Can I design my own book cover?

You can, but we rarely recommend it. A trade-standard cover must signal genre clearly, read at thumbnail size, and meet technical specs (bleed, spine width, barcode area, colour profiles). Readers judge a book in seconds; a DIY cover often looks “off” even if you can’t say why. If budget is tight, brief a designer for a focused, single-concept cover rather than buying a big bundle. Provide comparable titles, target readers, and a short synopsis. Keep the back-cover copy concise and ensure the spine remains legible at shelf distance.

Further reading: /information/designing-a-book-cover

How should I brief the designer?

Be clear, short and specific. Share your book’s one-sentence pitch, primary audience, comparable titles (3–5), and the emotion you want the cover to signal. Include any must-have elements (series badge, award laurel, imprint), confirmed specs (trim size, paper, final page count if known), and practicals (ISBN/barcode, deadline, delivery format). Provide a don’t do list if there are clichés to avoid. Show 5–8 covers you admire and say why. Approve one concept direction first, then iterate on typography, colour and image treatment. Avoid design by committee.

Further reading: /information/briefing-a-book-designer

What do book designers do?

They translate your manuscript and market into visual form. For the cover: research the category, develop concepts, set typography, select/commission imagery, and produce press-ready artwork with correct spine, bleed and barcode placement. For interiors: establish page architecture (margins, grids), choose readable fonts, set running heads/folios, handle illustrations, tables and notes, and output print-ready PDFs and validated eBook files if required. Good designers also think about discoverability: ensuring the cover works in thumbnails and that the title/subtitle hierarchy is instantly clear.

Further reading: /information/what-book-designers-do

What are the best fonts to use for the main text of a book?

Use a proven book face designed for long reading. Popular choices include old-style or transitional serifs with sturdy colour and clear italics. Avoid novelty fonts and system defaults. More important than the name is typesetting quality: size, leading, line length and letterspacing. Aim for ~9.5–11.5pt at comfortable leading, ~60–70 characters per line, and generous inner margins so the gutter doesn’t swallow text. Test-print sample pages; what looks fine on screen can feel tight in print.

Further reading: /information/best-book-typefaces