Kelly Carter

Kelly Carter – Designer

I love how good design can complete a writer's vision and make it engaging. Fantasy, thrillers, historical and fiction really get me going.

Overview

I am a graphic designer/art director with over 20 years experience working in the publishing industry. I love working with independent authors, because it is an opportunity to work directly with an individual who has invested so much in their book, which makes achieving their vision of the cover or interior pages so rewarding. I excel at taking an idea or a concept, sourcing and/or creating the perfect imagery and then pairing it with engaging and apropos typography. Through conceptual and creative ideas, I can assist you in developing a cover, or series of covers, that are engaging and unique.


TESTIMONIALS:


"I worked in collaboration with Kelly through Reedsy.com over a period of a little longer than three months. Kelly's dedication and professionalism is remarkable. She persevered through over 330,000 words, 100 chapters, and 200 images in three books - two reformatting from the originals - and one previously unformatted (and in both epub and paperback versions). She is creative and detailed. the books look terrific and as an author, I'm delighted to have the books represented in such a professional manner. It is my honor to recommend her to others - particularly if you require someone to shepherd you through the convoluted world of technology. Cum multis agentes, Kelly!"

– Sara Lawrence (Peacock) Cook


“Kelly was wonderful to work with and did an incredible job on the book cover design. We will be hiring her in the future!”

– Steve Marks of Marks Media, The Legend of Eloh


“Kelly was WONDERFUL to work with. She designed an amazing cover for my book that included every detail I asked for. I loved that she paid attention to my vision and brought her own eye and professionalism. She was also extremely polite and accommodating as I was requesting small changes, and was always quick to respond. It was an absolute pleasure working with her!"

– Audrey Cece, The Don’t Love Dare


"I am very pleased with the final outcome of my book An Artist Crossing Disciplines. Kelly honed in on the details for the cover design as well as page and chapter layout. Good communication and professionalism throughout the design process!"

– Carrie Edinger, An Artist Crossing Disciplines


"Kelly caught the essence of my book and condensed it into a single, powerful image. It has all the elements I was looking for, with a surprising and delightful twist. Kelly was timely, responsive to my requests, and willing to make changes every step along the way. I highly recommend working with her."

– Avara Yaron, Girl Submerged, book 1


"Amazing design! Thanks Kelly!"

– Keith Marcotti, Falling Through Blankets of Stars


"Extremely creative and easy to work with."

– JournalStone, Strange is the Night


"Kelly really went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure I was happy with the job. She's incredibly talented, very imaginative and I would recommend her to anybody whose interested in ending up with a stellar design project!"

– Rachel B. Ledge, The Red Ribbon

Services
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs Self-Help & Self-Improvement
Fiction
Fantasy Historical Fiction New Adult Poetry Thriller & Suspense Young Adult Fantasy
Languages
English
Awards
  • Print Design Annual
  • Ad Club of Delaware
  • City Regional Magazine Association Awards

Work experience

Self-employed

Jun, 2015 — Present

Art direct, design and produce book covers and interior pages for independent authors in a variety of genres.

Four Dog Creative

Jun, 2015 — Feb, 2020 (over 4 years)

Creative Director for my husband's digital marketing agency where I worked on everything from logos to publications to marketing materials. I also designed book covers and have over 15 years in the publishing industry. I usually am involved in a project from initial client meetings, to conceptualizing and design, working with client edits and feedback and then seeing the project through to production and delivery.

Delaware Bride

Jan, 2004 — Mar, 2013 (about 9 years)

Plan, design and layout of monthly magazines. Consistently redesign overall look to update and streamline appearance. Direct all photography and routinely meet with editorial staff and publisher to plan stories and visuals.

Delaware Today

May, 1995 — Mar, 2013 (almost 18 years)

Plan, design and layout of monthly magazines. Consistently redesign overall look to update and streamline appearance. Direct all photography and routinely meet with editorial staff and publisher to plan stories and visuals.

Portfolio

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Zakolor: Nacusti Chronicles Volume I

Douglas, J. R.

Firepost Press

Made with Reedsy
Queen of Ista

Nowak, Thaddeus

Mountain Pass Publishing LLC

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Initiation (Fell Blood Trilogy Book 1)

Null, J.D.

Made with Reedsy
The Deadman's Program

Wuerth, A. M.

Cover Design
Cover Design Illustration
Made with Reedsy
Eris

Aurora, Draven

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Rowena's Song

Dally, Ivy Charlotte

Cover Design Illustration
Made with Reedsy
Open In the Front: A Memoir

Gadhia, Mica

Cover Design Book Interior Design
Made with Reedsy
The Prince of Snow

Divine, L.B.

Cover Design Illustration
Made with Reedsy
Ravens in Flight: Gadyeni Cycle Book One

Todd, Beck

Cover Design
Cover Design
Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Yucatan Channel: A Nick Sanchez Thriller

Vincenti, Len

Cover Design
Cover Design
Cover Design
Strange Is the Night

S.P. Miskowski

Over cocktails an executive describes to a friend the disturbing history of a strangely potent guardian angel. A young mom tries to perfect and prolong her daughter’s childhood with obsessive ... read more
Cover Design
•Are you sick of being hurt and let down by the same guy over and over?•Tired of thinking things have changed only to find yourself back at square one?•Do you long for your own beautiful, uniq... read more
Cover Design
Sirena’s life is crumbling. Vivid dreams and watery emotions mystify her, threatening to drag her down. She finds herself unemployed, gaining weight, and sinking into depression. It doesn’t he... read more
Cover Design
Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
The Assist

Vogel, Amy W

AWVogel Publishing

Cover Design Illustration
Made with Reedsy
The Better Half: A Novel of the Nevada Divorce Ranch Era

Borgman, P.W.

Ash Canyon Press

Cover Design Book Interior Design
Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
In the Name of Family

Coppola, Cynthia

Cover Design Book Interior Design
Made with Reedsy
The Stars Aren't Ready

Peterson, Georgia

Cover Design Illustration
Made with Reedsy
The Turn of Awakening: Book One of The Tinaru

Kilcoyne, Martha Ellen

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Night on the Haunted Highway

Leslie, Mark W

Cover Design
Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
One Troy Ounce

Wren, Carolina A.

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Wicked Dandelion

Smoot, Aumari Shatwan

Cover Design Book Interior Design
Made with Reedsy
Power In The Blood

Bray, Hiawatha

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Of Chains and Shadows

Duell, Lauren

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
The Miserable Lives of the Perfect Ones

Giese, Emerson

Cover Design Illustration
Cover Design
Cover Design Illustration
Made with Reedsy
MARBLEHEAD

Rita, Bill

Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Googol Girl: In the beginning there was AI

Ragnarsson, Hilmar

Cover Design
Cover Design
Cover Design
Following the discovery of her protege's mutilated corpse, SFPD Detective Kate Barnes vows to capture the infamous serial killer known as The Tower Torturer. Famous for revisiting history's da... read more
Cover Design
Firebrand

Aaron Barnhart

1848. The Bondi family is leaving for a better life in America. But 15-year-old August doesn’t want to go. He’s found his life’s purpose in Vienna, fighting on the barricades against a tyrant ... read more
Cover Design
Cover Design
Cover Design Book Interior Design

Kelly has 50 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Draven A.

Draven A.

Feb, 2024

Pinned
I love working with Kelly! This is the second cover I have done with her and she did an amazing job of taking a bunch of disconnected, messy ideas and transforming them into a gorgeous cover!
Kelly C.
Awe, thanks Draven. I love working with you to! Best of luck with your launch.
Suzette B.

Suzette B.

Oct, 2023

Pinned
I am a repeat client of Kelly's. Our first project together was the straightforward interior design of a historical novel--easy peasy. The second project was anything but straightforward with illustrations in random places, lyrics, QR codes, and much more. It was puzzle more than book, but Kelly nailed it, delivering a gorgeous final product of which I am very proud. She is creative, skilled, a...
Read more
L.B. D.

L.B. D.

Sep, 2023

Pinned
Kelly is my favorite person to work with! She always listens and somehow sees directly into my mind. This is the second cover I’ve done with her, and frankly I cannot wait til I have the rest of my series written so that I can continue to work with her!
E.M. D.

E.M. D.

Oct, 2024

Kelly has been great to work with for the cover design of my debut novel. She was very helpful in describing steps of the publishing process to me. I look forward to working with her for the rest of my trilogy!
dennis W.

dennis W.

Sep, 2024

Working with Kelly has been an exciting, fruitful, and thoroughly satisfying experience for me and our project team. Her work on the book cover and interior designs exceeded our expectations. Kelly and I were in sync with the design of the book cover from day one, and the result was a beautiful cover that complements perfectly with the contents of the book. The first draft of the interior desi...
Read more
Kelly C.
Thank you so much Dennis. Best of luck with your book. Kelly

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