Post by ronmiller on Jan 31, 2021 13:14:05 GMT
Just a couple of things to keep in mind (that apply to any cover):
The title of a book is really the most important thing. It needs to be readable and readable in a glance. This often means that the title needs to be as large as possible.
Readability also means paying attention to word and line spacing. Words spaced too far apart may not read as a single phrase. You want people to see Gone With the Wind, not Gone. With. The. Wind.
Be careful about the choice of type for the title: avoid overly decorative faces and avoid adding unnecessary special effects, such as shading, gradients, shadows, glows, beveling, etc.---or least avoid piling them onto one another. Anything that interferes with clarity is probably a bad idea. One rule of thumb might be: the fancier the typeface the fewer special effects should be added.
Contrast is important: The title (as well as any image) needs to stand out against the background/surrounding color. This usually means paying close attention to value contrast: contrast on the gray scale. Red and dark gray, for instance, are nearly the same shade in gray scale---this means that red type on a dark gray (or even a black) background can be hard to read. (Recall the discussion about this a few months ago: a good test is to convert your cover to gray scale to make sure there is sufficient value contrast.)
All of these points are especially important since most potential readers are likely to first see your cover in thumbnail form. If the effect of the cover is not immediate they will likely just move on to the next book. No one is likely going to stop and puzzle out what your cover says.
The title of a book is really the most important thing. It needs to be readable and readable in a glance. This often means that the title needs to be as large as possible.
Readability also means paying attention to word and line spacing. Words spaced too far apart may not read as a single phrase. You want people to see Gone With the Wind, not Gone. With. The. Wind.
Be careful about the choice of type for the title: avoid overly decorative faces and avoid adding unnecessary special effects, such as shading, gradients, shadows, glows, beveling, etc.---or least avoid piling them onto one another. Anything that interferes with clarity is probably a bad idea. One rule of thumb might be: the fancier the typeface the fewer special effects should be added.
Contrast is important: The title (as well as any image) needs to stand out against the background/surrounding color. This usually means paying close attention to value contrast: contrast on the gray scale. Red and dark gray, for instance, are nearly the same shade in gray scale---this means that red type on a dark gray (or even a black) background can be hard to read. (Recall the discussion about this a few months ago: a good test is to convert your cover to gray scale to make sure there is sufficient value contrast.)
All of these points are especially important since most potential readers are likely to first see your cover in thumbnail form. If the effect of the cover is not immediate they will likely just move on to the next book. No one is likely going to stop and puzzle out what your cover says.