Abouts Books

By Shannon Evans

Authors often spend thousands of dollars designing their book cover only to have the book printed to find a misspelling in their title on the spine or the back cover of their work. NO one will take the time with your book and give it the critical eye it deserves like you will. Take the time to design it well and then to inspect it very carefully before you put it out there for the world to see.

Front Cover - Go out and explore your local book store. Look at book covers that draw you to them. Why are they so effective? Where is the title on the book? Is it centered or off-set? Are the letters raised or outline in a contrasting color? How does the lettering of the title impact the image on the cover? Doe the title stand out or does it get lost? Will it photograph well in marketing materials?

- Make sure the image you select for your book best represents your content.
- Select a font for the title and author name that have slight variations.
- Use at least four colors for the cover, six if you can. Play with the effects of outlining, shadowing, and other design elements.
- Raised lettering adds a touch of class and style to the book cover design.

Spine - Center your title on the spine. You don't want it falling off on the back of front cover. Check the spelling carefully. This is the first thing the person in the store or a library usually notices about a book.

Back Cover - Proof read, proof read, and proof read! Use Arial for the headings and Times Roman for the content. This makes the content easier to read. If you wish to include your photo, this is the ONLY place to include. Unless you are famous, never put your mug on the cover.

- Include your URL on the back cover.
- Include 1-2 features of your book followed by 3-5 benefits for each feature in bullet statements.
- Short testimonials or endorsements are a must to have on the back cover.

Following these simple guidelines will help you design a cover that you can not only be proud of but that will help sell your books. After spending so much time and energy making sure the content is perfect, don't ruin it with a shoddy book cover. Your book deserves the same level of care and attention that was lavished over your its contents.

Shannon Evans, senior editor and owner of http://www.mywritingmentor.com lives with her best friend Rick on Bainbridge Island in the Puget Sound just a "ferry ride from Seattle."

She works with her two Labrador assistant editors, Mocha and Luke, and her feline copy edit assistants, Caesar and Yoda. Shannon is widely recognized as one of the top writing coaches for non-fiction authors. With over 17 years teaching composition and technical writing to native and non-native English authors she knows how to help every writer make every word count.