Depending on whom you speak with, the book cover design is everything, and choosing an experienced book cover designer is a vital part of indie publishing. There are design tools that allow indie authors to design their own covers, but the result usually reeks of amateur self publishing.
When I set out to choose my book cover designer, I went to 99designs. I had researched them a while back and discovered they offer a option for authors to create a contest. The more an author is willing to pay, the more submissions he or she will receive from book cover designers. And if the author makes the contest guaranteed, meaning there will definitely be a book cover designer selected and a payment made, then the contest will attract even more designers.
I budgeted $1000 for my book cover, and I paid $808 to launch my contest. I received around 50 designs. Some book cover designers submitted more than one design. After a week of receiving entries, I narrowed it down to four or five and gave each a few notes for guidance. And then after a few more days, I was able to select a winner. I have had a really good experience with my cover designer, Pintado, though I’ve occasionally been impatient.
After some back and forth and a few days of radio silence, Pintado finally got back to me. He was on a “long trip.” He responded to my messages and said he would have the designs to me as soon as possible. I couldn’t see the entire cover on my phone, but I can tell that he added the barcode. I’ll have to look closer when I get back from Joshua Tree to make sure that it’s the actual barcode. I remember when I was running the 99 Designs contest, designers would send me proposals with some random barcode on there. It was probably just for a visual reference, but it seemed strange to me because I submitted the barcode to 99designa with the rest of my metadata, but I should check and make sure. When it’s time to do a hardcover version, I’ll need to send him a different barcode. It will be nice to have that format available on October 1 for presale. I think I can make it happen this week.
Joshua Tree is nice. We drove around the entire park. There are certainly lots of Joshua trees. It’s pretty majestic but underwhelming at the same time. Lots of desert. Lots of cacti. Lots of big boulders. Skull Rock was a popular spot, right off the road. We hiked about a mile around this place that at one time had a dam. These ranchers actually built a dam to provide water for cattle. I can’t imagine anyone living out here, let alone raising cattle. But there it was, about halfway around the hike, a cement dam, dried up in the middle of the desert.
The hike was nice. The weather was great. Hot in the sun, cool in the shade. I could feel the perspiration on my lips and chin. Hydration is super important out here. It’s incredibly dry.
I pitched my next book idea. It’s interesting talking about it. It sort of shines a light on my situation. My heartbreak. The Swedish Fish is about a girl who loves fishing and identifies fishing with family. When her parents split, she obsesses over catching this legendary giant catfish in the lake. If she catches it, then she believes she can save her parents’ marriage. It’s going to open a lot of wounds. There were some questions last night about the separation and divorce. I try to keep everything matter of fact.
No writing today, most likely, besides these morning pages.
