It’s no secret in the book selling world that a great cover can make-or-break your book. You definitely need an eye-catching cover to sell your book. This is especially true when you are a new author trying to generate those first few hundred sales in a crowded bookstore.
I’ve listed 5 steps to follow so you can make sure you have a great book cover!
Step 1
Always use high-definition photos or artwork. You typically do not want your cover to appear pixelated. For quality photos, you should use 300 to 600 dpi. DPI stands for “dots per inch”. The dots are what make up your image. The higher the DPI, the more high-definition your cover art will be.
Step 2
Make sure you use clear images and that your text is clearly discernible. This is especially true in today’s era of digital thumbnails used to display books online. If a reader cannot identify your book, they may not purchase it.
Step 3
Your cover should make a customer “feel” something when they look at it. Think about the great covers you’ve seen. Did they make you feel scared or brave, comfortable or adventurous? Your cover should help to invoke such emotions in your customers. Of course, if you are writing a horror book, you want the cover to inspire fear or horror and not laughter or giddiness.
Step 4
Your cover should target your audience. If you are writing a book about the life of young women, your book cover should reflect their wishes. For example, I recently spoke to some young ladies at a book store about what covers they like most and their response was fun and sassy but not overly girly. In this scenario, the young ladies preferred covers that had some elements of femininity but not overtly so.
Step 5
Don’t be afraid to push the envelope. A good book cover will be eye-catching and personal. You don’t have to play it safe and follow the same old cliche’s. For example, if you are writing about grocery shopping, you could title your book something bold like, “Grocery Shopping Doesn’t Have To Suck”. You want to make customers identify with the book cover and feel something. They will be more likely to pick up your book and buy it if you do.
What do you think makes up a good book cover? We’d love to hear your opinions on the subject. Write us below to share!
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