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gmw · 07-18-2017, 11:01 AM

For my current project, assuming it to progresses to publication, I will be looking to get a custom cover made. At this point I still have very little idea what the cover should be, but I expect book title will probably decide the main theme/feature.

A quick search shows LOTS of people advertising as cover artists, and I found a thread on Goodreads where people have posted links, and also various blogs provide similar (usually shorter) lists. I also remembering getting lost in DeviantArt a few years ago (fascinating but so easy to lose yourself and not get anywhere).

I'm wondering what words of wisdom others here might have to share on the subject of finding someone compatible.

A few thoughts / food for comment:

Other than trying to find someone that produces covers I like, are there any sage warnings or recommendations regarding making a choice? Things to look out for, things to expect, and so on. (I do have that link from Hitch about what makes a good cover.)

I see quite a few artists are also authors. Is this good, bad or indifferent?

Lots of places offer pre-done covers for $x and that sort of thing. This tends to make me shy away a bit. (While I don't want to spend a fortune I'm not really looking for cheap either.) Should I be overriding my tendency to shy away from such sites (they're obviously better at marketing than I am).

One place I saw offers unlimited revisions within the price (I haven't asked what the price is yet). Again I wonder how an artist can afford to offer such a guarantee - he hasn't met me yet, he doesn't know how firstly vague and then subsequently picky I can be. (And my wife tells me I have a decision making disorder.)

The genre of my work tends to be a bit fuzzy, and in this work in particular (starts off contemporary but eventually turns into fantasy, but with a small taste of science fiction). That is going to make it difficult to get just the right cover. To get the best job possible, I will need to make some decisions about where I'm going to try and place the book, and I'm not very good at that (being fairly omnivorous in my own reading, genre has never been that important to my selection process). I may have to get some beta-readers to tell me where they think it belongs before I can get a cover done.

07-18-2017, 11:01 AM	#1
gmw cacoethes scribendi Posts: 5,818 Karma: 137770742 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura One & H2Ov2, Sony PRS-650	Choosing a book cover artist For my current project, assuming it to progresses to publication, I will be looking to get a custom cover made. At this point I still have very little idea what the cover should be, but I expect book title will probably decide the main theme/feature. A quick search shows LOTS of people advertising as cover artists, and I found a thread on Goodreads where people have posted links, and also various blogs provide similar (usually shorter) lists. I also remembering getting lost in DeviantArt a few years ago (fascinating but so easy to lose yourself and not get anywhere). I'm wondering what words of wisdom others here might have to share on the subject of finding someone compatible. A few thoughts / food for comment: Other than trying to find someone that produces covers I like, are there any sage warnings or recommendations regarding making a choice? Things to look out for, things to expect, and so on. (I do have that link from Hitch about what makes a good cover.) I see quite a few artists are also authors. Is this good, bad or indifferent? Lots of places offer pre-done covers for $x and that sort of thing. This tends to make me shy away a bit. (While I don't want to spend a fortune I'm not really looking for cheap either.) Should I be overriding my tendency to shy away from such sites (they're obviously better at marketing than I am). One place I saw offers unlimited revisions within the price (I haven't asked what the price is yet). Again I wonder how an artist can afford to offer such a guarantee - he hasn't met me yet, he doesn't know how firstly vague and then subsequently picky I can be. (And my wife tells me I have a decision making disorder.) The genre of my work tends to be a bit fuzzy, and in this work in particular (starts off contemporary but eventually turns into fantasy, but with a small taste of science fiction). That is going to make it difficult to get just the right cover. To get the best job possible, I will need to make some decisions about where I'm going to try and place the book, and I'm not very good at that (being fairly omnivorous in my own reading, genre has never been that important to my selection process). I may have to get some beta-readers to tell me where they think it belongs before I can get a cover done.