One of the most important elements in a book’s design is its book cover design. It is what will be seen first by your readers, and so is usually the location for the summary of your book. It’s also where you, as published authors, can get creative with a compelling call to action.
The back cover of a book in the publishing business is known as the “blurb.” It’s that little feature at the very bottom of the back cover of your book. It’s the place where all important information about you and your book gets crammed for the reader’s inspection.
And it’s a very valuable place indeed. Because here is where you can make a strong pitch for your product with only a few words. This could be your ticket to success if only you know how to design the back cover of a book properly.
In what ways does it matter?
The most important thing about the back cover design copy of a book is that it should stand out. The purpose of the copy is to make you want to turn the book over and read the blurb on the back, then open the book itself.
Having a back cover design is so that it will entice the reader and pull them in with your wording and graphics. The cover of a book is designed to sell the book, so it can be disappointing if it fails to do its job.
Your book’s back cover is your last chance to get a reader’s attention and convince them to buy the book. And since anyone can write blurbs, you need to make sure your back cover copy leaves the reader seeking more.
The back cover of your book is what turns a perusing bookstore browser into a paying customer. If you’ve never designed a book before, the process may seem daunting.
Consider these five key elements while designing your book’s back cover:
1. Describe your book in a few sentences
A captivating back description is a key component of successful book marketing. It’s the first part of your book that potential readers see.
It has to grab their attention because if your first impression doesn’t intrigue them, they won’t look at your book again.
2. Author bio
It’s time to design your author bio. Come up with a well-written and shorter section that does essential things:
- briefly describe what you’re working on in the author bio,
- make it clear where people can find it,
- add descriptions of previous works that make you sound good,
- mention books or people that you like (if they’re cool enough), relate a few funny anecdotes (if possible),
- if it’s all too much for the space, throw in the URL for some kind of website where readers can find out more about you.
3. Use a tagline
One way to write a headline is to create a tagline, a short statement that captures some of the essence of the book.
You could then put the title in bold letters, followed by an author’s name and the tagline. It can also be found in most of the published author’s books.
4. Praiseworthy words
These days every book comes with a blurb on the back cover. ‘This is THE BOOK you must read this year!’ says one so-and-so. ‘Wow, it’s amazing,’ gushes another.
It is done to convince you that since the last book this published authors wrote was so good, and since these people liked it too, then
- this book must also be great
- you must buy it immediately this minute!
5. Professional photo
Make certain to include a photograph of yourself on the back of the book cover design. In many cases, people may not like taking photos.
However, realise that your potential reader is curious and wants to know what you look like. Your physical appearance doesn’t have an effect on the book, but it does offer an experience of relatability for the reader.
Here are some tips for designing your book back cover
The book you spent months or years researching, writing, and polishing is finally a reality. Now it’s time to make sure you don’t lose out on sales with a back cover that will put your book on the bestseller shelf.
Designing Your Book’s Back-Cover is not an easy task, but it does not require special skills. Nowadays you can create your own back cover also.
One of the most important elements of your book design that you probably don’t think about much is the book back cover. A great book title and subtitle are important, but when it comes down to it, people want a book based on its cover alone.
The cover is what sells books, and it’s what can make or break your product. Here are some tips for designing your book’s back cover.
1. Find a good book cover designer
Don’t be fooled, this is a very specific skill. Not everyone can create an amazing design; it takes talent and experience to succeed.
Search online to find different designers and ask for an example of their work. Be sure to have an idea of what design you’re looking for before contacting them, so they can show you their best work quickly.
Design in-house or hire a firm. There are many advantages to having an in-house designer working with you on your book project: save costs and more freedom, to name just two.
Of course, there’s always a chance that the designer may not be experienced with the subject matter (like if you were using someone who designs books about dogs but has never actually seen one).
This is why using an experienced, outside firm is also advisable for more complicated projects. Information provided here needs to be refined
2. Templates
Using a template for your book cover design is good for a lot of reasons. It can give you a jump start in the preparation stage, so you don’t have to put as much thought into it.
It also gives you the opportunity to be innovative and creative in other ways, because even though there are templates out there, each one is unique from the others.
A template function to create a catalog of imagery that has been proven to be effective in selling books. Templates allow an author to concentrate on the overall theme of their book as well as how they want it to come across to the reader.
3. Don’t overcomplicate things
When designing your book’s back cover, it’s important to keep it simple. Keep in mind that most people flip through the pages of a book while they’re shopping in a bookstore.
They need to be able to get a quick idea of what the book is about and decide whether they want to read more.
If your book cover is cluttered or difficult to determine the content from a distance, you risk having your readers pass you by for other published authors with an easier-to-read novel.
Conclusion
For those looking to learn more about book cover design, we hope that this article has helped give you an idea of what goes into creating a successful cover.
There are certainly more things that could be discussed in-depth but this should give you a great starting point that you can then build on your own creations.