Book Design

I offer different pricing depending on the author’s need. Covers come in all different styles, some requiring more work than others.

A basic cover is simply one image with attractive typography. Minor photo manipulation, such as cropping and retouching, to prepare for print is included. This style of cover is ideal for memoirs.  

A standard cover is more elaborate and has styled typography. Multiple images are used to create the cover background. This cover suits most fiction books. (For an example, view the historical fiction covers in my premade cover store.)

A story scene cover is an artistic creation of a scene from your story. I resource images, blend them together, and color them according to details in the book to create one cohesive image. 

Investment
Basic cover: $495
Standard cover: $695
Story scene cover: $995

All cover costs include the ebook cover plus one print format (paperback or hardback) and any print templates. Additional formats are $100. 

Yes, I use the cover templates from KDP, IngramSpark, and other print facilities. Using the template guarantees that the book cover fits properly. If a designer does not use the provided template, you risk errors when you upload and your cover may not print correctly.

I use the Adobe Creative Suite programs. For the interior of a book, I use Adobe InDesign. For book covers, I use a combination of Adobe Photoshop and Adobe InDesign. For ebooks, I use Vellum, Sigil, and sometimes Calibre.

Yes, for an additional fee I provide source files. However, if you are not skilled in using the Adobe programs, I don’t recommend this option. Changes can have a domino effect in a document, and unless you know what to do, your document can quickly turn into a mess.

As long as the changes are minor (for example, you found a typo in your book), I will make the change and send new files to upload for printing.

I generally do not charge for 10-15 minor changes that do not affect the structure of the design. However, more significant changes are billed based on my hourly rate in 15-minute increments.

First step is to design the front cover. The front cover influences the design for the rest of the cover plus the interior for the book.

Once the front cover is finalized, the spine and back cover are created. While all 3 pieces should be cohesive, each piece should be viewed as its own separate design because that’s how the reader sees them.

Before the spine is finalized, the interior pages of the book are designed. The spine width is determined by the final page count of the book. And the interior page design should utilize elements from the cover — same fonts, graphics, etc. — so the entire book is cohesive and one unit.

The interior print design of a book generally takes a few days. The time length depends on the type of book and length of the manuscript.

A cover design can take a few days to over a month depending on the complexity of the design and how quickly a design concept is chosen.

For most covers, I offer 2 to 3 concepts. After the author chooses a concept, we refine and tweak that concept until the author is happy. Generally, this step involves 2 revisions.