One of the “rules” of indie publishing is that writers shouldn’t make their own covers.
I imagine some writers who have done just that to great success are shaking their heads right now. The reason I put “rules” in quotes above is that really it’s just a suggestion (albeit, a strongly worded one, sometimes). Indies have the freedom to choose for themselves. Ultimately, our accountability comes in the form of reader response to our work. Some writers create covers that readers love.
As someone with an artistic eye, I thought I might be one of the exceptions. However, as soon as I tried to design a cover that captured my idea, I realized I, in fact, was not among that multi-talented group. At least not when it came to realizing my vision for To Bring You Back.
I wasn’t going to include my failed attempt, but we’re all friends here, right? So, here you go:
There are some things I like about the cover. The font ended up being pretty similar to the one the designer eventually chose, and there is also a lake and a couple almost-kissing on the final cover (that’s what the silhouette overlaid on the picture is supposed to be). But in the end, the design didn’t match up with my vision and wasn’t what I wanted to represent this story, which I loved so much, to the world.
So, I started snooping through copyright pages of books with covers I admired, checking to see who designed them. Once I had a few designers in mind, I looked each of them up and browsed their other work to get a broader feel for their designs.
Sarah Hansen of Okay Creations stood out, and I hired her to create not only the cover for To Bring You Back, but also covers for the rest of the series.
When it came time for the covers to be designed, I put together a design brief. To start off the file, I provided my designer with a file that included pictures of covers I admired. I included my favorite covers for books by Melissa Tagg, Tari Faris, Becky Wade, and Susan May Warren.
Based on what seemed to be popular in my genre, I asked for a script font and a pastel color scheme. I also asked for the background of the photos to reflect something about the season and/or setting of each story. Specifics about each story from back cover copy to pictures of actors and models I thought had the right look for my main characters rounded out the document, and I sent it off.
And then, one day, the cover for To Bring You Back landed in my inbox in all its glory.
I was smitten.
Because Gannon, the hero in the story, is clean-shaven, I did ask if it was possible to edit out the model’s facial hair. When it wasn’t possible, my designer sent me mockups of the same cover with other couples, but, that one small detail aside, this model looked more like Gannon to me than any of the others.
So, we went with the original.
Once we had that design nailed down, my designer moved on to the other covers.
For An Awestruck Christmas Medley, I asked if we could change out the model. (It’s petty, but I couldn’t picture any of the guys of Awestruck wearing that scarf. Not that there’s anything wrong with it… Maybe John would wear it? Have you read the series? Who do you picture that guy to be?) However, with the stock photos available to us, we didn’t find one I liked better, so we went with the original.
The woman on the cover of To Belong Together originally wore a strapless dress (I assume—it didn’t show in the original cover design at all), so I asked for a strap to be added. Also, she didn’t have bangs, and the man in the background had facial hair. In that case, the designer was able to make the adjustments.
Similarly, I asked for a strap to be added over the shoulder of the woman on To Begin Again.
To Believe in You has the cover that changed the most from original concept to final version. The initial couple was different. The man had too much of a clean-cut office vibe for my imagining of Matt, the reformed bad boy of the series. Also, I had asked if the picture on the bottom could depict a small town around a marina, which is where most of the story takes place. My cover designer did what I asked for, but I felt the end result was busy.
So, I asked for a different couple and gave other ideas for the scene in the bottom, including fall leaves (because of the time of year when the book is set) or sunflowers (because there’s a sunflower field next to Matt’s family’s business). The end result was well-worth the back and forth, and it ties with To Bring You Back for my favorite of the series!
Now that the Rhythms of Redemption are all out in the world (and newly available through Kindle Unlimited!), I’m working on my next series, The Many Oaks Romances.
With the new series, I’ve decided to circle back to the idea of creating my own covers using what I learned through the process of working with a designer last time. In my post next month, I’ll share a behind-the-scenes look at how the cover for the prequel novella came to be! (I hope you’ll find my design skills have improved!)
In the meantime, which of the Rhythms of Redemption Romances covers do you like best? Or, what style of cover do you prefer? (Some options are ones with photographs of people like mine, covers with photographs of people that don’t include their faces, covers with photographs of settings, illustrated covers with people, illustrated covers without people-think flowers, birds, or objects.)
Emily Conrad writes contemporary Christian romance that explores life’s relevant questions. Though she likes to think some of her characters are pretty great, the ultimate hero of her stories (including the one she’s living) is Jesus. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband and their energetic coonhound rescue. Learn more about her and her books at emilyconradauthor.com.
I love hearing the behind the scenes details of how authors work, it’s fascinating! Your attention to detail is amazing and well worth it from the results, all the covers look great! I had no idea you might be able to change little details of stock photos but it definitely makes a difference, like with the strap on the model’s top.
My favourite of them is ‘To Believe in You’, as I love sunflowers. Generally I like covers without people on, as I often find they’re nothing like the characters are described which I find annoying (obviously not yours as you’ve been so careful about selecting them).
I look forward to hearing about how you find designing the covers for your next series, good luck!
good morning. as my dear mother used to say to all five of us kids NEVER STOP TRYING all your covers are very pretty. I have found over the years that I love to see the whole person, face and all. there can be so much expression on the face that I feel adds to the cover and starts me out knowing that I am in for a ride with this book. I also like to see the body in some form of action.
Love them all, but specifically Gannon and Matt’s. Those two were more of who I pictured for them. Love hearing the behind the scenes efforts that went into these.
Your covers have always caught my eye. Good to know your process and the designer. I will be looking them up!
Your book covers are all beautiful, I do like when the covers show the characters as a couple I like the one on To Began Again more. Wow, alot of work goes into the cover, everything has to be just right. When I see a cover , I like it when the cover tells me some bits about the book , by just looking at the cover. Thank you so much for sharing this , I enjoyed it. Have a great weekend .
My favorite of your above covers is To Begin Again. I love the covers and the flowers at the bottom. I have seen great illustrated covers and photo ones, with and without people but my preference is probably without people or more of a silhouette or just a speific body part, such as hands.
I like all of these covers. I prefer covers without clear pics of the hero/heroine on them, and really prefer just scenery. However, I know that I’m usually in the minority! I don’t like the illustrated covers, and I really don’t like the newer RomCom covers that remind me of comics. I know I’m really in the minority there!! Part of that is probably because I really don’t care for a lot of the RomComs.
I love all the covers, but I think the first two above are my favorites. When you listed the authors’ whose covers you admire, I was glad to see that you chose my favorite authors too. For your first series, I thought your covers looked like those of who have had many books published, very professional. Money well spent to chose a designer. They turned out perfect.
Thanks for sharing the story of how it all happened. It was very interesting and enlightening. : )
Yes! It’s so cool that people with the right skills can adjust to make the stock photos fit the story a little better! And I do really love how the sunflowers turned out too. :)
I like seeing faces too! It can be hard finding some that are close enough to the author’s mental image, but when it works, it’s my favorite kind of cover.
Those two are my favorites too!
Thank you, Brenda! I’m so grateful for how my designer brought the characters to life!
I love the soft colors of the couple on To Begin Again, and the woman does look a lot like I pictured the heroine. Yes! Hints about the story can be helpful on a cover.
I’m partial to the flowers too. I totally understand preferring covers that leave the characters’ appearances more to the imagination. Sometimes people have different ideas of how they should look. Being able to come up with a mental picture is part of the beauty of fiction!
There are some really pretty scenery covers! TI Lowe has some, as does Denise Hunter, so if say you have good company in the scenery camp!
Thank you, Sherry! I did really want the covers to look professional, and my designer knocked it out of the park. Blue is my favorite color, so I like seeing those tones in those first two covers.
Hahaha surely that cover with the strapless girl would have been a bit weird? It might look like the girl is without clothes! And in the second case without the strap it would look a bit… not very modest? Haha
I love covers with pastel shades or the ones with pink on them (it’s my favorite color) in general I can like any cover: with people, cartoons, cute landscapes (these give me the impression of something emotional or dramatic for some reason).
I also like covers with a gothic air (although it usually occurs in historical or romantic suspense) or those with a black background and bright flowers or pastel tones on the cover, although these are usually used in romances that I would never read hahaha more sinister but they convey a feeling of “this story has a lot of pain and drama” if a Christian author used one like that at least he would know that there is redemption at the end.
I will try to post this for a fourth time. I like the cover of An Awestruck Christmas Melody. God bless you.
Sorry you had trouble commenting, Debra! I’m glad you stuck with it. I like that cover too.
Hi Lilly! Yes, I added clothes for exactly this reasons! And I just finished reading A Drop in Forever by Dulce Dameron, which has a black cover with pastel flowers – very pretty, and I enjoyed the story.
nice covers