How to Create Outstanding Book Covers

Mastering Book Cover Art Projects

• Have you considered mastering the creation of book cover artwork?
• Where and how can you gain commisions for producing book covers?
• How can you this as another income stream or as self-promotion?
• What elements help convey an instant story?

Esther Mann has had success with creating a series of book covers and she will reveal everything she’s learned for you to do the same. She’ll show you in step by step fashion how to approach book cover projects. She’ll point out what details will help you win commissions for your work and become more noticed as an artist.

Date, Time and Duration

Saturday 10th of December at 21:00 GMT (London), 13:00 PST (Los Angeles), 16:00 EST (New York)

1.5 hours

For this session you’ll need:

DAZ Studio or Poser and Photoshop

Content

Where to start? Aka size considerations

1. Where are you submitting? Different vendors have different requirements
   1. Amazon
   2. Itunes
2. What type of Cover are you making?
   1. Ebook Cover
   2. Print Cover
   3. Audiobook Cover
3. Setting up your render environment in Daz
   1. Adjustments to the Render Settings Aspect Ratio
   2. Adjustments to the Pixel settings
4. Setting up your file in Photoshop
   1. Setting the DPI
   2. Print considerations
   3. Using Templates to help with setup

Elements of Storytelling

1. Keeping it simple
   1. The 3 second test
   2. Portrait vs. Landscape
   3. Image domination vs Text Domination
   4. Know your story
   5. Know your genre
2. Size matters
   1. The thumbnail test
   2. Composition

How not to fail with fonts

1. Creating an image that leaves room for fonts
2. Font Rules
   1. Contrasting font types
   2. Font Color
   3. Readability
   4. Color Contrast
   5. Special effects
   6. Genre specific font styles
   7. Licensing
3. Book Title
4. Author Name
5. Tag Line placement

Marketing – Name Recognition and Branding

1. Word of mouth
2. Associations
3. Web sites
4. Self-Promotion
5. How to price your work

About Esther Mann

“It all starts with my deep and abiding love of comics and comic book art. It’s an obsession that started in childhood with an uncle’s 100 volume collection of Classic Illustrated comic books.

I was raised by a muralist father and can remember painting large backdrop sets, landscapes and scenes for an amazing number of years. Of all the subjects we painted I found and still find, humans and the human figure to be the most fascinating.
These loves (the human figure and comic book styles) eventually led me to 3D art, a natural extension of this interest. I started with Poser and when Daz Studio was released that became my software of choice. As I browse through my runtime, I realize I’ve been producing art using 3D models since 2003, and I see a copy of Photoshop 6 sitting here on my shelf as well. Apparently I’ve been at this a while, and yet 3D art is still in it’s infancy as an artform. It is so very exciting to see where it goes as it evolves.

I’ve sold art at Comicons, been commissioned for paintings, worked on book illustrations, and have a website for book covers. It’s awesome and so much fun! I love learning. I love art. I love the 3D art style. Together I find them to be an incredible amount of fun, there’s not much I like doing more than meeting other artists, and exchanging ideas, tips, and tricks. It is definitely my idea of a good time!”

Esther’s DeviantArt gallery