Up until april 2018, it was also a platform where authors could hire the selfpublishing services needed to produce the book, such as editing, cover design and typesetting. Many aspects of the selfpublishing process can be intimidating and confusing, especially the first time you do them. How to make a createspace book cover in photoshop andrew. Fiverr freelancer will provide book design services and do unique createspace book cover,kdp book cover design including 3d mockup within 1 day. This way, when the book is trimmed to size, the image will reach all the way to the edge. Ingramspark, lulu or others, authors are required to upload their content to the site including artwork for the cover and spine design. To help you format your manuscript, we created templates in microsoft word into which you can insert your content. Even though you really should be creating your covers in adobe. The easiest way to bring the art into your full print cover template, is to make the front, spine and back art unique, 1 piece layers, without the text. How to make a full print book cover in microsoft word for. The spine calculator is the best aid for authors and also being familiar with the createspace cover template, createspace book sizes template and createspace spine calculator is going to allow the authors to sell their books in vast numbers. Making a book cover and getting it ready for upload will vary depending upon the service you have chosen to publish your book with, however, some of the most popular self publishing services will use templates to ensure that the size of your design is correct. For help calculating your book dimensions, try our calculator.
Simply put in your page count, book interior trim and paper color and your jacket cover size will instantly appear at the bottom with all the details. The full width and height calculated here includes the spine and bleed. For the best results, follow the five steps in this guide. With a fortyplus percent share of all books sold and sixtyplus percent of the online book market, amazon is by far the biggest market that you can reach as a selfpublished author. Full cover design dimensions calculator for amazon kdp and. Design an ebook catalogue cover in canva using either a template or your own specifications and images.
Calculates spine width, and total width and height of the print cover for kdp. You cant just take three pieces to createspace and hope that theyll get your cover right. You dont have to pay any costs upfront or carry any inventory. Alternatively, use the following formula to calculate your page width and height. Createspaces cover generator is totally broken creativindie. Createspace spine width error message and how to fix it. The createspace publishing checklist how to save time and.
I recommend you use one of createspace s interior templates to make sure that the margins and sizes of the pages of your book are correct. How to create a book cover spine in adobe indesign quora. A brief tutorial showing how to use adobe indesign to create a book cover for createspace. The book spine width calculator only takes seconds. If youre designing a full print book cover for createspace, the spine width needs to be calculated based on the final page count. Cover creator uses the book details you enter during title setup and adds your book s isbn to the barcode area of the back cover. If you book is less than about 100 pages, createspace will not print anything on the spine, and your book cover layout will include that smallish blank spine. How to create a book cover for ingram spark and createspace.
You must indeed have an idea of the spine calculator. The topics below include our top tips for avoiding common file rejections. Designing a book s spine can be a somewhat unglamorous step in the book design process. After reading this book, i am confident you will be able to create your cover in no time and free. How to create a print book cover with canva for createspace. Simply put in your page count, book interior trim and paper color and. Book cover designs premade and custom book covers home. Nelson, author book coachspeaker one of the first things i do, and one of the first things i suggest all my writerclients do, is to create a book cover right away. How to make a book cover for createspace in photoshop youtube. If you want to update your cover after it moves to kdp, you need to design a new one using kdps cover creator. You have a narrow rectangle to work with, and often theres barely enough room for the essentials. At a bookshop, also the first sight is the book spine, you would know the book spine at first glance, and if the title of the book impresses you, you are going to buy that book surely.
How to make a book cover with gimp, i rushed through the process skipping over two very important steps in creating a good paperback book. After laying out your book, youll learn a very important number. Mar 29, 20 a brief tutorial showing how to use adobe indesign to create a book cover for createspace. How to use createspace or kindle paperback cover template. Creating a book cover for createspace using adobe indesign. Please keep in mind that it will be difficult to depict an actual scene out of your book. So, for the 230 page cream book im working on, my calculator says the spine width should be 0. Cover creator can also help you design a basic paperback cover that meets kdps specifications. Jan 22, 2018 one of the key tasks for the book designer when it comes to books that will be sold at retail is the design of the books spine. Design a print book cover for amazons createspace with.
And plus, how long it is will determine how wide the book spine is. Just enter the number of pages in your book and the book size you decided on earlier, and it will generate a downloadable cover template. You can save hundreds of dollars on a designer, and do it yourself, or design a prototype for a designer your choice. Keep the type and elements that you dont want trimmed off at least 38. Publishing and design services for authors and presses full cover design dimensions calculator for amazon kdp and createspace this online calculator tool will help you arrive at the dimensions your full cover needs to be for amazon kdp or for createspace or you can just use it to figure your spine width. The benefits are tremendous as amazon will automatically pair your ebook with the paperback on amazon and it looks very professional to have both available, not to mention the satisfaction of having a paperback copy of your book in your own hands. Others authors image,isbn image mandatory requirements. That template file shows the required size of your cover image, and shows the areas to avoid putting text or crucial images in. Sep 19, 20 how to use createspace cover creator killer book marketing. The spine calculator will decide the appropriate spine width for your book.
How to design your book cover free is full of reallife examples of how to start with nothing and create your covers for kindle, createspace, and acx if you only take a few minutes to learn the skills. Login to get started with kindle direct publishing, manufacturing on demand, or print on demand for publishers. Design your cover in the design layer, using the template pdf or png file as the guide layer. Work out the specifications for a paperback book cover or generate one in createspace, and then design your cover in canva with a little image manipulating in gimp. Book cover design, ebook cover, print book cover design by. Make a book cover spine with gimp selfpublishing with dale. Different printers use different paper, which determines the spine width, which is why this calculator is specific to amazon kdp and createspace same paper. This package includes premium custom cover creation with a back and spine for book. Createspace s current role in the selfpublishing world is as a platform for authors to publish their books to amazon. Two business days after we receive all the needed information about your book, youll receive an email with your createspace kindle ready files. Do you want to know how to make a book cover with gimp in less than 5 minutes. Your cover pdf must be the exact size as given by this calculator, and your background colour andor images must go all the way to the edges. For your ebookonly order, you can choose as few as 2 pages for your book.
Your cover must be a single pdf that includes the back cover, spine, and front cover as one image. How to make a book cover spine with gimp createspace posted on august 10, 2017 august 10, 2017 by dale in my video createspace cover template. Aug 10, 2017 in my video createspace cover template. Make your kindle, createspace, and acx covers in minutes baird, chris a.
I recommend you use one of createspaces interior templates to make sure that the margins and sizes of the pages of your book are correct. Createspace book cover design by crowdspring crowdspring. There, you will learn how to build a book cover using createspace cover. Even if you choose a 6 x 9 paperback cover the fact is the createspace 6 x 9 cover is actually 6. Youll need to visit here and it will take you right to the createspace book cover template. How to create your print book cover for createspace tips. Use my spine width calculator for createspace here. It allows you to enter the number of pages and choose your paper type. Do createspace book cover with front spine and back. Whether youre formatting your book for print or an ebook, there are some pagination rules you must follow.
This is the simplest and the fastest way to build your book cover using createspace or kindle paperback cover template. For your book cover design or createspace cover, i use highquality licensed images thatll make your book stand out from the competition. One of the key tasks for the book designer when it comes to books that will be sold at retail is the design of the book s spine. To help you design your paperback books cover, createspace can automatically generate a template file that is custombuilt for your book. Createspace has a rule of thumbdont put spine text on your book if its thinner than 1 pages.
A stepbystep guide to publishing with createspace by lyn horner explains how to publish a book using createspace. Createspace cover using microsoft publisher 20 youtube. How to self publish on createspace in three easy steps. Im setting up a createspace front and back cover, plus spine. We now offer specialized options for your different publishing needs. As you add text to your cover, make sure it exactly matches the book details e. How to make a full print book cover in microsoft word for createspace, lulu or lightning source at the end of 20 i put out a package of diy book cover templates in microsoft word and revolutionized publishing with a howto guide to designing amazing book covers in an easy to use program youre already familiar with.
This instructional video is meant for selfpublishing indie authors who need help creating a basic pdf. We deliver professional createspace cover design with 300 dpi resolution using premium images for the cover design, also you can choose your own image from depositphotos website for the design. A quick look at the fine art of book spine design the. This article, written by lyn horner, guides us stepbystep through the process of publishing a book with createspace. Downloading your createspace cover template blue paper. The way you do this is to increase your page size and then ensure that the image extends beyond the trim line. Basically, a book that has a spine thick enough to place text will stand out more on the shelf than a thinner, spineless book. Spine design is one of the determining factors whether a book will be a success or not since most books spend a good portion of their time spine out in a stores bookshelf. Createspace spine width calculator premade book cover designs. This online calculator tool will help you arrive at the dimensions your full cover needs to be for amazon kdp or for createspace or you can just use it to figure your spine width. So you can fit the art over the template, leave the white space as is, save as pdf and it will still work just fine.
Open the pdf or png file for the paperback book cover template in your image editing software. These are really easy to use, theyre free, and you dont even have to have a createspace account set up to use them. Createspace cover creator designs arent compatible with cover creator on kdp. Createspace cover template book cover design selfpublish. The design and image on the spine are going to make your readers interested in your book. When designing the spine, you will find that the spine calculator is essential. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
If you want to figure out the thickness of your book s spine, use our handy spine width calculator to determine the book spine width and the overall height and width of your book cover. Book spine calculator book thickness calculator what is a. I offer a full book cover design that includes both back and spine designs. Use the following form to get pixel dimensions for photoshop and other design programs. Depending on your book, some steps may be unnecessary for example, your book doesnt have images. Apr 12, 2014 invaluable createspace cover template calculator by deborah s. Finish writing your book seriously, thats the more important bit. Text on spine if more than 100 pages back cover description, upload as a word or text file. A stepbystep guide to book publishing with createspace. Createspace spine calculator choosing a spine for your book. Createspace seems to be continuing this service for now. If youve already made an ebook front cover using my templates, youll have to adjust the text a bit, because now you have extra margins on the top, bottom and sides. The overlooked art of designing a book spine medium. Spine design is one of the determining factors whether a book will be a success or not since most books spend a good portion of their time spineout in a stores bookshelf.
Ok so the truth is that you can just make one page at the start of your document that is double the width of your regular page plus the width of your spine and most printers would be totally cool with that. Luckily theres a createspace spine width calculator. How to make a pdf cover for your createspace book lit. Book spine calculator book thickness calculator what. This design questionnaire will help me understand what your book is about and how you imagine your cover. Use our free cover creator tool to design a cover for your ebook or paperback. This video shows independent authors how to create a cover for createspace using microsoft publisher 20. The thickness of the spine varies from one book to another and depends on the number of pages the book has. In this video i show you how to calculate your spine width and get a template to make a full print book cover for createspace and then design.
Amazon kdpcreatespace jacket spine calculator halgatewood. Today, im going to show you how to make a book cover spine with gimp. Make your kindle, createspace, and acx covers in minutes. This instructional video is meant for selfpublishing. The cover size depends on the number of pages, because that determines the spine width. The spine and back cover will be solid black with reversed out. The tool allows you to customize your cover with a variety of layouts and fonts. Design arena designed my 1st book cover and this is my second project with them. Createspace cover design specifications from page 53 to page 64 free isbn barcode generator.
The spine calculator is best to be used by a graphic artist, or authors with a good knowledge of using page layout programs like adobe indesign. How to make a pdf cover for your createspace book date. Do unique createspace book cover,kdp book cover design by. Youve got the ebook cover for your book done but now you need to make it into a paperback cover and have no clue how. A turnkey book cover, ready for createspace and kindle. The vast majority of books displayed in bookstores are shown spine out to maximize limited shelf space. Kdps print on demand service allows you to selfpublish your book in paperback and sell it on amazon websites in the us, europe, and japan, as well as other retail book sellers through kdps expanded distribution channels. Createspace is the easiest way for an average person to selfpublish their book because it publishes books directly to amazons sites all around the world. In this tutorial we walk you through how to design a book cover in gimp, using one our diy templates.
And because there can be variations in how the book cover is folded, allow for some variancespecifically, 0. Design attractive kindle ebook cover or book cover design. Only a few books will be shown face out and of course they will have an advantage. If your page count is under 100 pages, you shouldnt add spine text. Do you have a kindle book cover or ebook design you need to make into a paperback cover. The dimensions from the spine calculator include a 18. Your book is printed on demand when customers purchase it. Createspace requires a book to be pages in order for it to get text on the spine. Paperback book covers many selfpublished authors start off with ebooks and eventually decide to publish a hard cover or paperback book too. How to make a createspace book cover in photoshop andrew m. The full post including calculating spine width and resolution is. What is the minimum number of pages i can use for my book. Spine width this is calculated from the papertype and page count, use the spine width calculator link below resources for the cover design.
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