TOP TIP: Press Ctrl + F (PC), or Command + F (Mac) to search the page for a subject you want the answer to.

General

Who and what are you?

I am just James. A nice, friendly sort of person that makes covers, so GoOnWrite.com is just me and I'm approachable, so don't worry. I've been doing this for a good few years. So I know what I'm doing by now. You're in safe hands.

Why are your prices in Euros?

I am a Brit living in Spain and as such my local currency is Euros and I pay my taxes and such in Euros, so for the sake of accounting it makes sense to run my business in Euros. But don't worry when you order it should change and charge you in your local currency. The prices for dollars and pounds that are marked down on the site are approximations and might vary slightly depending on the exchange rate.

How can I pay?

I use PayPal because it's the most common payment system throughout the world, but don't worry if you don't have an account you can still use Debit or Credit card.

Are your delivery times set in stone?

In a word: no. In more words: I try my best to get work through to you as soon as it is humanly possible. But sometimes life gets in the way: family emergencies, illnesses, etc. But I treat my work like I'm the sergeant of a ballatillion: there is no soldier left behind. Everything gets done eventually. On occasion you'll have to be a little patient. But my work is worth the wait.

I've lost files that you sent, do you keep a back-up, can you send me them again?

Of course I keep a back-up of all the work I do for clients. But once I send you your files they're your responsibility. If you have lost them, have hard drive crashes, or have misplaced them that's on you. The onus is on you to have a good system of back-up. My suggestion is either have a cloud back-up of your important files, which lots of services offer for free or save your emails when I originally sent you the files (Gmail is great for that). But if you have lost them I can dig them out again for an admin fee of €20. I charge this fee because I have worked for thousands of authors over the years and if each and every one of them used me as their back-up I would do nothing but retrieve lost files. Also it takes time out of my working day. You can order me resending you everything on my Extras Page.

Pre-Made Covers

What do I get for my money?

The price is for the ebook version of the book cover, ready to upload to kindle. The price does not include the print-on-demand version of the cover (further details below). Now you'll get a 3D render of the book cover, in case you want to put that on your website. Also, a Black and White title page to put inside both of your ebook and your print books (sent at high resolution).

What size do you send the file?

1,600 pixels wide by 2,560 pixels high. This is the perfect size for Amazon Kindle but will also work on Smashwords without a problem. If you need any other sizes please get in touch with me. If it needs to be retooled for alternative aspect ratios there will be a cost involved with the extra work.

What format do you send the file?

KDP likes JPEG - so that's what I send.

Are the stock photo images licensed?

Of course - they are indeed. You can sell up to 500,000 books with the image without a problem. If you sell more books than that then you would have to purchase the extended licensing which is about $100-300 per image. Sell that many books and I think you can probably afford that!

Do You Use AI Image to make your pre-made book covers, where do I stand?

Indeed I do use AI as a tool sometimes to get great images for pre-made book covers. But likewise, you're fully licensed with AI images because the service I use, MidJourney, grants me a full commercial rights.

You might have heard things about AI being somewhat dodgy, but for the most part this was just stoked-up clickbait controversy. Everything I use is guaranteed 100% legit. .

KDP Amazon now requires you to tell them if you upload a new book with any AI generated content. Please read my full statement here, so you know what to do. But don't worry, Amazon doesn't care, that's more about catching low quality content rather than my amazing book covers.

I've been design using AI tools for source material for over 2 years without a single problem for any author.

And if we're talking about commisssions, I will always ask the client before hand if they're happy for me to AI to generate ideas. So I don't force it on anyone without them knowing.

What if I want a pre-made cover but don't have the title yet?

No problem, go ahead and buy it, I'll keep it on file for you. Then no one else can get it. Just come back to me when you're ready with your title. I'll be here waiting. To put it into context I have people coming to title covers they've bought back in 2014 before and I still have everything. But make sure you definitely want the cover before ordering. Because once bought it's yours.

What if I take a cover without titling it but then days, weeks, months later I want a different cover, can I swap it out?

No. Once you purchase a cover it is allocated to you, it is taken off my site, so no one else can buy it, and a lot of admin work goes into moving that file across to your name. So once you order and send me a number for a cover it is set in stone you want that cover. So please make sure you definitely want that cover before ordering.

Can I reserve a cover without paying?

Sorry, no. I work on a first come first served basis. And this works by ordering that cover.

Is an untitled cover transferable to another author?

I have absolutely no problem with you giving an untitled cover to another author for one of their books, if you decide you don't want to use it. In fact, good on you: that's a kind thing to do. I like it! I like you!

Are pre-made cover credits transferable to another author?

Likewise, I don't have a problem with you doing this. You seem like a cool kind person. Just make sure that you email me and tell me which person, and their email address, you want that allocated to, so I know.

Can I have less or more text on the cover?

Yes I will fit the design to whatever the amount of text you want on there. You might not have a tagline on the example but you really want one on there, just tell me and I'll add it. But I will say that book covers always look like book covers when you have three or four text elements on there. Two elements and it stops looking like a cover. Any more than four elements and it's starting to look a little spammy.

Can I just have the image and put my text on myself?

It depends. If it's a cover over number 24,000 then yes, because it's probably from AI generated material which I've made myself and don't have problem with that, as long as you pay full price.

For covers under 24,000 this is a 'no'. Because the covers will have been made using Stock Images and therefore it would break the license if I sold you just the image.

Can I have the origination file / Photoshop file to play with myself?

In short: no. Firstly, I don't design with Photoshop, I design in a little-known, yet wonderful, vector app called Xara Design Pro. Secondly, it wouldn't work because you would not have the fonts and I can not send the fonts as this would be against the licensing terms. Sorry about that. But I'm here to make any changes you need, as and when.

I've found a design but I want to change the design (different fonts, colours, different elements on there), can you help?

Yes, I can makes changes to the covers: font are easily changed, say if you like the font from a different cover just tell me the number of that cover and I'll swap it out (but there is a fee for the extra work that this involves - see the Extras page); font colours are easily changed (no charge); if it's a background colour, or different elements, that might be a little harder - so might incur a greater charge.

Always contact me before you order so we can have a chat and I can give you a quote. My attitude is if I can help, I will. If I can be fair, I will.

I've found a cover but it is part of a 'Sold as a Set', does that mean I have to purchase all the covers?

Yes it does. So if it's part of a three cover set you need to purchase three cover credits to purchase all three covers, even if you just one to use one cover because my work has to be paid for in making those three covers. Sorry.

I've found a single cover but I want to make a series from that cover, is it something you can do?

Of course, not a problem. But those additional covers will need to be made from scratch with images found that would work for your additional covers.

You will find all that information on the pre-made series page here.

But in short there are two prices. If you want the rest of the series designed at time of purchase then it will simply be one credit per extra cover. So you've find a single cover and want that turned into a three book cover series then order three covers. You don't have to title straight away though but I will design the rest at the time.

The more expensive way it to come to me asking for single additional covers after you've purchased the pre-made covers. I charge two cover credits per cover to design more covers.

It's cheaper to do that at the start because it's easier for me to do that way.

But you'll find all the info on my Pre-made Series page. Go have a read!

I've given you a title, you sent the final file, but later I want to change the text on my cover, can you do that?

For initial changes obviously I don't charge extra, but if you come back to me days, weeks or months later, after you've approved the design, I charge an additional fee for that work, which you will find on the Extras page.

I have bought a cover, not yet titled, and then decide I don't want it, can I have a refund?

Sorry, once you have purchased that cover I have taken it out of circulation, done all the work to mark it against you and remove it from my site, this all takes time and as such the simple answer is no. So if you think you might change your mind then do not purchase. All sales are final.

I ordered lots of cover credits and have only used some of them, can I have a refund? Or use them for something else.

In short, no, if you don't think you will use all the credits over time then just order your covers one by one. If you are looking to get the covers at a cheaper price you are doing so by committing to buying them in bulk. All sales are final. Also they're not transferable because I don't note down what price they were bought for. If you buy credits they're for the thing you bought them for, no transfers.

Do I have to pay for the stock image as well?

Nope, that's included in the price.

Do you sell the cover more than once?

No, once you buy a cover it's taken off my site and not sold to anyone else.

Is the cover I buy unique?

For Covers before number 23,850: Of course I only sell a cover design once. Once it is sold I mark it sold and then removed from my site. So it is a unique cover from me, but that doesn't mean that other authors can't find the same stock image and use it on their cover. That's just the nature of royalty free stock images.

For Covers after number 23,850: Yes because I've generated the images myself using AI, so they're 100% unique and original.

I want a totally unique cover. Are the models, photos or illustrations unique to my pre-made cover?

With Stock Images: In a word, no. At this price it would be impossible. That would mean I would have to set up a photoshoot, pay a studio, a model and a professional photographer and still have money left to make money at the price I charge? Impossible. So what I use to make my book covers are stock images which are freely available from many stock image sites for any other designers or authors to use. So no, I can't claim that the images won't be used elsewhere. What I claim is as the designer that will use that image just once. I won't re-use or re-sell a cover to another author. The same can't be said of other designers working from the same pool of stock images that exist out there. If you want something totally exclusive you'd be looking at thousands of dollars and not the price I charge. The old adage applies here: you get what you pay for.

With AI Generated: In a word, yes. If you want to check whether a pre-made book cover you're in is AI generated or a Stock Image simply contact me and I'll tell you.

What if I want a ten pack of covers but can only find eight I like?

Then tell me the eight covers and I'll keep the two credits on file for you and you can select the other two covers at a later date. Or purchase a three and five pack of credits to cover the eight covers you do want.

Can I buy five cover credits and select no covers and come back to you later for all five?

Yes, and this is a great way to get all your covers cheaper!

What if I feel later that my cover isn't suitable, can I swap it out for another?

No. Once a cover is sold to you it's your cover. So make sure that it is completely suitable for the purpose before purchasing. If you come back and want another cover, you will have to pay for that second cover and discard the first. Otherwise I would have authors swapping covers out left, right and centre.

Print-On-Demand

Can you design a full, print-on-demand wraparound for Amazon KDP or IngramSpark?

Of course, you'll find this on my Design Extras page.

How does it work? What do I get when you do the print-on-demand work for me?

This process is really simple. I ask for the details and then I supply a PDF and you upload that PDF. It's that simple. And if you have problems I'm on hand to help out.

Do you design for any other print-on-demand services?

I don't. Only KDP and IngramSpark because they are the main two services. And IngramSpark actually distributes to a massive amount of different providers anyway. The reason for this is because it would mean keeping up with all the print specifications of hundreds of different places. It would just be too time consuming.

Will the file you design work on both services? For paperback and hardback?

In short: no. When you design anything for print it's utterly specific to that printing process, so each time you need a new format each print file will need to be produced from scratch and charged as a new job.

I've changed my page number or the size of the book I now want for my print-on-demand wraparound, will the file still work?

No it won't. I will need to start that job from scratch and you will be charged from the start. So format first. Get your details correct before you engage me.

Can you start on the design before I know the amount of page numbers or size I want the book to be?

I can't, no, because I need the specific spine width to design something and as such if I went ahead and designed it and then you changed your mind then I would effectively be designing it twice. I could charge you twice but it's cheapest to get it right the first time, wouldn't you agree?

It might take me some time to get the book formatted, what happens if I have a fast deadline, release date for the print-on-demand cover?

Generally, on a normal working week I do my print-on-demand covers in a batch one of the days. So generally I turn around in a week, given you have all your finalised information (what I need, you'll find on the page, near the bottom). But you can't completely count on that fact, because I might be super busy, I might be ill, or I might have holidays booked. It obviously takes an age to edit, proof, format the book, then squeezing my work at the end of the process isn't a fair way to look at it, because you've given yourself a launch date. That's your date. That isn't my work schedule. It isn't my life. I can't even book that into my schedule until you've formatted and finalised the book. That's just the way it works. So don't set a date until you have that information for. Telling me you have a launch date, and need the work ASAP, is like setting a date, sending out invitations to a wedding and then going to the church and asking if the venue is available. It's putting the cart before the horse.

Can you show me what a pre-made cover would look like as a print-on-demand wraparound before I buy it?

No, because this would simply be speculative work on my part, so I design when I'm paid. If you want to see examples of the quality of work I procuse then go have a look at the Examples on the Design Extras page.

What if I am just designing the KDP Print cover myself, on their cover creator or my own app, will the Kindle cover work?

I make no assurances that the ebook cover will work. Designs for digital and screen are a completely different beast to something that needs to be prepared for print. There are so many different things to take into consideration when it comes to print: bleed, safe trim distances, dpi, and of course, the aspect ratio of the book. If you want a proper print-on-demand cover then select that option from my Design Extras page, and I'll design it for you. Designing a file that just works. Using their Cover Creator is always just going to end up a bodge job, and that's not my style.

Commission Custom Covers

How does this work?

You'll find all the details on the Custom Covers page. Get yourself a nice cup or tea or coffee before you start because it's quite the discourse.

How many revisions do you do on a custom cover?

I generally say that I'll work on a cover until the author is 100% happy, of course. My attitude is to put the groundwork in before I even start designing by chatting until we both know where the job is going. So I generally get it right within one or two revisions. Although, I've found over the last ten years there are some authors who I will politely call: infinite tweakers. They think by changing and changing and changing a design it will suddenly be something they want. Generally these types of clients will go around in circles until they arrive back at my original design. I know what I am doing and sometimes it's as much about the author having trust in my methodology.

So these days I limit you to three sets of revisions.

What if I don't like the work?

99% of the time most authors have done their due diligence and have seen my work and are happy to have something designed by me so they know what they're getting and they're happy with the results. And I take a 50% deposit before starting work and expect 50% on the completion of the work, whether a client likes the work or not (which is highly unusual). Simply because I can't get back that other 50% of the time I've spent on it. Sorry.

I have a very specific image in my head about my cover, can you make it a reality?

I've found through experience that authors are not the best people to come up with the best ideas for a book cover. It's best to come to me with an open mind. Although of course authors think visually, they think in terms of protagonists and scenes. People and places don't necessarily say much about your story. You know why? Because 99% of all stories happen somewhere to someone. You're missing an opportunity to say something more with a book cover by doing this. To say something about the mood of the story, the story itself, to intrigue potential readers. And it's my job to get to the crux of what that is. So it's best to come to me with an open mind of where we can go with a cover.

I have a deadline for a release date, can you guarantee you hit it?

Of course, not a problem, just as long as you give yourself enough time, and subsequently me! I love to hit the times I give on my website. But your deadlines are not my deadlines. So it's always a good idea to give yourself plenty of time for any design as part of the process. Weeks, months, it's up to you. But don't spend two years writing a book, six months proofing and editing, a month formatting, and then think that you can give me an artificial deadline of one week. It's always a good idea to do the book cover design in parallel to the other things you need to do. One thing I always say is: an author's stress is not my stress. It's not the way I like to work. I don't do my best work this way. I work for myself because I genuinely love my job designing covers. When an author comes and thinks they can hand over their stress to me I prefer to not take that job. It makes my working days miserable. Who likes to be miserable, eh?

So the smart move is to start a commission at least 3 months before your release date, if you've got one.

Any more Questions

If it's something I've not covered then please email me at humblenations@gmail.com, I'm a friendly, helpful sort of chap and you'll get a response quickly.