HOW TO CHOOSE A BOOK COVER (WHEN WORKING WITH A PUBLISHER)!
How to Make Your Food Famous - final book cover design
They say, "Don’t judge a book by its cover," but they are wrong! You should judge a book by its cover, and in fact, most of us instinctively already do. There’s good reason for this: a cover doesn’t just subtly communicate what a book is about; its purpose is also to attract the right reader (and deter those for whom it isn’t intended). You see, a book cover provides that all-important first impression on which much of its initial success greatly depends. So, it’s no wonder why many of us have a strong response and opinion about book covers and why it’s essential to get a book cover just right!
Of course, choosing the right cover for your book is easier said than done, especially if you’re working with a publisher who may have a very different perspective on what constitutes the right cover for your book! It’s this creative journey of finalising the cover of my brand new book How to Make Your Food Famous, that I’ll walk you through in this week’s blog post.
FIRST BOOK COVER DESIGN OPTION
It’s fair to say that my publisher, White Lion Publishing, and I were off to a rocky start. For one, they chose the book designer without allowing me to have a say. Now, I’d like to stress that I feel so, so lucky that the design studio they went with, Studio Polka Dot, creates STUNNING covers, that have undoubtedly played a major role in the success of many the books they worked on. However, I’d be lying if I didn’t highlight how disappointed I was that I wasn’t included in the process of choosing my book designer.
As a visual creative, I like to be immersed in every step of the product creation process here at The Little Plantation. For me the look and feel of my website, my Instagram grid and most certainly the books I write, are more than just an extension of my personal brand; they are inherently an extension of me. Now, I can only assume that the publisher didn’t realise what excluding me from that crucial decision making process would mean to me; it’s not every day that they work with authors who care as much about visuals as they do about the written word, but nonetheless, it hurt.
To add insult to injury, the first iteration of the cover for How to Make Your Food Famous, happened completely without my knowledge or consultation and the blue cover you see here was the end result of that first cover design process. In retrospect, it’s actually a fun and cool cover, but it’s as far removed from The Little Plantation brand one can be, it simply didn’t include any of my heart or visual identity. Needless to say, I vehemently rejected it!
Book cover by Studio Polka Dot
KNOWING WHAT DOESN’T WORK CAN HELP YOU FIND WHAT DOES WORK!
Now all these many months later, I can see that the faux pas of the first book cover design was an important stepping stone on our way to finding a cover we both did agree on. You see, after the presentation of the initial book cover design, I knew I had to be very clear, not only about my wish to be involved in the book design process, but also on my vision for the book cover.
Consequently, I wrote a lengthy email to my editor, Andrew at White Lion, outlining why this cover wouldn’t work and suggesting new ideas on what direction we should head towards creatively instead. I'm delighted to report that Andrew took my concerns seriously and, without any pushback, allowed us to start from scratch together, brainstorming a new approach and design for the cover.
The publishers were keen for the cover to feature only typeface, aiming for a lifestyle rather than a cookbook feel (as it’s not a cookbook). They believed this approach made the most sense from a marketing perspective, enhancing the book’s appeal to bookshops and sellers. I was happy to follow their lead on this aspect, and we quickly agreed on that part of the cover design.
In turn, I emphasized the importance of a cover that felt more sophisticated, feminine, and mature. I was hence keen for a complete change of colour way and font. To clearly convey my vision, I put together a moodboard which was shared with the designer. We then had a joined meeting to flesh out all our ideas, and from there the designer set to work!
You can see some of the initial book cover designs that arose following our re-direction below. None grabbed me at this stage, but I was excited to start with a clean slate and after some back and forth with the publisher, we felt that the cover design in the middle had potential to turn into something more interesting…
the third round of book cover designs - some creative concepts emerge
The idea emerged to split the text in half, using two different font colors rather than two different font types. I was okay with this shift, but I was concerned that the essence of the book - sharing your food content on social media and finding an abundance of success - was getting lost. The thing is, I wanted people to walk into a bookstore, instantly notice the book, and understand roughly what it was about from just looking at it. The designs in phase three didn’t quite meet these requirements, and I was still not convinced by the color choices, which felt too shy.
However, I did feel that the book cover designs were more considered and the fonts much more sophisticated than before. I also loved the touch of gold that was introduced.
Book covers by Studio Polka Dot
the fourth book COVER DESIGN options - the devil is in the detail
Book cover designs by Studio Polka Dot
What I learned from working with a designer on the cover for Creative Food Photography, is that the devil is in detail! Well, at least for me it is. I had a sense that White Lion were quite happy to finalize the hot pink book cover, but I still wasn’t 100% convinced. Since my personal brand would be forever connected to the book, it had to be absolutely perfect. Additionally, from a marketing perspective, promoting the book would have been impossible if I didn’t wholeheartedly adore it. In short, some details needed to be fine-tuned, from colors to the placement and size of words and icons and so on.
At this stage, I must confess that I sensed I might be perceived as 'too much' and somewhat demanding. To be fair, this was never explicitly conveyed to me; there was always a respectful exchange of emails and, more often than not, an adjustment to the design. However, it wasn’t a feeling I could completely shake off, especially once we neared the finish line. That said, if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t change how vocal I was during the cover design process because it was only through countless back-and-forth exchanges that we achieved the final result, which I’m quite happy with!
Despite all the nitty gritty that marked the final book cover design phase, I can report that it was SO exciting to finally see everything come together. The inclusion of the social media icons made the concept of the book clearer and the placement and colour treatment of the subtitle, which is key to the book, absolutely helped drive home what How to Make Your Food Famous is all about, wouldn’t you agree?
the final book Cover for: how to make your food famous!
And here she is: How to Make Your Food Famous!
Is this the cover I would have designed if I had self-published the book? No
Is this the cover I thought we’d land on when we started the process? No
Am I sad the publisher ditched the gold font? Yes
Am I even more upset there’s no embossing on the cover? Yes.
But, my book cover’s mighty fine and an awesome compromise between my vision and the publisher’s vision for the book!
Now my hope is you adore it as much as we do and more importantly, that the contents of the book are a complete game changer for you!
WANT TO PRE-ORDER THE BOOK?
You can pre-order How to Make Your Food Famous HERE. And apart from getting the book the moment it’s released on August 20th, if you pre-order How to Make Your Food Famous on/by August 14th, 2024 you will receive the following exclusive pre-order bonus straight into your inbox this summer if you add your name to the mailing list below!
inspiring worksheets to accompany the book
a behind the scenes food content creation video lesson
So what are you waiting for?! Pre-order today!