Paul Palmer-Edwards - Designer
I am an experienced, professional book designer, delivering simple but significant solutions designed to give your book maximum impact.
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Overview
Fed up with boilerplate solutions? I am an experienced, passionate, award-winning, book designer. I can bring creative vision to your project, offering you fresh and modern perspectives with the type of design work that arrests both your eye and your intellect.
I have designed books and book covers for publishers such as Thames & Hudson, Quintessence, Carlton Books, Octopus Publishing, The British Museum, Rockwool Publishers, Harper Collins, Kyle Books, Ivy Press, Mitchell Beazley, Ilex Publishing, Omnibus Press, Rotovision, Hamlyn, Quercus, Sterling Publishing, Chronicle Publishing, Abrams Press and MIT on a range of subjects as diverse as architecture, music, fine art, antiquities, cookery, popular culture and science. Each new book project has brought with it, its own unique set of challenges – the more individual the subject has been, the more exciting the challenge has been to make that subject come alive on the page.
Being collaborative is fundamental to my approach to the design process and I have been lucky enough to build close working relationships with many of my clients. With 18 years experience working as a creative director/founder of a busy London-based, book design agency, I have a thorough understanding of how each part of the publishing and production process works, making for a smooth workflow. I offer creative vision as well as practical advice on which font to choose, or the most economic page format at the early design stage of your book project, through to answering your questions about paper stocks, or print finishing during the final stage of your book project.
In short, if you are looking for a designer who goes that extra mile in search of the perfect design solution for your book project, whether it be a cover, a collection catalogue or a complete book – look no further.
I have designed books and book covers for publishers such as Thames & Hudson, Quintessence, Carlton Books, Octopus Publishing, The British Museum, Rockwool Publishers, Harper Collins, Kyle Books, Ivy Press, Mitchell Beazley, Ilex Publishing, Omnibus Press, Rotovision, Hamlyn, Quercus, Sterling Publishing, Chronicle Publishing, Abrams Press and MIT on a range of subjects as diverse as architecture, music, fine art, antiquities, cookery, popular culture and science. Each new book project has brought with it, its own unique set of challenges – the more individual the subject has been, the more exciting the challenge has been to make that subject come alive on the page.
Being collaborative is fundamental to my approach to the design process and I have been lucky enough to build close working relationships with many of my clients. With 18 years experience working as a creative director/founder of a busy London-based, book design agency, I have a thorough understanding of how each part of the publishing and production process works, making for a smooth workflow. I offer creative vision as well as practical advice on which font to choose, or the most economic page format at the early design stage of your book project, through to answering your questions about paper stocks, or print finishing during the final stage of your book project.
In short, if you are looking for a designer who goes that extra mile in search of the perfect design solution for your book project, whether it be a cover, a collection catalogue or a complete book – look no further.
Languages
English
Fiction
Action & Adventure
Contemporary Fiction
Horror
Science Fiction
Technothriller
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs
Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits
Music
Awards
- Locus Award, Best Book
- Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award
- Finalist, New York Book Awards
- Fortnum & Mason Food & Drink Awards, Best Drink Book
- World Fantasy Award, Best Illustrated Book
- Bram Stoker Award, Best Illustrated Book
- ISTD Typographic Awards 2014, Certificate of Excellence
- ISTD Typographic Awards 2009, Certificate of Excellence
- British Book Awards 2019, Best Non-fiction Book
- Winner James Beard, Best International Cookbook
- Shortlisted for Guild of Food Writers, International Cookbook of the Year
- McNaughton Awards 1996, Winner
- McNaughton Awards 1997, Highly Commended
Work experience
Designer, Art Director
Self-employed
July, 2018
–
Present
(over 4 years)
I provide a full design service including project management for traditional and self publishers. I work in a wide range of genres designing covers and interiors for printed and digital editions as well as designing marketing material for the finished product.
Creative Director / Founder
Grade Design
August, 2000
–
June, 2018
(almost 18 years)
Co-founded London design agency, working for publishers, cultural institutions, charities and independent companies. A member of the International Society of Typographic Designers for ten years. Received recognition in various industry awards. Work has been published in various design manuals, including Grids, Ava Acedemia; Logotype, Laurence King; Diagrams, Rotovision
Portfolio (33 selected works)
Experts in the ten major Pulp genres, from action Pulps to spicy Pulps and more, chart for the first time the complete history of Pulp magazines—the stories and their writers, the graphics and their artists, and, of course, the publishers, their market, and readers.Each chapter in the book, which is illustrated with more than 400 examples of the best Pulp graphics (many from the editors’ colle... read more
wagamama Feed Your Soul: 100 Japanese-inspired Bowls of Goodness
Steven Mangleshot
wagamama restaurants are a global brand with restaurants worldwide in the UK, USA, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden as well as UAE andNew Zealand.Feed your Soul includes more than 70 tempting recipes inspired by restaurant favourites. The dishes have been designed for every occasion, from rapid weekday meals, to slow-cooked ram... read more
BOSH!: Simple Recipes. Amazing Food. All Plants. The fastest-selling cookery book of the year
Henry Firth, Ian Theasby
‘The vegan Jamie Olivers’ The TimesWant to cook ridiculously good plant-based food from scratch but have no idea where to start? With over 140 incredibly easy and outrageously tasty all plants meals, BOSH! The Cookbook will be your guide.Henry Firth and Ian Theasby, creators of the world’s biggest and fastest-growing plant-based platform, BOSH!, are the new faces of the food revolution.Their o... read more
(Applause Books). Amazingly, there has never been a book quite like The Art of Horror a celebration of frightful images, compiled and presented by some of the genre's most respected names. While acknowledging the beginnings of horror-related art in legends and folk tales, the focus of the book is on how the genre has presented itself to the world since the creations of Bram Stoker and Mary She... read more
The Blues: A Visual History
Mike Evans
Originating in the African-American communities of the Deep South in the late nineteenth century, the blues gave birth to jazz, R&B, rock, punk, and country. From the impassioned slide guitar of the Mississippi Delta, to the electric sounds of Chicago's street corners, to the improvised jams of blues- rock, The Blues explores the many forms this quintessentially American music has taken. All t... read more
The Pub
Pete Brown
Pete Brown has visited hundreds of pubs across the UK and is uniquely placed to write about pubs that ooze atmosphere, whatever the reason, be it food, people, architecture, location or decor. The best pubs are those that always have a steady trade at any time on any day of the week, and where chat flows back and forth across the bar. They're the places where you want to drink weak beer so you... read more
This is the first full-length illustrated look at the Zapple label the Beatles experimental label and the most ambitious expression of the Beatles determination to be leading members of the counterculture movement Created by Zapple label manager, Barry Miles, the acclaimed author who set up and planned the list in cooperation with the Beatles, and written in an engaging diary style, this book ... read more
Art of Punk
Russ Bestley, Alex Ogg
Russ Bestley/Alex Ogg: The Art Of Punk is the first ever comprehensive review of punk graphics celebrates a wide range of punk posters, flyers, album cover art, fanzines and fashion ephemera.Famous graphics for legendary bands like the Ramones, The Sex Pistols, The Damned and The Clash are included, along with less well-known examples from around the world, as punk designs from South America, ... read more
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of On the Road, the defining book of the Beat Generation. Jack Kerouac wrote his masterpiece in one frenzied three-week period in 1951 on the infamous 119-foot scroll, which has been on the road” touring the nation since 2004, slated to continue on through spring 2008. The scroll will also be published in its original, unedited version i... read more
Netsuke: 100 miniature masterpieces from Japan
Noriko Tsuchiya
Netsuke have once again come to the fore in the popular imagination of the public. In part this is due to the phenomenal success of Edmund De Waals 2010 book, Hare with the Amber Eyes, which highlights a treasured netsuke collection that was challenged by war and the vicissitudes of time. Intricately carved from various materials including ivory, wood and metal, these small toggles served a pr... read more
5000 Years of Tiles
Hans van Lemmen
Paperback. Pub Date :2013-10-07 Pages: 304 Language: English Publisher: Thames Hudson 5000 Years of Tiles is the essential. single - volume colour compendium of tile art and production around the world. from ancient times to the present day. Over 350 beautiful colour illustrations showcase an incredible range of tile arts. including the first fired roof tiles in ancient Greece in the third mil... read more
Looking at works from a range of different artists and their various approaches, this book examines the process and practice of drawing, showcasing artworks from 15th- and 16th-century masters, such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, right up to artists working today. In arranging them not by period or style, but by the types of thinking that give rise to them, readers gain fresh insights ... read more
The American Dream: pop to the present (British Museum)
Stephen Coppel, Catherine Daunt
The American Dream: From Pop to present presents an overview of the development of American printmaking since 1960, paying particular attention to key figures such as Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and Andy Warhol. The 1960s was a period of change in the production, marketing and consumption of prints and the medium attracted a new generation of artists whose attitude towards making art had... read more
African Textiles Today
Chris Spring
HardCover. Pub Date :2012-10-01 Pages: 256 Language: English Publisher: British Museum Press A fascinating insight into the living history of Africa African textiles are patterned with stories that range far beyond the time of the creation or the lifetime of their creator. In Africa. cloth is used to commemorate important events. people or political struggles that in other parts of the world m... read more
Superlight: Lightness in Contemporary Houses
Phyllis Richardson
Understand your camera's capabilities. Master the skills of exposure, composition and focus. Take amazing photos; no post-processing, no Photoshop, just your own vision.With amazing low-light capabilities, incredible definition, intelligent autofocus and a host of other features, digital cameras have now become so powerful that they have left their users behind. Most photographers can take com... read more
The Bike Deconstructed: A grand tour of the road bicycle
Richard Hallett
Do you know the difference between a head tube and a headset? Can you tell whether a frame is made from steel or carbon fibre? Do you know how a derailleur works and why it revolutionized bike design? If not, this is the perfect guide for you. The Bike Deconstructed celebrates bicycle design by looking at its individual components, large and small. Their historical roots are explored, key feat... read more
The Art of Horror Movies: An Illustrated History
Stephen Jones
(Applause Books). This magnificent companion to The Art of Horror , from the same creative team behind that award-winning illustrated volume, looks at the entire history of the horror film, from the silent era right up to the latest releases and trends. Through a series of informative chapters and fascinating sidebars chronologically charting the evolution of horror movies for more than a cent... read more
Publicity: 7 Steps to Publicize Just About Anything
David Carriere
Generating publicity is a journey that requires persistence as well as proper planning. In Publicity, veteran publicist David Carriere guides readers through the sometimes mysterious and often intimidating process of generating publicity while spelling out the details needed to orchestrate a successful publicity campaign. With twenty years of experience, Carriere's seven-step program outlines ... read more
Sgt Pepper at Fifty
Bill Demain, Mike McInnerney, Gillian Gaar
Five decades on from its release at the height of the Summer of Love in 1967, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band remains a keystone not just of the Beatles' career but also of popular music as a whole. Widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, it is a record soaked in, and thrillingly evocative of, the sights, sounds, and mood of the sixties at their most joyously psychedeli... read more
Cosmos
Giles Sparrow
London: Quercus Publishing Ltd., 2006. First Edition. Elephant Folio - a seriously large book. 224 pp. Illustrated from photographs. Stupendous photographs. Fine book in a jacket whose mammoth size has allowed a bit of curl at one edge, else is also fine. No flaws. A book for which the term "mind-boggling" was invented. If the aspect and implications of the Hubble Deep Field photograph are you... read more
The Art of Space is the most comprehensive celebration of space art ever to be published, profiling the development of space-based art in a variety of media. In The Art of Space, award-winning artist and best-selling author Ron Miller presents over 350 high-quality and often photorealistic images that chart how artists throughout history, working with the knowledge and research available durin... read more
The Art of Gothic: Music + Fashion + Alt Culture
Natasha Scharf
(Book). The gothic look head-to-toe black attire and extreme makeup has been a popular one since the 1980s, with each generation reinterpreting this dark aesthetic as its own. From the staccato postpunk of Siouxsie and the Banshees and the dark rock of the Sisters of Mercy through to the industrial metal of Marilyn Manson and the funereal emotional pop of My Chemical Romance, gothic culture ha... read more
This stunning book charts the rich history of the blues, through the dazzling array of posters, album covers, and advertisements that have shaped its identity over the past hundred years. The blues have been one of the most ubiquitous but diverse elements of American popular music at large, and the visual art associated with this unique sound has been just as varied and dynamic. There is no be... read more
King's X: The Oral History
Greg Prato
Countless accolades have been bestowed upon King’s X over the years, and, since their formation in 1980, they have grown to become one of the most universally admired in hard rock and heavy metal. But their story is one of many ups and downs, trials and tribulations, and periods of good and bad luck. This authorized biography examines and explores all aspects of their history, both personally ... read more
Tommy at 50: The Mood, the Music, the Look, and the Legacy of The Who's Legendary Rock Opera
Chris Charlesworth, Mike McInnerney
Tommy at 50 is the definitive, illustrated guide to The Who's legendary rock opera album Tommy, and released to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Rock legend Pete Townshend, The Who's cofounder, singer, and guitarist, provides the foreword and was interviewed for the retrospective, which showcases 200 images, including original art from the album's designer and rare photos.On May 23, 1969, The W... read more
Archer 887
Schroeder, Anna
The Blanchard Witches of Daihmler County
House, Micah
The Judges
Matluck, Eric J
Surrender
Schneider, Lee
The Blanchard Witches: Prodigal Daughters
House, Micah
The Blanchard Witches: Stitches in Time
House, Micah
Paul has 41 reviews
Professionalism
Professionalism
Quality
Quality
Value
Value
Communication & Punctuality
Communication & Punctuality
Paul did an absolutely brilliant job with my novel Surrender. He brought skill and poise to every part of the process, from developing the cover and interior design concepts, to refining those concepts into memorable, eye-catching designs. All the way through, he offered good advice. I’ve published before, but never a novel at this scale. Paul has a strong feel for the market and our dialogue a...
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Lee Schneider, December 2022
I chose Paul to create the paperback and ebook versions of my novel - both cover and interior layout. As someone new to self-publishing, I found Paul a mine of useful information and guidance. His communication was first rate, setting out clearly what to expect and when. He delivered on time and to a high creative standard. I would definitely recommend him.
Gerry Duffy, December 2022
Our experience with Paul was outstanding. He showed dedication & care for the project from the very start. I feel really lucky that we got to work with him & I'm very happy with how the book turned out. He was willing to go on Zoom calls to discuss the project with our team members when we needed more clarification on ideas & concepts which was very helpful. As soon as we gave him feedback ...
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Joe Ensley, November 2022
Joy to work with - great design, but above all endless patience which I think is a necessary but rare quality to find in a talented designer. Calm, unflappable and absolutely on timescale
jan cavelle, November 2022
I love working with Paul. He is the best and wonderful to work with.
Sandy Miranda, September 2022
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