5 Book Cover Design Mistakes All Authors Make

5 Book Cover Design Mistakes All Authors Make // When it comes to self-publishing, getting your book cover designed can be the most exciting part of the process. After all, your cover is something tangible and means you're one step closer to getting your book out there in the world! In this video, We're diving into how things can go wrong during the book cover design process so that when you design your book cover, you know what to look out for so you don't end up having to re-do your book cover in the near future.

0:00 - Intro
2:48 - Doing what you want vs. what you need
5:44 - Too much going on in the design
7:30 - Not following your genre or market trends
10:05 - Your fonts are not readable
12:08 - You are not an exception to the rule

PLANNERS - - - - - - - - - -

NON-FICTION BOOKS - - - - - - - - - -

FICTION BOOKS - - - - - - - - - -

FIND ME ONLINE- - - - - - - - - -
Social Media: @mandilynnwrites

MY FAVORITE TOOLS- - - - - - - - - -

Mandi Lynn published her first novel when she was seventeen. The author of multiple books, Mandi spends her days continuing to write and creating YouTube videos to help other writers achieve their dreams of seeing their books published. Mandi is the owner of Stone Ridge Books, a company that works to help authors bring their books to life through cover design and digital book marketing. She is also the creator of The Book Launch Planner, a planner designed to help authors publish and market their books. When she’s not creating, you can find Mandi exploring her backyard or getting lost in the woods.

#selfpublishing #bookcover #bookcoverdesign

DISCLAIMER: This video and description contain affiliate links. By purchasing a linked product or service, Mandi Lynn will receive a small commission at no additional fee to you.

[thepurpleufo]

You are so right, Mandi. As someone who has designed quite a few covers, I agree with all your points. My favorite is the one you saved for last...writers thinking that they are the "exception to the rule." That kind of thinking has ruined the prospects of lots of self-published books...and those writers never understand why their books were flops.

I would add one more point to your list of mistakes, and that is the fallacy that just because you are a writer, and you have a computer and a graphics program, you can design your own cover. The reality is that you put so much into writing your book...you are going to waste all that by going cheap on your cover. Isn't your book worth a professional cover?

[BethanyAtazadeh]

Love this video, sooo much good info!

[DanielleReneeWallace]

So many great points here. Seeing Escape on the Honora's cover throughout this video was really crazy (in a good way)! Thanks for designing one of my all-time favorite covers for me, Mandi!

[michaelsmythe]

I thoroughly enjoyed this video, Mandi, and I'll certainly be asking you to design my first book cover in due course.

[FordStrange-mfbb]

Thanks Mandi. So, my artistic abilities peaked in fourth grade. Thanks for helping me with a decision.

[jezedrana]

08:10 **whispers with desperation** at least they are writing a review ... sigh^^

[conwayfitzgerald]

I'm seeing many self-pub authors using AI generated art and color schemes that all end up looking exactly the same. I'm also seeing they are not selling many books on Amazon, or getting many reviews. Whereas I agree that the cover is very important and should match the genre, I'm skeptical that inserting the cookie-cutter for genre art would be advantageous. I'm of the opinion that the book title and promotional strategy are much more important. Do you agree?

[CamillaZahn]

Hi! I'm learning to be a book cover designer and to publish my own books so your videos are being masterclasses for me. Thank you so much!

[lm.santana]

I made mistake number 1 so I had to republish book 1 with a new cover 😅

[nataliethomson]

I think you've overused the camera jumping in and out, it was actually distracting from all your good info and made the video difficult to watch. Thank you