Working with a Book Cover Designer
By leon
Everyone knows that a book cover can make or break the success of a historical fiction novel. It won’t matter if your story hooks readers from the first page if they won’t even crack open the spine (or hit download on an e-reader).
If you are self-publishing it is important to learn about each step in the publishing process so you can make the best choices for your book. Book cover design, typesetting, and formatting are some of the steps that feel especially daunting to me. Even if you are working with a publisher, it can help to understand how a designer works.
I was thrilled when Sadie Butterworth-Jones of Lune View Publishing agreed to demystify the book cover design process. She has extensive experience with all aspects of the publishing process, including cover design and layout. And, her covers are absolutely gorgeous!
She answered all my burning questions and has tips on how to find a reputable designer as well as the process of working with one you trust.
What do you love the most about being a cover designer?
The variety, the creativity, the collaboration and the challenge. I especially enjoy when I get to work on multiple aspects of a book and ensure it really all comes together, but even when solely creating the cover it is such a joy being able to bring a book and an author’s vision to life. I love working alongside other talented freelancers – from proofreaders to illustrators – and building relationships with authors and publishers. I love the flexibility of being a mother and self-employed. Most of all, I adore books, so working within the industry is a privilege I don’t take lightly.
What information does a designer need to create a good book cover? (and does a cover designer usually read the book?)
Although I do occasionally read the book itself – when proofreading and typesetting – I wouldn’t say reading the book is necessary for cover design. The cover should be conveying what the blurb is hinting at and firmly establishing its genre, alongside being attractive and attention grabbing. A really good blurb, some extra information on the main players and plot, plus a solid brief from the author are so valuable. Visuals are a big help, whether that is font, other covers they are drawn to or stock imagery they like - they are all super useful.
Some authors are very hands-off and need to see the work to refine what feels right, while others have a really tight vision for what they want from the start, and both are absolutely fine! Collaboration is key here – I’m a designer not an artist, and the author’s preferences and what they envisioned are much more important than anything else. My job is to bring that to life, while still ensuring it stands out on a shelf and instantly conveys its genre.
How much does genre impact cover design choices?
Hugely – a book cover is your strongest marketing tool, and super useful when it comes to building author branding. Alongside evolving fashion trends for covers – which a quick stroll around your nearest book shop makes clear – we are psychologically wired to see certain colour palettes, font styles and imagery as aligning to certain genres, which is so important when it comes to attracting the right readership for your book.
The extent of information needed from the author will also vary depending on the genre – for illustrated fiction/fantasy or children’s books I always ask for some plot points to incorporate in the cover as those details really are key and can be lovely to continue through the interior pages, whereas a thriller cover is more likely to be a bit vaguer and photography-based, merely hinting at the plot. However, this will vary depending on the book itself and the author’s preferences.
What is the typical process for working with a cover designer?
Once your manuscript is near completion or in the editing stages, get in touch as early as you can in the process to arrange a booking. Let me know what your brief is, what you have in mind, and when you would ideally need the work completed by. Share a blurb if possible, and other visuals are really helpful too. If working with an illustrator, please detail when any imagery would be ready by.
I would then decide if I am the right fit for the job – and a good designer should know that sometimes that isn’t the case – and arrange a booking via a 25% or 50% invoiced deposit to secure the dates needed. Feel free to keep in touch in the lead-up to the start date with any other information or ideas that feel valuable. As long as it suits the author, I would normally set aside 10-14 days for the cover design work, depending on complexity and the format, with a couple of days between edit rounds for you to gather your feedback.
I would recommend wherever possible having a cover completed a bit in advance of your publication date so that you can start some early promotion. Often, I will then tweak the cover once the typesetting is done to make it print-ready (if applicable).
How can an author give you useful feedback during the design process?
I normally ask authors I work with wherever possible to supply their edits via Adobe Acrobat (free desktop app) commenting tools, as I find this a really helpful way of communicating remotely without anything getting lost in translation. Timely communication and aligning to the dates agreed in advance of a booking are a big help too, but if you do need more time, please just relay that as soon as you can as there is no point rushing the process. We’re all human, and if life has gotten in the way, work can often be rearranged.
In terms of the feedback itself, please always just be entirely honest about what aspects are working or not working. It isn’t your time to people please. This book is your baby, and any good cover designer should understand that! Likewise, please always be patient. The process is one of collaboration, and sometimes it may take a few rounds to get there. Have faith that you will!
How much of a relationship is there between cover design and typesetting and interior layout?
In my personal opinion as both a cover designer and typesetter, there should be plenty! I always start with the cover design first – or request another designer’s packaged files if I’m stepping in for the typesetting element – so that I can pull the fonts from the cover to use throughout the interior layout. Again though, the level of connection will vary depending on genre and the author’s preferences, i.e., a photography-based cover for a novel with no illustrated elements and a straightforward text may just need the fonts threaded through, while a children’s book should feel seamless, with illustrated elements incorporated throughout.
What are some things authors should watch out for when looking for a cover designer?
I wish it weren’t the case that I’ve stepped in to rescue quite a few authors with some shoddy cover design, but sadly with the growth of low-cost designers and AI I’m seeing an increasing amount of poor design work going on. I would say look out for:
- If it seems really cheap, there’s probably a reason for it! They might be based in a developing country which understandably would make the work more affordable than a Western-based designer, and they could be excellent at their work. But they could also be relying on AI technology that causes copyright issues, and using automated, mass-produced designs. I am seeing this a LOT on platforms like Fiverr, where authors don’t really realise that the reason the cover and typesetting are priced so low is because they are basically copy and pasted from one book to the next.
- Any cover design should be using high resolution imagery, and if looking to print, this should be fully print-ready. 300dpi, with suitable bleed and the right size spine, formatted correctly for your printer/publishing platform.
- They should ALWAYS supply fully packaged design files, so if you or someone else need to tweak the work at a later date, you’re not starting from scratch.
- They should still be available once delivery is made – whether that is tweaking the spine if needed, or helping advise on upload. Publishing is a scary process and you should feel supported.
- Regarding layout, having worked both in-house and independently, I’d say also be wary of having people work on your manuscript who aren’t totally fluent in the language you’re publishing in. Yes, they can pop your manuscript into InDesign, but will they do basic copyediting checks? Will they ensure there’s no rogue formatting in there? Will they make suggestions to improve the readability and layout, add in level headings for non-fiction books which increase readability? In essence, are they doing your book justice?
Sadie Butterworth-Jones / Lune View Publishing
With a background in journalism and over 12 years’ experience working in the production side of book publishing, I’m used to wearing quite a few different hats - from copywriting and proofreading to typesetting, eBook creation and book cover design. Having worked on hundreds of books and journals, unsurprisingly I’m a total bibliophile, with a particular love of fiction, children’s literature and travel writing.
After working in Sheffield and then remotely around the world, I’m now back in my hometown of Lancaster, sharing a home office with my husband and an incredibly lazy, adopted greyhound.
