Formatting Your Book Cover For Createspace Using Photoshop

When I published my first book on Amazon it was quite easy to upload the book cover I wanted. Then I tried to replicate the book cover for my Createspace book. It was not the same. After ordering the proof book and seeing the cover in person, I opted not publish the physical book.

With my Trilogy book I used the cover creator offered by Createspace. It's not fancy or imaginative. It's a plain cover with fancy words. View the cover here. I actually like the cover although I preferred the cover I was unable to replicate. Now I have released a new book with a cover I have worked painstakingly hard on; even getting advice from other Goodreads authors on a cover choice. Here is the result of my first cover done in Photoshop,  TaDa. I was attempting to capture multiple moods, playful, sexy, love, serious and mystery. Now I'm satisfied; my physical book and Kindle book look exactly the same. There is one difference which is the page count, about 57 pages less in the Kindle conversion. But that is a conversation for another time.

 Perhaps this is an issue you are experiencing and that's why you are reading this blog post. I will share with you how I replicated my book cover to use for my Creatspace book.

Start here: Download the Createspace template and unzip it. Save it to your desktop for easy access.

https://www.createspace.com/Help/Book/ArtworkDownload.do

Your cover must fit your book, so be sure to fill in the form with accurate information about the number of pages your book has. You will also need to know the size of the book you want to publish. I used the popular 6X9, cream pages. 

Step 2 Design Your Cover

Design your cover in a program such as Photoshop. Photoshop allows you to add multiple layers to crank out an awesome book cover. Before you save your final version of your cover you will need to turn off all the layers to be sure text and images  do not appear in the pink zones of the template. The barcode area should also be free of images and texts.

Step 3 Save Your Cover

Once all your layers are between the lines, turn all the layers on and save the file. Kindle accepts files in the form of JPEG, or .jpeg, TIFF, or .tif(f). Createspace accepts files in the form of PDF.

I am currently tapping out my next novel on my keyboard. When I begin on the cover, I intend to list the details of creating the cover in Photoshop step by step in detail. If you are interested in this step by step approach, send me an email or subscribe to the blog. Remember, this will be a few months in the future; I have to write the novel first.
Brigitta Moon

What Makes a Reader Want to Buy a Book

      I am constantly thinking about what I can do better to make my book more appealing to someone browsing for a good read. I read so many advice posts and books insisting the cover of a book matters. Next the first sentence matters. Jeff Gerke even talks about a recipe for success using a point system that will determine if your book will be the one selected.
      Today I walked unknowingly in the shoes of a reader looking for a good read. As I passed the books on the shelves, they were all saying, pick me, pick me. I looked at the book covers to see what the book was about. If the cover wasn't interesting I put it back. I didn't even flip to the back cover or look inside. I moved on.
      I recognized the author's name typed boldly and colorfully on the spine of a book. I had never read anything by him so I picked it up to see the cover. Very nice cover. I opened the book, A Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels Mystery. I liked it. I looked at a few pages and you won't believe what I thought; beautiful page. The font was crisp and neat.  The page was like a picture.
      I laughed at the first sentence. I read the entire prologue and laughed.  Now it's home with me waiting to be read. It made me think about all the advice on having a great cover and a smashing opening line. Today I was someone looking for a book to read. I had to stop and think, this is what it's all about, getting the reader to choose your book. And choose I did based on the cover and the first sentence and prologue. The book is Bloody Mary written by J.A. Konrath.
Brigitta Moon
Author of Mistake