Linnea Gradin is a writer for Reedsy — a website that connects authors with freelancing publishing professionals and gives advice on everything writing and publishing related, and how to get into the publishing industry, from how to become a book cover designer to how to set your design rates, and where to find book design jobs. When Linnea is not reading, she can be found dribbling on the football pitch, dabbling in foreign languages, or exploring the local cuisine of whatever country she happens to be in at the time.
Photography as part of book cover design is a relatively recent addition to book cover designers’ and marketers’ toolboxes. It was not until the late 20th century—as camera equipment became more accessible—that photographic book covers began to gain popularity for their ability to convey realism, emotion and immediacy to the audience.
In today’s attention economy, authors and publishers are competing not only with each other, but also with the many distractions of life 一 from streaming platforms to social feeds. Book covers have long played a vital role in driving sales by appealing to the book’s target audience. Yet now more than ever, they’re an author and publisher’s best chance to compel people to stop what they’re doing and find out more about their book. The question is how to create a cover that will achieve this.
