A Professional Book Designer’s Approach

by Diana LaGuardia

CONGRATULATIONS!

You’re going to design a book.

The author has entrusted you with their manuscript, which you are to present as the masterpiece it is. This article will help authors understand the book design process, and offers suggestions for designers that might make the process more efficient, productive and fun.

To Start

Ideally you should be able to read the book and ask the author to highlight significant sections of the text. If this isn’t possible, ask the author for an in-depth synopsis and again, for principle parts. While reading, you’re looking for hints as to how the writer wants the reader to feel – what atmosphere the text is creating. Should the reader feel sad, upbeat, afraid, angry? Understanding this, along with the obvious time and place of the narrative, is essential when it comes to choosing images, typography and colors.

Quite often an author will write a design brief which delineates everything a designer needs to know about the book’s covers and interior. It’s not a mandate but it should tell you how the author sees it. If you don’t understand aspects of this brief, ask questions. An author’s clear brief enhances your chances of delivering designs that meet expectations. Remember though: if you’ve been hired for this job it means that your resume and portfolio are appropriate for it.

Genre

Ask your author in which genre the book falls. Once you know this, spend some time in bookstores, libraries and online to see titles in the given genre. See what imagery, typography, colors might convey the tone of your book. An effective cover design should present the title prominently, suggest the genre, and aim to capture the appropriate audience for that book. This kind of research pays many dividends for you overall, keeping you, as a designer, on top of graphic trends, and therefore relevant and useful to the market.

Demographics

In addition to the genre, ask the author what segment of the reading public is most likely to be interested in this book, who the author is trying to reach. This is the reader you must target, age being very important. Readers in different age groups are attracted to colors, fonts, and images differently. Know your target market, focus on them, and make them want to open your book.

Parameters

How much of the book is the writer assuming you will design? The author should know (or be told) that a book designer expects to design all of it, both front and back covers, and the interior. Given that this may not always be the understanding, you need to make it clear early on. Whether it’s the entire book or just covers you need to know where the photos or art will come from. Who will provide them? Will it be up to you to research or commission art? If it is you, what is the budget? What is the deadline? A graphic designer is expected to be able to estimate the amount of time it will take to complete a project, keeping in mind that there may be unanticipated revisions. If it hasn’t been discussed already, your fee should be on the table soon, but not until you know the scope of the project.

AUTONOMY or NOT

You’ll be able to gauge how free you are in this project if you know a little about the writer. You might google him/her, read the bio, find out how many titles this writer has published. An experienced writer should understand that the design of the book, especially the covers, should be left up to the designer’s discretion. This experienced writer accepts that a cover is more a point of sale effort, placed in a very competitive market, and not a literary manifesto. If you don’t get this impression from the writer you have to discuss it. Tell him/her that you see the covers being in your sphere. And don’t forget the

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