Jonathan Eaton's Blog - Posts Tagged "covers"
Do Whatever You Want . . . (Except That)
One of the nicest things about indie publishing is you can do whatever you want. One of the un-nicest things is that it’s really hard to get people to buy your book (AKA making money).
But let’s talk about the nice thing, that is, doing whatever you want. It's great.
There are, of course, things an Indie writer should never do, even though they can. Chief among them is doing your own cover.
For my next novel, I’m doing my own cover. It’s not that there aren’t people I wouldn’t love to have do my cover for me (check out
Calef Brown for example—I don’t know if he does book covers, but if I had oodles of money, I’d find out!). It’s that un-nice part about not making any money. A professionally done cover will cost you around $300.00. It might take me six months to make that much from book sales. It might take a whole lot longer—like, you know, how long it will take the sun to use up all its hydrogen and start making that noise a straw makes when you've sucked up all of your malted milkshake (only a lot louder). And don’t tell me where I can get a cover done super-cheap—I’ve seen those covers—you get what you pay for.
I don’t think making your own cover is for everyone. I think it is for me, though. My novels are idiosyncratic. I’m not competing with other techno-thrillers, murder mysteries, space operas, or even westerns. The only reason someone’s going to read my book (aside from some kind of strange and horrible accident, such as being related to me) is that they like my books. My art is also idiosyncratic. So chances are, if you don’t like the kinds of covers I make, you’re not going to like the kinds of book I write. They are both very . . . me.
Here’s the cover I’m working on (and I think I might be finished working on) for my next novel, “Seven Texas Tales — a Novel”
So there . . . and . . . yeah, I like happy colors.
But let’s talk about the nice thing, that is, doing whatever you want. It's great.
There are, of course, things an Indie writer should never do, even though they can. Chief among them is doing your own cover.
For my next novel, I’m doing my own cover. It’s not that there aren’t people I wouldn’t love to have do my cover for me (check out
Calef Brown for example—I don’t know if he does book covers, but if I had oodles of money, I’d find out!). It’s that un-nice part about not making any money. A professionally done cover will cost you around $300.00. It might take me six months to make that much from book sales. It might take a whole lot longer—like, you know, how long it will take the sun to use up all its hydrogen and start making that noise a straw makes when you've sucked up all of your malted milkshake (only a lot louder). And don’t tell me where I can get a cover done super-cheap—I’ve seen those covers—you get what you pay for.
I don’t think making your own cover is for everyone. I think it is for me, though. My novels are idiosyncratic. I’m not competing with other techno-thrillers, murder mysteries, space operas, or even westerns. The only reason someone’s going to read my book (aside from some kind of strange and horrible accident, such as being related to me) is that they like my books. My art is also idiosyncratic. So chances are, if you don’t like the kinds of covers I make, you’re not going to like the kinds of book I write. They are both very . . . me.
Here’s the cover I’m working on (and I think I might be finished working on) for my next novel, “Seven Texas Tales — a Novel”
So there . . . and . . . yeah, I like happy colors.
