The Next Best Thing: Cover Reveal (And A Surprise!)

A story for you guys before I introduce the cover of my latest novel:

(Or, just keep scrolling and then come back. I trust you.)

Every self-published author has a different tale to tell: how they did it, what channels they used to distribute/market the book, who designed the cover, who formatted the book, etc. All these issues are distinct and personal and that's the beauty of this whole thing.

Now I want to tell you how I got here. Just for fun.

My journey to this place has been different from someone who has only ever self-published because my first novel, The Best Kept Secret, was published by a small press called BookFish Books (which I've written about at length). It was absolutely necessary that the cover of The Next Best Thing paired well with the first book because they're a series and they needed to reflect that. 

I wasn't going to be using the same image for the sequel (obviously) and I had no trouble locating one on my own that was free for both personal and commercial use. The tricky part was making sure that my designer, Lindsay—a sweet friend from my small group who has done graphic design for Chick-Fil-A, among many other clients—would be able to duplicate the elements of the first cover as needed. It wasn't a question of skill; it was a question of integrity. Lindsay told me that in order for something to be considered original the design needs to be changed drastically at least five times. Of course, I didn't want a drastic change; I wanted similar covers. So, at Lindsay's suggestion, I emailed the designer for BookFish and found out that she owned the rights to the original design and I would need to purchase them from her in order for Lindsay to use what she needed. It was an easy transaction and she was more than happy to turn the design over to me for a relatively small fee. Now I own the rights and can use them as I please. Always a plus!

In a matter of two days, Lindsay took the photo I selected and the original design for The Best Kept Secret and had more than five options for me to choose from. She knew exactly what I was looking for and she delivered. (Thank you, Lindsay! Love you.)

Now we're at the fun part, y'all.

Behold, the cover of my latest novel, The Next Best Thing!

LOOK AT THOSE COLORS. JUST LOOK AT THEM.

Here's the original photo, in case you're interested:

I like mine better.

And, now, see everything together—the spine, the blurb, etc.—on the print version:

It's my favorite. I'm happy. And I think it captures the story perfectly. 

Only 81 more days until the release! Mark your calendars...and (SURPRISE!) click here to go ahead and pre-order The Next Best Thing on Kindle for 50% off the release day price! You can also purchase it from iBooks, Kobo, or Barnes & Noble.

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What do you think of the cover? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!