Book Cover Design: Your 5-Step Guide

Having a great book cover design, at the most basic level, is what will help readers take you and your book seriously.

If your book has any chance of success, its design must match or, if possible, surpass what the big companies are putting out.

These are some steps that you may follow.

1️⃣Find inspiration and ideas for your cover

Take a look at the bestsellers in your category, and you’re likely to find visual styles and motifs popping up over and over again. So, it’s not a coincidence. Publishers are always trying to let their target market know that this book is the one you’re looking for. So, among the most popular books in your genre, you can find the right idea.

2️⃣Find the design software which is best for you

In general, any graphic software can be used to design a book cover. Some programs are suitable for non-professionals – and others, like Book Brush, are specially designed to work with writers. Therefore, anyone can access professional tools like InDesign and Photoshop, which both have free trials.

However, we’ll prepare a list of suitable programs in a future post.

3️⃣Look for some appropriate photos or pictures

You can always go to a free image library like Pixabay or Unsplash, which contains thousands of images you can use. Otherwise, for a much wider selection of images, try one of the biggest picture libraries like Shutterstock.

4️⃣Set the size of the cover
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Moreover, you have to consider the standard book sizes within your genre, and then consider the number of pages and paper density to know exactly how thick the book’s spine should be.

5️⃣Get your typography right and test your designs

The use of lettering on the cover is very important. If you can’t decide between two cover designs, why not test them with your target audience? For example, you can use Facebook ads to run an A/B test or ask potential readers on Facebook or Reddit groups.
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❓Do you usually create your book cover by yourself or by a designer?