How to Design a Book Cover: 10 Dos and Don’ts

Your book’s cover is one of its most important marketing assets. A great cover instantly conveys tone and draws readers in, whether in a physical bookstore or online. In fact, a professional-looking book cover can potentially double your sales.

As Reedsy’s in-house illustrator with over 25 years of design experience, I know exactly what distinguishes an excellent book cover from an amateur one. Of course, the best way to guarantee a professional-looking cover is to hire a professional — but in case you need to DIY your cover for whatever reason, I’ll share my secrets to designing a cover concept that will help your book stand out.

Then, in the next post in this guide, I’ll walk you through the process of bringing your concept to life in your preferred design software.

✅ Do signal your genre to readers 

Naturally, you want your cover to be eye-catching and set your book apart from the crowd. But you don’t want it to stand out so much that readers have no idea what’s in it. Your cover needs to clearly indicate your genre and subgenre — and to do that, it must share certain visual cues with similar (successful) books.

To increase your knowledge of your genre’s norms, read my guide to researching book cover trends here. You should only start designing in earnest once you have a strong understanding of the color palettes, typography, imagery, etc. that signal your genre to readers.

❌ Don’t yield too much to trends

That said, don’t let design trends dictate your every move. What is ideal for one cover may not work for another, even if they share the same genre and themes.

At design school, we learn that each problem requires a unique solution. Remember: design is first and foremost about communication — in this case, with potential readers. You should never get carried away by trends at the expense of effective communication.

Let me illustrate my point with an example. I designed this cover for an anthology of various romantic and erotic stories:

It’s not your typical romance/erotica cover — because this isn’t your typical romance/erotica anthology. All the stories share a strong female perspective and discuss themes of inner exploration and self-knowledge.

I felt that erotic photographs of models would betray the true nature of this work. Likewise, I didn’t want to use colorful vector art of a couple, as this could convey the tone as too light and “beachy” — or imply that all the stories were about the same two people.

Instead, my design contains a degree of sensuality, but remains restrained, harmonious, and elegant. The key-shaped zipper symbolizes how the woman is opening the door to her inner self. This almost literary symbolism communicates that there is more to the collection than love affairs and sex.

In short: know the trends in your genre, but don’t adhere to them blindly. Every decision should be based on what best serves the communicative intent for this specific book.

Speaking of which… 

✅ Do decide what to communicate

Communicating your genre, one way or another, is key. But beyond that, it’s up to you what you want readers to take away from your book cover.

You can communicate characters, tropes, setting, themes, emotions, and more — but not all at the same time. To help you maintain focus during the design process, decide on your top communicative priorities now.

Personally, I like to think about my primary goal in terms of its degree of abstraction. Do I want to depict something tangible about the story’s events, or do I want to convey the abstract emotions, tone, or themes prevalent in the book?

You can see that these goals will lead to very different concepts. The first will result in a literal image of a key scene, setting, or character, whereas the second may lead to more open-ended or abstract imagery or symbolism.

Now let’s talk about how to actually come up with a cover concept. Don’t worry about professional design tools or precise measurements yet — just get your ideas down on paper.

✅ Do create a single focal point

I recommend that you start with your focal point: the part of your cover that will capture readers’ attention. Note that you’ll want to draw them in with one strong image, rather than trying to handle multiple plot points or themes equally.

Note: The central "image" doesn’t have to be an image at all. Plenty of effective book covers spotlight creative typography instead, as I’ll show you in the examples below.

You’ll probably need to brainstorm multiple concepts before you come up with one that feels right. I usually do 5–6 sketches before I find a concept that speaks to me (and my client). For instance, I came up with six different ways to depict the escape scene in Rocket Bride:

With that in mind, here are some of my favorite ideas for focal images to help inspire you (alongside your research, of course).

Character(s)

I may be a designer, but even I understand the importance of developing compelling characters for a given story. It follows that a visually intriguing character can similarly draw readers in.

You can portray your character(s) realistically or unrealistically, depending on your communicative intent. For literal depictions, you might like to highlight the protagonist’s most interesting or prominent physical traits, or position two characters in a way that reveals the nature of their relationship. For abstract portrayals, you can weave symbolism into the image or omit certain features to represent loss of self, some sort of narrative mystery, etc.

Let’s look at two examples with different communicative intents:

The cover of Michael Magee’s Close to Home uses realistic imagery of two young men, who — crucially — have their backs to each other. We can deduce that their relationship is strained, hinting at character-driven conflict.

The cover of Florence Knapp’s The Names, on the other hand, adds an abstract feature to the otherwise nondescript character: three shadows. These imply that the book will explore multiple identities and the character’s sense of self.

See how these characters’ faces are deliberately obscured — a common practice in many genres. There are several reasons why this might be the case, but I think it boils down to the fact that readers want to put themselves in a protagonist’s shoes. Seeing a specific face on the front cover can make it harder to do that.

Location

If the setting of your story is particularly interesting or important, you might prefer to feature a location on your cover. I see this a lot in historical fiction, science fiction, and fantasy, where much of the story’s appeal is its worldbuilding, as well as in horror, where the creepy setting establishes the atmosphere.

That said, I advise you not to overwhelm the reader with a complex landscape. Instead, draw the reader’s attention to one main image — perhaps a particular building or natural feature.

On the cover of R. F. Kuang’s Babel, for instance, a single tower stands out from the rest of the cityscape. The building is old-fashioned and imposing, hinting at the historical setting and the dark academia genre.

The cover for Jennifer McMahon’s The Children on the Hill, meanwhile, focuses on a burning building — instantly conveying the dark nature of the novel and sparking intrigue (no pun intended) as to the fire’s source.

Iconography

An increasingly popular approach to cover art is to focus on a simple but iconic symbol. Whereas iconography was previously confined to mostly literary fiction, you now see it on plenty of genre fiction covers too. 

I think minimalism has become more popular because it suits the modern market: a good icon is memorable and evokes an instant meaning, allowing it to make an impression even when a user only scrolls past it for a split second.

You can reuse existing symbols (with permission, of course), or invent a brand new one. To come up with an icon, reflect on the main themes and symbols in your novel. Is there a recurring image or sentiment that you wish to convey?

The cover of Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow recontextualizes Hokusai’s famous woodblock print The Great Wave off Kanagawa — which simultaneously nods to a Japanese-inspired video game in the novel and to its themes of resilience and transience.

The cover of R. F. Kuang’s Yellowface uses original art that has now become iconic thanks to the book’s success. The pair of eyes on a yellow background embodies the offensive practice of yellowface, forefronting the novel’s perhaps-uncomfortable themes of racism and exploitation.

🚨A word of warning: Icons are powerful for a reason. There is no room for error or embellishment — meaning they require extreme care in their creation. If you go the iconography route, try to think through every possible interpretation, or risk the dreaded miscommunication!

Typography

Finally, remember that you can focus on the title itself. You can convey a lot of meaning through creative typography. Just look at the examples below:

The title of Emma Donoghue’s Room looks like it has been hand-painted by a child, alluding to the 5-year-old narrator of the story. The bright colors also inspire hope, promising that this tale of abuse will not be entirely depressing.

In contrast, the shaky shadows on the cover of Rebecca Makkai’s I Have Some Questions for You, combined with the harrowing red and blue colors, indicate that this is a mystery/crime book which may indeed be scary.

Whichever focus you choose, make sure your cover paints an accurate picture of your book’s contents. Don’t mislead the reader with the promise of an atmosphere or theme that your book never delivers.

✅ Do pick a suitable image type (that matches your skill level)

Once you have a concept you’re happy with, the next step is to pick your image type. You have four main choices: a stock image, an illustration, a photograph, or a type-led design. Each has its pros and cons — you are limited only by your budget or DIY skills.

Stock image

Many covers released by major publishers feature stock images that are then cropped, manipulated, or edited into the design. You see a lot of these covers in certain romance subgenres (think Colleen Hoover), as well as crime/thriller and self-help.

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
Less expensive than a dedicated photo shoot	Impersonal
Flexibility in digital post-editing	Limiting if you don’t have high-level image editing skills
	Risk of dozens of other covers using the same image

Illustration

Illustrations on book covers come in a vast array of styles; they’re arguably the most versatile, sophisticated approach to cover design (though also the most time-consuming).

Illustrated covers range from intricate, life-like illustrations of the book’s world (as seen on many fantasy and science fiction covers) to evocative works of abstract art (on literary fiction covers, etc.).

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
Anything is possible (with the right illustrator)	Time-consuming
Can create truly bespoke imagery	Most authors are unable to DIY an illustration

Photograph

These days, you only usually see specially commissioned photography on celebrity memoir covers, where the biggest selling point is the author. But any cover can benefit from a custom-shot photograph.

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
Get the exact image you need	Expensive to hire a photographer
100% unique

Type-led design

A type-led design has always been common in nonfiction and literary fiction — but I see it increasingly in genre fiction, too. The focus of the design is a creative manipulation of the typographic elements (title, author name, etc.).

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
Striking	Not always as clearly “communicative” as other imagery
Legible at almost any size
Simpler to create than other designs — and potentially faster

Once you've settled on the style of your focal image, you can look for a professional to execute your design, or continue refining it yourself if you are confident you can pull it off. 

If you do choose to DIY your cover, read on for more of my design dos and don’ts as you begin to create your cover in your chosen software.

✅ Do prioritize strong contrast and lighting

With the foreground out the way, you’ll be ready to think about your background. Again, less is more here. A simple backdrop or even just a block color will do nicely. Remember: you don’t want to overstimulate or confuse the reader.

The main thing you’ll need to consider for your background is contrast. In order to make your focal image and text stand out, choose a different color (usually a gentle hue) or make use of shadows to prevent your background from overwhelming the other design elements.

However, be careful not to rely on shadows here, there, and everywhere. The lighting must be consistent, meaning all the shadows are cast by the same imaginary light (the exception, of course, being the cover of The Names!). If you’re struggling to make this work, that might be a sign to consult a professional designer.

✅ Do test different color schemes

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different color palettes. Remember that every color has hidden connotations and your choices should be deliberate, rather than random.

When I was finalizing my design for Rocket Bride, I tested six different color variations:

I chose to move forward with option C because it uses pastel shades often seen on romance covers — offsetting the sci-fi setting and letting the readers know that this isn’t just a straightforward shoot-’em-up in space.

❌ Don’t use illegible fonts

It isn’t just color and contrast that determine whether your text is readable. Its legibility also depends on your choice of fonts.

Something to keep in mind: unless you’ve decided on a type-led design, you don’t need to be too unique with your typography — and in fact, you should avoid it! Text written in a highly ornamental or unusual font runs the risk of being difficult to decipher, so I recommend sticking to tried and true typefaces.

Another big red flag on a book cover is having too many different fonts. You only need 2-3 fonts maximum. More than that will look unprofessional and may distract readers from the rest of your design. If you can stick to a single font family, using different weights if necessary, all the better.

Pro tip: Don’t make your name too big or too small on the cover. In general, the more famous the author, the larger their name — so if this is your debut book, stick to a readable but modest size.

✅ Do add a logline and/or pull quotes

Ideally, the title and author name won’t be the only text you put on your cover. To lend your book credibility, you can quote a short snippet from an advance reader review or signpost readers to your previous bestselling title(s).

Additionally, you might like to add a logline: a one-sentence teaser designed to capture the reader’s interest.

Any loglines and/or quotes should be smaller than the title and author’s name, but still legible on an Amazon book page.

✅ Do ask for feedback from the right people

Once you’re satisfied with your design, it’s time to show it to other people. As with your writing, an extra pair of eyes can spot things you can’t see in your work yourself.

That said, don’t just ask your partner or best friend for their opinion; seek out people who are genuinely voracious readers of your genre. You can look to online forums like Reddit communities and Facebook groups — or if you have a newsletter or decent social media following, you can even run a poll for your fans.

Finally, once you’ve collected feedback, don’t ignore it. If your book cover doesn’t appeal to these readers, there’s very little chance that less engaged readers will pick up your book.

Take your time and keep workshopping your concept until you’re 100% happy with it. Then, head to my next post to find out how to actually convert it into a file that is ready for publication.