• What’s the trim size?

• What are you envisioning for the cover?

• Do you have an estimated page count?

  Having a completely edited manuscript before reaching out for art and design is crucial as changes to text can have a huge impact on your page count and the book’s pagination. Don’t have an editor? We’ve created a list of extended resources to help you find a great one!

• Where will your books be printed? Will you handle the production side of the process? 

  Please choose one printer only! Why? Each printer has different requirements that must be met in order for books to be printed correctly. Therefore, it takes time to build and prep files, proof, etc. So we recommend looking into the options available in the Printing section.

• What’s your deadline? Or ideal pub date/season? 

  Please select a deadline that is at least 6 months before your target publication date—rush projects are not ideal for either party and not the best way to produce a book. The best and most effective projects don’t happen overnight, and to ensure the greatest quality from beginning to end, it’s recommended to not accelerate the process.

• Do you have any special requests for the design(s)?

Some designers may also specifically ask:

• Have you hired an illustrator? Is the artwork complete? If not, will you need help with finding an illustrator and providing art direction and pagination? 

• Please note: Hiring an illustrator is not included in the fee of hiring a book designer. Getting help with finding the right artist should be discussed with your designer and fees may vary.

• Will or has your book been properly copy edited?

Types of Art & Licensing

Based on your preferences and the designer’s suggested ideas, the cover design could include one or more of the following treatments: 

• Type only

• Hand-lettering

• Illustration/Vector art

• Photography

These treatments and ideas can affect the cost of your project, depending on which ones the cover designer will ultimately execute in the final product (if they won’t be done by an external collaborator). Therefore, it’s important to discuss all these potential ideas at the start of the project or state them in your design brief to get a better idea of how the pricing can vary based on a designer’s individual rates.

Additionally, licensing fonts, stock art, and/or photographs should be done by the author at their expense. In some cases, designers can license content on the author’s behalf and add the charges for reimbursement on their final invoice. Photos should also always be credited if noted in the license.