The Do's and Don'ts of Book Cover Design: Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Cam
- Oct 14, 2024
- 12 min read
Updated: Apr 25
Readers do judge a book by its cover because they have to. In a split second, your book cover either earns a second look or gets scrolled past on a crowded marketplace like Amazon, BookBub, or Barnes & Noble.
That’s the reality of publishing today: first impressions are everything. And yet, many self-published authors unintentionally hurt their chances of success with covers that don’t reflect their genre, confuse their ideal reader, or look amateurish.
This post is your guide to fixing that.
We’ll walk through the most common book cover design mistakes and what to do instead. From genre research to typography choices, layout pitfalls to thumbnail readability, you’ll learn exactly what makes a cover work for you (and what makes readers click away).
Understanding these do's and don'ts will help you make smarter, more strategic decisions, whether you design your cover yourself or hire a pro. A well-designed cover will attract the right readers and make your book stand out.
Let’s dive in.
Why Book Cover Design Matters
You can have the most brilliantly written novel in your genre… but if the cover misses the mark, readers won’t stick around long enough to find out.
A strong book cover works hard.
It’s your first impression, your visual elevator pitch, and a key player in your marketing strategy. Your cover, sitting on a physical shelf or sandwiched between 20 other titles in an online store, is doing one of two things: pulling readers in or pushing them away.
What a Great Book Cover Does
A well-designed book cover is a powerful marketing tool that does several key jobs at once. Let's look at the essential functions of an effective cover design.
Stops the scroll. Whether it’s on Amazon, BookBub, or Instagram, your cover needs to catch a potential reader’s eye in a split second. That first glance? That’s your audition.
Signals genre, tone, and audience expectations. Is this a cozy mystery or a dark psychological thriller? A steamy romance or a sweet small-town story? A good cover tells readers what kind of emotional experience they’re about to have.
Builds trust and perceived value. Professionally designed covers communicate that the content inside is worth paying for. It reassures the reader: “This author takes their work seriously and so should I.”
Helps with discoverability. The right visuals — paired with a smart title and subtitle — help search engines and algorithms connect your book with the right audience. A well-designed cover is easier to read at thumbnail size and more likely to rank well alongside similar titles.
What a Bad Book Cover Communicates
On the flip side of great cover design lies a minefield of potential mistakes. Let's explore some key red flags that can instantly undermine your book's credibility and marketability, and more importantly, how to avoid them.
Amateurism: Even if the writing is excellent, a DIY-looking cover signals “low budget, low effort.” And that can directly impact whether a reader decides to click, buy, or skip.
Confusion: If the imagery, typography, or layout doesn’t clearly communicate what kind of book this is, you’re asking readers to do the work… and they won’t. Confused readers don’t convert.
Mismatch: When the design doesn’t align with genre expectations, it creates disconnect and disappointment. A gritty thriller with a soft, watercolor-style cover? A rom-com that looks like dystopian sci-fi? Readers won’t know what to make of it, or worse, they’ll make the wrong assumption and leave a review saying, “This wasn’t what I expected.”
Bottom line: Readers judge a book by its cover not because they’re shallow — but because they’re busy. A great book cover is a visual shorthand that builds clarity, emotional connection, and trust — all essential to getting that next click, preview, or sale.
The Do's and Don'ts of Book Cover Design
The Do’s of Book Cover Design
Not all beautiful covers are effective covers. A successful book cover isn’t about artistic flair. It’s about strategic design choices that help your book find its audience, signal the right expectations, and support your long-term author brand.
Here are the top things self-published authors should absolutely (absolutely) do when creating or commissioning a cover.
1: Research Your Genre Like a Marketer
Before you ever open Canva or brief your designer, do your homework. Study the top 50–100 covers in your book’s genre or subgenre, especially the ones that are performing well independently (look at self-published titles, not only trad-pub giants).
Ask yourself:
What color schemes are dominant?
What kind of typography do you see repeated?
Are the titles big and bold, or small and stylized?
What imagery or symbols are common (daggers, crowns, coffee shops, cowboy hats)?
How do covers differ across subgenres (paranormal romance vs. contemporary, epic fantasy vs. urban fantasy)?
Why this matters: Readers use visual cues to quickly assess whether a book fits their interests. If your cover “breaks the rules” without understanding them first, you risk missing the mark completely. On the other hand, a cover that aligns with genre expectations builds instant recognition and trust.
Action Step: Create a private Pinterest board or swipe file of book covers in your niche. Look for patterns, not to copy, but to inform your creative direction with market awareness.
2: Prioritize Readability Over “Creativity”
A common mistake among self-publishing authors is trying to be too clever or artsy with their covers at the expense of clarity. Design that looks cool but isn't instantly legible or genre-clear doesn't perform well, especially in thumbnail view.
Your cover should be:
Easy to read at a glance (especially the title)
Clear at thumbnail size (because that’s how it shows up on most platforms)
Designed for digital-first visibility — bold contrast, sharp focus, minimal visual clutter
This doesn't mean creativity is forbidden. Rather, your creative choices should enhance your core message, not obscure it.
Readers are scrolling fast. If they have to squint to read your title, puzzle over your imagery, or can’t figure out what the book is about within two seconds… they’re gone.
Action Step: Before finalizing a design, shrink your cover to 160x250px and ask a few non-writer friends:
Can they read the title?
Can they guess the genre?
Would they click on it?
If they hesitate, revise. Readability is non-negotiable.
3: Invest in Professional Design (When Possible)
DIY design can work if you know what you're doing, but if design isn't your zone of genius, hiring a professional is often the smarter long-term investment.
A skilled book cover designer understands:
Genre conventions and reader psychology
Visual hierarchy (so the title, subtitle, and author name work in harmony)
How to format for print and digital platforms
What sells, not only what looks nice
Professionally designed covers often earn back their cost through stronger conversion rates and better visibility in online marketplaces. Think of it as a marketing expense, not a vanity splurge.
Why this matters: Your book cover is one of the most important marketing assets you have. If it turns readers away before they even read your blurb, you'll lose both potential sales and future fans.
Budget Tip: If you’re on a tight budget, look into pre-made covers from reputable designers. They’re often high quality and cost a fraction of a custom design.
4: Use Typography Strategically
Typography does more than spell out your title. At a glance, your font choices serve as a powerful psychological tool that immediately shapes and influences how readers perceive your book's personality, genre, and professional quality before they've read a single word.
Here’s what to get right:
Font choice should match the mood and genre. A Gothic serif might scream historical fantasy; a handwritten script could signal lighthearted romance.
Avoid default or overused fonts. Comic Sans, Papyrus, and Times New Roman have no place on a professionally marketed book.
Create a clear visual hierarchy. The title should typically be most prominent, followed by your name (or series subtitle if relevant).
Spacing, kerning, and line breaks matter. Sloppy text layout instantly makes a cover feel off, even if the reader can’t explain why.
Pro tip: Use no more than two font styles on your cover. Ideally, choose one for the title and one for the author name or tagline. Too many fonts compete instead of complementing.
Action Step: Mock up your cover text without imagery. If it doesn’t feel visually balanced on its own, the design probably needs refining.
5: Design for Your Reader, Not Yourself
This one trips up a lot of authors, particularly those writing their first book. It’s tempting to chase a style you personally love… but if it doesn’t resonate with your ideal reader, it’s not doing its job.
Great book covers reflect:
What the reader expects from this genre
What emotional tone the book delivers
What story elements (themes, tropes, vibes) will hook the right people
Your cover should speak the same visual language as other books in your genre while maintaining its own unique identity.
Ask yourself: Would a stranger who loves this genre immediately recognize this book as “for them”? If not, you may be designing for your own tastes rather than your reader’s desires.
Action Step: Build a reader profile. Who is your ideal reader? What books do they love? What kinds of covers are they drawn to? Use that insight to guide every visual choice you make.
The Don’ts of Book Cover Design
Book cover mistakes can be subtle but costly. The wrong design decision can make your book look amateurish, confuse your audience, or blend into the background instead of standing out.
Let's examine the most common pitfalls and learn how to steer clear of them.
1. Don’t Use Stock Photos Without Customization
Stock photos can be a lifesaver for authors, but only if used well. Dropping a stock image straight onto your cover as-is almost always backfires. Why? Readers have seen these photos on other book covers, blog posts, and random ads.
And once a cover looks generic or low-effort, your credibility takes a hit. If your cover image shows up on five other books in your genre, or worse, in a meme, you’ve got a problem.
Fix It: Use stock photos as a starting point, not a finished product. Apply textures, lighting effects, color grading, illustration overlays, or double exposure techniques to make it feel bespoke.
Blend images together to create something new
Add visual effects that tie into your story’s mood or setting
Use filters or color overlays to unify the palette and tone
Pro Tip: Consider using stock from premium libraries, such as Depositphotos, iStock, or Shutterstock. These have higher-quality, less overused assets compared to free libraries like Unsplash or Pexels.
Why this matters: A cover that feels mass-produced won’t earn trust, and it definitely won’t stand out in a sea of books. Customization signals intentionality, and readers notice the difference.
2. Don’t Clutter the Cover with Too Much Text
Your book cover is not a résumé. It’s not a place to stack every award, review, tagline, or back-cover blurb you’ve collected. When there’s too much going on, the eye doesn’t know where to land, and that’s where you lose your reader.
Too many elements create visual noise. And noise repels attention.
What clutter looks like: A tiny tagline under a big, busy image… plus a subtitle… plus a five-word blurb from your writing group… all squeezed in above a fancy font that’s hard to read? That’s not design. That’s distraction.
Fix It: Strip it down to the essentials:
Title
Author name
Subtitle (if it’s genuinely necessary for clarity or SEO)
Save reviews and accolades for your sales page, back cover, or marketing graphics.
Clarity Test: Show your cover to someone who doesn’t know your book. Can they tell what the book is about in five seconds? If not, simplify.
Why this matters: A cluttered cover looks unprofessional and overwhelms the viewer. Strategic minimalism, where every element has a purpose, is what makes great covers feel clean, confident, and clickable.
3. Don’t DIY Without Design Knowledge
We get it. Tools like Canva or BookBrush have made DIY design super accessible. However, ease of use doesn’t necessarily equate to effective design. Without a grasp of layout, color theory, font pairing, or image composition, it’s easy to create something that looks okay… but doesn’t perform.
The risk: DIY covers often miss subtle but crucial design details, like proper margins, type hierarchy, or genre alignment that make a book look polished.
Fix It:
If you’re on a tight budget, consider a pre-made cover from a pro designer who understands genre norms and market appeal.
Or invest in the cover design (not a full branding suite) to get maximum impact at a lower cost.
Even a modest investment here often pays off through improved visibility, higher click-through rates, and increased conversions.
Pro Tip: Your book cover is your book’s first impression. It's your most important piece of marketing, and readers will judge it before they even click “Look Inside.”
4. Don’t Ignore Genre or Audience Expectations
One of the fastest ways to lose a reader is to confuse them. Readers will scroll right past covers that don't match the book's genre and tone. Those who purchase the book may leave negative reviews if the content fails to meet their expectations.
Example: A horror-style cover on a quirky rom-com might look cool to you, but it screams “wrong genre” to readers who are shopping by vibe.
Fix It: Research genre expectations:
Look at the Top 20 bestselling books in your category. What fonts, colors, imagery, and layouts are common?
Create a mood board of successful covers in your niche and note the similarities.
Your cover should feel familiar enough to attract the right audience, but distinct enough to stand out.
Why this matters: Readers don’t have time to decipher your creative intent. Your cover should signal clearly: “This is for you.”
5. Don’t Over-Design or Add Random Effects
Overdesigning happens when you try to add everything to your cover. Every visual tool in the toolbox, every symbol from your story, every trend you’ve seen online.
Think:
Drop shadows on every element
Heavy bevels or embossed text
Too many colors, fonts, or visual effects
Filters layered on filters
It quickly becomes noisy and confusing.
Fix It: Embrace restraint. Use visual effects sparingly and with purpose.
A subtle texture to add depth? Great.
A soft glow to highlight your title? Sure.
Bevel on every text layer, gradient across the whole image, and three different filters? Not so much.
Pro Tip: A clean, modern design with a clear focal point almost always performs better than a cover with a dozen competing elements.
Rule of thumb: If it doesn’t support clarity or emotion, cut it.
Learn more about minimalism vs. maximalism in cover designs in this blog: Minimalism vs. Maximalism: Which Book Cover Design Style Works Best for Your Genre?
Final Polish — What to Do Before You Publish
Even the strongest book cover design benefits from a final round of quality control. Think of this as your final dress rehearsal. The tweaks and tests that can mean the difference between a “nice cover” and a high-converting one.
Here’s how to give your design a performance-ready polish.
Get Feedback from Readers (Not Only Friends)
Your friends might love everything you do, but that’s not always helpful when you’re trying to gauge market response. You need objective feedback from people who are actually shopping in your genre.
Where to ask:
Reader groups on Facebook
Genre-specific subreddits
Your beta reader or ARC team
Author Discord or community groups
What to ask:
“What kind of book do you think this is?”
“Would you click on this in a search result?”
“Who do you think this book is for?”
Why this matters: You’re testing perception, not preference. If your cover sends the wrong message, it won’t matter how beautifully it’s designed.
A/B Test Your Cover If You Can
If you’re deciding between two designs, or wondering whether a minor change (like color or typography) would improve results, run a quick A/B test.
Tools you can use:
PickFu: Fast, targeted polling with real readers.
Instagram Stories: Use the poll sticker with two options.
Facebook Groups: Ask members which version they’d be more likely to click.
Pro Tip: Include a brief blurb or genre label with each option to give context. You’re not only testing design, you’re testing appeal to your ideal reader.
Why this matters: You might prefer one version, but your audience might respond better to the other. Data removes the guesswork.
Preview the Cover on All Devices + Formats
A gorgeous paperback mockup won’t matter if the e-book thumbnail appears blurry on Amazon.
Run your cover through this visibility gauntlet:
Does it hold up at thumbnail size on desktop and mobile?
Is it legible in black-and-white (for some e-readers)?
Does it look sharp at 300 DPI for print?
Is it centered and balanced for paperback or hardcover trim sizes?
Test it on:
Kindle Store preview
Your own phone (smallest screen possible)
Print mockups or POD uploaders (like IngramSpark or KDP)
Pro Tip: Save versions of your cover in different dimensions and file types (JPG for web, PDF or TIFF for print, PNG for transparency) before upload.
Final Checklist Before Upload
Here’s a simple checklist to run through before hitting “publish”:
[ ] Resolution: 300 DPI for print-ready files
[ ] Text Legibility: Title and author name readable at thumbnail size
[ ] Genre Clarity: A stranger should know the genre within 3 seconds
[ ] Trim & Bleed: Sized to exact specs for your print platform
[ ] Cover Balance: Is the focal point clear and intentional?
[ ] Spine & Back Cover: If applicable, is everything aligned and readable?
Conclusion
Your Cover Is More Than a Pretty Face
Book cover design goes beyond creating something that simply looks nice because it establishes a visual promise that attracts the right reader, sets the tone, and builds instant trust.
It’s your book’s first pitch, your best marketing asset, and your frontline in a crowded marketplace.
Whether you're hiring a professional designer or taking a DIY route, understanding these do’s and don’ts empowers you to make strategic and aesthetic choices. Every decision, from font to image to layout, is an opportunity to align with your audience and stand out in your genre.
You’ve put heart and hard work into writing your book. Your cover should work just as hard (or harder) to get it into readers’ hands.
Next Steps: Put This Into Action
Need a pro set of eyes (or hands)?
Explore our Book Cover Design Services at Writerly Owl Designs — custom or semi-custom options built to help self-published authors look anything but DIY.
Keep learning:
Check out our next post: “How to Design a Genre-Specific Book Cover That Sells” — get the inside scoop on genre cues, reader expectations, and real-world examples.
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