Tag: book covers

Book Covers Like a Pro

book cover pro logoShow of hands: how many of you have a fantastic idea for your new book’s cover, but can’t figure out how to create it, and you don’t want to pay a fortune for someone to do it? If you have $95 in your pocket, you can become a book cover wizard. No, this isn’t a sales pitch, it’s a short ditty on how you can master your own cover creation with Book Cover Pro.

When I was about to publish my second novel, I looked into having someone do the full paperback cover art for me. Yeah, I didn’t have $1,500 to burn, so I went with the build-it-yourself templates on CreateSpace. Yes, the cover came out okay, but I truly wasn’t happy with it; so I started searching the Internet for software dedicated to cover creation. Continue reading “Book Covers Like a Pro”

Tutorial: Uploading to Createspace’s Cover Creator

createspace logoToday I’ll show you how to upload your custom book cover using Createspace’s Cover Creator. First, you will have to have a design already made. If you’re using MS Publisher, we’ve got a tutorial for making your own book cover here. The same principles apply for print covers – just choose the size you need and landscape mode. If you don’t already have a design, take a look at the screen captures in this tutorial; they will give you a pretty good idea of what you’ll need to do before you start creating your awesome book cover. This tutorial will of course work for any size cover, but today, we’re working with one that is 6×9. Not sure what cover print book you should use? Laurie Boris asked readers what size book was best in this article.

Before we get started, here are a few hints for you: Continue reading “Tutorial: Uploading to Createspace’s Cover Creator”

Marketing Uses for Book Covers

Once you’re got your excellent kick-ass book cover, what do you do with it beside plaster it all over your blog and Facebook page? Believe me, there are plenty of fun ways to use it for promotion, marketing, and just plain getting attention.

Magnets

book cover e-magnetsMake business card-sized magnets and give them away at your next function. You can buy sticky-backed magnets from Amazon or any office store, print your book covers on card stock and stick them on. (Or Avery makes printable pre-scored business card sized magnets.) You can also buy full-sized sheets of thin magnet “paper” (available from Avery, Staples, and other manufacturers) that will go through your printer. You can make the magnets any size you wish, then just cut them out with scissors. The strength of this magnet paper is not as strong as the business card model, but it will definitely stick to a refrigerator. In the picture at left, the larger ones are business card-sized while the smaller ones are cut from the full sheet.

If you’re not into DIY, you can also have custom magnets made up by many online companies like Vistaprint. (See our Book Cover Resource page for links to all these items.) Continue reading “Marketing Uses for Book Covers”

Be Ready for that Media Opportunity

One thing I’ve learned about this industry is that opportunities come up in a flash, and usually the first people to respond get them. The difference between being prepared and NOT being prepared can cost you. And it’s literally as simple as being organized.

KS Brooks Book Cover Folder
Go ahead, mouse over, see what happens.
Click once to enlarge.

I have a folder in Dropbox with all my book cover jpgs, my two author photos and a couple of other folders with high resolution versions and thumbnail size versions. (I keep it on Dropbox so I can access it from virtually anywhere. You never know when you will be asked for something!) I’ve made sure they’re all named clearly, so it’s easy for the recipient to identify. It also helps, if they don’t rename the file, with search engine optimization. It never hurts to take advantage of every opportunity to get your title in front of someone. Plus, it looks far more professional to have the book cover for Night Undone labeled as “NightUndone.jpg” instead of “niteundonecoverartsmall.jpg”. My author photo is labeled as “AuthorKSBrooks.jpg” instead of  “DSC00013”. Now, you might be thinking, I’ll just put “Author Photo” as the file name. Well, you and about a billion other authors thought that. It’s not going to make your photo easy to find. Continue reading “Be Ready for that Media Opportunity”