# Covers



## RLBeers (Aug 19, 2019)

Whether you choose to accept it or not, most initial book sales are due to the cover. The cover gets the potential reader to stop and see if there is something there worth checking out. With that in mind, what do you have as the cover for your book, your series? Do you do the job yourself or hire an artist? Examples are always appreciated. Here is the one I did for the final volume in my high fantasy.


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## RLBeers (Aug 21, 2019)

This is the cover for Tankers, the YA scifi novel I'm working on.


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## Ralph Rotten (Aug 21, 2019)

I like the Tankers cover. Not so much the Witch cover tho.
Is Tankers commissioned art work? Looks too custom for standard clipart.


I have used photoshopped clipart, and I have also commissioned artwork.
Some books I have been able to find artwork for at canstockphoto.com
But a few simply needed custom artwork, like my latest book. Not a lotta clipart on Ming the Merciless.
But for the Calizona series, there was a surprising amount of really great clipart (post-apocalyptic story)


The one downside to buying off-the-rack clipart is that other people can buy that same artwork.
There are like 10 books out there that use the same artist that I did for the first Calizona book.


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## RLBeers (Aug 22, 2019)

Actually, Ralph, I cheat. I have over 50 years experience as a fine and a graphic artist. For me, writing was an escape from the drudgery of art (can you believe that?). I did both covers using my own drawing and painting skills and manipulating the scans via Photoshop. I used Adobe Illustrator for the typesetting and finished that as a Photoshop layer.


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## Ralph Rotten (Aug 22, 2019)

If you're looking for feedback, I'd find a better font for the Witch book.
You should zoom in on the cleavage. :thumbr:

Tis some good artwork.


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## luckyscars (Aug 22, 2019)

I'd provide my own examples but as I mainly write short stories, traditionally published, I don't have much experience creating covers. Here's a cover from one of the anthologies I am in, though, and I think it's pretty good.

View attachment 24247


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## Aquilo (Aug 23, 2019)

I was trade published originally, then when I won my rights back, I went self-pub and went with a cover designer. To be honest, I prefer self-pub. You usually only get 2-3 changes with on cover design with a publisher.

Publisher's 1st edition:



2nd edition, self publish.


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## Ralph Rotten (Aug 23, 2019)

Aquilo: 2nd cover is way better.

Scars: Looks like your publisher is pushing that book well. It is already in 4 digit sales ranking in all 3 categories, and it is not due for release until Sep 1.
I grabbed a copy so I can post a review on Sep 2. That'll help feed the algorithmic beast.


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## Moose.H (Nov 10, 2019)

I have worked on all my own pictures as a means to correct the way my story line comes together.  As a result I could improve the tale and the layouts.  Unfortunately I am a chronically poor artist, cover page crude. My artist appears to be going through a midlife crisis so I submitted what I had...... cover = every thing.


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## Ralph Rotten (Nov 11, 2019)

The cover is important, but not the end all.
You can have a bottleneck in the sales process at several points.
The reader sees your work in this order:
1) Cover
2) Blurb
3) Sample writing or reviews

Flub any of these steps, and you will confound the process.


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## EntrepreneurRideAlong (Jan 11, 2020)

I worked with an artist that I found on Fiverr, worked out really well. They provided me with a couple of revisions so we could go back and forth to find the right fit.


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## Ralph Rotten (Jan 11, 2020)

I have used several artists. One I found on DeviantArt, one from IndiesUnited, another I met on Twitter.
I am also a big fan of canstockphoto.com where you can buy inexpensive base-art and use it to make a great cover (assuming you have the photoshop skills.)
Here is a cover from the artist I found on DeviantArt:






The artwork cost me $150, and the title font cost me $30.


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## Dan Rhys (Jan 11, 2020)

I tried a completely different approach with my cover. I had an artist friend of mine do a comic-book style one. He is a fan and student of Stan Lee's work, so he went all out on it. It was either a very smart or very bad move. We'll see..


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