The email message said, “A voice from the past.” My former corporate client, Annie, had switched departments in her company, and it had been more than a year since I heard from her. She now needed help with an unfinished design assignment. Annie said the project was a community-involvement book for investors. “Did anyone from…
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Assignment: Design a new book cover for Viral Vengeance. The author, Norma Rose, had previously published her book under the title of HPV. I liked the first cover and asked the author why she was changing the title and cover art. She explained that HPV did not sound like a thriller and was hard to find via…
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Your book cover is your most important marketing piece. A professionally designed cover is the main focus of your brand and self-promotion materials. Utilize your graphic designer to create materials that engage and reach your target audience. A graphic style complements your book cover and visually builds your brand. It’s essential to be consistent across…
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There’s always something to learn about book marketing. I recommend the following books for authors and writers. Put these on your reading list for 2017. 1) Online Marketing for Busy Authors by Fauzia Burke. This is an easy-to-read book with a concrete, step-by-step process for beginning authors to follow. Small-business owners who are just starting…
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A blast from the past—a vintage poster we designed long ago. Fond memories of a favorite project surfaced when I found old photo negatives* of a concert while I was searching for something else. Creative challenge: Design a commemorative poster to welcome musicians Flora Purim and Airto Moreira, who were doing a concert to benefit…
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The St. Louis Cardinals have been a colorful franchise for generations. The name, “Cardinals,” combined graphically with two birds perched on a baseball bat, have adorned the baseball club’s uniforms with great pride and distinction since 1922. The Cardinals logos and uniforms are among the most recognized and admired brands in all of sports, and…
DetailsChallenge: Have you ever seen a photo online that would be perfect for your needs, but you can’t find the original image? That’s what happened to my client, Donna, who is an editor of her company magazine. “Have you tried a reverse image search?” I asked. She was not aware that this was possible. Here’s…
DetailsWhen a client sends large files via email, it can be problematic. That’s exactly what happened when my client, Raquel, sent me two illustrations and asked for an estimate for tweaking the drawings. Raquel trusts me, as her designer, to give her an honest assessment of any material she sends me, and that is what…
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