A great book cover matters! Many books are purchased, because the cover was enticing. A great cover can sell books. There are too many options out there to address them all, but we can certainly review a few good affordable ones.
I wanted to save money. I saw numerous "design your own cover sites" and other options. I spent endless hours trying to create the right one by myself. I finally found a photo that I liked. I built my cover around it. I published the book with my homemade cover. When it was listed with all of the other books on Amazon, it was clear to me that mine looked like it was created in Publisher by an amateur. I called CreateSpace. They gave me a few companies and routes to consider. I went to one of the suggested designer's websites on 99Designs. When I saw Meella's portfolio, I knew she was the one I wanted to hire.
To my surprise, a designer was not that expensive. I gave her the photo I had selected and asked her to do her magic. I had some concerns, because we were doing everything via email. Meella with 99designs lives in Australia. I told her what I was looking for, and I was amazed at the options she provided. She tweaked my cover and gave it a professional look. I wish I would have known about Meella when I started trying to create a cover. She would have saved me weeks of frustration. In the end, I think she was worth every penny. I later had her create business cards, postcards and my #audio book cover.
What you need to know about art for your cover:
Things are different than they were years ago. Previously, I would purchase software with thousands of photos I could use. Now, many of those photos are copyrighted work, and protected by the photographer. If you find art on the internet, look for links on their sites such as the one below:
NOTE: Whatever you do, make sure you follow their terms. DO NOT violate them!
BOOK COVER DESIGNER SITES: Listed below are companies that have great software that help you to create your own #book cover:
My personal favorite is Meella.
Cover Creator - https://www.covercreator.net/
Poster My Wall - https://www.postermywall.com/
NOTE: Some of the above companies have some FREE art.
FREE ART: (not all of the art on the sites below is FREE, but some have FREE choices). Listed below are a few companies that have great art:
iStockPhoto - https://www.istockphoto.com/
pixabay - https://pixabay.com/
Shutterstock - https://www.shutterstock.com/
123RF - https://www.123rf.com/
NOTE: Even if the art on the site states FREE, make sure you do not have to acknowledge the
photographer or artist in or in your book.
SAVING MONEY: If you need the assistance of a cover designer, I suggest you do what I did. Find a photo that suits your book and style. Follow the copyright requirements. Give the photo to a designer and let them create the cover for you. I found it was much less expensive finding the art myself. The designer took care of polishing it and laying it out properly. She tweaked it for various formats. She used the same photo to create the cover, post cards, business cards, and audio book cover. Having a professional do it saved me time and made a much more professional looking cover than I ever could.
SUMMARY: There are many more sites out there, but I think these are some of the most popular. It should give you a great place to start. Wherever you get your art, make sure it is not Copyrighted. If it is, get permission in writing to use it!
Congratulations! You are done! Now you have to figure out what you are going to do with this wonderful piece of art that you have created! Open the Publishing tab and let's get started!
I agree Hannah! It is critical to get permission to use the artwork. I used one from 123RF. I went through the necessary procedure to get approval. Two years later, I was contacted by the photographer. She told me the photo was her niece Chloe. I have since communicated numerous times with both Chloe and the photographer. What a beautiful day it was when they reached out to me. I sent them signed copies and a few additional books for family members for the holidays. The moral of this story is thank goodness I did get permission or it would have set me up for a lawsuit. Instead, I have had the pleasure of having new friends in Michigan.
It's very important that if you are using a stock photo (image from the internet that is not your own) that you obtain the right to use it. Seek permission from the artist/owner or pay for the image. Read the user agreement/Terms of Service to ensure that you can use the image not only as a book cover but you may also want to use the image for advertising, bookmarks, or business cards. The last thing you want is to use an image that you didn't obtain permission to use and get slapped with a lawsuit. The advice from my husband (who is well versed in this area), if you have the option for obtaining various sizes of the image, always g…