wields a blue pencil far more expertly than a herding rod. For the past ten years, she and her husband have helped dozens of writers bring their manuscripts to the marketplace, through\u00a0<strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.medianeighbours.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">MediaNeighbours<\/a><\/strong>, their publishing services business.<\/p>\n<p>Passionate about helping authors make their work shine in the world, with a combined professional expertise of over 50 years in editing and design, this family team is one you\u2019ll want to adopt as your guide through the challenging world of independent publishing.<\/p>\n<p>Mary\u2019s other passion is learning about the history of slavery and how it impacts race relations today. She incorporated much of her research into her novel,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/speakrighton.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><i>Speak Right On: Conjuring the Slave Narrative of Dred Scott<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Arguably the most difficult part for an author in choosing a cover designer is to adopt an objective viewpoint.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":21907,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[4009,4010,2970,3306,3956],"class_list":["post-21903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-writing-tips","tag-book-design","tag-book-designer","tag-cover-designer","tag-hiring","tag-publishing-industry-standards"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How to Spot a Professional Cover Designer: Introduction &amp; Industry Standards by Mary Neighbour &#183; Writer&#039;s Fun Zone<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Arguably the most difficult part for an author in choosing a cover designer is to adopt an objective viewpoint. 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