Creating the Cover for The Contenders

Creating the Cover for The Contenders

I’m so excited to show you the cover of my middle-grade novel, The Contenders!

I have to say–having a cover designed for your novel has got to be the most FUN part of the self-publishing process.

I mean, you get to see your novel conceptualized in different fonts, drawings, and photos. If you’re a visual person like me, it’s incredibly exciting to see a visual representation of your story. And, except for giving feedback, you don’t have to do any of the work. What could be better?

Here’s how I went from nothing to awesome cover in just three weeks.

First, I searched on Google for “book cover designer.” That turned up a ton of links. I must have perused about twenty different design sites before I found one that had covers that I liked and where the design fee fit my budget. I chose Kit Foster of Kit Foster Design.

Second, I emailed Kit. His assistant, Robert Chazz Chute, who is also an author, got back to me quickly with a cover brief form to fill out. It only took me about an hour to complete the form and send it back, along with a sample chapter from my novel.

Third, I paid half the fees in order to get started. Since I’m publishing The Contenders as both an ebook and a print book, I went for the two cover package that cost 150 British Pounds. That translates to roughly $237 US, which I think is a slamming good deal.

This is where the fun begins.

It took about a week for Kit to get back to me with four different designs. It was so exciting to see them! I sent my feedback to Robert, who then passed it on to Kit. Another day or two later, Kit sends me four more designs with my suggested tweaks. This was even more exciting to receive. From this batch, I chose the winner which is the cover you see posted above.

From there, Kit worked on the print cover using the back cover copy I had sent earlier. It took another week or so with back and forth feedback and tweaks, and the print cover was finished. I paid the other half of the fees at this point.

To recap, I sent my initial email to Kit Foster Design on May 2, and my ebook and print book covers were finished by May 22. Three weeks total. Awesome, huh?

Thank you, Robert and Kit! I love my book cover and love how easy it was to work with you.

Peg Cheng (she/her) is an author, artist, and educator living in Seattle, Washington. Her first novel is The Contenders, a middle-grade novel that asks, can enemies become friends? If you enjoyed reading this post, subscribe to Peg’s newsletter to get new posts sent right to you.