The Amateur’s Guide a Professional Book Package Superpost

by Bess Weatherby
published in Community

Do you judge a book by the cover? Readers and booksellers often do. Having the right book package is one of the most important aspects of the publishing process. Over the past few months, our DIY MFA photographer Melinda VanLone took us through a series of posts about crafting the perfect book package–one that is not only visually pleasing, but communicates the type of book you’re writing to the type of reader you want to attract.

Now that the series is complete, we’ve compiled all the posts right here. If you’re thinking about your book cover, Melinda’s series is an excellent resource and a great place to start.

  1. In her Part One, Melinda broke down four reasons every writer needs to go the extra mile to get the perfect cover.
  2. In Part Two, Melinda listed four steps to help you take off your writing hat and put on your marketing hat.
  3. In Part Three, Melinda went through the specific expectations of readers of High Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Fantasy and Romance.
  4. In Part Four, Melinda went through the specific expectations of readers of Science Fiction, Mystery and Horror.
  5. In Part Five, Melinda tackled Literary and Women’s Fiction, New Adult, Young Adult, Children’s Lit and Non-Fiction.
  6. And in Part Six she wrapped it all up with a specific example from her own book cover.

In addition to serving as DIY MFA’s official shutterbug, Melinda also uses her artistic skills to design book covers — check out her website at bookcovercorner.com and her blog at melindavan.com. And for more articles about the publishing industry, check the Build Your Community section of DIY MFA. Part of the writing community is the publishing industry, and we’re committed to navigating it together!

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