Diego Alcalá

Diego Alcalá – Designer

I work along with authors to make their book an object to be loved and cared for. Crime, horror, literary fiction, poetry, young readers...

Overview

*Currently accepting projects starting in February


I was a kid who loved books and made hand-drawn designs to garnish his own stories, tape recordings and school notebooks. Years later, that fixation became a permanent side source of income while developing a full-time career in advertising design. Today, cover art making is my main activity and joy.

Having some art direction background and a wide variety of graphic skills (Illustration, lettering, Photography, 3D), I may take different approaches for each project and I switch techniques according to the genre, target reader and author preferences. However, the genres I get asked about more often are Crime, Gothic Fiction, Horror, Poetry, Literary, Young Readers and Middle Grade. If there's anything I can say about my work is that, regardless of style or techniques used, I put most of my focus on achieving a solid composition and a captivating overall impact.

As for how will I approach your book if we work together: it´s no new thing to say that communication is key. Whether you have a detailed idea or you´re completely clueless about what you want, we will talk before, during and after the main concept is stated to your liking. From the sketching stage to fine detailing, you'll participate as much as you are up to. In the end, I'll put all my efforts into distilling your story into a beautiful image that truly speaks for the book.

Services
Fiction
Children's Literary Fiction Mystery & Crime Poetry Science Fiction Thriller & Suspense Young Adult
Languages
English

Work experience

Self-employed

Jan, 2007 — Present

Artwork development for editorial, discographic and theater. Also derivatives like posters, merchandising or promo videos

Advertising Agencies

Nov, 2006 — Dec, 2018 (about 12 years)

Visual art oriented to brand implementation strategies for international consumer goods brands.

Diego has 22 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Jesse R.

Jesse R.

Jan, 2024

Was more impressed than anticipated!
Melody C.

Melody C.

Nov, 2023

Diego created an amazing middle grade book cover and delivered everything on time. I look forward to working with him again on the next book in the series. His communication is fantastic. Personable and professional, making sure all the details were correct, and his knowledge of the different platform requirements is exceptional. I highly recommend Diego for your cover needs.
Martin C.

Martin C.

Aug, 2023

Loved working with Diego! He created a middle grade cover for us that has really pushed the book over the top!
Dan G.

Dan G.

Mar, 2023

This was my first novel and consequently my first time having to navigate all of the steps in self-publishing. Diego was patient, knowledgeable and willing to help throughout. He wasn’t just a talented designer and typesetter, he was my consultant. I highly recommend his work!
Conor M.

Conor M.

Feb, 2023

Diego was a pleasure to work with and the final cover really helped convey the theme of my novel.

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