A few weeks back, I blogged about DIY covers. Since then, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Steven Novak—a graphic designer, illustrator, and writer. With a little bit of begging and a whole lot of bribing, he’s agreed to give his thoughts on the topic as well. Okay, so it was only a slight grovel-session, with a side of pleading. Kidding! In all honesty, he graciously agreed. And while he offers his cover-designing services (naturally), he also provides great tips for all you do-it-yourselvers out there. What a guy!! 
Please give a warm welcome to Steven Novak as he chats, jokes, threatens (Yup! LOL), and informs. And don’t be shy; feel free to comment. Enjoy!
*Samples of Steven’s work are scattered throughout the post. Beautiful covers!
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If you’re an author looking to self publish and you think the cover of your book is something you really don’t need to bother with, I should smack you right in the face. Okay, maybe I’m being a bit dramatic. I promise I won’t smack you.
I’m actually a big ol’ softie.
And a bit of a pushover.
Still, while the cover of your book isn’t nearly as important as the content (ideally), it’s not so trivial that it can simply be overlooked. The cover is the first thing a potential buyer sees. It’s their first impression of the story, and the characters and the tone. Right or wrong, whether you like it or not, it’s also the first thing they judge.
No one wants to make a bad first impression – like threatening to smack someone, for example – that’s not a great first impression.
I’ve worked as a graphic designer and illustrator for nearly ten years. (Yikes, that makes me feel old.) I’ve dabbled in product design, and illustrated children’s books and done some corporate branding. I’ve written novels and I’ve drawn comics, and I’ve even put together advertisements for the local EZ Lube joint down the block.
If you’re a self-published author looking for a cover, the best advice I can offer is to seek the help of a professional.
Putting together a good cover is harder than you might think.
It’s not “breaking bricks on a chain gang hard,” but it’s still pretty tough.
I’m not saying you can’t do it yourself. For all I know, you might be great at it. You might even be better at it than I am. (Lots of people are.)
I do, however, believe there’s an inherent difference between someone who maybe has a passing interest in design, and someone who needs to be good at design in order to put food on their table.
Starvation and homelessness is an incredible motivator.
There are “professionals” out there that work cheap, and they work fast, and they can give you something that will not only knock your socks off, but rip your feet from your ankles and leave them spewing fountains of blood to boot.
novakillustration@gmail.com Hint. Hint. Wink. Wink.
If you’re dead set on going it alone, there are a few bits of advice I can offer.
Take notes. There will be a test at the end.
Okay, that was a lie too. There won’t be any test.
There will be a vest, though – because vest rhymes with test.
(Gah. That was a terrible joke.)
1. Fonts should never be an afterthought.
This one is key. Nothing screams “I made this cover in my spare time” more than misused fonts. Let’s say that you’ve compiled your images, you’ve figured out the basic functions of Photoshop and you’ve managed to piece together a cover image that not only knocks your socks off and blows explodes your feet, but rips your legs for your torso as well.
(Yikes. Why am I getting so violent?)
Slapping an awkwardly placed, poorly-planned, afterthought of a font onto your incredible image is sort of like scooping some cat litter onto Angelina Jolie’s head. Sure, she’s Angelia Jolie, and sure she’s attractive. She also has cat poop on her head.
It’s tough to look past the poop.
Think about your fonts and where you’re going to put them from the very beginning of the process. It’s part of the design and it should be treated that way.
2. Don’t try to tell the whole story.
I see this one a lot as well. Overly crowded covers with too many characters and painfully obvious attempts at depicting a specific plot point gives me a lemonface.
Covers aren’t books. Books are books. Your cover should be a tease. It should tempt you. If your cover was a skirt, it should hang to the knees. If it was a male bathing suit, it shouldn’t be a speedo.
A good cover is a hint of things to come.
Oh, and please don’t let it contain spoilers. Cover spoilers make the cover gods cringe.
It also gives them a lemonface – mostly because I wanted to type the word lemonface again.
3. Do some research.
Last but not least, look at your book objectively; take into consideration its genre and just who is most likely to add it to the Kindle. When you’re done with that, go to Google images and see what else is out there. Certain things appeal to certain readers, and if you miss the mark you’re going to be missing sales.
Missing sales sucks.
If you miss sales you can forget about that new pair of shoes you’ve been looking at.
That Nintendo Wii?
Nuh Uh.
Those tickets to Disneyland next summer? Mickey’s going to wonder why you abandoned him and he might even cry.
Okay, that last thing won’t actually happen. (That was mean of me.)
There’s nothing wrong with seeing what else is out there and what the current trends are. It’s not only smart business, but it might just provide you with the spark of inspiration you’ve been looking for.
In summation, even if you’re the kind of writer that does it for the art and only the art, and you couldn’t possibly care less about sales, and your only goal is to have a few people to read your work and enjoy it (which is really all that matters in the end), you still need to think about your cover. You spent months writing your book, and your book deserves a decent cover.
Why would you ever half-ass it? That’s just rude.
Be nice to your book. Pat it on the head, rub its belly and treat it right. It’s your baby, after all. Don’t dress your baby in a potato sack. If you do that, you’ll be hearing from the fine people at CPS soon enough.
A good cover can only help you get the readers you’re looking for.
It’s not going to make them like the book, but it will convince them to give it a chance.
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For more on Steven Novak, please see his website (http://www.novakillustration.com/), or email him at novakillustration@gmail.com.
Thanks again, Steven, for being our guest!
Posted in Coverart, Guest Blog
Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay – got held up with editing and formats. 
1) Other than great content, book covers sell books. Either hire a professional or be sure that your cover stands out in the pack and looks professional. If you aren’t tech savvy, there are people who will design a cover for you for anywhere from $100-$300. Also vet your blurb through critique partners or other established authors. Your front cover and back cover blurb may be the ONLY thing standing between you and a potential reader.
8) Networking is a worthwhile time-suck. I’m learning to time myself and limit how much of my day is spent on social networking such as Twitter, Facebook and the many writer’s loops I belong to. The people and contacts I’ve made have been invaluable and I could not do what I am doing without those contacts. Aside from the wonderful friendships I’ve made, I am blessed beyond measure by the generosity of others. When I need help or have questions, there is always someone on line ready to step in and help.
I’d like to “talk” about paranormal versus fantasy, and what defines each genre. It seems no one can give me a definitive straight answer on this one. 
I submitted a query to an agent for a fantasy romance. And he came back to me saying there was no such thing, and I shouldn’t be making up my own genres. Whoops! My bad! I changed it to paranormal romance and resumed submissions. Then another agent requested the full, read it, and came back and said it wasn’t paranormal, but fantasy. *eye roll* Okay, okay. So, it’s fantasy, like I originally thought. But then (just to be sure) I asked other writers how they interpreted each, and got conflicting answers. So that led me to books I’ve read to see how they were categorized and (lo and behold) more conflicting answers. For example, the Black Dagger Brotherhood series is solidly PNR, and no one disputes that. But that’s vampires – isn’t that fantasy?? 
And now I’m ALL messed up!! 
You know the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover”? Well, in this case, that a bunch of bull…loney. Sometimes that’s ALL a book is judged by, so make it sharp, make it snap, make it pop…*looking in thesaurus* 
unintentionally diss on someone’s cover so I decided against it. I am posting my covers below to show you what I’m talking about though (the “pop” factor). Or my attempt at it, anyhow. 
After that, it’s all preference and opinion. If you want more views to consider than just mine, I would suggest checking out 
One last piece of advice I want to give you is this: Don’t be afraid to play around with the programs. It took me two years of trial-and-error with Paint.net to get where I’m at today, and I’m still not 100% with it. But the more I play, the better I get. 
