I’m finally catching up on all the orders I got this spring, but need to give myself a little breathing space. For those of you who have asked, I’ll be emailing my list before officially opening, and I have a feeling when I do I’ll get enough orders to last all summer, so you might want to sign up below to be notified early. (I’ll also have a couple free ebooks for you soon that might help with your book marketing).
I’m leaving the site open so you can look around, but the “Purchase” links have been disabled.
Feel free to get in touch with any questions,
Sincerely,
Derek Murphy
Ready to get a competitive book cover that can hold its own with anything else on the market, and the peace of mind in knowing that you’ve given your book a strategic advantage?
Here’s what to expect: I do market research to make sure your book fits in its category, carefully proofread all cover text and give you free editing for your sales copy, synopsis, summary or bio – or coaching if necessary. You’ll also get some 3D generated images of your book for online promotion, and fast, flexible service and followup. I check email frequently and can answer just about any publishing questions.
THE PICASSO is a great choice if you know you want a simple, clean cover, with just one or two pictures. I can help you look for images, but I won’t start actually designing until we’ve picked the ones you want to use. This is a good choice for non-fiction.
THE DALI is more intensive: lots of brainstorming, extended photoshop, tediously cutting and blending pictures together to make a really unique cover design, and up to 6 images (i.e. a background, foreground, three characters and their pet dog). A nice sci-fi/fantasy cover might need this level.
THE DAVINCI is a full print cover, including spine and back. I can add in an ISBN, author photo, imprint logo, or anything else you need. I’ll make multiple formats for free (CS, LS, Lulu), and even help with the upload process if you have any troubles. Need a hardcover with dust flaps? I’ll throw that in for free.
“Thank you for the perfect cover for Lowcountry Shrimp Boil! I enrolled it in Amazon Select and as part of the program it is free today and tomorrow. It is in the Best Selling Free eBook List! Here is the ranking listed below from Amazon: “This format of Lowcountry Shrimp Boil is currently ranked #392 of all free books in the Kindle Store.” That is 392 out of 1 million! Amazing. This would NEVER have happened without your beautiful eye-catching cover! I thank you and cannot wait to see what you do with my next cover.” -Laura Momot
I try to include you in the process as much as possible, so that I don’t spend several days on a cover that you don’t like. What this means is I’ll be sending you a lot of rough, unfinished work to see whether or not I’m heading in the right direction. I also tend to go a little crazy in the beginning – it’s very possible that I’ll send you some things that you hate.
Please don’t freak out; just let me know you don’t like it and that I need to keep trying. I do the background elements first, then the details, the font/text effects, and then sharpen everything up. The sample covers on this site have gone through dozens of rounds of revision, and some started out pretty ugly.
I love trying out different styles and learning new things. I can do any genre – I’ll look at other bestselling books in the category and do something different but unique, and hopefully – even better! There’s really nothing I can’t do – except read your mind… so please try to be specific, show me some covers that you like and share any ideas you have.
“Wow….just Wow! Wish we’d found you to start with! The cover is sooooo awesome! I am so impressed with your work and fresh ideas! You are just what we need! Thanks Derek!” -Sheila Easley
If I’m behind on work, I’ll post the expected waiting period on this page. Once we get started, it could take a few days to several weeks. I’ve had covers come together quickly and overjoy the authors; I’ve also had covers that go through scores of revisions and tweaks, as the author searches for the style/mood/font/effect that speaks to them on an emotional level.
So the speed of the project will depend to a large extent on how “hands-on” you want to be. I like to think that, if left to my own devices, my gut design instinct is pretty good and will produce an excellent cover; however I completely understand an author’s need to get the cover exactly right, and perfectly match their story and characters.
“Derek: I wanted to thank you for creating two outstanding book covers for me. Both books are under review by a major book publisher and they have commented on the quality of the cover. Thank you very much for your hard work, diligence, quick response, and creativity!! You are the best of the best!” -John Mattone
1. Once you click on the “Purchase” button of the cover type you want, you will be taken to PayPal to make a secure payment. I charge for the whole project upfront, only because I’ve found that having a two-step process (half now, half later) is cumbersome and inconvenient for everybody. But I’m totally flexible and we can do whatever makes you feel more comfortable.
2. You’ll be redirected to a simple contact form where you can send me information about the book (title, subtitle, author’s name, blurbs, tagline, back copy text, author bio…). You don’t have to tell me everything right away, and you can also email me anytime at derekmurphy@creativindie.com.
I’ll need to know what the characters look like, and any scenes that really stick out. Choosing models that match what you have in your head for your characters is really tough for me, so it’s better if you help me search for them – I use 123rf.com for all my photos (if you can’t find anything there, I can suggest alternatives). Let me know if there are other book covers that you like, or if you’ve found images you’d like to use.
3. I’ll generate several possible samples. If you like one, I’ll keep developing it until it’s just right. If you don’t like the first batch, I’ll keep looking for different ideas. If you’re creating a paperback, we’ll continue working on the spine text, logo placement, generate a barcode from your ISBN, add an author photo/bio if necessary, back copy text, blurbs, etc.
All book cover text will be carefully edited and revised if necessary. We can design specifically for your printer (ie. Lulu, Amazon, Lightning Source, etc.) based on their templates, and even coordinate the cover with the book interior formatting.
4. I’ll send a final version of the cover, in JPG and/or PDF (let me know what you need, and I’ll do it). You can keep the Photoshop files if you want them.
PS) The checklists above are just guidelines and estimates. I tried to limit my “rounds of revisions” before, but the truth is I’m not going to stop working on your cover until it’s done and you’re happy with it. If we reach an impasse, which happens, I’ll give you a refund and you can try again with someone else.
If you want to change the text only, I’ll do it for free for up to five covers. More likely, for a series you’ll keep the style and font the same, but switch out the background images. For these I’ll take $100 off each cover after the first one.
You’ve got enough publishing-related tasks to worry about and fret over. I don’t want to be one of them. I’ll only keep your money if you’re thrilled with the design – and you also get the unprecedented, unbelievable, 1 Year Warranty on your cover.
I’m extremely sensitive to the financial limits of indie authors; publishing a book can be a huge investment. If you really want a cover but can’t afford my prices, let’s make a deal of some kind. Maybe you can shout my praises from the Kindle Boards, or put an ad on your blog or website, or barter something interesting. I can’t promise anything, and my paying clients have to come first, but we can probably swing a discount. Also – I plan to give away a few free book covers every year, so you might want to follow me on Twitter or Facebook.
I wish I had time to take on more clients, but I hate getting overwhelmed with work. Once I hit my 10/month limit, I won’t accept new orders until I catch up. So if you’re thinking about ordering, book your spot quickly!