Canva for Authors: Design Professional Book Covers That Attract Readers

1. Course Introduction: Hi, everyone. I'm Vanessa *** and welcome to my course creates stunning book covers using Canva. The book cover is the very first thing a person sees when they're trying to decide whether or not they want to read a book. I mean, it is true. You can judge a book by its cover. Now, you might not know the content, but the cover is going to make or break the idea of reading the book. So in this course, I'm going to show you how to create book covers that are appealing that create a sentiment. Do people want to read the book because the book cover is speaking to them? We're going to talk about things like topography and color psychology. We're going to look at the creative process behind creating a book cover. We're also going to look at how less can definitely be more. We're going to delve into the sentiment of a book cover. Yes, all of these things in this course. So if you are interested in creating book covers, whether the book cover is for your book or whether you are creating book covers for others, this course is going to help you in identifying the best way to start the book cover, as well as how to develop it into a stunning book cover that is appealing and appeals to the sentiment of the reader. If you're ready, I'm ready. Let's get to it. 2. Lesson: Design Principles: When it comes to creating a book cover, there are four design principles that I recommend that you adhere to. It's the same four that I adhere to. The first being, make sure that the cover design fits the title. Too often, the cover design and the title are disjointed. They don't align. And that can be viewed immediately by someone trying to determine whether or not they want to read the book. If you have a book title that is not aligned with the cover some type of a way, there's a feeling of disjointedness. It doesn't work. There's a disconnect. And that is something that will make someone say, I want to read this book, and that's not what you want. The second is sentiment. You want your book cover to make the reader feel something, regardless of whether the feeling is happiness, sadness, anger, motivation, you want them to feel something. So the cover should provide an element of sentiment. And that can be done through your images, through your illustrations. But when someone looks at your cover, they should feel something, which compels them to want to read your book. The third design principle is making sure that your colors are accommodating. You don't want your colors to be disconnected, as well or unaligned with the title. So if your sentiment is happy, and you want people to feel happy and the title is happy, and the book is happy. You don't want to use dark colors and vice versa. If you want something dark, if you want the sentiment to make you feel compelled or compassion, or you want someone to feel sad, you don't want happy colors. And so make sure that your colors are aligned with the sentiment and then the title. The last design principle is Less is More. Too many times we see book covers that just cluttered. They have so much going on. The colors are bold. The topography is bold, the visualization is bold, it's just a lot going on all at one time. This normally comes from the designer trying to create a literal interpretation of the title, and it's not necessary. Your title can be very small. And not very prominent. But your book cover can capture what your title does not and vice versa. So in keeping with a design principle that says less is more, you can actually create your book cover to say it all without saying it all and showing it all. You don't have to have all the elements, all the colors, all the bells and whistles to get your point across. Good design is knowing how to edit and when to edit. Sometimes you can have a background and two words. And the sentiment is felt far beyond what you thought. So less is more and more needs editing. So these are the design principles that I recommend that you adhere to when creating your book cover. You want to make sure that the book cover, when a person sees it, not only sees it, but they feel it, that the colors are accommodating, that the colors are accommodating what they are feeling, and that's not cluttered, not overly done, not overly edited, not overly polished, not overly just designed. You don't want a book cover that's overly designed. 3. Lesson: The Creative Process: When I start the process of creating a book cover, I start with layers. I use layers. And I don't do anything definitive. I will take several pages. We're using Canva. I'll take several pages and just start with colors. And I start putting colors together. That's where I start with colors, adding colors together. The next step for me is to start adding elements. I will gather the elements out of Canva, using the images and the graphics. I'll just start pulling. And I pull a lot of them because I want to make the cover, I want to make it fit. I want to see what fits with what. I want to know what fits well. So this image might fit well with this graphic, and I'll put those two together, but they both will look good on this color. So I start with that process, and it's a layering process. So the next thing I will add after I have my colors, after I have my elements that I want to use, then I will start with the typography. I start looking at font. I haven't started with how large or what type of font. I'm looking at all types of font. And so I'm determining what font I like for the elements and for the colors. Then after I get the fonts that I like, then I can start with adding the text to it. So I add the text, and then I start playing with the font and using the font that I picked and adding it to the text. And then now I can start with the placement of the font and the placement of the text, which is creating my topography. Once I have all of that in line, then I have created my book cover. After I create the book cover, that layer, after I'm looking at the book cover, my next step is to see if there's anything else I need. I do one last check. Is there anything else I need? I might need some texture. I might need a little bit of color somewhere else. I might need a burst of something. It's in that last step that I make that decision. And then after I'm satisfied with the book cover, then I can resize it if I need to, or I can go ahead and save it for print. 4. Lesson: Visual Hierarchy: Hi everyone. Welcome. In this lesson, we are going to explore the crucial design principle that can make or break your book cover. That would be the visual hierarchy. Think of it as the secret sauce that guides your reader's eyes and makes your cover not just pretty but truly effective. So what exactly is visual hierarchy? Simply put, it's the arrangement of elements in a design to show their order of importance. It's about creating a clear path for the viewer's eye, ensuring they see the most important information first, then the supporting details. Without it, your cover can feel cluttered, confusing, and ultimately ineffective. Why is visual hierarchy important for a book cover? On a book cover, visual hierarchy is essential. You have a limited amount of space to grab someone's attention and communicate key information. You need to make sure the title, author name, and genre are instantly recognizable. A strong visual hierarchy ensures your cover is quickly understood and makes a lasting impression. Think about it. When you browse books online or in store, what catches your eye first? That's visual hierarchy at work. Let's explore the elements that create visual hierarchy. First up, there's size. The bigger something is, the more attention it commands. On a book cover, the title is usually the largest element, establishing its importance. Think about how you can use size to emphasize keywords or phrases within your title, as well. Next, we have contrast. This is about creating differences between elements to make them stand out. Think about color, value, lightness, darkness, and even texture. A bright title against a dark background, for example, will naturally draw the eye. Color is an element of visual hierarchy, and color is a powerful tool for creating visual hierarchy. We tend to look at brighter, more saturated colors first. You can use color to highlight key elements, create focal points and even evoke emotions. Consider the genre of your book and the feelings you want to convey when choosing your color palette. Now there's typography. Typography is the art of using fonts. This plays a crucial role. Different fonts have different personalities. A bold, strong font for the title conveys a different message than a delicate script font. Consider the readability and how well the font reflects the genre and tone of your book. Where you place your elements on your cover matters, placement is another crucial point of visual hierarchy. We naturally tend to look at the center and upper areas of a design first. Use this to your advantage by placing your most important elements in these key areas. Think about the flow of information and how you can guide the viewers' eyes across the entire cover. Now let's see how all of these elements work together. A well designed book cover uses a combination of size, contrast, color, typography, and placement to create a clear and compelling visual hierarchy. Now it's your turn to put these principles into practice. Grab your Canva account and start experimenting. Remember to think about your target audience, the genre of your book, and the message you want to convey. That's it for this lesson on visual hierarchy. By understanding and applying these principles, you can create book covers that are not only beautiful but also truly effective. 5. Lesson: Color Psychology: Hi, everyone. Welcome. In this lesson, we're going to explore a fascinating aspect of book cover design, the psychology of color. Color isn't just about aesthetics. It's a powerful tool that you can evoke emotions or create associations and ultimately influence whether someone picks up your book. Or if it's an eBook, keep scrolling. What exactly is color psychology? Color psychology is the study of how colors affect human behavior and emotions. Different colors are associated with different feelings, and these associations are often deeply ingrained in our culture and even our biology. Understanding these connections can help you make informed choices about the colors you use on your book cover. Start with the color red. Now, red typically is a color of energy, passion, excitement, and sometimes danger. It's a bold color that grabs attention. Think about the fiery red on the cover of a thriller or the passionate red on a romance novel. However, red can also be associated with aggression or warning. So it's important to use it thoughtfully. Now, blue, blue is often associated with trust, calmness, stability, and intelligence. It's a popular choice for corporate branding, and it is often seen on book covers in genres like science, science fiction, mystery, and even some non fiction. Lighter blues can feel more peaceful while darker blues can convey authority and sophistication. Green, however, represents nature, growth, and harmony, as well as renewal. It's a calming color that can evoke feelings of peace and tranquility. Green is often used on covers for nature themed books, eco thrillers, and even some self help or wellness books. And then there's yellow. Yellow is the color of sunshine, joy, optimism, and, of course, creativity. It's a bright, energetic color that can be very eye catching. However, yellow can also be associated with caution of warning. So it's important to use it strategically. Think about how yellow might work for a light hearted comedy or a book about personal growth. Orange combines the energy of red with the optimism of yellow. It represents creativity, enthusiasm, and warmth. Orange can be a great choice for contemporary fiction, young adults, or anything that feels modern and energetic. And then there's purple, which is my favorite color. And it's often associated with royalty, luxury, mystery, and spirituality. It's a sophisticated color and a jewel tone that can add a touch of elegance to a book cover. Purple is often used in fantasy, paranormal romance, and even some historical fiction. We can't forget Black. Black represents power, elegance, mystery, and sophistication. A classic color that can be used to create a strong and impactful design. Black is often used for thrillers, mysteries, and literary fiction, and it's often shown in different shades of black. And, of course, there's white, the exact opposite of black. White symbolizes purity, innocence, cleanliness and peace. It's a versatile color that can be used to create a sense of simplicity and elegance. White is often used for romance novels, inspirational books, and even some cookbooks. Of course, you'll really use just one color on your book cover. Think about how different colors interact with each other. And how you can use different colors as contrasting colors to create visual interest or complimentary colors to create a sense of harmony. Remember, the colors you choose should be appropriate for your book's genre. A bright pink cover might work for contemporary romance, but it probably wouldn't be the best choice for a dark thriller. Now it's your turn to experiment. Think about the emotions you want to evoke with your book cover and how color can help you achieve that. Have fun exploring the world. By understanding the psychology of color, you can create book covers that not only look great, but also effectively communicate the essence of your book. 6. Lesson: Typography: Hi, everyone. Welcome. In this lesson, we're going to explore typography. Typography is a crucial element in creating effective and visually appealing book covers. Typography isn't just about choosing pretty fonts. It's about using type to communicate, evoke emotions, and ultimately sell your book. What exactly is typography? Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable and appealing. On a book cover, typography plays a vital role in grabbing attention, conveying the tone of your book, and making sure your title and author name are easily readable. Let's start by exploring different font families. Several fonts have small decorative strokes at the ends of the letters. They often convey a sense of tradition, elegance, and authority. Ink, classic literature, historical fiction, or academic texts. Sand serifonts as the name suggests, don't have those decorative strokes. They tend to look more modern, clean and minimalist. Sanserifonts are often used for contemporary fiction, thrillers, and non fiction. Script fonts resemble handwriting. Can be elegant, romantic or playful. However, they can also be difficult to read if overused. Script fonts are often used for romance novels, historical fiction, or books with a personal or intimate tone. Use them sparingly and ensure readability. Display fonts are designed to be eye catching and are often used for titles or headings. They come in a wide variety of styles from bold and impactful to decorative and whimsical. Choose a display font that complements the genre and tone of your book. You'll often need to use more than one font on your book cover. This is where font pairings come in. The key is to choose fonts that complement each other and create a visual hierarchy. Common approach is to pair a display font for the title with a more readable seraph or Sand sera font for the author name and other text. Above all else, your typography must be readable. Choose fonts that are easy to read at a glance, even at small sizes. Avoid overly decorative or complex fonts that can strain the eye. Use typography to create a clear visual hierarchy the title should be the most prominent element, followed by the author name and then any other text. You can achieve this through variations in font size, weight, and style. Kerning and tracking are very important when it comes to creating a cover design. Kerning is the adjustment of the space between individual letters. Tracking is the adjustment of space between all letters in a word or line of text. Fine tuning kerning and tracking can significantly improve the readability and overall appearance of your typography. Now it's your turn to experiment with typography. Explore different font families, practice font pairing, and pay attention to readability and hierarchy. By understanding the essentials of typography, you can create book covers that are not only visually appealing, but also effectively communicate the essence of your book. 7. Live Demo: Hi, everyone. Okay, so let's start taking what we learned in the course and putting it to practice. We're going to create a book cover. The name of the book, the title of the book is How to Create a book cover. As you can see, I already have a page here. It's a six by nine page to work in because the book cover is going to be the book itself is going to be six by nine, so the cover is six by nine. And I'm just going by general standard principle, the six by nine. Okay. And so the title of the book is How to create a book cover. Okay, so let's start building. Remember, I said in the lesson, I like to build in layers. So I want to start with color. I know that I want this book cover to be colorful. And so I want multiple colors. That's what I'm envisioning, multiple colors. So, in Canva, you would go over to the elements section and the elements panel, and I'm just going to add in the search bar color and texture. So I want color texture. I'm going to use something like that. And I think I want to use graphics, so I'm going to start there to see what comes up. Now, as you can see, there's a lot that you can choose from. And then you just keep scrolling until you find the one that you want. I like this. And so I'm going to put this here. Now, something that I would do is if I see something and I like it and it might be a good fit, I will go ahead and add it to another page. So I don't have to look for it again, because sometimes you can see an element, and it's like, Okay, I like that, but then when you actually try to work with it, you don't getting different variations is a good thing because you just never know which one will work and which one don't that we have the background color, the second phase for me in creating this book cover is the title. And what I like to do is break up the title the way I want it to be on the book cover. I'm not getting to hierarchy yet. I'm just trying to determine how I want the words to be broken up. I do know I don't want this block right here of how to create a book cover as the title. So I'm going to break this up. So I'm starting with the how to. I want the how to to be its own entity in this. I want the word create to be its own, so I'm going to remove it from here. And then a book cover will be its own separate little entity. This is going to help when it comes to the visual hierarchy, right? So this is the title, how to create a book cover. But now that we have them separated, we can work with them in creating the visual hierarchy and dealing with the typography. Before I start with the typography, I feel like there needs to be a little bit more depth here, meaning more elements. Now, less is more. We know that from our design principles. But I don't think a book cover with words is enough, not in this case, for some books, but not in this case. I want to add some depth and I want to add elements. And I think since this is a book about creating book covers, what better way to enhance a book cover than by having books? So I want to add books to the cover design. I have a choice between graphics and photos. I tend to like for something like this. I tend to like graphics. And as you can see, there's a wide variety of books. And as I stated before, it doesn't hurt to select all the ones that you like when you first see them. As you're selecting the ones that you like, then you can play with them and determine whether or not they're the right fit. So I like this design element. I think it works well. The colors work well with the colors of the book, and I can resize it. One thing I am going to do, however, is duplicate it because I don't want to enlarge it like this. I think there's more that can be done. So I'm going to duplicate it to put it on the other side of the book, but it doesn't match up this way. So what do I do? I can flip flip it horizontally and see how I can make these two match up now. So I'm going to make it a little larger. And this is part of design, right? This is part of the designing of creating a book cover. And I'm just going to line it up so that it's aligned, and it looks like it's effortless, like it's one continuous design. Okay. So now that we have the design, I want to also add the author's name. Now, again, a part of my process is to get all of the elements on the page and then decide how I want to design them. So the author's name is Chris M Superhero. The author's name to be secondary. It doesn't have to be very prominent. It just has to be here, and it has to be viewable and readable. Okay, so let's go back to the title. Now, we know that create is going to be the primary word. It's going to be the word in the title that commands the most attention. So to start that process, it needs to be larger from the very beginning. It just needs to be larger. So I'm going to take this up to about 120 just to start. All right. And because it's the primary word in the title, I think it needs to be capital letters. L change them to capital letters. And, of course, you know, when you're designing, as you're making changes, you might have to adjust. Alright, so we're adjusting. We have Create is the prominent word in the title. It is the one commanding the attention. So in the visual hierarchy, the word create is the largest word on the page. Okay, so my next step is to find a font that is befitting of the title. Now, I want something playful. This font here is a little bit masculine, it's a little bit stoic. I don't want it because it's not as playful as the title. So I want something that's a little bit more playful. So I'm going to go to my font panel and look for fonts that are a little bit more playful. Now, I have some that I use a lot, and I'm going to just rely on those. One of them being Sinsel decorative and SinsL. And so for this book cover and the word create, I think Sunzel decorative works very well. It's very playful, it's, you know, rounded, and it has a variety of feel to it. And so when it comes to the word create, I think it serves it well, so I'm going to use it. So now that I have my word create in a decorative font, and I have it in the center of the page, which is where I believe I want it, I can start placing the other words in the title around it. I know that book cover is going to be underneath. And I know the words how two is going to be on top. The question is where. So for this book cover, I feel like it's already lending itself to how it should be. Now, I like how two on the top, but I feel like it should have a different element, a decorative element. And so the first thing I'm going to do is change the font from Canvas sands. And I want to use, again, something playful. So I'm going to use bright sunshine, which is a font that I find to be very versatile. Bright sunshine caps. Alright. And so for alignment, I'm also going to use bright sunshine caps for a book cover. I don't want the words how to just sit on top of the word create. I think there's a design opportunity here to make it. Stand out. So the first thing I'm going to do is make it larger, just a little larger. Remember, it's secondary. I'm gonna make it a little larger, but I'm going to use the effects. To do something just a little bit decorative. I'm going to use the curve function and curve it. I can curve it out a little bit and then turn it. Okay. And then I'm going to take the words a book cover and just make it larger. Okay, so let's look at the hierarchy. The word create commands attention. It's the first thing you see. Then the words how to, they support the word creates. And then a book cover supports the title period. Alright. So now, lastly, we have the author's name. Now, the author's name does not have to be very large. And it doesn't have to be very prominent, but it also doesn't have to be flat. And so, with the author's name, because I do think it should still have a boxy type feel. I'm going to use a font called Poppins. This is Poppins. And I don't need it to be bold. So Poppins and just regular font. I like that, but it does need a little bit of depth. So I'm just going to use an effect, give it a lift because that's all it needs is a lift or I can give it a shadow. I'll go with the shadow. And then I want it in the center of the page, of course, and at the top. Accordingly. Alright. So this is the book cover, but I do feel like it still needs a little something. I mean, it's beautiful, but I do feel like there's a little bit more that can be done. And so I don't want to over design it. The cover is beautiful the way it is. It just needs a little bit more of something. That little bit more of something can come by the way of color. What I'm going to do is add color to the word create. I like purples. I feel like purple would really make this book cover pop, which it does. And then because there is teal and pink and Burgundy in the books at the bottom, the graphic elements, I feel like I can pull from one of those. So I don't want to use pink. So I'll take a green color and add a green color to the words how to a book cover. But overall, I like the way this looks. Now, one last thing to do is to make sure that in your hierarchy, you're using all of your space wisely, okay? You don't have to use all of your space. Like, there can be space. But are you using it all wisely? Is everything aligned properly? Do you have the right amount of space? That's the last thing that you're doing when you're polishing is making sure that everything is lined up the way that you wanted to, making sure that the sizing is supportive. The colors are supportive, and there you have it. How to create a book cover. And that's exactly what we've done. We've created a book cover. Is the cover design supportive of the title? It is. Can the sentiment be felt from the cover design? It can. Are the colors accommodating? They are. And did we adhere to the Less is more principle? We did. The typography is evident. The visual hierarchy is evident, and the color is resonating. There's a lot of colors, but they all work together cohesively. The elements are on the page, the author's name is there, the title is there, and the genre is inferred. So, as you can see, we have created a book cover in real time. I can't wait to see what you create. 8. Class Project: Hi, everyone. Okay, so let's talk about the class project. So for this class project, I want you to take all the tools, the tips, and the central information that I've provided in this course to create your own book cover. Using the instructions that are provided, which is to use the techniques, the tips, the information from the course, I want you to create a book cover for your own book. It can be any cover and any topic, any genre that you want. I just want you to create a book cover starting from a blank page. Once you have created your book cover, then I want you to take your book cover and add it, upload it to your class project folder in your profile. And if you want to be really bold, I want you to add your project into the class discussion folder so that other classmates can see it and discuss it, as well. And when you do this, make sure that you add your process. What were the things that you like you did like? Did you stumble? Did you were you challenged by anything? How did you get to the book cover that you are actually submitting? Tell us your process. We want to know your creative process. So, to recap, I want you to create a book cover starting from scratch on any genre, any title, whatever you want. And then after you've created your book cover, I want you to add it to your class folder, the class folder that says class project. I can't wait to see what you create. 9. Course Wrap Up: Well, hello again. If you have made it to this lesson, that means you have watched all of the lessons in the course, and you have made it to the end. And I applaud you. Congratulations. In this course, we discuss things like topography. We looked at color psychology. We looked at the visual hierarchy. We looked at the creative process of creating a book cover. Now it's time for you to create the book covers of your dreams, the book covers that create the sentiment that you want people to feel. Again, whether it's your book cover for your own personal work or whether you're creating book covers for others. I look forward to seeing what you have created. And if you haven't done so already, don't forget you have the class project. So I'm looking forward to seeing what you add to your class project folder. I'm looking forward to seeing the book covers that you have created until next time.