How to get the best out of your book cover artist

Writing a brief for your book cover artist can be really tricky. You’ve worked tirelessly to create a world that’s nuanced and unique, and you want to portray that to your prospective audience. This isn’t any old fantasy, this is your very own creation.

Now’s the time to get someone else to portray what’s inside your head. You have to impart a whole chunk of what’s on your mind to mine.

What’s important is to imagine I know nothing of your world, and you’re having to create a mental picture for me to get down on canvas. So describe little accents to your character’s dress, how scruffy they might be. Or if they have freckles. Whatever you envisage, go ahead!

I’ve worked with authors for almost fifteen years and refined the list of questions that helps to get everything we need ready before we sketch. So follow this comprehensive guide to briefing your artist whether it’s me or another cover designer, and you’re well on the way to bringing your visuals to life.

Book Cover Brief Checklist

Taking the time to write the perfect brief for your book cover artist is worth it’s weight in gold. It’s the only way to capture the scene you want, saves time and revisions (and sometimes money!) and ensures you’re appealing to your desired audience.

To make things easy, let’s kick this off with an easy checklist you can work through when briefing your artist:

1. What’s your pen name?
2. What’s the title of your novel?
3. What genre would your book fall into?
4. Provide a short synopsis of the book.
5. What’s the overarching feel of your book (Scary? Action packed? Full of intrigue? Political? Magical? Technological? Dark? Upbeat?)
6. What is your vision for your cover? A battle scene? A single character? An abstract pattern that suggests the themes of the book? If you have a particular scene of the book, please provide the excerpt.
7. Describe each character your wish to be present including: physical looks, personality, mood in this moment, attire, props/weapons, relationships with other present characters.
8. Describe any creatures in the scene.
9. What final deliverables would you like? Paperback, Hardcover, Ebook, Audiobook?
10. Would you like illustration on the rear? (I usually recommend this to be a blurred continuation of the front cover to help readability of blurb and to stay within budget, but for an additional fee I can provide rear illustration.
11. Please provide the dimensions for the front cover of the book.
12. Let me know if you have a budget you need to work to. If it falls below my usual fees , I can make suggestions as to what we can do to work within your price point.

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Hi I’m Jamie!

With over a decade of professional experience working with authors, I have developed a great working process that gets the best out of the project, delivers a gorgeous final product, and gets us to goal quickly to make sure your the only bump in your launch, is the bump in your sales.

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What is the design process when working with a book cover artist?

I thought it would be great for my prospective clients to see what my process is when I work with them, so I made this handy infographic to help them understand what it looks like when I work with an author on their book cover.

Need more tips on working with a cover artist?

I wrote a great guide on book covers, that’s completely free. Just sign up below and it will be sent to your email. You can always shout me for more info at info@thenobleartist.com

EXCELLENT

Based on 27 reviews

Jason Farrell

2024-06-20

I had the pleasure of working with Jamie (the Noble Artist) a few years ago when he made the cover for my book, Demon Lord Rising. He was fantastic to work with and seemed to really enjoy trying to get the cover the way I envisioned it. I found him to be incredibly skilled and reasonably priced. I can't imagine doing a book without him working on the cover.

Peter Adler

2024-03-10

Jamie did a fabulous design for my fantasy book cover, The Treasure of Trenalon. I had a pretty clear conception of what I wanted going in. He asked for a lot of detailed information to make sure that he understood what I wanted, and more importantly, what the right feel was for the characters, setting, and genre. In all of our interactions, Jamie was friendly and enthusiastic. He sought input and was open to feedback every step of the way. His initial thumbnail sketch blew me away. There it was: everything I wanted. And more! He put in elements I hadn’t considered that fit the story to a T and made for a stronger image. I asked for a few tweaks, which he quickly delivered. He knocked the final cover out of the ballpark. I also needed to brand the cover with a previous cover in the series, and he nailed that. Every step of the way, I felt his commitment to my being happy with the finished design. He also finished the job according to our timeline. Jamie is a consummate artist and a pleasure to work with. I will definitely seek him out for my next project.

Ben Boardman

2024-02-04

Jamie is a great artist and so much fun to work with. He brings enthusiasm and excitement to every project. I'm looking forward to working with him many times in the future!

Kev Crean

2024-01-27

I hired The Nobel Artist to design a book cover, and a short book trailer, for me on a limited budget and relatively short time frame. He was quick with all communication throughout our time working together. The work, in my opinion, was exemplary and I will definitely be considering The Nobel Artist as my first choice for my next book cover. We had one slight delay during our project which he was honest and swift about informing me of (something unavoidable came up - not important for the review). As I said, his work is amazing and he was a pleasure to work with. I would highly recommend this talented artist to everyone.

Jon Fabris

2024-01-18

Superb artist. Did a book cover for me and it turned out great! Reasonable rates.

Daniel

2024-01-17

I have used Jamie for numerous corporate projects, from marketing collateral to case study production. The reason for approaching Jamie was to have a more creative approach to the look and feel of the collateral I needed. The final product has always provided me with an increase in engagement, and the use of his graphic production in wider content sharing. Highly recommend if you are looking for your content to stand out!

Pyroslayer92

2024-01-16

I've worked with the Noble Artist since 2015ish, and he is always reliable, and produces some wonderful artwork. Not only does he do a fantastic job with the artwork side of projects. But on a personal level he is friendly, easy to get along with, and passionate. 🙂

Stijn De Vleesschauwer

2024-01-14

When my girlfriend and me found out we were having a baby and when I told Jamie, he made a beautiful drawing of a baby, so we could surprise our families. He also drew me the best portrait for my D&D character. I told him a little bit about him and when the portrait was finished it was like looking into a mirror and seeing Istorvir Nirinath, the ever smirking Half-Elf Bard 😊

Charles F Bond

2024-01-07

The Noble Artist is ever expanding and a great creator of artworks for authors among others. If you need art for your project, I highly recommend taking a look.

Rasmus Desdorf

2024-01-06

Absolutely stunning work I've had the please of working with Jamie on a board game project and I must say that I absolutely stunned by his ability to take my rough sketches and concept ideas and turning it into amazingly detailed illustations, that not only fit the idea but also expands on it and makes it even greater. Furthermore he is a pleasant person to work with and I've experienced fast responses to both my initial query and later questions. Good on updating you on the proces and giving timely updates. Perfect !

If you’re looking for a fantasy artist, feel free to snoop through my illustration portfolio or head straight over to contact me for work. You’ll find my email address and some handy forms which guide you through some of the starting info I’ll need to be able to quote for you. Typically I’m booked up a month ahead of time, but do drop me a line if you have anything time sensitive. Sometimes I’m able to move things around in a pinch. Hope to hear from you! In the meantime, stay informed of my new work and availability and sign up for the mailing list.

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