Today’s Topic: Book Cover Mistakes & Lessons - There’s Far More to the Cover Than Meets the Eye!

OK first off I’m gonna just spill the beans! I just got fired! I’ve been doing all things book for a long time and I’m fine making myself vulnerable for both of us to learn. I’m good at what I do, but occasionally I’m just not a fit for someone. I have no hard feelings so don’t get me wrong. Not all relationships are bliss.

Since my client fired me I think its pretty safe to say we can talk about what went wrong without doing any harm. In other words, I don’t think she’s tuning into my podcast! And, I can share some lessons she and I both learned in the process so this kind of thing doesn’t happen to you in the future!

It’s been so long I can’t remember the exact date, but I think its safe to say that about 3 years ago this client came to me to let me know she was writing a book and planned to hire...

Wow guys! I’m super excited to have had this little break lately in my business. There truly are gifts in this time.

I’m Nicole Gabriel, by the way, and the host of the Let’s Get Your Book Published podcast.

Over the last week I have been in between clients. It’s often this happens in my business when one client finishes writing a book and goes off to the printer and another has just completed the book cover design but not ready for the interior book layout yet. I get a break to re-group!

For me…THIS is a GLORIOUS time to play catch-up. But, this time in particular has been simply awesome. I adore what I do for a living and every day that I get to do what I do I am blessed beyond words. I have fought really hard throughout my life to find my calling and doing what I do for my career is a large part of stepping into it! Every day I’m truly blessed. I thank my clients and you, my listeners!

As an entrepreneur we sometimes have to fight extra...

Nicole (00:17):

For 25 years, Daniel ed has supported the public sector, healthcare nonprofit, K through 12 and higher ed organizations. As a management consultant. He holds a master's in business administration and international business from the Alberta school of business and economics at Seattle university. He holds certifications and strategic planning and group facilitation. Dan has a Kaplan Norton balanced scorecard graduate and certified lead practitioner. He has also held the project manager professional certificate and is an experienced pilot trades examiner through the Alliance program, leveraging the genetics of leadership cracking the code of sustainable team performance is Dan second book. His first was transformation management published by Spiro press in 2003. Dan lives in Bellville, Washington, not far from the world headquarters of Microsoft T-Mobile Expedia and Amazon, his wife, Hey, is the pediatric physical therapist for the local school district. Dan...

The Future of My Book—Where Do We Go From Here?

Hey Guys! Welcome back to the final and 5th part in the 5 part series on working with a designer. We are going to talk about what we do once we have a book in hand…how to make changes in the next print runs, how to sell and market your book, and how to get started working with me on the design and layout of your book. So, let’s get started…

How do I make changes to the book’s content in the future?

• Many authors seem to get confused about future reprints. When there is no more Word doc and the book is already printed it is best to contact the designer or editor directly. You will work with the Editor and Designer just like you did when you were making your final changes.
• Many authors start to look into cutting costs after their initial print. They start to look into print on demand, soft cover books, and also look into distribution savings and inventory control.

As you will hear in some of...

Your Manuscript Layout is Complete - Now What?

Hey Guys Nicole Gabriel here! I hope you’ve listened in on the previous 3 parts to this 5-part podcast series on working with a designer. We are moving into part 4 to talk about what to do next once your manuscript is complete—working with the professional printer, editor, and the costs associated.

You are ready to print your book

• You should have already had some dialog with the printer, but until you are aware of the final page count there really isn’t much they can do prior.
• A general word or character count will give them some idea on the page count for quoting you a rough estimate of cost. But, you might need to discuss the size of your book prior to instructing the layout person.
• You’ll just want to begin the relationship so they are not caught off guard when you call the printer and you’re ready to roll with your print job. Sometimes they do need to schedule you in, especially if they are...

Hey Guys! Nicole Gabriel here!

This is part 3 of a 5 part series on Working With A Designer. I may bore you with the details in this podcast, but we’re gonna plow through them because every author wants to know how this works when they get to this phase in the book production process.

There are a ton of elements that go into making a professional book cover. Obviously, the first is the artwork for the cover. But, understanding and collaborating on all the other elements are the things that divide the professional book cover designer from the amateur. The cover designer plays the role of project manager too, not by just gathering all the elements, but to understand all the working components and stay abreast of the latest technologies and trends. Let’s walk through a few of these vital elements that make up the book’s jacket…

ISBN, Library of Congress Control Number, Pricing Barcode, & Publishing Imprint
The ISBN number is the birth record of the...

The Book Cover Sets the Tone

This is part 2 in my 5-part series of working with a designer. In this podcast we are going to talk about how the book cover sets the tone.

• The book cover sets the look and feel of the entire marketing campaign—business cards, event banners, letterhead, etc.—for the life of the book (unless it gets revised in the next edition).
• If you know that you are going to write multiple books, you may want to carry a theme throughout.
• If you are writing your book to begin your platform, then the book cover might set the stage for your entire branding image, look, and feel for all the work you do going forward.
• A good designer will pay attention to the trends in the industry for all the components that make up the book cover. Be sure to tell your designer why you think something would be a good fit. He or she will also ask to get an understanding of your book project’s goals and objectives.
• A current trend that has been going on for some...

What Does A Professional Book Designer Do?

Hey Guys! Nicole Gabriel here!

Welcome to a 5-part series on working with a book designer. We are going to begin with discussing “what does a professional book designer do”.

First, let me start by saying that I’ve been doing book cover design for more than a decade now. I came from a pretty intensive branding background having worked for all the top ad agencies - McCann Erickson, J Walter Thompson, Young & Rubicam, and in and around brand management for the first decade and a half of my career. I was in executive management in the auto industry in Detroit and sat in on some of the most fabulous branding strategy meetings in my day. I helped create the first websites for all our traditional brands over at McCann Erickson. A team of just 5 of us built the first Detroit Edison, Delphi Automotive, Buick, and GMC Truck websites ever in existence. I sat on the eGM team for GMAC and played roles in many branding...

Hi Guys! Nicole Gabriel here!

I’ve been working on the design and layout of so many books lately and one of the things to consider when taking your book to the layout and design phase is how well you’ve thought out your title…and all the key words on your book cover.

Clearly the title of your book is one of the most important things when it comes to writing a book. Unless the title both makes sense and draws attention it may never be found and most certainly never read. But, as a book designer and author for many years, there are certain ways to design a book that makes the title stand out even more.

I have a chapter in my Let’s Get Your Book Published book that talks about titles, subtitles, tag lines, and even colors. I also talk about all of this in my online book publishing training program. You can download my eBook for $2.99 on Amazon if you’d like to learn more. Turn to chapter 8 for cover design. In this chapter I also talk about standard...

Don't leave the design of your book cover in the hands of a Designer alone!

I've been designing book covers for nearly 10 years now. It's been my primary job along side the interior book layout. I have seen a thing or two. But by far my largest challenge is that when my clients are referred to me they usually have NO IDEA what is involved in book cover design! This is generally no fault of their own, but they are usually referred to me by a book coach or they just don't know what they need and find me by referral or even randomly. 

You see, the book cover isn't just about the look and feel and what you like, but it needs to suit the genre and attract a reader in that genre first, but it really has to align with the reason you are writing in the first place. 

If you are coaching or speaking is your book written to that audience? If you are planning to do teaching or training you might like to use a logo on the cover to identify your school or academy and allow the logo or...