Why good book design is essential for self-publishing success

There is an old saying, “you can’t judge a book by its cover”, however when it comes to books, most people do judge them by their cover. In fact, next to the title, a book cover is the most important consideration when someone is deciding whether to learn more about the book or not. Online, book design is even more important as the customer may not be able to look inside the book or see a back cover. And professional book reviewers won’t even touch a book if it looks amateurish.

Here are few guidelines to make your cover successful:

• Be sure to hire a professional book cover designer. This is not the place to skimp on your budget. As mentioned above, your cover is an important key to selling your book and you want it to look the best it can.

• A good cover communicates the essence of the book – it brings the book to life. And it must do that in a way that helps the book stand out and engages the reader. This might be through the use of artwork, photos, or a special typeface treatment. It may also be some combination of these elements.

• The design needs to work big and small. Many online bookselling platforms show the cover as a small thumbnail and your book cover still must read well.

• Polish the back-cover description. Make sure it is compelling and hooks people into wanting to know more. Consider hiring a professional copywriter to help.

• Create two or three cover options and ask friends, family, and colleagues for their feedback. Another good way to get feedback is to post the covers on social media and ask people which they like most.

On the inside, the goal of good book design is to create pages that are easy to read, organized, engaging, and at the same time reflect and enhance your message. Book design can also be entertaining, get people talking about your writing, and influence them to want more of your books or products.

What’s more, images can be used to further enhance the pages. Graphics, illustrations, charts, and photos add visual interest, give the reader a break from the text, and help to illustrate key points being written about. For fiction work, occasional illustrations bring the story to life and help the reader imagine the story.

Book design is an important tool in publishing, and when properly used will make your book stand out, engage readers, and help you sell more books!