Plot Twist Magazine issue #1

Cover Creations

By FCCleary & XxxSistersxxX

The cover of your book is the front door for the world in the pages behind it, the first point of contact between the reader and the story. Doors that are shabby, falling off their hinges, requiring you to navigate several crumbling concrete steps before you can reach them are less than welcoming, and the same dynamic applies to your cover.

The cover is a promise. It's a pitch for the story you're trying to tell, a sell-sheet for your world, your characters, and even you as an author. Half-hearted covers imply that you'll find the same treatment inside, and nobody wants to invest time in a story that even its author doesn't care about.

But it should be more than a simple aesthetic. Your story begins with the cover. It's igniting impressions before the reader ever reaches the prologue. It's your first chance to incite an emotional response, to trigger a sense of intrigue or wonder, which will remain with the reader as they turn page after page. There are a lot of ways to approach it - an emotional appeal, a single gripping image, a theme woven through the cover's typography. None of them are "easy" if you're intent on doing it well.

Michael Wheelan is considered one of the best fantasy illustrators in the history of the business with fifteen Hugo awards for his work. When choosing a scene for the cover of Brandon Sanderson's Words of Radiance, he said, "It seems as if any choice will be wrong, for having to leave something else out that calls to be presented to a potential reader. Nonetheless, a choice must be made."

This applies to all cover styles, whether minimalist, a title graphic, retro design, or full blown illustrations. That isn't meant to be a discouragement, but we'd like to set your expectations in the hopes that you won't simply settle for a couple of words at the top of a copyright-free photo that you deemed "close enough."

When I make my own covers, I tend to be more critical than I have a right to considering the ability I bring to the table. I learned how to composite graphics and I have a fair idea of what software like Photoshop can do, so when I get an idea I can ask Google how to pull it off with some certainty that an answer exists. Some compositing is relatively easy, just a few source images and a couple of font tutorials. For example:

But bear in mind that the goal isn't a pretty cover as much as it is a compelling introduction to your story. In the example above, a modern girl time travels into a historical fiction romance. The cover contains elements of each, the torn page is meant to represent her being torn out of one existence and thrust into another. (Note: the author of this book is no longer on WattPad and I've blurred out her name for privacy purposes. If you find this story in the real world tell her I said hi).

Some are more complex, but the principles are the same. I have no comments regarding the quality of these covers, only the process of creating them. Regardless of your method the purpose is the same.