Lisa Vega

Lisa Vega – Designer

I have been in publishing as a cover and interior designer over 20 years. From memoirs to picture books and everything in between.

Overview

I have experience in all areas of publishing. In children’s, I’ve worked in all age groups all the way up to young adult. I’ve done all manner of lifestyle books including cookbooks. I’m a whizz at memoirs, and nonfiction. My bread and butter comes from middle grade. From awkward kids to fire breathing dragons, I love them all.

I’ve worked on Newbery winning books and NY Times bestsellers. I treat every book I work on with the same importance. Let’s work together!
Services
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs Children’s Non-Fiction
Fiction
Comics & Graphic Novels Fantasy Middle Grade Picture Books Poetry Young Adult
Languages
English
Awards
  • Designed Newbery award winner The Crossover
  • Designed bestselling series Dork Diaries
  • Designed the CSK winner A Few Red Drops
  • Designed Steptoe award winner Hoodoo
  • Designed NYT bestseller Beyonders
Certifications
  • BA in fine arts from The School of Visual Arts

Work experience

Self-employed

Jan, 2019 — Present

Responsible for creating and designing book covers and interiors for all formats. Oversees each project through the design process from conception to approval to delivery of final materials to production.
Clients include Harper Collins, Holiday House, Smallbatch books, Penguin Random House, Sterling/Barnes and Noble publishing and Little Bee Books.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Oct, 2013 — Jan, 2019 (over 5 years)

Senior Designer for Clarion and HMH Books for Young Readers in the New York office. Responsible for creating and designing book covers and interiors for all formats. Oversees each project through the design process from conception to approval to delivery of final materials to production.
Responsibilities include the following:
* Creates appropriate designs for YA, middle grade, nonfiction, and picture books with an eye toward multiple formats. Primary focus is high-end jackets for middle-grade and YA novels.
* Works closely with illustrators and photographers in the creation of cover and interior artwork.
* Works closely with the Art Director to schedule and prepare materials for jacket meetings and sales and marketing needs.
* Ensures all projects are handled properly and on schedule and budget, from issuing agreements to managing approvals to placing files in the appropriate systems.
* Assists Art Director with mentoring other designers.

Simon & Schuster

Jun, 2000 — Jul, 2012 (about 12 years)

Responsible for all the stages of the jacket and interior design of young adult, middle grade novels, picture book, chapter books, and graphic novels. From hiring, billing and invoicing illustrators, purchasing stock photos to putting together printer ready mechanicals, color correction and working with prepress production. Also prepared files for E-book production and archived all assets.

Notable titles include:
The bestselling Dork Diaries series as well as the New York Times #1 bestselling Beyonders series.

Portfolio

Rachel Renee Russell serves up more laughs and adorable illustrations in the next installment of the bestselling DORK DIARIES series.Nikki Maxwell has been doing everything she can to keep everyone at school from learning the truth--that she's there on scholar... read more
Create your own Dork Diary with this special, interactive addition to the New York Times bestselling Dork Diaries series.Nikki Maxwell has been writing in a diary since the start of the school year, and she usually takes it everywhere she goes--so she can't be... read more
Rachel Renee Russell's sequel to Dork Diaries is packed with adorable art and tons of laughs.Recipe for disaster: 4 parties. Add 2 friends and 1 crush. Divide by 1 mean girl out to RUIN Nikki. Mix well, put fingers over eyes, and CRINGE! Settled in at her new ... read more
Enjoy three installments together of the New York Times bestselling Dork Diaries series about Nikki Maxwell, who chronicles the highs and lows of middle school life in her diaries with text and art!The boxed set will include the first three books of the bestel... read more
New York Times Bestseller ∙ National Book Award Longlist ∙ ILA-CBC Children's Choice List ∙ ALA Notable Children’s Book ∙ Book Links’ Lasting Connections ∙ Kirkus Best Book ∙ San Francisco Chronicle Best Book∙ Washington Post Best Book∙ BookPage Best Book "A n... read more
New York Times bestseller ∙ Newbery Medal Winner ∙Coretta Scott King Honor Award ∙2015 YALSA 2015 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults∙ 2015 YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers ∙Publishers Weekly Best Book ∙ School Library Journal Best Book∙ K... read more
Great Holiday Recipes
“In diary format, Patricia Riascos leads us through her upbringing in Colombia, her move to the U.S., and her passion for expressing herself through art. An accomplished painter, her art shines through these pages. When diagnosed with ALS, she reminds us to ap... read more
Alan Rothman followed in his father's footsteps, becoming an accountant and tax preparer, in a practice that specializes in working with professional athletes from all corners of the sporting world. Now, in his spare time, he is following in his own footsteps-... read more
In this book, author Don Seymour traces the Corbett branch of his family back to the birth of Daniel Corbett in northern England in 1713 and his arrival in the American colonies in the 1740s. This compilation traces ten direct generations of that branch. Seymo... read more
"It felt like the whole world was shaking, inside me and all around me. It felt like bliss-perfect peace. This light was pouring through me, and as it was pouring through me, it was teaching me things." So begins The Reluctant Mystic: Autobiography of an Awake... read more
Set in the jungles of Central America thousands of years ago, this whimsical tale of discovery follows Zeuma and Zema, brother and sister Olmec twins who set out in search of the Tree of Love. Along the way, they encounter a host of indigenous animals who shar... read more
Like many teenagers, Jim Carson doesn't get along with his parents, feels neglected at home, and finds it hard to connect with classmates and teachers at school. Devising a half-baked plan, he flees his Florida home in the middle of the night for what he hopes... read more
Born after all of her grandparents had passed away, Beth Hersh Goldsmith always felt she had missed out on hearing the rich tales of her family's previous generations. Grateful for her full and fulfilling life, she felt determined to share her own stories. In ... read more
More than a cookbook, FOOD & SOUL is an ode to pure, wholesome food that's based on a philosophy both artisanal and humble, wrapped in a quest for learning that has no end. Comprised of simple, clear recipes meant to build confidence, and sprinkled with essays... read more
A Dictionary of Literary Works, an alphabetized reference guide to some of the greatest books and authors of the past millennia, represents a labor of love a long time in the making. This volume encapsulates author Mike Goldman's forty-four years as a beloved ... read more
During a season of heartbreak, René Paine watched Bill Nye the Science Guy every Saturday morning. She would take notes on the show and then write a poem using the topic of the program for a title, with some of the program's facts as content. This book is the ... read more
In Another Face of God, author Giuseppe Giucastro puts forth the following thesis: that God has always challenged us to develop resources on Earth to improve life here. Now, Giucastro believes, God is challenging us to use technology for the development of the... read more
New York Times bestseller ∙ Indie Next Pick You gotta know the rules to play the game. Ball is life. Take it to the hoop. Soar. What can we imagine for our lives? What if we were the star players, moving and grooving through the game of life? What if we had ou... read more
Just Say Know! With drug education for children more important than ever, this nonfiction book draws on the experiences of the NY Times bestselling father/son team of David and Nic Sheff to provide all the information teens and tweens need to know about drugs,... read more
One Lie Too Many

Eileen Cook

"Trust no one. A nail-biter littered and lined with twists that will leave you gasping." —Teresa Toten, author of Beware That Girl and The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B Seventeen-year-old Skye Thorn will do anything to get out of her small Michigan town, even if t... read more
Murder. Fire. Revenge. That’s all seventeen-year-old Alice Monroe thinks about. Committed to a mental ward at Savage Isle, Alice is haunted by memories of the fire that killed her boyfriend, Jason. A blaze her twin sister Cellie set. But when Chase, a mysterio... read more
Wax

Gina Damico

Paraffin, Vermont, is home to the Grosholtz Candle Factory. There, seventeen-year-old Poppy finds something dark and unsettling: a room filled with dozens of startlingly lifelike wax sculptures. Later, she’s shocked when one of the figures—a teenage boy who do... read more
Hellhole

Gina Damico

A devil is a bad influence . . . There was a time when geeky, squeaky-clean Max Kilgore would never lie or steal or even think about murder. Then he accidentally unearths a devil, and Max’s choices are no longer his own. The big red guy has a penchant for couc... read more
Waste of Space

Gina Damico

Cram ten hormonal teens into a spaceship and blast off: that’s the premise for the ill-conceived reality show Waste of Space. The kids who are cast know everything about drama—and nothing about the fact that the production is fake. Hidden in a desert warehouse... read more
A Northern Light

Jennifer Donnelly

Now with a fresh new look and introduction, comes Jennifer Donnelly's astonishing, Printz Honor-winning debut—the story of a young woman's coming-of-age and the murder that rocked turn-of-the-century America.​​ A Printz Award Honor Book "A contemporary classic... read more
Your One & Only

Adrianne Finlay

Jack is a walking fossil. The only human among a sea of clones. It’s been hundreds of years since humanity died off in the slow plague, leaving the clones behind to carry on human existence. Over time they’ve perfected their genes, moving further away from the... read more
A young king searches for a way to save his kingdom in this romantic fantasy from Erin Summerill, who was called “absolutely marvelous” by New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas.Aodren: A lonely, young king, searching for a way to dismantle his father... read more
The sequel to Ever the Hunted, which Sarah J. Maas, New York Times bestselling author of the Throne of Glass and A Court of Thorns and Roses series called "absolutely marvelous." After saving King Aodren with her newfound Channeler powers, Britta only wants to... read more
"With a resourceful and cunning heroine, a compelling and nuanced romance, and a truly fascinating system of magic, Ever the Hunted ensnared me from the very first pages. Absolutely marvelous."—Sarah J. Maas, New York Times bestselling author of the Throne of ... read more
The #1 New York Times bestselling Beyonders fantasy trilogy comes to a stunning and epic conclusion.Jason and Rachel were not born in Lyrian. They did not grow up in Lyrian. But after all of the battles and losses, the triumphs and adventures, and most of all,... read more
The second epic installment of Brandon Mull’s #1 New York Times bestselling fantasy series!After the cliffhanger ending of A World Without Heroes, Jason is back in the world he’s always known—yet for all his efforts to get home, he finds himself itching to ret... read more
Jason tumbles into a quest to save a magical in this #1 New York Times bestselling start to Brandon Mull’s Beyonders fantasy series.Jason Walker has often wished his life could be a bit less predictable—until a routine day at the zoo ends with Jason suddenly t... read more
The Mesmerist

Ronald L. Smith

Thirteen-year-old Jessamine Grace and her mother make a living as sham spiritualists—until they discover that Jess is a mesmerist and that she really can talk to the dead. Soon she is plunged into the dark world of Victorian London’s supernatural underbelly an... read more
Hoodoo

Ronald L. Smith

Winner of the 2016 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award Twelve-year-old Hoodoo Hatcher was born into a family with a rich tradition of practicing folk magic: hoodoo, as most people call it. But even though his name is Hoodoo, he can't seem t... read more
A super-secret operative saves the world from a diabolical threat through her ability to brandish just the right book at just the right time in this delightfully silly superhero tale illustated by Eisner Award-winner and Caldecott Honoree Vera Brosgol.When an ... read more
On a hot day in July 1919, five black youths went swimming in Lake Michigan, unintentionally floating close to the "white" beach. An angry white man began throwing stones at the boys, striking and killing one. Racial conflict on the beach erupted into days of ... read more
Kwame Alexander's NYT Bestseller and Newbery Medal winning The Crossover is vividly brought to life as a graphic novel with stunning illustrations by star talent Dawud Anyabwile. New York Times bestseller · Newbery Medal Winner · Coretta Scott King Honor Award... read more
New York Times bestseller ∙ ALA Notable Book * "An eminently satisfying story of family, recovery, and growing into manhood."—Kirkus, starred review From the New York Times bestselling author Kwame Alexander comes Rebound, a dynamic novel in verse and companio... read more

Lisa has 13 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Aaron P.

Aaron P.

Aug, 2022

Lisa was very talented and very passionate about her work. I was very satisfied with the final results.
Lisa V.
Aaron is an amazing author that really cares about his material. You couldn't find a better client to work with.
C O.

C O.

Jul, 2021

No comment.
Don L.

Don L.

Apr, 2021

Lisa designed both my cover and interior. For both, her creativity and artistic sense were exactly what I needed. She listened to my ideas, shared her own, and worked with me to find the best choices. This was particularly important for me since I'd never done this before. I would definitely use her again!
Gene G.

Gene G.

Nov, 2020

Lisa was easy to work with and helpful in answering all my questions. I recommend her to any other first time authors.
Lisa V.
Gene was great to work with. He had very clear direction on what he wanted for his book and very flexible on my ideas. Overall a great experience!
Nancy B.

Nancy B.

Nov, 2020

Lisa is extremely professional. Her attention to detail and the quality of her work are exceptional. For me, the most important thing has been her ability to collaborate successfully and seamlessly with the illustrator.

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