Authors should never design their own covers, just like they can't ever single-handedly edit their own work.
I learned this one a year ago with Ocean's Gift. If you want the full, shameful story (it's called Big Boys Like Pink), it's in a guest post I did for Tome Tender Book Blog. It even has lobsters in it.
It comes as a revelation to some that they aren't as artistic as they think, but I guess I always knew. I was the only person in a high school art class who got a D that semester.
Once I have the initial design idea, though, that's different – it's about assembly, like furniture from Ikea. I'm good at assembling bookcases, so how hard could it be?
…
A year of playing with the software. Two manuals I had to order from the UK and the US, respectively. Countless online tutorials that were always for the wrong version of the software. It was as hard as putting together a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle when you have the complete picture in miniature on the box. The best part is that once you've done one…it gets easier.
So, if you're after revelations of the religious kind, sorry, you probably won't find them on my blog. Cover revelations, though…I've been working on turning my ebooks into paperback format books. That means not just formatting the inside book, but making a perfectly-proportioned cover graphic, too.
So without further ado, I will now admit to being an author who has designed my own covers for four paperback books. I've been inspired by many and advised by even more, but, sadly, the penguin had to go.
So…what do people think? Any thoughts, comments, criticisms?