More Cover Fun
Starting to Really Have Fun…
As I expected I would once I got past the panic of learning a new version of InDesign. People told me it was very similar to the old one, but problem was it had been five years since I had done much on the old one, and my old memory just isn’t that good.
But when I was up in Oregon a couple weeks ago, Josh showed me how to find help inside Adobe products and that has been a lifesaver a few times.
And on top of that, I am feeling in control of the mass of my short fiction for the first time in years because of the spreadsheets. And wow do I have a lot of short fiction.
So here are the first five covers I have done. (Using the art I used way back for the magazine.) I am getting faster and making a few small changes as I go along. These are cover spreads, meaning front/back/spine for the stories. The electronic cover will just be the front cover cropped off. I find it easier to design a full spread and then do the electronic cover than the other way around. Just me.
I will send these for proofing and to WMG to see if I need to change anything for loading and interior. So a few steps away from me really picking up speed to get to the 100 Paperbacks. But should go quickly once final details are worked out.
The first four stories are from Smith’s Monthly #1, the fifth is from Smith’s Monthly #2. I will redo each Smith’s Monthly cover and issue contents with these new covers as well as I go along.
7 Comments
susan
Beautiful covers!
Cynthia Gilbert
Those are really nice. I’ve been teaching myself cover design and Photoshop for about a year or so now. Honestly, I think writing novels and short stories is easier than Photoshop and cover design. They’re both fun though.
Sam
Dean, these look great!
Robert J. McCarter
These look great, Dean.
With the template and the black or white text you should be able to really cruise now (provided you can find the artwork, that’s usually the tough part for me).
dwsmith
Using the art from earlier covers on many of them. So that helps as well.
Necia Phoenix
InDesign is now cloud/subscription based, right? For some reason that makes me wary of trying it. I loved doing covers in the old old photoshop (C6 I think it was called) but when everything went to cloud and subscription it kinda irritated me. These look great. I may bite the bullet and check it out. LOL I’m so rusty though with cover design, I worry that the learning curve would bite into my writing. I haven’t messed with digi art in a couple years (life threw some grenades at me lol).
dwsmith
Everything these days is cloud based in one form or another and just what we have to live with. I finally had a couple tech people explain to me why it was almost as safe as my own computer and a lot easier. Just can’t do it with an older computer, so watch out there.
And yup, learning anything after being out for a while is a stressful curve. But fun once you have it back.