Writing sequels is trendy in self-publishing. However, writers often overlook the fact that their series book cover design may turn into an author brand. You need it to boost sales and stand out on the market.
It sounds great when you know how to carry out this process. And this is what I’m here for.
In this article, you’ll learn about the significance of author branding in the book series and its impact on your reader’s perception. I’ve also gathered designs of 14 series to inspire and advise how to implement these ideas.
Importance of author branding for a writer
Branding is a promise you give to your readers. They expect to get it from you every time they hold your book. With an author brand, you tell the target customers what you stand for, and the series book cover design helps you to:
Express uniqueness
You can use particular colors and fonts to differ from other books and series. Whether you have a logo or want to create it, it’s beneficial to place it on the book spine, front, or back cover design.
Cultivate the perception of the series as a whole
Although each cover in a series can have a bona fide design, bond all books with a similar idea.
Become visible
A distinctive feature in your book cover design will draw the audience’s attention. It can be a color, mark, or font that enables readers to recognize you right away. Choose an item to help the readers associate you with something distinctive.
If everything seems clear, you’re probably wondering how to implement these ideas in the book cover design.
There’s a silver lining, and you can find it below.
Make sure that covers in the series have their own identity
The series book cover design is about uniqueness and wholeness. What does it mean?
When you come up with the ideas for the series, it’s essential to connect the books. It’s not about creating replicas where you change titles or numbering, but endowing every cover with its identity. Their design should capture the audience’s attention and look harmoniously as separate books.
Different ways to design the book cover series
If you publish a series, information about the number of books, their titles, and a gist of the novels are handy because you can tie several designs together. It’s unnecessary to have the concept for all book covers in your series right away, but define a common item and single it out.
Let’s see what it can be.
Emphasize the typography
Series title
You can use the title of your book series as a brand mark. When you place it in all covers, you inform readers that the book is the one from the sequel.
Pay attention to the examples below and how designers apply numbering in design: either with words or numbers.
Book title
A book title can serve as a brand mark. So, stick to the same design of typography in every part of the sequel.
Authors often repeat a word or a phrase in the title of every book in the series. It may be the protagonist’s name or central thought of the series. Readers can recognize it by typography, as it’s in the examples presented below.
Author’s name
You can also use your author’s name as a branding element. Choose the font and the color to match your genre.
Emphasize the imagery
The element that conveys your key message
It would be a great idea to incorporate the visual element that is a focal point of your series.
Have a glance at the redesign of the trilogy, which is the bestseller in its category.
Each cover features a hamster with red eyes that emerges as a brand of this book series. It allows readers to understand that the events develop around the pet. Using this brand mark, the author informs about the genre and faces fewer challenges targeting the right audience.
But wait – there’s more. You can also select several objects tied with the same idea. In the covers below, a dragon, ship, and castle refer to the magical and fantastic world that alludes to the genre of the series.
Protagonist
Depicting a protagonist on the cover is a win-win option. Your audience encounters the main character and gets some extra information about the environment where events will take place.
Decorative elements
Your designer may suggest adding some decorative items that reveal the mood of your novel or stress the details. It’s a great idea. The decorative elements, which match the tone, give the collected look to the series book design.
And one more option for branding your covers – experiment with colors.
Emphasize the color palette variations
Don’t be afraid to mix several hues, although one solid color may be a decent option. These variations endow the books with a particular visual representation, and your readers can quickly identify your work among others.
Here’s how you can apply this tip in the book cover design.
The same color for background
Use the same color to create a connection between the books in the series.
Different font colors
Experiment with the colors to make the typography eye-catching. However, it’s essential to use the same font to avoid failures in the design concept.
Different background colors but with the similar hues
Mix up the hues to get an appealing design for the background and make it an outstanding feature of your book cover series.
Several colors professionally combined in the gradient become a brand. This excellent approach can’t but leave your books without attention.
But that’s not all.
Create custom illustrations
Finally, you can choose the illustrated cover design. It looks different and expresses an individual approach with a human touch.
Wrapping Up
When you transform the series book cover design to author branding, you get a simple yet effective way to become a bestselling author. With the series book cover design, it becomes easier to stand out from other writers and prosper in self-publishing.
Start the new stage in your career with author branding!
Featuring a variety of writers from all around the world, Lulu guest posts bring expert knowledge to the Lulu Blog for you to enjoy!