Cover artwork

I did something similar to what you did. For my first self-published novel, I found a nice stock photo and licensed it. Did no modification aside from putting words (title, author) on the image. I was pretty happy with the result.

For my second novel, which is about to be self-published, I used a hybrid approach. I found a stock image for the background, but to customize it I commissioned original art for the foreground character. Then I used Gimp to combine the two images together, and added my own text. This is my result:




For the artist, I first tried Fiverr and commissioned a couple of B&W sketches from different artists. The good things are that user reviews exist, the prices are low, and you can see samples of the artists' work. And you also have some buyer protection from Fiverr if the artist you hire doesn't fulfill their end of the bargain. The bad is that Fiverr charges a hefty commission to the artists. I'd rather cut out the middleman and give all of my money to the artist.

I then looked at DeviantArt. They have a forum where its artist members post their availability for commissions. I found that most tend to draw anime type art, so the forum wasn't that useful for me. But I kept looking at other artists on DeviantArt and eventually found an artist, Yonathan Stefano, whose character art style fit what I was looking for. I queried him. He gave me a quote and I commissioned him by paying 1/2 up front via Paypal. If you have an idea of what you want and can find samples of it, it really helps the artist if you can provide such references. Art is hard to describe precisely with words, but a visual sample instantly tells the artist what kind of mood, style, and configuration you're looking for. Yonathan gave me at least two rounds of sketches for revision before I approved the final version. When the art was done, I paid the second half of the price. He's talented, reasonably priced, and professional, and I would gladly use him again for art commissions in the future.

So yeah, I would definitely check out DeviantArt for my future original-art needs. There are soooo many talented artist on that site, and if you look enough, you will likely find someone whose style you like. And because you negotiate directly with the artist, there is no middleman cost.

The artists on DeviantArt tend to be amateurs. My guy, for example, is an art student. This doesn't mean they are not good. Some are truly fantastic talents. If you have a high budget, you can try https://www.artstation.com/, another site where artists show off their portfolios. However, artists on this site tend to be highly experienced, high caliber professionals, such as designers for video games. The quality is pretty high (but so are their prices). If you want really beautiful, sophisticated art, especially of the 3D variety, and are willing to pay for it, I'm sure you'll find someone right on ArtStation.

I would opt for fiverr personally. I used to do my own cover artwork, but twenty five bucks for a graphic artist in a Malaysian sweat shop will get you a bang up cover, and you can see samples of their work.

One thing to watch out for - if you make a cover to Kindle spec, it will work fine on Smashwords, but cover previews will be wonky if you plan on publishing to D2D, if that is ever something you want to pursue.

One thing to keep in mind is your medium. If you are just publishing on Amazon, the cover should be 2:3, i.e. 1 wide to 1.5 high. If you will be publishing on Audible, you will need a 1:1 image. If you will be publishing on Createspace (and I'd imagine other POD suppliers), you might need 2:3 or you might need 5:8, depending on your desired print size. In addition, though, you'll need an extra 1/4" around the top, right, and bottom edges for 'bleed'.

If at all possible, ask your artist to do the art and typography on different layers, or even supply you with different files.

You also have to ask about ownership of the result. Some artists don't sell you the art, they only license it to you for a specific medium. This means you might have to pay them again if you want to expand into, for instance, foreign markets. I've even seen attempts to implement volume-based pricing, kind of like software licenses, although I wouldn't imagine that would go over very well.

Another site worth checking out . . .

https://www.selfpubbookcovers.com/

I use goonwrite.com for pre-made book covers. I've paid under $50.

I'm an artist as well as a writer, and it's kind of distressing to read folks advocating using people on Fiverr for so little money.

*insert sigh here* And okay, maybe they're just getting started. Or their work is good, but they work slow. But mostly, it seems like extreme lowballing is usually people taking advantage of desperate folks with few resources. Not the kind of legacy I want to leave.

I use Deranged Doctor Design. It costs around hundred bucks to add font to my ebook cover, and a bit more to toss in the back cover and spine. Three hundred if you're starting from scratch. Last I checked, you need to get in line around six months early. I lined up my 2018 covers months ago.

Their website is here: http://www.derangeddoctordesign.com/.

CathleenT said:

I'm an artist as well as a writer, and it's kind of distressing to read folks advocating using people on Fiverr for so little money.

*insert sigh here* And okay, maybe they're just getting started. Or their work is good, but they work slow. But mostly, it seems like extreme lowballing is usually people taking advantage of desperate folks with few resources. Not the kind of legacy I want to leave.

I use Deranged Doctor Design. It costs around hundred bucks to add font to my ebook cover, and a bit more to toss in the back cover and spine. Three hundred if you're starting from scratch. Last I checked, you need to get in line around six months early. I lined up my 2018 covers months ago.

Their website is here: http://www.derangeddoctordesign.com/.

Click to expand...

I suppose it's my fault for painting the negative image in your mind ('Malaysian sweat shop') but in reality, these are hardly desperate folks with few resources. There are parts of the world where $25 goes a long way, and I've traveled and lived in these places. It's their choice to offer their services, and to set their price, and I see no ethical reason to decline them.

There are options, it all comes down to how much you want to spend.

I wouldn't go with fiverr, I've heard too many horror stories.

What I usually recommend to people who don't want to break triple digits is to go looking for premade covers. These are images that an artist makes, then thinks "Gosh, this would be a great book cover!" So they put them out on kboards.com or various other places self-published authors shop, and offer them up for $25-$75 or so. Pay the money, get the rights, and they'll slap your title and your name on there. They might even adjust a few details if you kick in a bit extra or ask nicely.

CathleenT said:

I'm an artist as well as a writer, and it's kind of distressing to read folks advocating using people on Fiverr for so little money.

*insert sigh here* And okay, maybe they're just getting started. Or their work is good, but they work slow. But mostly, it seems like extreme lowballing is usually people taking advantage of desperate folks with few resources. Not the kind of legacy I want to leave.

I use Deranged Doctor Design. It costs around hundred bucks to add font to my ebook cover, and a bit more to toss in the back cover and spine. Three hundred if you're starting from scratch. Last I checked, you need to get in line around six months early. I lined up my 2018 covers months ago.

Their website is here: http://www.derangeddoctordesign.com/.

Click to expand...

Just wanted to say that I love Deranged Doctor Design. I usually try to book a series as I'm drafting the final book. Generally, despite the wait, I get my covers before I'm finished editing.

Just a comment on pricing, without editorializing about quality. My first book cover was done by photomanipulation, and IIRC it was less than $100. I eventually replaced it with a graphics-artist cover which cost about $150. The covers on my Bobiverse series (not the original one, the current ones) are about $750 each. Covers by artists like Stephane Martiniere are upwards of $3-4K. That's probably not the top end, either, but that's the point where I grabbed my chest and stopped looking.

There's a lot of range. You have to decide what you want and how much you're willing to pay.

Another recommendation for Deranged Doctor. I used them for The Water Road trilogy and have gotten lots of positive feedback for them.

I used a Fiverr job for Moore Hollow and it turned out all right, but the same guy couldn't put together anything I liked for anything else.

As you've now started a duplicate thread in Art and Design, I'm going to lock this one.

In future, please just ask a mod to move your thread for you. Duplicates cause problems. Thank you!