What Makes a Book Cover Brand?
If you're planning to publish more than one book, you'll want to think ahead to ensure they all look like they're part of a family.
If you’re thinking about publishing a series of books, it’s important to be more intentional about how you’ll brand them so they look like they belong together. Think of how siblings all share some genetic traits that give clues to their heritage.
Or, imagine an architect who is tasked with planning out a cul-de-sac. This architect isn’t going to build one house, then start from scratch and build another. The neighborhood will have cohesive elements that tie the homes together.
We’re in a series on covers that began with a podcast episode titled “Judging a Book by Its Cover.”
I want to show some examples of book series. I covered key principles of building a series on a new podcast episode titled “Book Cover Branding.”
After you’ve listened to the episode, see if you can spot the branding principles at work in the following examples of indie author series. Plus, paid subscribers can keep scrolling to the bottom for some bonus action steps!
Key Elements of Series Branding
Fonts: Use consistent typefaces to create recognition. Align font choices with genre expectations.
Colors: Utilize a specific color palette for tone communication, with variations to keep the series fresh.
Images and Visual Elements: Consistent use of characters or thematic images enhances series recognition.
Layout: Consistent placement of titles, author names, and other elements contribute to series unity.
Branding Examples
Mary Pierce created her own artwork for books 2–4 and comissioned book 1. Note how each book still has a brand.
Which elements of branding do you see in the examples?
Action: Look at two or three of your favorite authors who have written multiple books. Compare their covers and see if you can spot branding at work there.
Watch for an upcoming example of before-and-after makeovers of book covers that have been remade.
Next week, I’ll talk about the technical aspects of book cover design.
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