Nick Venables

Nick Venables – Designer

I'm a book cover designer with over 20 years experience. I specialise in commercial thriller, crime, sci-fi and historical fiction covers.

Overview

Hi. I'm a freelance book cover designer with over 20 years design experience in the publishing industry. I specialise in commercial thriller, crime, sci-fi and historical fiction covers.


Recent clients include Simon & Schuster, Harper Collins, Canelo, Hodder & Stoughton, Hachette, SPCK Publishing, Bonnier Zaffre and Pan MacMillan in the US. I've also designed covers for many self-published authors through Reedsy.


Notably, I've designed the book covers for Martina Cole, Lynda La Plante and Kimberley Chambers.


My design style is especially suited to commercial titles – adopting bright colours, bold typography and dramatic imagery.


I can help authors with all aspects of the cover design portion of their self-publishing process. I also offer animated design banners and other images for social media and book promotion.

Services
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs History Sports & Outdoors
Fiction
Historical Fiction Mystery & Crime Science Fiction Thriller & Suspense
Certifications
  • BA(hons) Graphic Design

Work experience

Harper Collins

Jan, 2015 — Jan, 2017 (about 2 years)

Senior book cover designer for the Harper Collins..

Simon and Schuster

Jan, 2012 — Jan, 2018 (about 6 years)

Senior book cover designer for Simon and Schuster.

Self-employed

Jan, 2010 — Present

I'm a freelance graphic designer specialising in book cover design and illustrated book layout.

I'm based in South London and have over 18 years design experience in the publishing industry.

Recent clients include Simon and Schuster, Head of Zeus, Canelo, Harper Collins, Hodder and Stoughton, SPCK Publishing and Pan MacMillan in the US.

Headline Publishing

Jan, 2008 — Jan, 2012 (about 4 years)

Senior book cover designer for the Headline imprint.

Portfolio

Cover Design
Cover Design
Made with Reedsy
Unforeseen (Thomas Prescott Book 1)

Pirog, Nick

Made with Reedsy
Gray Matter (Thomas Prescott Book 2)

Pirog, Nick

Cover Design
Black River

Harper, Tom

Nemesis (Michael Bale)

Riches, Anthony

Power Play

Kent, Tony

Perfect for fans of Ollie Ollerton, Andy McNab and Stephen Leather - the new compulsive thriller from Sunday Times bestseller and bomb-disposal expert, Kim Hughes GC. THE ENEMY IS CLOSE TO HOME . . . Left reeling from the disappearance of his daughter and ex-w... read more
The Last Viking

Berwick Coates

1066. Stamford Bridge. Two armies. One kingdom. Only one will win the greatest prize - the jewel of England.England, 1066. With the death of Edward the Confessor, the future of England is hanging in the balance. Harold has been crowned king but the country he ... read more
The Last Conquest

Coates, Berwick

Song of Treason

Duns, Jeremy

Portrait of a Spy

Daniel Silva

‘Allon is the 21st century Bond’ – Daily Mail Gabriel Allon, secret agent, assassin and master art restorer, returns in a spellbinding new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author Europe is exploding. And one man must find out why. For Gabriel Allon... read more
What happens to the human psyche when every day you go to work might be your last? The debut novel from Kim Hughes, the most highly decorated bomb disposal operator serving in the British Army. Perfect for fans of Andy McNab, Frank Gardner, James Swallow and H... read more
Dead Drop

Jeremy Duns

Thrilling, evocative and hugely controversial, 'Dead Drop' blows apart some of the myths about one of the Cold War's most well-known operations as the world stood on the brink of nuclear destruction.
Everyone remembers their first NOW! Each edition of the NOW That's What I Call Musicseries captures the essence of the pop charts at that precise moment in music history, striking a chord with music fans since 1983. Charting the story of NOWthrough album cover... read more
Matchdays

Ronald Reng

Ronald Reng, author of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 'A Life Too Short', tells the remarkable story of the rise of the Bundesliga.
Matchdays

Ronald Reng

The enormous success of German football is envied around the world. The national team won the 2014 World Cup in style, while the Bundesliga offers an alternative model through its fan-friendly set-up, terraces and low ticket prices. In Matchdays: The Hidden St... read more
The basis for the upcoming major motion picture The Program directed by Stephen Frears (High Fidelity, The Queen, Philomena), starring Chris O'Dowd as journalist David Walsh and Ben Foster as Lance Armstrong.When Lance Armstrong won his first Tour de France in... read more
LISTED IN PUBLISHERS WEEKLY 'S TOP BOOKS OF 2017 "Fast, fun and frentic. A whip-smart edge-of-your-seat thriller," - Ernest Cline on Killfile An unstoppable, high-concept action thriller for fans of Mason Cross and Lee Child. John Smith is no ordinary gun for ... read more
Buried Secrets

Lisa Cutts

The brilliant new crime novel from Lisa Cutts - the author who puts the reader at the heart of a police investigation. To most people, Detective Inspector Milton Bowman appears to have an ideal life. But some secrets aren’t buried deep enough. And Milton’s Mon... read more
Hard Girls

Martina Cole

When a prostitute's body is found lifeless, mutilated and brutally raped, DCI Annie Carr has never seen anything like it and never wants to again. Kate Burrows, retired DCI now consultant, is determined to help put the killer behind bars. But whoever it is won... read more
Payback

Kimberley Chambers

When the enemy is one of your own, the payback is twice as hard. The Butler brothers are the Kings of the East End, and their motto is 'what goes around, comes around'. In their world, family counts; so when the truth about Vinny's nephew's death comes to ligh... read more
Tennison

Lynda LaPlante

The Flood

Kristina Ohlsson

From the bestselling author of THE DISAPPEARED and UNWANTED comes the newest thriller by the Queen of Scandi Crime A man, wearing his daughter’s wedding ring, is found in front of his fireplace, a bullet hole in his chest. A funeral director searches desperate... read more
Stasi 77

David Young

A secret State. A dark conspiracy. A terrible crime.Karin Müller of the German Democratic Republic's People's Police is called to a factory in the east of the country. A man has been murdered - bound and trapped as a fire burned nearby, slowly suffocating him.... read more

Nick has 11 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Ty M.

Ty M.

Feb, 2024

Nick was very professional and had an open line of communication throughout the process. We will be working together again very soon.
Reynold S.

Reynold S.

Mar, 2023

Nick is not only technically excellent, he is creative. Nick gives a variety of ideas and listens to feedback. Nick gets a strong recommendation from me. This was my first time working with a cover designer; and it was fun, awaiting the samples and seeing the relevance as well as the quality of the work.
Anantha V.

Anantha V.

Sep, 2020

Nick helped design an awesome cover for my book. I loved his attention to detail, the variety of samples provided and the quality of final product. Thank You Nick! This helps me complete book two and I look forward to working with you again for my third book soon.
Don M.

Don M.

Jul, 2020

Nick was a pleasure to work with. His work was highly professional and creative. His revisions accurately reflected my comments and the end product is a book cover I'm proud to take to the market.
Patrick P.

Patrick P.

Jul, 2020

Nick is an awesome professional who guided me effortlessly through the cover creation process for the SciFi Novel "Tempel des Leids". He was very responsive and helped me with issues even if that meant to invest more time. I definitely can recommend Nick as a top designer for your non-fiction covers.
Nick V.
Thanks Patrick. It was great to work with you on your cover.

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