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• 2019

THE AUTHOR’S GUIDE TO A SUCCESSFUL BOOK COVER

STEP 1: Understand what makes a good cover
1. It catches the reader’s eye
2. It captures the essence of the book
3. It is recognizable as belonging to a certain genre

“A book cover is a distillation of the content, almost like what your book would look like as a haiku.”
–Chip Kidd, Book Designer

STEP 2: Find sample covers

1. Look around at popular covers and see what you like and don’t like.
2. Make notes - what is it about a certain cover that appeals to you? What is it about a different cover that you
don’t like? The more covers you can show your designer, the easier the design process will be.

STEP 3: Put together a creative brief for your designer

Come to your designer armed with the following information:
1. The list of covers that you put together in Step 2, along with your reasons as to why you feel each cover is
successful or not.
2. Target market
3. What kind of feelings should your cover evoke? Horror? Nostalgia? Warmth? Friendship? Love? Fun?
Playfulness? Sadness? Curiosity?
4. A description of your book. Sometimes designers gain just as much from hearing the author’s description as
they do from reading the actual book.

SHANIE COOPER, BOOK DESIGNER

shaniecooper@virtualpaintbrush.com • 050.830.9531 • www.virtualpaintbrush.com
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