Canva is a graphic design tool that is simple and easy to use. It lets you quickly create graphics, book covers, and more in just a few clicks.

Instead of taking the time to learn complicated graphic design software, Canva takes a more user-friendly approach with their graphics. Even if you don’t have any graphic design skills you can still create high-quality graphics.

If you haven’t heard of it before or aren’t sure if you should use it as an author, we’re going to go over what it is, how to use it, and the pros and cons of Canva so you can decide if it’s the tool for you.

What is Canva

Canva lets you create designs in an easy and simple way.

Before Canva became so popular, one of the biggest software to create graphics was Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. Both InDesign and Photoshop were not easy to use for beginners and had a steep learning curve.

Canva provides an alternative since it’s much easier to use and there are a ton of templates to make professional-looking graphics in just a few clicks.

With Canva, you can upload your own pictures, author headshots, or graphics and create all new templates, flyers, book covers, and more.

There are some paid pictures and templates you can use, but they’re often cheap (even around $1) or you can upgrade to their paid plans for more options.

Why People Use Canva

Canva helps when it comes to making graphics. Even if you don’t have graphic design skills or know how to use complicated photo editors, you can create stunning visuals in a few clicks.

It saves each of your templates so you can reuse them again and again in the future.

There is also the ability to use Canva’s sizing options and templates so your graphics will look good on the site you’re posting it on.

For example, YouTube thumbnails are a very specific size. When you choose a YouTube thumbnail template, it’s auto-formatted to that size so you don’t need to worry about it uploading and looking off.

Canva Pricing

If you’re on a tight budget, you can rest assured knowing Canva has a great free plan to use.

There are a few plans to choose from if you do decide to upgrade or if you’re currently working with a team.

This doesn’t include everything that each plan offers, but let’s just cover the basics so you have an idea of which plan you’ll need.

Free plan:

• 250,000 free templates
• 100+ design types to choose from
• 5GB of cloud storage

Pro plan ($12.99 per month or $119.00 per year):

• Everything that is in the Free plan
• Ideal for 1-5 people
• 100+ million stock photos
• Access to premium and free templates
• Can create up to 100 Brand Kits so you can always use your colors, logos, and fonts
• Access to Background Remover
• Access to Magic Resize
• 100 GB of cloud storage
• Schedule social media content to 8 platforms

Enterprise plan ($30.00 per month):

• Everything in the Free and Pro plans
• Ideal for a team of 25 people
• Unlimited storage
• 24/7 support

Pros and Cons of Canva

Although Canva is easy to use and they offer a free plan, it doesn’t mean it’s the right choice for everyone.

There are some reasons you may or may not need to use Canva, which we’ll dive into.

Pros of Canva

Templates

One of the best parts of Canva is the endless templates you can choose from. No matter what you want to create or what you want to use, you have thousands of templates to choose from.

This helps you create everything you could possibly need because you simply drag and drop the templates and images to customize them.

Instead of having to design everything from scratch, you’re able to start with a full set of templates that are already designed in the right way.

Otherwise, you’ll need to learn some fundamentals of graphic design and figure out which text goes with what background and what colors work well together. Canva does the heavy lifting of that for you by giving you templates with complementary features.

Book covers

Creating a book cover is one of the most important things you will do as an author. A unique cover is what will help your book stand out amongst others.

With all of the templates and ways you can customize your book cover, Canva makes it easy without having to hire a graphic designer.

3-D mockups

Once you’ve created your book cover, it’s natural to create 3-D mockups next. If you don’t know what these are, essentially these are the graphics that show your book in the 3D world.

There might be stock images of people holding books or a book cover on a tablet. When you upload your cover, it automatically replaces the book cover with yours.

Social media graphics

You are most likely aware of how helpful social media can be to growing your career as an author. Being able to quickly create social media graphics can save you hours of work.

• Related: Social media for writers and authors
• Related: Quick social media tips for writers
• Related: Social media – to be or not to be

With Canva, you can also create templates so you always have on-brand posts to share.

It also gives you the ability to create social media posts quickly and easily so you can quickly make and schedule a ton of posts.

Author photos

While you’ll need quality photos for your author photo, you can create amazing graphics once you have those done.

You can easily upload your own photos into Canva to add in text or even drag-and-drop it into a template.

You can even make pretty much every asset you’ll need for an author media kit.

Event flyers

If you want to have events to promote your books, one of the best ways to do that is through events.

Thankfully, Canva has templates and designs for that as well. You can simply select one of their templates and change the information to include your event. Once you’re done, you can simply print them off and you’re ready to go.

Cons of Canva

Might need more unique or custom designs

If you need more unique designs than the templates can provide, Canva might not offer enough for you.

Some authors choose to use custom art or a unique, personalized design on the cover. If that is your vision for your cover or even your social media posts, you will most likely need to hire someone to create these.

Others have complained about how different images can also look between the computer and printed versions of their designs. Always do test copies before you submit and finalize any images when necessary.

Have to pay for the advanced features

If you want to use things such as a brand kit, their background remover, or more complicated graphic design options, you’ll need to upgrade to their paid plans.

Generic stock photos

The stock photos on Canva are mildly generic. You can pay for some of the better photos, but for the most part if you want truly custom photos, you’ll need to go capture your own.

If you do have your own, keep in mind you can still upload them into Canva and use them in templates or anywhere else that you need to.

Next Steps

Head on over to Canva and give it a try. If you’re thinking about using it for a book cover or social media, you’re in good company! That’s what most of our audience uses it for — at least at the drafting and brainstorming level. Then, they hand it over to a professional.

For more on what that process looks like to hire a cover designer, check out this article. The best way to start is by putting together inspiration with examples from books you like and creating basic Canva mockups of your own, then hiring a designer, and passing those examples off to the professional. Our friends at Self-Publishing School actually provide professional designers for your book cover if that’s what you need (and their advanced programs provide done for you social media graphics).

Our only caution and final word is this: People do judge books by their covers. Unless you’re a paid graphic designer, leave the final product to a true professional.

A 3D book cover can catch a reader’s eye and inspire them to pick your book on a shelf compared to the other ones around it. As an author, you know how important that moment can be.

Once they pick your book up, you’ll need to hook them with an interesting or intriguing story, but you’ll need a cover that gets them to look at your book in the first place.

Instead of hiring a professional designer, creating your own cover can save you a ton of money. A 3D cover might seem complicated to create, but we’ll show you just how easy it can be.

This article will go over what 3D book covers are, why you should consider using one, how you can create your own, and where to go to create one.

What Are 3D Book Covers

3D book covers are exactly what they sound like — a book cover with a 3D image on the front. Some authors choose to create one because it can give a unique look to a book or help tell a story.

A 3D book cover helps give some depth to the book cover and can help grab the attention of readers. As authors know, you need to have a book cover that stands out on a shelf.

Most books have just a few seconds to grab the visual attention of a shopper, so having an eye-catching cover can help your book stand out and interest them in reading the blurb on the back of your book.

Not only can you use 3D book cover for your book, but you can also use it to promote your work on social media or in any marketing materials.

Having various graphics to include in your social media posts, on your blog, or in your newsletter can help remind people to check out your work or order a copy.

How to Make 3D Book Covers

With the use of technology, thankfully creating 3D book covers is easier than ever before. Most sites have a drag-and-drop editor or have templates so you can create a cover in just a few minutes.

First, you’ll want to decide what kind of cover you’ll need or how many variations you might want.

Plenty of sites have a free option to create a book cover, but you’ll need to know in advance what you’ll need before you design your first one. That way, you’re sure to pick the right site for your specific needs.

You’ll also want to know if you’re looking for templates or for full creative control to design your own cover. Some sites offer templates but others give you more creative control of the final design.

This might also depend on your own graphic design skills, since you might need more or less design help depending on your own skill set.

You will also need to think about whether you have your own photos to use for your book cover or if you’ll need to find a site that provides images. That way, you’ll know if you need to find a site where you can upload ones or if they have a lot of images to choose from.

The most essential thing is to pick images, photos, colors, and so on, that align with what your story is about. You wouldn’t want to put a scary haunted house on the cover of a romance novel. You’ll need to think about what kind of message you want your cover to convey.

You will want to take the time to search through images or photograph your own images that truly encapsulate and explain your story.

If you’re debating between various covers, you can always ask people you know or your audience to decide between various covers. This is a good idea to make sure your book cover also accurately describes your story, since your audience will let you know what they think.

You might also need a site that directly integrates with your social media accounts or at least will let you format and size your images in particular sizes. That way, you will have perfectly formatted sizes which makes sharing your work on social media even easier.

Designing your 3D Book Covers

You’ll need a simple checklist to design a quality book cover. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Your book title and subtitle
• A general list of what kind of image you want
• Author’s name
• Blurbs to include (optional)
• General colors or themes you want to include

Having a checklist means you won’t forget anything essential. The last thing you want is to finally design your cover, download it, and realize you forgot to include something essential.

Companies to Use for 3D Book Covers

When it comes to creating your 3D book covers, you not only have a variety of companies to choose from, but plenty of them also offer templates so you can create multiple book covers.

Using a website can help you save a ton of money from hiring a professional photographer or graphic designer to create your book cover.

Book Brush

Book Brush company has a free plan that allows 15 image downloads and has a library of about 1.5 million photos to choose from.

For 3D book covers, it has over 200+ templates for you to drag and drop so you can create your cover in just a few minutes. There are plenty of texts to choose from and stamps to customize your cover.

Canva

Canva is a great option for authors to create 3D book covers. They have hundreds of layouts to choose from and give you full customization options. They also offer over 1 million stock images, graphics, and illustrations to choose from.

While most of their images are free, they do have some premium images that you can buy for $1. That’s a decent price when you consider how much it costs to hire a photographer or graphic designer.

Using drag-and-drop design tools, you can change the text, font, colors, images, or anything else you could want to customize in just a few clicks. It allows you to download your cover in PNG, JPG, or PDF files.

Self Publishing School

Self Publishing School has a book mockup generator that can help you create mockups. There are a ton of templates to choose from and it gives you the ability to upload your own images as well so you can create the exact look you want.

DIY Book Covers

If you need a 3D model of your book on top of a 3D book cover, this simple tool allows you to create the look of a book. This would be perfect to use on social media or on your website to create the look of a physical or digital book.

Media Modifier

Media Modifier lets you create visuals and mockups in just a few simple steps. They have hundreds of unique book covers to choose from and some are even organized by genre to help you find one easily.

The free plan gets you 100 free templates and 1,300+ free fonts. It integrates with Unsplash and GIPHY to create even better visuals or find high quality images to use for your 3D book covers.

Create Your Own Cover

Overall, creating 3D book covers is easy and should not be a barrier for most authors. Once you pick a site, you can create your cover quickly and start sharing your story.

I recently published my 21st book to the KDP platform, having been self-publishing for the last 7 years. And as I was going through the self-publishing steps again, it occurred to me how the platform has evolved over the past decade. This text-based, step-by-step tutorial is your most current and up-to-date process to upload your book to KDP.

Publishing a book can be overwhelming – especially if you want to make sure you’re doing it right and to prevent any confusion throughout the process on how to publish a book. Let’s take a look at the process and what is required to become a bestselling self-published author.

If you are a first-time author—or seasoned veteran at self-publishing—you will find this brief post on publishing to KDP very beneficial.

• What is KDP?
• Uploading Your Book to Amazon KDP: a step-by-step process (11 Steps)
• Bonus Step: 3 Marketing Tools to Consider When Publishing on KDP
• Next Steps

But first…

What is KDP?

Kindle Direct Publishing, or KDP for short, is Amazon’s book publishing platform that can be used to publish an eBook across the Amazon platforms, in the United States and multiple countries worldwide. It is one of the top self-publishing companies, and currently dominates the self-publishing book market. 

Uploading Your Book to Amazon KDP: a Step-by-Step Process

Uploading your book to KDP is relatively easy. You don’t have to have a lot of tech know-how, and if you run into any issues, KDP support is excellent at walking you through the process, either by email or over the phone.

In order to upload and prepare your book for publishing on KDP, there are several key elements you need at the ready. 

• Your completed formatted book (eBook and Paperback). The best formats are ePub file for Kindle eBook and a PDF for the paperback/Hardcover
• Keywords for KDP as researched with Publisher Rocket
• Categories list as research with Publisher Rocket (eBook and paperback categories)
• ISBNs—purchased through Bowker.com

You can hire a professional formatter if you want, or you can format the book yourself. Here’s a guide that walks you through the formatting process for KDP.

If you plan to publish more than one eBook—or simply want to do the formatting yourself—you may want to invest in a user-friendly book formatting software such as Atticus.io. It’s a relatively low investment for $147.00, and it’s simple to use.

Now, use the steps below to complete the process from start to finish. As you navigate through each step, be sure to use the images and examples listed below to guide you through the process.

Step #0: Create a KDP Account (if you don’t have one)

You need an Amazon account to publish with Kindle Direct Publishing. If you don’t have one, that’s the first step you need to complete to learn how to publish an eBook on Amazon.

• Go to https://kdp.amazon.com and register your Amazon account.
• Locate the “Self Publish With Us” tab at the bottom of the main page on Amazon, and click on that.

• “Sign in” with your Amazon login credentials. (This link goes to the U.S. store.)
• Set up your tax details with KDP when prompted
• Click “Finished” to start setting up your book

Step #1: Set up your book formats

• Select “+Create” or Create a book for a tutorial on KDP
• You will be prompted with 4 selections to create a: Kindle eBook/Paperback/Hardcover/Series page

• Click on “Create eBook”

Now you have created your KDP Bookshelf page for this book, so you have this page:

Here is a brief explanation about the four tabs on the KDP page:

1. Bookshelf: The bookshelf is where you manage all things related to your book content and publishing. You can make changes in the bookshelf to update your books later, and for communicating with KDP on requests. 
2. Reports: Track your book sales, royalties earned, sales history, AMS tracking, and generate daily, monthly or yearly reports for all your book sales activity.
3. Community: Engage with Amazon’s stellar published authors in a discussion forum. Get your questions answered and ask for help from other self-published authors. You can also access the KDP Community Guidelines.
4. Marketing: This is my favorite section. Under marketing, gain direct access all your marketing resources that includes Kindle Select, Author Central, Amazon Advertising (AMS), Run a Price Promotion and, you can nominate your eBook for a Kindle Deal or Amazon’s Prime Reading Deal. There is more on this coming up in this post!

Step #2: Create Title / Subtitle for your Book

You probably already know this and so, plug in your title and subtitle, and that’s it!

Here are a few tips for crafting a solid book title:

1. Your Title/Subtitle includes a solution to the reader’s problem: Your title/subtitle should be very clear on what your readers will learn by engaging with your book. What will they be able to accomplish? What will be the big result achieved at the end?
2. Implement a hook: This is what grabs your potential readers’ attention. The title conveys something they definitely want. A great subtitle rolls off the tongue and draws people in. Keep it simple, and avoid getting too creative.
3. Include your master keywords: We will get into keywords further down but, you want to include your keywords in the title. This really helps with making your book more searchable in the Amazon database. You want the algorithms to know who is searching for your book, and keywords can point readers in the right direction.

Step #3: Add a series (edition number)

If you have a series of books, drop in the series name and volume number now. If not, leave this blank.

Edition Number: You can provide an edition number if this title is a new edition of an existing book.

Step #4 – Add your author name

Fill in your author name. If you use a pen name you have to write this name in, and not your real name. The name you enter here is what will appear on your book’s page.

As for contributors, you can add the names of people who helped to create the book. This could be your book editor, foreword contributor, illustrator, cover designer, or narrator.

Step #5: Write a Compelling Book Description

A compelling book description sells lots of books and builds your fanbase. This is why you need a powerful book description in order for potential buyers to read what the book is about.

Here’s why your book description matters:

1. It is a sales page crafted to capture the interest of your reader.
2. Amazon’s algorithm bots scans the book description for relevant keywords indexed by Amazon.
3. It is the critical decision-maker for browsers to make a final decision on buying your book. 

Here is a great resource for learning how to create a compelling description: the Free Amazon Book Description generator by Dave Chesson at Kindlepreneur.

Step #6 – Choose Relevant Keywords

Keywords and categories are important for your eBooks success on Amazon’s platform. Keywords are the relevant words that customers are plugging into the Amazon search bar to locate products relevant to their interests.

You are able to insert 7 keywords (or 50 characters) for your book on Amazon.

Need help with your keyword research?

We recommend these tools:

Use these tools to find keywords for your eBook:

• Publisher Rocket
• Helium 10/Cerebro
• Amazon’s Autofill Function

Consider inserting keywords into your book’s subtitle for higher searchability within Amazon’s algorithm.

Check out these examples:

Step #7: Choose Relevant (and strong niche) Categories

Amazon wants your book to be found so they have provided specific categories for your book to be positioned. But you can only select 2 browse categories from within the bookshelf. BUT…

You can choose ten book categories overall for your eBook.

When it comes to selecting your eBook’s categories, you want:

• Categories that are low to medium in competition (10,000—25,000)
• Relevant to your niche (Home Gardening, Self Help/Happiness)
• Categories with good traffic populated with books relevant to your niche

Step #8: Select your book publishing date

The next step is to select your book release option.

You have two options for releasing your eBook on Amazon:

• Release it now: This means you are not doing a pre-order but, by the time you are finished filling in all the book details, you will launch immediately. If this is not the case, click on the “save draft” option at the bottom of the page. You can publish your book at any time after all these steps are completed.
• Make your book available for pre-order: Here you can learn about Amazon’s pre-order book release process. I would recommend this if you can drive traffic to your book before it is released. It is a good strategy for getting your book to start ranking before it is even live in the store. You can set your pre-order date within one year of release. But recommended to keep this window shorter, from 14-28 days.
• Paperback/Hardcover Books: There currently is not an option to put the paperback/hardcover version up for preorder. You must publish it right away. You will not see this pre-order option on the paperback page in KDP

Step #9: Upload your book files for eBook and Paperback

We are almost done! Now you can upload your book assuming that you have the formatted files ready to go.

Here are the steps to upload your files:

• Check either “Yes” or “No” for whether or not you want your book to be protected under Digital Rights Management. Note: This is only for the eBook version. Paperback does not have this.
• Upload for eBook: From your desktop or Cloud, upload your ePub or Word Doc and it should be ready within a few minutes. Amazon will do a quick scan for grammatical/spelling errors and then you’re good to go.
• Upload for Paperback/Hardcover format: Requires a PDF document as the recommended format. You can also upload a DOC (.doc), DOCX (.docx), HTML (.html), or RTF (.rtf).
• Add your ISBN for the paperback book. You can purchase ISBNs at Bowker.com. Amazon will provide ASINs free of charge if you’re on a budget.

Now upload your eBook cover in JPEG format.

The Paperback Setup:

The publishing process for the paperback has a few additional steps as shown below:

1. Choose your print options for the book.

2. Choose the trip size for your book. Amazon has several print sizes to choose from. The most common are 5×5, 5.5×8.5, and 6×9.
3. Choose your bleed settings. Unless your book has colored photos or graphics that extend to the end of the page, you can choose no bleed.
4. You have two choices for the finish: Matte or Glossy.

Note: Once published, you cannot change the size of your book or print options unless you unpublish and republish it again.

Upload your paperback cover in PDF format. Your book designer should provide this for you.

Now that your manuscript and book cover is uploaded, you can now check the book files with the Book previewer:

Amazon will give your print cost right away. This is the cost for printing your book before shipping.

Step #10 – KDP Select Enrollment

You’re almost there, and now, on the final page in KDP, you are going to:

• Decide to join KDP Select…or not.
• Price your book
• Publish your book

The KDP Select Program

What is KDP Select? KDP Select is Amazon’s exclusivity program for your eBook.

KDP Select is a free program, open to all authors willing to give Amazon exclusive rights to their book for 90 days. By enrolling in the program, you get access to promotional tools and the opportunity to earn higher royalties. 

After the 90 days, authors can choose to leave the program or auto-renew for the same amount of time. Keep in mind that while digital copies must be sold exclusively on Amazon, print copies can still be sold elsewhere. You can also distribute a 10% sample of the book outside of Amazon.

When you join KDP Select, prime members can borrow your book and read for free under their membership. You, as the author, get paid for the volume of pages that are read.

There are several key benefits to joining Amazon’s select program, and you can opt out of the program at any time after 90 days.

You can enroll your book here: Enroll in KDP Select

To learn more about what KDP Select is, you can check here on Amazon.

Step #11 – Pricing and Publishing

This is it: The time has come to set your pricing and hit that publish button.

A common question many soon-to-be-authors ask is: “How much should I price my book at?”

This is always up to you, the author.  But to help you decide, there are two royalty options for your book: 35% and 70%. If your book is below $2.99, you must choose 35%. Between $2.99 and $9.99, you are paid 70% of the sale of your eBook. If your book is priced over $9.99, the royalty drops down to 35% again. Note: This is different for paperback books.

So, ideally you want your book priced within the $2.99—$9.99 range.

The royalty payments do vary depending on the country, but you can learn more here: KDP Select pricing page.

Generally, the 70% royalty option is the better choice, because it pays the most.

• Related: Book Royalties Calculator

As a suggestion, if you are just starting out you may want to price your book between $2.99 and $4.99. As your platform and reader base grows, consider raising the price to average between $5.99—$7.99.

Check out the Digital Pricing Page for a breakdown of royalty options.

Pricing Your Paperback

You can price your paperback according to print cost. Generally, most books that are text only, printed in black and white, and range from 120—25- pages are about $9.99—14.99. 

One thing to note is, if you intend to publish your book on Ingramspark as well, do not check the expanded distribution box.

Now, let’s publish!

When ready you can hit the publish button on the Kindle and paperback version. The digital book should go live within 12 hours, and the paperback should take about 24 hours. Amazon does state that it could take up to 72 hours, but this is very rare. Without any issues, your books will be available in multiple marketplaces.

Before publishing the paperback, you can order a proof copy of the book before publishing.

Bonus Step: 3 Marketing Tools to Consider When Publishing on KDP

A+ Content

Amazon A+ Content allows you to add images, text, and comparison tables to your Amazon detail page to engage readers and give them more information as they consider buying your book. Add A+ content to your detail page to make your book stand out, connect readers with your books, and share more about your author story.

If you’re promoting a single book (or a book series) the A+ content is a powerful promotional feature you want to integrate with your book to improve the customer experience. Amazon favors books that are customer-centric, and several ways to do this are, creating a high quality book with a quality cover and backing it up with an A+ content page.

You can check out stellar A+ content from books such as Pawprints on our Hearts or Do the Hard Things First

Nominate Your eBooks

Amazon has special programs in place that leverage your book sales and rankings.

Kindle Deals

Kindle Deals are limited-time discount deals offered on eBooks, lasting from one day up to multiple weeks. Customers will see both the regular price and the promotional price on the eBook’s detail page.

Books enrolled in Kindle Deals may be eligible for featured placement in the Kindle store or additional email marketing. While the nomination program is in Beta, you will receive royalties on the discounted price for every sale during the deal according to your selected royalty plan.

Prime Reading

Prime Reading is an optional promotional program that allows authors to get their titles in front of Amazon’s most engaged readers. Prime Reading members enjoy unlimited reading at no additional cost.

Your book will remain available for regular sales and royalty earnings during your Prime Reading promotional period.

Note: Your title must be enrolled in KDP Select to be eligible for Prime Reading.

You must either nominate your book for these programs, or wait for Amazon to select your book. If selected for these programs, you will receive an email asking to accept the offer. You can have these deals in multiple countries such as India, UK, Germany and Canada, too.

To learn more about Kindle Deals and Prime Deals, you can check this page: Nominate your eBook for a promotion

This article was inspired by Lee Foster's older series on our blog:

• Self-Publishing Your Book on Amazon is Changing
• Self-Publishing Your Book on Smashwords is Changing
• Self-Publishing Your Book on Ingram Spark

Next Steps: Sell more eBooks and Paperbacks!

You’ve learned how to publish an eBook and paperback…but what’s next? It’s time to get your eBook onto the devices of as many readers as possible, so you need to launch that book and get it into the hands of hungry readers!

Do you know what you need to have a successful launch? 

Now you need to create a promotional strategy for your book, which includes various marketing strategies, such as advertisements on promo sites like BookBub and Draft2Digital if you publish wide.

Make sure you have a book marketing plan and launch this book like a pro!

This means you could sign up for one of the best self-publishing courses and start working with the top-rated self-publishing companies to navigate through the process with support.

What other questions do you have about how to self-publish your future book?

But it’s one of the most important.

A suitable cover for your book can help attract readers that would never otherwise discover it. The wrong cover can condemn your book to failure, no matter how good the content happens to be.

So how do you make sure your book cover design ideas give you the best chance of success?

One way is to take inspiration from this year’s bestselling books. By analyzing and appreciating bestselling book covers, you gain design inspiration that is aligned with the expectations of contemporary readers.

Let’s explore some of the bestselling book covers of 2022 so far.

Nonfiction book cover design ideas

A nonfiction book cover arguably has to do more work than its fiction counterpart.

Nonfiction book titles and subtitles often convey more information to readers than fictional titles. Finding a way to clearly and attractively showcase this information is an important part of a nonfiction book cover.

At the same time, the cover of a nonfiction book should be aesthetically harmonious with its subject matter and meet reader expectations for whichever niche of nonfiction it covers.

Here are three of the bestselling nonfiction books of 2022 and the lessons you can learn from their covers.

Atomic Habits by James Clear

Although Atomic Habits by James Clear has been on the market for a few years, it’s currently the bestselling nonfiction of 2022 on Amazon. Atomic Habits teaches readers both the theory and practice of building successful habits by showcasing successful case studies and the reasons for their success. 

So what is so effective about the cover of Atomic Habits? The first thing that stands out is the contrast of the white background of the cover to its text. The black text for the subtitle and author name, along with the graphic of the book title, stand out impactfully against their plain backdrop.

The key promise of ‘tiny changes, remarkable results’ sits at the top of the page, and the subtitle ‘an easy and proven way to build good habits and break bad ones’ rests just below the main book title graphic. This displays both the key benefit the reader will get from Atomic Habits as well as the way this benefit will be taught without the need to even open the book.  

Perhaps the most interesting element of the Atomic Habits book cover is the title graphic itself. Rather than being conventional text, the words ‘Atomic Habits’ are made up of small circular pixels, or atoms, an allusion to the book’s title and guiding principle. The ways these circles arch at the top and bottom of the cover also help to draw the eye of a book browser. 

So what are some of the key takeaways of Atomic Habits’ cover for nonfiction authors?

1. Ensure the cover text pops off the background.
2. Convey the benefit a reader will get from the book.
3. Cleverly display the main book title in a way that links to its subject matter.

Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown

Brené Brown’s Atlas of the Heart is one of the best-performing nonfiction books of 2022 so far, consistently topping the charts both online and in bookstores across the world. Brown’s book gives readers both academic and practical insight into human emotion and experience. 

What is it about the cover of Atlas of the Heart that inspires people to take a closer look? The first thing that stands out is the contrast of the gold author and title text with the rich red background. These colors convey luxury and quality as well as provide an attractive contrast.

Brené Brown’s credentials are displayed in a contrasting white text that allows the reader to feel assured they will be buying the work of not only a Ph.D. and Masters of Social Work holder but one whose ideas have translated into a number 1 New York Times bestseller. With the abundance of nonfiction available in today’s market, emphasizing the credibility of the author is essential. 

The teachings of Atlas of the Heart are showcased through both the subtitle and main book title graphic. The subtitle of ‘Mapping meaningful connection and the language of human experience’ explains exactly what the book will cover and also ties in with the ‘atlas’ concept. The main graphic, in the shape of a heart that is closer to an anatomically correct shape rather than the simplistic, ‘love heart’ style, visually showcases both the beauty and nature of being the ‘mapmaker and traveler’ in our lives.

So what can we learn from the Atlas of the Heart cover that applies to our nonfiction books?

1. Highlight any author credentials or performance information relevant to potential readers of the book.
2. Graphics that manage to combine intrigue, beauty, and an allusion to the book’s subject matter.
3. Colors that help set a book’s tone and prime readers for the mood of the topic.

The Body Keeps the Score by Bessell van der Kolk

Dr. Van Der Kolk’s The Body Keeps the Score is one of the most significant and popular books dealing with trauma and the impact it has on people of recent times. As more and more of us are waking up to the major role that trauma has in both personal and social dysfunction, we turn to books such as The Body Keeps the Score to help us live better lives.

The cover of The Body Keeps the Score combines color, text, and graphics effectively to catch a person’s eye and convince them of why they should read this book, why the author is a worthy expert on the topic, and what other credible people have to say about it.

The book cover’s soothing blue background is one of the most instantly noticeable things about The Body Keeps the Score. This color conveys a mood of nature, calm, and healing, all of which are suitable choices for a book covering the impact of trauma. The title and author text are presented in black text, allowing them to contrast powerfully with the black background. The main graphic of a human silhouette is also in black, providing a pleasing throughline of color between the top, center, and bottom of the cover. This graphic is also framed in white, helping to draw the eye to it.

The Body Keeps the Score’s cover also highlights the credibility of Bessel van der Kolk as an M.D, a credential also shared by Judith Herman, who provides the endorsement quotation at the base of the book cover. The cover’s use of this endorsement persuades a potential buyer to check out the book further by drawing on the psychological principle of social proof. 

What can self-published nonfiction authors learn from this book cover?

1. Endorsement quotations are effective showcases of social proof of a book’s promise.
2. How to limit the number of colors on a book cover to offer visual intrigue while avoiding clutter.
3. That an eye-catching graphic can boost the appeal and accessibility of a somewhat academic topic.

Fiction book cover design ideas

Fiction book covers have an essential role to play in helping potential readers decide if the book is likely to meet their expectations in terms of genre and subject matter. For independent authors, a fiction cover is also one of the best ways to help a reader feel reassured that just because a book is self-published, it doesn’t mean it’s low-quality. Conversely, a low-quality book cover is one of the fastest routes to failure for self-publishers.

Let’s explore three of the bestselling fiction books of 2022 and determine what lessons can be learned from their covers.

It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover

Colleen Hoover’s It Ends with Us is not only one of the bestselling romance novels of 2022 but one of the bestselling fiction books overall. Its plot deals with protagonist Lily’s relationship with a relationship-averse neurosurgeon and the subsequent reappearance of her first love. So what role does this book’s cover play in its success?

One of the most instantly striking elements of It Ends with Us’ cover is the lack of contrast in color between the book’s title, the author’s name text, and the primary graphic of shattered flowers. The deep pink color used in all three not only links them cohesively but also conveys the romance genre of the book. 

How the main graphic of the shattered flowers goes under and above the book title is beautiful. Many book covers treat text and graphics as entirely separated elements, so to see them entwined in this way is very effective. The black text quotation endorsing the book at the top of the cover, and the black text stating that Colleen Hoover is an NYT bestselling author at its base, help to soberly frame the intense color of its center.

So what design insight can indie fiction authors take from this cover?

1. The color of text and images on a fiction book cover should show compatibility with the book’s genre the majority of the time.
2. Showcasing the bestseller status of not only the author, but the writer providing the endorsement quotation, helps to convince a potential buyer a book is worth reading.
3. A fiction book cover’s text and graphics can intertwine rather than being treated as separate elements.

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens has delighted countless readers in 2022 with its mix of a mysterious plot, beautiful descriptions of nature, and relatable themes. Its fantastic prose is complemented by one of the most attractive book covers found on the fiction bestseller list this year. 

Perhaps the most striking component of the Where the Crawdads Sing cover is the full-page image used as a backdrop. The beauty of the sky and the lush blue of the water are stunning and likely to appeal to a generation familiar with the aesthetic of natural images like these that perform so well online.

Aside from its background, other noteworthy features of this book cover include the use of a book club sticker-style graphic as well as the choice of endorsement blurb at the cover’s base. The book club graphic grants Where the Crawdads Sing not only social proof but also the promise that this is a book so interesting people will want to discuss and debate it socially. Choosing to attribute the blurb to The New York Times Book Review rather than any individual writer draws upon the prestige of the publication to appeal to the reader.

What can self-published authors with upcoming fiction books learn from this cover?

1. Using an image as the entire backdrop of your book cover can be a beautiful choice.
2. A small sticker-style graphic showcasing book clubs or awards can add an element of social proof to your book.
3. Consider using the name of a publication rather than an author for your blurb quote.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Immersive and exquisitely-crafted romance novels always have a chance of selling well, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid is proof. Reid’s novel is one of the bestselling books of 2022, despite not being the author’s latest work. The book is told from the perspectives of both a glamorous Hollywood star and the magazine reporter she decides to share her story with. 

An interesting aspect of the cover for The Seven Husbands is how the green background color of the cover and the dress featured in its main graphic are very close to each other. Despite the similarity, the result is a feeling of compatibility rather than a clash. From the top left corner down to the bottom right, the green gradient lightens gradually, helping draw attention across the cover. This particular green also conveys glamor and glitz, tying in with the novel’s subject matter. 

The feeling of glitz and glamor provided by this book cover is further reinforced by the author’s name in gold text. To provide visual contrast, the book title, the description ‘a novel’ and the sentence ‘author of Maybe in Another Life’ are written in white, allowing them to pop pleasingly against the almost all-green background.

Aside from admiring its aesthetic, what can self-published authors learn from this book cover?

1. Diagonal gradient color is an attractive choice of book cover background.
2. It’s possible to use a main book cover image and background that are almost the same color.
3. In the case of fiction, text showcasing the author’s other work can help convince a potential buyer that this is the right book for them.

Next Steps

Your choice of book cover is one of the most crucial elements that will lead to success or failure as a self-published author. Use the ideas from this guide as well as inspiration from covers you love and admire to give your book the best chance of success.

For more information on the topic, check out these articles and be sure to download your Book Cover Design checklist.

• Related: Book Cover Design: Your Ultimate Guide for Memorable Book Covers
• Related: What Makes a Good Book Cover
• Related: Premade Book Covers

Editor's Note:

Since this article was originally published in November 2019, Draft2Digital has acquired Smashwords. For more information on that merger / acquisition, check out the article from SelfPublishing.com. The original press release is here.

This is a third and final perspective in my publishing strategy trilogy, a drama festival with three events, Amazon and Ingram being the earlier performances. There have been five-week breaks between these theatrics as I proceed in the Joel Friedlander modern publishing ecosystem.

If you want to distribute your ebook through Amazon directly and then also to “every ebook vendor beyond Amazon,” how should you do it? Smashwords is my recommended choice.

Non-exclusive is my chosen publishing survival mantra in book/ebook publishing. I work with Amazon directly, but am non-exclusive. I also think this is the healthiest approach for all citizens who control “knowledge products” in our society, meaning books/ebooks. We need as much diversity in the marketplace of ideas as we can arrange. Diversity in the marketplace is a socially desirable goal.

I have always wondered what percentage of ebooks sold in America are sold on Amazon. I have heard a lot of folks say 60% for several years. But recently a couple of knowledgeable people said the figure is higher. If you have credible info on this, please share it with us.

I wanted a way to distribute my ebook with Amazon and beyond Amazon. My targets would be Apple Books (formerly called iBooks), B&N ebooks, Kobo, and all the other vendors. How would I do this?

From Bookbaby to Smashwords

Each of us has a publishing history. We have had partners over the years. We and our partners have likely worked hard to achieve success. But maybe we have moved on to new partners.

I decided years ago, in my first ebooks, to proceed with BookBaby for two ebooks. They did and still do a good job. But revisions of my ebooks with BookBaby will require a substantial new cost, as I understand it. In Amazon Kindle and in Smashwords, I can simply write over the file at no cost. So I switched to Amazon direct and to Smashwords for “everyone else,” which is what I recommend now for ebook distribution.

Smashwords now distributes about 523,000 ebooks. They must be doing something right.

Companies are composed of people. The main people at Smashwords are Mark Coker and Jim Azevedo. I first met Mark about 2009, when he was getting started and we asked him to talk at our local independent-publishing org, called BAIPA.org. Later I met Jim when we both gave talks at Mike Larsen’s annual SF Writers Conference. Both men seem dedicated to author empowerment as well as their own success.

Like all participants in modern publishing, Smashwords has evolved. It has become a major educational ecosystem for the do-it-yourself ebook author. My own practices are a variation on do-it-yourself. I believe in do-it-yourself as much as I can, but I also favor get-an-expert-to-check-it. For my latest ebook, I had Tracy Atkins check things out after I took it as far as I could.

For one earlier ebook, when looking for some expert assistance, I turned to a feature of Smashwords, called Mark’s List. This is a vetted list of suppliers of ebook-formatting and cover design services. Through Mark’s List, I chose a guy in Vancouver to check out my ebook formatting of two years ago. He did a good job.

Uploading to Smashwords

So my plan was settled for ebooks: Smashwords would be my distribution point for the ebook to “everyone beyond Amazon.” This meant Apple Books, B&N, Kobo, and others.

The “interior” and “cover” files were a little tricky to get organized.

Again, as is to be expected, there are a lot of little nuances in file preparation.

For this new book, Northern California History Travel Adventures: 35 Suggested Trips, the file finally went through okay, partly because, once again, I engaged a file expert (Tracy Atkins, atkins.tracy@gmail.com) to massage my best do-it-yourself efforts.

I had used a Joel Friedlander 2-Way Word Template to set up the book in a brutal manner before asking Tracy to massage it. Tracy ultimately gave me an epub format version that went through well.

Before I engaged Tracy, my Word template format had challenges on Smashwords. The long and modern Word file got saved with a modern Word docx and was slightly under the 15 megs maximum size allowed for Smashwords. However, the Smashwords system seemed to need an earlier doc file format rather than docx.

When I tried to convert the docx to doc the file emerged as too large. Therefore, I had Tracy change the file to the alternative epub format, and it went through fine.

Ebook authors need to show a bit of resilience to be successful. In all the publishing systems, expect a few glitches rather than instant success, and puzzle forward.

Details of Financial Return to the Author in Kindle, Ingram, and Smashwords

Authors need to keep track of exactly the cash returned to them in sales from their participation in each of these publishing ecosystems.

With my $4.99 ebook, how much do I earn today in the various structures?

Amazon Kindle

In Amazon Kindle, the formula appears to be 70% of retail, but after a delivery fee, which depends on ebook size.

Your ebook on Amazon must be in the recommended $2.99-$9.99 range to get the 70%. The return appears to drop to 35% when you are out of compliance regarding the recommended ebook prices.

No one can explain Amazon better than Amazon itself, so review the nuanced details here.

Amazon is not shy about suggesting you go exclusive with them. I prefer non-exclusive, but the exclusive benefits are presented at here.

IngramSpark

In IngramSpark the formula for ebooks appears to be 40% or 45% return of retail price and there is no restriction on price parameters.

IngramSpark explains here

Smashwords

In Smashwords, the situation is both simple and more complicated.

When Smashwords sells one of my ebooks in Apple Books, as an example, it appears that I earn 60% of list. For Libraries, the return is 45% of list.

However, Smashwords also has its own internal selling ecosystem, so my book in that structure appears to net for me 56% to 85% of list. The details are granular. Mark Coker recently wrote me about this as follows:

“For sales through the Smashwords Store, the percentage is based on the total amount of the shopping cart. The author earns 85% net where net = the purchase price minus the PayPal fee. So, for some common price points it would be 56% for a 99 cent ebook, 74% for a $2.99 book, 76% for $3.99 and 80% for books or shopping cart totals over $7.99. The easiest way for you to get the exact percentage at different price points is to log into your account, click publish, then enter sample prices into the pricing calculator. It’ll display a dynamic pie chart that shows how much is earned at each price for each channel.”

There is one endearing humor item in the Smashwords’ presentation of their program if you look at their publishing page.

The humor item, if you missed it, is that the threshold of monthly payment to authors, if you receive your money from Smashwords on Paypal, is one cent. For an author with extremely modest sales, this is about as good as it gets.

Smashwords does not appear to offer phone support, so communicating via email or their forms on their website is best.

Smashwords, as well as IngramSpark, does not appear to penalize authors who want to price their ebooks above $9.99. Two of my travel journalism colleagues, experts in their niches, like this set-your-own-price approach. They have their niche markets and are able to command higher than $9.99 for their ebook products. On Amazon their return would drop to 35%. These talented and successful self-publishers, models to all of us who seek indie success, are Sandy Friend and Candy Harrington.

The situation on ebook pricing and financial return to authors does change. I may even be in error in some of my reporting comments above. There are nuances in all these pricing schemes to be aware of. Do not hesitate to correct my possible errors regarding any of these vendors.

Looking to the Future of Ebook Publishing

Attentive ebook authors will want to watch, with each passing year, the evolving payment and author-learning ecosystems available through Amazon Kindle, IngramSpark, Smashwords, and others.

All these major systems will evolve, with innovation and disruption as the norm.

In our device-driven world, it will also be interesting to watch consumer behavior and how consumer choices affect the mix of print books versus ebooks sold.

Some folks will say: I just want to curl up with a printed book in bed or, in my travel world, take that guidebook in my backpack in the field.

Others will say: Why would I ever buy a printed book again, since I can carry around a hundred ebooks on my device?

The wise author, in my view, will remain agnostic as these theological debates proceed and will give the consumer whatever form of communion and salvation he or she desires. The forms in which content can be presented to the consumer are slippery.

Beyond even print books and ebooks, I am a fan of a form I would call the “website book,” but that is another discussion for another time.

Photo: BigStockPhoto

While book sizes may seem like more of an aesthetic choice, consider the following ways your book size influences the context it is placed in:

• Whether it fits well in a backpack or purse
• How word count affects thickness 
• How it lays on a coffee table
• Shelf space at bookstores

These factors may seem nonconsequential until further thought is put into them. In this article we break down:

• What Is A Book Size Called?
• What Are Standard Book Sizes?
• What Is The Most Popular Book Size?
• Why Book Size Matters

Equip yourself to understand the why behind book sizes and how to choose the correct book size for your next book. 

What Is A Book Size Called?

According to MasterClass, “In publishing parlance, trim size describes the height and width of the pages of a book.” The bigger the size of your page, the more words you can fit, and thus, the thickness of your book will be thinner. The smaller the size of your page, the fewer words you can fit, and the thicker your book will need to be to accommodate your word count.

MasterClass also says that “Paper stock and binding also contribute to the overall weight and size of a book.

What Are Standard Book Sizes?

Your standard book size is dependent on your genre and genre also determines word count. To dive into standard book sizes, we first must take a look at the word count. Our friends at Self-Publishing School show word count in this way:

As you can see, if you write fiction, you don’t need to worry about your trim size being too small to fit your word count. No matter what genre you write, the above word counts are industry standard, as are the below trim sizes. 

That said, let’s dive into standard book sizes, as Reedsy.com lays out:

• Fiction: 4.25 x 6.87, 5 x 8, 5.25 x 8, 5.5 x 8.5, 6 x 9.
• Novella: 5 x 8.
• Children’s: 7.5 x 7.5, 7 x 10, 10 x 8.
• Textbooks: 6 x 9, 7 x 10, 8.5 x 11.
• Non-fiction: 5.5 x 8.5, 6 x 9, 7 x 10″
• Memoir: 5.25 x 8, 5.5 x 8.5.
• Photography: Whatever you see fit!

MasterClass goes into more depth saying, “What trim size a book is assigned depends on economic as well as aesthetic factors. For example, mass-market books (the kind of paperback books you might see in the grocery store or airport) are a standard trim size of 4.25 x 6.87”, while trade paperbacks (the kind you’d typically find in a bookstore) can range from 5 x 8” to 8 x 10”.”

Now that you have a grasp of standard book size, how word count impacts book size, and the industry standard for each, let’s talk about the most popular book sizes. 

What Is The Most Popular Book Size?

The most popular book size depends on the genre you publish as well as how you publish. Like writing itself, book size is subjective. Authority Pub lists a myriad of book sizes based on how they are published. 

For instance, they state that “KDP print book sizes, then, range from the smallest trade paperback (5” by 8”) to the largest (8.5” by 11”).”

For fiction, they state that book size (or trim size) is as follows:

• 4.25” by 6.87” (mass market)
• 5” by 8” (trade)
• 5.25” by 8” (trade)
• 5.5” by 8.5” (trade/”digest”)
• 6” by 9”

For novellas, the standard is simply 5” by 8”.

Children’s books have several options:

• 7.5” by 7.5”
• 7” by 8”
• 10” by 8”

Nonfiction titles have a range as well:

• 5.5” by 8.5” 
• 6” by 9”
• 7” by 10”

Memoir differs almost imperceptibly: 

• 5.25” by 8”
• 5.5” by 8.5”

Textbooks have several sizes:

• 6” by 9”
• 7” by 10”
• 8.5” by 11”

And photography, often known as coffee table books, is pretty subjective and goes up to 8.5” by 11” as far as color is concerned.

If you’re considering publishing with either Ingram Spark or KDP Print, each publisher can print up to 8.5” by 11”. Authority Pub also states that “Ingram Spark will print hardcover books up to that size. KDP Print has an 8.27” by 11.69” paperback option, but only for black and white.”

These trim sizes may seem a bit overwhelming, but remember that you publish one book at a time. You only have to worry about the book size for your genre and word count. This streamlines your process. 

Why Book Size Matters

The above information may seem a bit overboard, but book size matters because it either establishes or undermines your credibility as an author. Readers are used to seeing certain genres on the shelves at certain sizes and with certain fonts. 

If you choose to self-publish your book and ignore industry-standard trim size for your project, readers will likely question your credibility. Your book may be just as good as the one next to it, but readers don’t know this.

Readers know what they’re used to, and while coffee table books or the occasional children’s book can seem to take some creative liberties, memoir, biography, and fiction should stick to industry-standard guidelines as much as possible. 

There’s not much worse for a reader than to open a small, thick book only to find the font is so small they can barely read it.

Or have you ever opened what you thought was a children’s book due to the height and low thickness, only to realize it’s an adult romance? Hopefully not. Readers enjoy knowing what they’re getting into and book size is a large factor in putting them at ease.

Just as adults don’t want to fit a children’s size book in their purse to take on vacation, small children don’t have the dexterity to hold a smaller-sized book and turn one, paper-thin page at a time. 

Book size matters not just for young readers, but for all ages. 

Next Steps

As you move forward in your writing, do your best to stay to industry-standard word counts. This will help you create the appropriate trim size for your book when it’s finished. 

And don’t forget to enjoy the process. It’s not every day an individual gets to design their own book. This is a creative privilege. Use your new knowledge well, and let us know how your book turns out. We’d love to hear about your process! 

If you need help in this area, check out the free resource below.

Thankfully, we’ve done the research so you don’t have to. In this article, we cover the main questions you may have on how to create a title page, such as:

• What Is A Title Page?
• Are Title Pages Necessary?
• What Should The Title Page Of A Book Include?
• How Do I Make A Good Title Page?
• How Do I Write A Fancy Title?

If you traditionally publish, you’ll want to have a general idea of title pages, and if you self-publish, it’s crucial to know how to format your title page to industry standards. After all, your eyes are some of the last ones that will be on your book and you are the one who will click PRINT.

That said, let’s dive in and learn how to create a title page! 

What Is A Title Page?

According to Merriam-Webster, a title page is “a page of a book bearing the title and usually the names of the author and publisher and the place and sometimes date of publication.”

Seems pretty straightforward, right? Yes, except those small words like title and author and publisher all need to be credible. 

A title page helps readers know what they’re getting into. They open your book and want to know the title of what they’ll be reading. They want to know who wrote this book. When was this book released? Who published it? 

Especially for academic books or other types of nonfiction books, knowing the author is a credible writer on the topic and that it’s not outdated news is helpful for readers.

Are Title Pages Necessary?

Lib Guides says, “The title page and reverse title page are necessary for every book. All other elements of the front matter are used only if they are relevant to your book.”

What Should The Title Page Of A Book Include?

Your title page should include important facts such as your name, publisher, and the year your book was published. Lib Guides explains exactly what your title page should be made up of:

• The full book title (main title and subtitle)
• Edition statement, if this is a second or later edition
• Author’s name
• Publisher’s name and city (city and state if not a major city)
• Year of publication

They also say if there are major acknowledgments or contributions to be made, do so: 

• With an introduction by…
• Color illustrations by…
• Translated by…

It takes a village to create a book, and it’s important to give credit to whom credit is due. This is not only polite, but appropriate acknowledgments go a long way in showing your appreciation for those who have helped you. 

How Do I Make A Good Title Page?

You can create a successful title page for your readers by following industry-standard guidelines. If you are pitching your book to an agent or publisher for traditional publishing, or formatting it for a professional editor before you self-publish, it’s critical to follow these steps.

Remember, even though your reader is an agent, acquisitions editor, or publisher, it’s still vital to let them know what they’re reading and a few other key aspects. 

When crafting your title page, be sure to include:

• Contact information: Legal name, address, phone number, email address, and possibly your website. 
  • Where? The upper lefthand corner of the title page
  • Format? Single-spaced, Left-justified alignment 
• Your Manuscript’s Title
  • Where? One-third to one-half way down the page (this includes subtitle if you have one)
  • Format? Center-justified alignment 
• Your Name
  • Where? One double-spaced line below the title (and subtitle)
  • Format? Center-justified alignment
• Word Count
  • Where? One double-spaced line below the author-name
  • Format? Rounded to the nearest thousand
• If you have an agent…
  • Their contact information (not yours) goes in the upper lefthand corner
  • Move yours to the lower righthand corner.

Crafting an industry-standard title page may take a little time as you explore the different tools on your word processing program. This is worth the effort as it heightens your credibility and makes a great first impression on your reader.

If you are confused about a specific aspect of how to format, browse YouTube for step-by-step tutorials on how to do so. 

How Do I Write A Fancy Title?

Create a compelling title by brainstorming, researching, and staying true to your author’s voice. Also, be sure to have a good understanding of the importance of keywords and categories as it relates to your project.

For instance, keywords help search engines understand your book’s topic and separate it from others. Keeping your keyword as part of your book’s title can also set your book apart and boost search engine optimization. 

Let’s talk about specific steps for creating a book title:

• #1 – Use a book title generator tool: Try Title Generator, Random Book Title Generator, or  Create Your Own Story Title Generator.
• #2 – Write down the problem you’re solving (this more so applies to nonfiction)
• #3 – Create a subtitle to clarify (more nonfiction specific) 
• #4 – Make it memorable: Donald Miller’s title Blue Like Jazz is memorable because, without context, the title doesn’t make sense. 
• #5 – Make sure it’s genre-appropriate: Focus on keywords that pertain to your specific genre to boost SEO and raise intrigue. 
• #6 – Create it to stir intrigue: What do you want your readers to think about, feel, remember, or desire when they read your title?
• #7 – Include your character in the title: Consider Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White and Doctor Sleep by Stephen King. Both are very different genres and evoke extremely different emotions. 
• #8 – Get feedback from your target audience: Use your social media platform to garner feedback from potential readers. Take note of what resonates most.

Your title is extremely important to the success of your book, so take this part of your title page seriously. 

As You Move Forward

Now you know what a title page is, why title pages are necessary, what they should include, how to make a good title page, and what goes into a good title.

It’s time to get to the drawing board. 

Remember, title pages aren’t full of words, but the words that are included are very important. As you write your title page, make sure everything is error-free and looks professional. This is your chance to make a great first impression with a potential agent, publisher, or editor. 

While it is acceptable to have a few typos in a 100k word book, there should be zero errors on your title page. Get fresh eyes on it, comb through it yourself many times, and then celebrate your hard work. 

Creating a title page is an important part of your writing journey and something to be proud of. Do a final check through the above lists and then be satisfied with your work. 

You’re one very important page closer to being done with your book. This is something worth being proud of. Well done! 

• “To be, or not to be: that is the question.” -Shakespeare
• “A lady’s imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony in a moment.” -Austen
• “You can’t get away from yourself by moving from one place to another.” -Hemingway

Likewise, there are many characters that are recognizable from a single piece of dialogue, like Atticus Finch, Sherlock Holmes, and Matilda Wormwood. They have a distinct character voice. You can just hear Sherlock say, “You know my methods, Watson.”

These two types of voice, along with the narrator’s voice, make up the tone and feel of every fiction book.

Definition & Meaning of Voice in Writing 

In writing, “voice” refers to the mixture of tone, word choice, point of view, syntax, punctuation, and rhythm that make up sentences and paragraphs. Novels can have many voices, like those of the author, the narrator, and the individual characters. When developing voice in writing, you may choose to break conventional grammar rules in favor of the narrative value from voice. 

Different Voices in Writing

There are three distinct types of voice in writing: the character’s, the author’s, and the narrator’s.

These voices are not always discrete, but they are always present. 

Character’s Voice

Character voice is the easiest type of voice to distinguish. Each character, even minor characters, should have an individual voice. A character’s voice is conveyed through their thoughts, personality, and speech. 

A character’s thoughts can be revealed through dialogue tags, an in-depth point of view (first person or third-person limited), and word choices. Their thoughts can reveal true motives that may be at odds both with what they say and do.

A character’s personality comprises the things they do and say. It is a complex web of characteristics that reveals who they are and how they see the world. Two characters presented with the same situation will probably interpret it entirely differently.

A character’s dialogue can convey a myriad of information, including their mood, age, experience, health, and emotion. If a character is old, they may have a world-weary voice that speaks of experience. If a character is young, they may have a naive and preppy tone.

Author’s Voice

An author’s voice comprises everything from tone to word selection to punctuation. It is all the qualities that make a writer unique. 

When presented with a trip to the park, one writer may focus on the feel of the sun and breeze on their character’s face, whilst another may describe the people the character passes. The difference in the writers’ world views creates this contrast between the descriptions.

Some author voices are instantly recognizable, regardless of the topic, for example, Stephen King. His 60-plus books all cover different themes, use original characters, and have different storylines. 

Despite this, there is an undeniable connection among them all: King’s author voice. This recognizable voice was the key reason that King’s pseudonym Richard Bachman was outed in 1985, just eight years after he began writing under it. 

Narrator’s Voice

The narrative voice is the perspective from which a story is told. There are four types of narrative voice or point of view (POV): first person, second person, third person limited, and third person omniscient. 

• First Person: The narrator is also a character and they use pronouns such as “I” and “we.”

• Second Person: The reader seemingly becomes a character in the story through the use of the pronoun “you.”

• Third Person Limited: The narrator exists outside of the story and uses pronouns like “he,” “she,” and “they”.

• Third Person Omniscient: An all-knowing narrator who exists outside of the story. This could be the author or an unnamed entity who uses third-person pronouns. 

As described above, the narrator’s voice can be the same as the author’s voice, one of the characters’ voices, or it can be totally discrete. 

Examples of Voices in Writing

It can be difficult to distinguish among the different types of voice, so we will look at two examples together: The Great Gatsby and The Wind in the Willows.

Examples of Character Voices

Jay Gatsby, from The Great Gatsby, has a very recognizable voice because of his sophisticated tone and often-repeated phrases such as “old sport.”

“I thought you knew, old sport. I’m afraid I’m not a very good host.”

The Badger is instantly recognizable in The Wind in the Willows due to his serious and stoic nature, coupled with his perfect etiquette. 

‘Well, then,’ went on the Badger, ‘we—that is, you and me and our friend the Mole here—we’ll take Toad seriously in hand. We’ll stand no nonsense whatever. We’ll bring him back to reason, by force if need be. We’ll make him be a sensible Toad.’

Examples of Author Voices

F. Scott. Fitzgerald was a careful, wry, and sophisticated writer who heavily utilized complex sentence structures, as evidenced below. 

The abnormal mind is quick to detect and attach itself to this quality when it appears in a normal person, and so it came about that in college I was unjustly accused of being a politician, because I was privy to the secret griefs of wild, unknown men. 

Whereas Fitzgerald looks inward at the mind, Kenneth Grahame looks outward at the beauty of the world. He is very playful and free with his words.

Hither and thither through the meadows he rambled busily, along the hedgerows, across the copses, finding everywhere birds building, flowers budding, leaves thrusting—everything happy, and progressive, and occupied. 

Examples of Narrator Voices

Nick Carraway, an intelligent reflective young man, narrates The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald overcomes the limitations of a first-person narrator by framing the story two years in the past, ‌thereby giving Nick a chance to obtain information he would not have had in the moment. 

In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since. 

Kenneth Grahame uses a third-person omniscient narrator to tell the story of toad, mole, rat, and badger. This form of narration allows all four characters to take a leading role and for the narrator to explain things of the animal world that are unfamiliar to the reader. 

The Mole had been working very hard all the morning, spring-cleaning his little home. 

Conclusion on What Voice in Writing Is & Its Importance

Distinct author voices are one of the primary reasons that people have “all-time favorite authors.” Finding your voice is essential to gaining a dedicated following. 

Your voice is just as important as the story. It dictates how and why you tell a story and how your readers experience the story. Without a distinct voice, novels are just a jumble of words. 

Author bio: 

Millie Dinsdale creates writing resources and articles for ProWritingAid. A recent English Literature graduate, she is obsessed with how the right words can help you get your ideas across in the best way.

Terminal Points

Period

The period is the most basic and fundamental element of terminal punctuation, but luckily, it’s the easiest to deftly employ. All the same, there are several key points to keep in mind when ending a sentence with a period.

1. Multiple Punctuation: If a sentence ends with an exclamation point or a question mark, there’s automatically no need to include a period. This holds true even when a sentence ends with a proper name (such as that of a company or creative work) that may include either of these marks.
2. Abbreviations: When a sentence ends with an abbreviation (such as “inc.” or “p.m.”) there is no need to add an additional terminal point; the one included in the abbreviation is sufficient.
3. Parentheses: The period is always located outside of the closing parenthesis.
4. Quotations: Contrary to the above rule, the period always precedes the closing quotation mark.

Question Mark

Let’s face it, many things in life often aren’t as apparent as we would like them to be. Since we all ask questions, let’s take a moment to make sure we’re formatting them correctly in a written context.

1. Direct Questions: This is the most basic usage of the question mark. When asking a question in its simplest form (for example, “Where is it?”), the question mark appears at the end fo the sentence.
2. Direct Questions Within a Sentence: This is where things get a little more difficult. When a direct question is appearing within the context of a longer sentence, the question mark takes the place of what would ordinarily be a comma. It appears at the end of the question with the sentence continuing after the question mark and ending with its own terminal punctuation. An example can be most easily seen in dialogue, such as: “Where is it?” he wondered aloud.
3. As Part of a Title: When a question mark is part of the title of a mentioned work, the same rules as with “Direct Questions Within a Sentence” apply: the question mark goes at the end of the title, and if there is more to the sentence following the title, then the sentence continues after the question mark and ends with its own terminal punctuation.
4. Requests: These do not terminate with question marks! Rather, they should end with periods, as they are more commands than questions.

Exclamation Point

An abundance of exclamation points can lead readers to your work with a grain of salt, doubting the professionalism of your writing. Therefore, these should be used in moderation.

1. At the End of a Sentence: When ending a sentence with an exclamation point, no other punctuation and necessary, and therefore no other punctuation should be used, even to express an emphasis.
2.  Mid-Sentence: Seen mostly in dialogue, quotations that end with an exclamation point take the place of the comma. Thus, the exclamation point is located inside the closing quotation marks.
3. As Part of a Title: When a proper noun or a title terminates with an exclamation point, you must keep the comma that comes after it. For example: “He did an internship at Yahoo!, where he learned many of the technical skills he has today.”

Pausing Points

Comma

Given the various uses (and misuses) of the comma, it has rightly become one of the most problematic punctuation points. After all, the addition or omission of a comma can drastically change the meaning of a sentence, often straying far the meaning that the writer intended.

Conventional Uses

1. Numbers. When presenting a four digit number, it is highly recommended that you include a comma after the first digit. The exceptions come with years, page numbers, and street addresses.
2. Degrees and Certifications. These are usually included after a person’s name, and therefore should be separated from the name using commas.
3. Direct Address. This applies specifically to dialogue. When someone is being directly addressed, use commas to set off their name or title.
4. Dates. In writing dates, commas should be applied following the day of the week (when applicable) as well as the day of the month. In cases where the sentence continues following the inclusion of the date, a comma should also appear after the year. Additionally, when only the year and month are given, a comma isn’t necessary to separate the two.
5. Geographic Elements. These deal specifically with geographical locations that occur within a larger location; for example, “Tallahassee, Florida.” The smaller location should be separated from the larger using a comma.

Listing Uses

1. Basic Lists. When simply listing off multiple items, a comma should be used to separate words, phrases, and independent clauses.
2. Multiple Adjectives. Sometimes multiple adjectives are used to describe the same noun. Rather than using the conjunction “and,” these adjectives should each be separated by a comma. Note that no comma should appear after the adjective that directly precedes the noun.

Nonessential Information

1. Information. When a detail isn’t considered integral to the point being communicated in the sentence, it is set off from the pertinent information using a comma.
2.  Explanations. These appear as definitions of an aforementioned subject. They offer more information about the subject, but this information is not essential to the main point of the sentence. Therefore, a comma should be used both after the subject and after the appositive.
3. Interrupting Elements. If a nonessential word or phrase is located in the middle of a sentence, it must be distinguished as such by the use of commas both before and after it.

Sentence Structure

1. Compound Sentences. Compound sentences consists of two or more independent clauses joined by a conjunction. A comma should come after the first independent clause and before the conjunction.
2. Complex Sentences. Complex sentences have an independent clause with two or more dependent clauses. If the dependent clause comes before the independent clause, it should be directly followed by a comma. If a sentence begins with two dependent clauses that are both linked to the same independent clause, a comma should be used after the second dependent clause.
3. Compound-Complex Sentences. These consists of two or more independent clauses and one dependent clause. When the dependent clause appears first in the sentence and applies to both of the following independent clauses, it should be followed by a comma.

Semicolon

1. Omitting a Conjunction. When a sentence contains two independent clauses but no conjunction, a semicolon is used to link them instead. It should follow the first independent clause.
2. Transitional Expressions. Sometimes, two independent clauses are linked by a transitional phrase. The semicolon, in this instance, should follow the first independent clause and precede the transitional phrase.
3. Internal Commas. Lists containing internal commas still need to have their various components separated. In this case, rather than separating these phrases with additional commas, leading to a cluttered mess of interpretative difficulties, a semicolon should be used to separate each component from the other.

Colon

There are three primary grammatical uses of the colon, as well as multiple common yet non-grammatical uses.

Grammatical

1.  Listing . When a list doesn’t fit naturally into the flow of a sentence, it’s common to use a colon to distinguish where the introduction of the sentence ends and the detailing of the list begins.
2.  Independent Clauses. Sometimes a second independent clause is used to explain the first; in this case, the first should be followed by a colon. If the second independent clause consists of multiple sentences, it’s important to capitalize the first letter of the first word following the colon.
3. Emphasis. This typically appears near the end of a sentence, and is used to emphasize the final word or phrase.

Non-Grammatical

1. Time. Here, a colon is used to separate hours from minutes.
2. Ratio. A colon is used to express a rational relationship between two numbers.
3. Biblical References. Colons are used in biblical references to separate the chapter from the verse.
4. References. In a cited work, a colon is used to separate the volume from the page numbers(s).

Hyphens and Dashes

Hyphen

These are often, easily, and understandably confused with both the en dash and the em dash, so it’s imperative that you can differentiate between the three and utilize the correct one.

1. Compound Terms. While there are three forms of compound terms, all represent a single word or idea but consist of more than one word. Hyphens are often used in these instances to unite the words (however, there is no space included between the hyphen and the words it’s joining).
2. Compound Adjectives. Whether or not you should hyphenate a compound adjective depends on its location within the sentence. This makes them relatively difficult to handle at times. Keep in mind that two or more words that collectively act as an adjective describing a single noun should be hyphenated. However, there is an exception: when a compound adjective begins with an adverb ending in “-ly,” you should never use a hyphen.

En Dash

The en dash is used to represent a range of numbers or a span of time.

1. Numbers: The en dash is often used to indicate a span of time, and is therefore read as “to” or “through.” It appears between the starting number and the ending number, with no space between them.
2. Scores. Here, the en dash also appears between the starting and ending numbers without a space.
3. Conflict or Connection. Used in this context, the en dash is indicative of a relationship between two groups. It appears between the first and second without a space.

Em Dash

Depending on its location within a sentence, the em dash can be used to replace colons, commas, or parentheses, so long as it only appears twice within the same sentence.

1. Commas. Em dashes can replace commas as a means of adding emphasis to a clause located in the midst of the sentence.
2. Parentheses. Considered less formal than parentheses, em dashes can be used to replace these given that the surrounding punctuation is removed. When located at the end of a sentence, only the first dash should be used.
3. Colon. The em dash can replace a colon in order to emphasize the conclusion of a sentence; it is, however, considered to be less formal.

Multiple Em Dashes

Appearing most often in dialogue, two em dashes are indicative of a missing portion of a word. When the entire word is missing, two em dashes may also be used in its place.

Quotations

Quotation Marks

Guideline

When commas and periods are part of the original quotation, they appear inside the quotation marks at the end of the sentence. However, all other punctuation that is not part of the original quote (such as semicolons and question marks) appear outside the quotation marks.

Introducing Quoted Material

1. Comma. This is the most common mark used to introduce quoted material; it appears outside of the opening quotation mark.
2. Colon. When the sentence that serves as an introduction to a quote could, theoretically, stand on its own, a colon is used before the opening quotation mark.
3. No Punctuation. If the material you’re quoting flows smoothly from the introductory text that you’ve written, it isn’t necessary to provide any additional punctuation before the quotation mark.

Ellipses

Used to indicate an omission of some of information in the sentence or quote, ellipses consist of three periods each separated by a space. When the last period is being followed by a question mark, there should be no space after it.

Quoted Material

1. Single Sentence. When omitting a portion of a quote while including the surrounding portions, it’s important to use ellipses to indicate that part of the quotation is being excluded. Remove the punctuation on either side of the ellipses unless it’s required for the grammatical integrity of the remaining quoted portion.
2. Multiple Sentences. If you’re presenting one quote compiled from multiple sentences’ worth of material, you must include ellipses to indicate where there are segments being omitted.

Brackets

These are typically used as an editorial of the information being quoted.

1. Clarification. If, out of context, it is unclear what a noun in the original material refers to, brackets allow you to insert clarifying information in your own words.
2. Translation. When a foreign word or phrase appears within a quotation, you can use brackets to provide a translation of that word or phrase.
3. Indicating Errors. If you discover an error within a quotation you’re citing, you’re given one of two options: you can reframe the quotation within your written piece to avoid the error, or you can include the Latin term sic (meaning “so” or “thus”) within brackets following the error to indicate that it is a part of the original text.
4. Censoring. Keeping your target audience in mind, it’s sometimes necessary to censor potentially offensive language that may appear in a quote.

Other Punctuation

Parentheses

Parentheses are always used in pairs and provide additional information within a grammatically sound context.

Placement of Other Punctuation

1. Free-Standing. When a parenthetical sentence stands alone, the terminal punctuation mark is located within the closing parenthesis.
2. Ending of a Longer Sentence. In this instance, the terminal punctuation would be placed outside the closing parenthesis.
3. Middle of a Longer Sentence. The punctuation surrounding the parenthetical information remains the same.

Apostrophe

Contractions

Apostrophes are used in contractions to indicate the combination of two words.

Plurals

There’s a rare exception to the grammatical rule barring the use of apostrophes in instances of plurality. When (1) abbreviations, (2) letters, or (3) words are used as nouns, an apostrophe is often used before the “s” in order to avoid confusion.

Possessives

In a singular possessive noun, the apostrophe is located before the “s” indicating possession. If the singular noun ends in an “s” already, then the apostrophe comes after that. Likewise, plural possessive nouns include an apostrophe after the “s” that indicates their plurality.

Slash

In formal writing, the only undoubtedly acceptable use of the slash comes when you’re quoting poetry. To indicate a line break, include a space on either side of the slash.

Angel Brackets

These are largely unnecessary in modern writing. Once used to separate a web address from the surrounding punctuation, many people are now able to differentiate between the two without the use of angle brackets.

Braces

Braces, or “curly brackets,” should not be mistaken for or used in place of brackets or parentheses. Instead, they are used in musical notation, mathematical expressions, and multiple programming languages.

Making your way through the wild world of grammatically correct punctuation doesn’t have to be as difficult as it may sound. With punctuation guides like this one at your disposal, you’re one step closer to creating a cohesive piece of writing that can withstand the many tests of grammar and literary technique.

If you’re an editor or proofreader, please let us know in the comments. We might need your help :)

Luckily for us, the question mark is the perfect piece of punctuation for clearly articulating and posing these questions. Best of all: it’s so easy to use!

In this article, we’ll look at proper question mark usage.

• What’s the Purpose of a Question Mark?
• How do you use question marks with quotation marks?
• How do you use question marks with parentheses?
• How to Punctuate Indirect Questions
• Is Your Question Mark Usage On Point?

What’s the Purpose of a Question Mark?

It comes as no surprise that the primary function of the question mark is to indicate that a sentence is interrogative; simply put, that it’s a question. Most questions seek information, as can be readily noted in direct questions. These often begin with a question word (who, what, when, where, why, or how), such as in the example:

What did you think of the end of the movie?

Clearly, the writer in this example is seeking information, and thus posed the question as an interrogative sentence.

However, it’s not uncommon for us to phrase questions in a manner that mirrors a declarative sentence.

We can often note in speech how the speaker raises their voice at the end of a declarative sentence to indicate that they are asking a question rather than making a statement. It’s important to note that the change in tone, though, only works in speech: in writing, we need to use question marks to clarify to the reader that what may appear to be a declarative sentence is actually serving the purpose of a question. For example:

You thought the movie was boring? Really?

The first question repeats a piece of information as an indication of disbelief on the writer’s behalf. The second places further emphasis on the writer’s emotions; even though it ends with a question mark, it is not seeking an answer.

How Do You Use Question Marks with Quotation Marks?

Most of the time, the position of question marks is relatively straightforward. In a basic interrogative sentence, the question mark serves as the terminal punctuation.

However, the presence of other punctuation can make the process of properly placing your question mark a little more challenging.

There are several different situations involving question marks and quotation marks in the same sentence, and the various rules and guidelines can seem quite confusing upon first glance. However, they boil down to this:

1. If the question mark applies to what is being said inside the quotation marks, then the question mark also goes inside of them.
2. If the question mark applies to the entirety of the sentence rather than just the information inside the quotation marks, then it goes outside of them.

Let’s take a look at some of these scenarios in action.

Inside: When it was time for me to leave for work, my puppy could only stare at me with wide eyes that seemed to beg “Where are you going?”

Most commonly seen in written dialogue, the use of a question mark in the sentence above applies to the implied question in the puppy’s eyes, and thus appears inside the quotation marks.

Outside: Aren’t you the one that always says, “all is well that ends well”?

In the above example, the phrase being quoted is not interrogative unto itself, but rather serves as a smaller part of the greater overall question. Therefore, the question mark is placed outside the quotation marks.

More Examples

When quoted information appears in an interrogative sentence, properly placing the question mark can start to seem a bit more complicated. However, this method is fairly similar to the rules outlined above and relies heavily on a logical understanding of the sentence’s purpose.

When you’re quoting a sentence that contains a question, the question mark logically pertains to the information inside the quotation marks, and thus would appear as such:

“My nosy neighbor always asks me ‘Where are you going?’ Like it’s any of her business!”

The writer is simply recalling a question that was previously asked; as the overall statement itself is declarative rather than interrogative, the question mark belongs inside the quotation mark pertaining to the cited speech rather than at the end of the sentence in its entirety.

Sometimes, though, the quoted information is not the question itself, but rather a part of a greater interrogative sentence. For example:

“What do you mean he said ‘Like it’s any of her business’?” the neighbor asked in disbelief.

Here the writer is asking a question that also involves quoted information. As the quoted information is not unto itself a question, however, and the question mark pertains to the sentence as a whole, the terminal punctuation belongs inside the closing quotation marks.

How Do You Use Question Marks with Parentheses?

The relationship between question marks and parentheses is quite similar to that between question and quotation marks. If the question mark applies to the information inside the parentheses, then it also goes inside the parentheses:

He left late Monday (or was it Tuesday?) night.

Here the question is contained entirely within the parentheses and does not pertain to the purpose of the overall sentence.

Sometimes, though, the parenthetical information is part of the greater question. In this case, the question mark appears outside of the parentheses.

Are you planning to go to his birthday party (April 4)?

In the above example, the parenthetical information (April 4) is included in the greater interrogative sentence, so the question mark belongs outside of the closing parenthesis.

How to Punctuate Indirect Questions

Fascinatingly, there is one type of question that never receives a question mark: the indirect question. This is because indirect questions appear as a part of a declarative statement; they aren’t truly asking a question that seeks information, but rather expressing a piece of information. For example:

Watching the toddler throw a fit in the middle of the busy store, we all tiredly wondered when his parents would finally try to quiet him.

Since the sentence above is stating the thoughts of the other people in the store, it’s considered a declarative statement and thus doesn’t require a question mark – after all, it isn’t truly asking a question!

For other punctuation guides, check out these articles:

• Related: The Exclamation Point
• Related: The Oxford Comma
• Related: The Period
• Related: The Comma
• Related: Full Punctuation Guide

Is Your Question Mark Usage On Point?

Yes? Yes.

As we close this article out, it’s important that, in a world full of questions, we know how to most efficiently express them in our writing.

Clarity is the first step toward understanding and brings us closer to mastering our use of the English language.

If you’re an editor or proofreader who just read this post, let us know in the comments. We might need your help :)