A good book isn’t just about the text; you’ll want to sell it with high-quality design and visuals. While they say not to judge a book by its cover, most people do. The secret to selling more books and getting more interested readers is to design it like you’re already a bestseller. When people see the effort put into a book’s cover, title, typography, and printing techniques, they’ll take it more seriously. So, what exactly does it take to create a book that looks like a bestseller?
While self-publishing your book is a popular approach, it can impact quality when you don’t have professional consultation. It’s a lot harder for a writer to edit their book and design their cover without some brainstorming help. An extra pair of experienced eyes can polish your book and allow it to shine. You may be too close to the project to be able to edit it objectively. That’s where professional editors, writers, and book designers come in.
Consider hiring an experienced editor to make sure the text is refined well; they won’t just fix grammatical or spelling errors, but also make sure your text reads well to all audiences. If you need illustrations for your book, hire an illustrator to bring your ideas to life. You don’t even have to write the book yourself if you’re not confident in your skill set. Ghostwriters can help put your ideas into words in the most powerful ways. Consider hiring novel or picture book ghostwriting services to help you create the book you’ve been dreaming of.
Think about the visuals in books of certain genres. Horror novels may use vivid colors or uneven fonts to create a sense of unease. Fantasy novels typically use more elegant visuals to mimic medieval times. You don’t want to choose visuals that don’t match the content of your book. If you’re opting for a nonfiction book, you’ll want clean, neutral fonts and imagery in most cases. Fictional genres will require some creativity to match the theme of the world and the messages you’re wishing to convey. You can always add a unique touch that is personal to you in order to stand out in the crowd without misleading your readers.
An artistic font can be bold and exciting, but it won’t mean much if people can’t read it. There are a lot of fonts out there that can serve many purposes, but make sure the fonts you choose are readable, especially in the interior text. Classic fonts work well for book interiors, like Times New Roman or Georgia. Novelty fonts are best kept to a minimum, especially if your readers will be adults. You can get more creative with the title, but keep readability in mind when it comes to color and font selection.
You can’t just copy and paste your interior text and call it a day. You’ll want to inspect each page one by one to ensure there aren’t any awkward page breaks, orphaned lines, or inconsistent margin sizes. Look at it as a reader; are some lines difficult to read or hard to follow? Are some page breaks awkward? Is the margin sufficient to avoid text bleeding too far into the spine? You won’t have to worry about some of these aspects with e-books, but you’ll still want to make sure everything looks neat and clean as intended.
If you plan on releasing hard copies of your book, consider adding some attractive embellishments to help it stand out on the shelf. Embossing or foil-stamping the title or other elements of the cover makes it look shiny and enticing. Edge gliding can help you turn the page edges a certain color, usually gold, allowing it to look intriguing from all sides. Opt for a thicker, high-quality card stock to allow it to feel good in the reader’s hands. You’ll want around a 50 to 60 lb paper for text-heavy books, while image-heavy options should opt for around 70 to 80 lbs. Uncoated paper will provide a more natural look, while white paper adds more contrast between the text and the page. The right touches will give a premium and professional feeling to your book.
Regardless of the type of genre or book you’re writing, certain illustrations in the interior can add charm and increase engagement. Typography and small illustrations near the beginning and end of each chapter can add a subtle but professional touch, even if your book is nonfiction or for adults. These spot illustrations don’t have to be incredibly detailed, but can come in handy if you need specific visuals or worldbuilding help.
You don’t want to focus only on the front cover. The back cover is important, especially if it contains more information about the book or you as its author. Consider including a compelling but short summary of your book, an author biography and photo, as well as exciting or engaging quote reactions from established readers or critics. Many readers decide whether a book is worth their time from the back cover, so you don’t want to forget about it. Ensure it is cohesive with the front cover for the best results. The spine should be included in your design choices as well; it’s more real estate to sell your book!
If you want your book to reach more audiences, make sure you create a brand around it. You should apply marketing strategies to broadcast yourself as an author; it will make your book (and any future ones) look more prestigious and trustworthy. Create an author website and some social media profiles to help address and learn from your audience. The more you get to know your readers, the more you can craft books that resonate well. While the text inside the book is the most important, you’ll need to prioritize the visuals inside and outside of the book for the most impact.
