The first step is a cover, and that’s an important one. It's often been said, "don't judge a book by its cover." I couldn't disagree more with that statement. People do judge books by their cover. In fact, the cover design determines the sale of a book eight times out of ten.

Of course, you might already have a great idea for your cover, and I will collaborate with you. I would also like to give you my creative ideas. I might come up with something that you hadn’t thought of. You decide!

Creating a book cover is not just looking at the title of a book and coming up with some idea. I get familiar with the manuscript, work out what needs to be communicated with the cover, and then come up with an idea that will create the emotional impact necessary to get the potential reader to make the decision to buy your book.

If you plan on printing your book, my service for a print cover includes designing the spine and the back cover for your book. This is what I would be doing next, with the text you provide for the back cover.

If you are only publishing an ebook, you are done with the cover. Now it’s time to get your manuscript converted to an ebook. Some online publishers will accept your Microsoft Word document.

But if you are having problems or want something that looks more professional, I will convert your manuscript to an ebook. There are two formats used by most ebook resellers, and I can supply both.

There are many online publishers, and I can point out various options for your ebook. If this seems complicated, or if you’d like to have someone take care of this part of the process, I offer a service to open ebook accounts for you and load all the information needed to have your ebook for sale at many online locations.

Yes, I can design and format your book for print. It will look like it came from a big publishing house.

Professional quality design is invisible and enjoyable to read and experience. Bad design always stands out and irritates readers. What is it that makes a book easy to read and yet another one hard to read? A good book designer will know that the inter-line spacing, the margins, the fonts, and much more all play a key part.

I don’t provide proofreading services, but I can refer you to some proofreaders, if you don’t have one.

I always try to satisfy my customers 100 percent. But in case my design or formatting doesn’t work for you, I will reimburse you the full amount.

I don’t print the books, but having been in the book publishing industry for over 30 years, I know places that do. Print-on-demand (POD) and small digital runs are the rage right now, as you don’t need to keep huge stocks of inventory. Getting your book on Amazon as a print book is easy. Plus, there are distributors that can get your book distributed to many other places.

If you decide to go with a regular printer and print a larger quantity of your book, I can help you with that too, so that you don’t have to learn and try to understand all of the printer’s lingo.

It depends on what services you want from me, but I estimate between two and four weeks and we’re all done in the majority of book projects. If you have a deadline to meet, let me know at the start, so I can arrange the schedule accordingly.

Experience and service.

Most professional book designers who are worth hiring have been doing this creative work for years. They only get paid when the job has been done right, so they have a great stake in the design and execution of the end product. I will take it from final manuscript stage all the way to the printed book or converted to an ebook. When it comes to making books, I know how to do it. Don't waste your hard efforts at the finishing line. Take your book to the next level of sales appeal.

All books are not created the same. Some covers will require an illustration or extensive photo manipulation and some can be done with stock photography. A novel is easier to format than a cookbook or a self-help book with charts, footnotes, text boxes, subtitles, and graphic images. Cover designs start at $450 and interior formatting start at $400. So, fill in the “Contact Me for a Free Quote,” and please give me as much data as you can, so I can give you an accurate quote.