The struggle between writers and artists leads to some bad book covers
That’s the general theme that Jane Lindskold writes about on the fantastic new Tor.com site (Note to self: write future blog post praising them for how they’ve embraced new media with this new site.)
Independent author have a different struggle. Where publishing companies pay someone to design the cover of a book, indie authors are footing the bill on everything they do. Often times, professionally designed cover art is sacrificed at the alter of cost-savings. And that’s understandable.
It’s also the source of problems. Without a budget, authors either take it upon themselves to create the cover art or turn to a friend. I mean, how hard can it be, right? It’s hard. Really, really hard. I’ve worked with enough designers over time to fully appreciate quality design work. I can’t do it, but I certainly can recognize it. (He says, in his best Supreme Court Judge fashion…) Personally, I don’t think most authors can do it either.
So they turn to a friend. And the friend creates something. And… it’s really terrible and they don’t want to hurt the friends feelings. Or they ask other friends who all know the friend and they all agree it’s the best thing ever. But it isn’t. Anyone can plainly see it is not. They just collectively don’t want to hurt said friends feelings. Back to square one.
There are many factors which will make or break a book. The cover is exists for a reason, and it’s the first barrier to entry. Put a crappy cover on a great book, and it may get missed. Of course, you can also put a great cover on a crappy book, and it’ll get dropped pretty quickly. It’s not a panacea.
But what if getting a quality book cover was less expensive than you thought? There are plenty of new and talented designers out there. And some of them charge rates that will make the most frugal of indie authors smile. One of those is Krista Alexander of r⋅stiltskin design. She’s an experienced cover designer who has helped make a number of books on our site look amazing. Here are three examples:
If you need a designer for your next cover — or an existing one — I highly recommend you talk to Krista. And she can do more than just the cover art we need. She can lay out the entire wrap for your print version, too. And again, she’s affordable. As in really affordable.
Covers are important. Even for indies. Choose wisely.
