Project One
Book Cover Redesigns
Project hail Mary
Why This Book?
After reading Project Hail Mary, I knew I had to add it to my list of book cover designs. Before this book, I didn’t read much sci-fi, and I honestly only picked this book up because the movie trailer led me to believe this was a cosmic horror in space (it’s definitely not). I fell in love with Weir’s prose, and the book reignited my childhood love of all things outer space. I began to think more on why I’ve avoided sci-fi books for so long, considering I do have a baseline interest in all things science, and started thinking about how these books were designed. There was a debate following Project Hail Mary’s movie release about the gendering of fantasy and sci-fi genres, even though fantasy and sci-fi are a spectrum of the same genre. A lot of people pointed out that, since fantasy was seen as a genre “enjoyed by women,” it usually held less value than other sci-fi books (unless it’s written by the infamous J.R.R Tolkien). I began to analyze how fantasy and sci-fi book covers were made with these demographics in mind, coming across frequent editions at my job in a used bookstore. With this design, I wanted to eliminate some of the more masculine-appealing looks of typical sci-fi covers, while still making it very apparent that this book was still in the sci-fi genre, since the movie adaptation created a large female fanbase for this book..
I start all my designs with a pinterest board of inspiration, pulling up visual imagrey to draw on. On the right is my top three inspirations: 80s sci-fi covers, this specific NASA poster, and a flowy space image with contrasting colors. From there, I began to brainstorm ideas.
Sketches and Thumbnails
Painting and Typography
Once I have an idea, I create a traditional painting. During the process, I start handlettering on my iPad, checking to make sure as the painitng progresses, the text will still compliment it.
Then, I’ll ask my friends and family to critique the piece, making sure its legible, and adjusting the photo colors to create the look I want.
Once I have an idea, I create a traditional painting. During the process, I start handlettering on my iPad, checking to make sure as the painitng progresses, the text will still compliment it.
Final Touches
by Andy Weir
From my pinterest board, I start sketching ideas that capture the vibe I want for the cover, and think about how I want to include typography. From there, I use my iPad to come up with a color pallete, then move on to the painting.
Inspiration
After countless back and forth, I come up with a final design, and use Adobe Illustrator to create a vector of my text. Then, I bring the design into InDesign to create my final dust jacket.
Carry On
Why This Book?
Carry On has always been one of my favorite books and is a large part of the reason why I came to accept my queer identity. This book has two different covers that I pulled inspiration from. The first-print cover left a lot to be desired, in my opinion. This was Rowell’s first fantasy novel; however, the cover treated it like it was another one of her romance books. This would draw readers of Rowell in, but it wouldn’t exactly grab the attention of the audience who wanted a fantasy romance. The second cover solved a lot of these problems, and is a personal favorite of mine, so I had a hard time figuring out how to reinterpret it. I decided to play into current Romantasy trends, giving the book a fresh look, playing on the reoccurring symbols of roses and fire. I also took inspiration from the original title font, starting with it, then enhancing it, giving the title a bit of my own flair. I also took it upon myself to experiment with interior layouts, creating a unique illustration for the chapter header.
Carry On 2015 cover (left), Carry On 2017 paperback (middle), Romantasy inspiration (right)
Interior designs
For the interior design, I wanted to emphasize the medieval castle the book takes place in. I took inspiration from English and Celtic illuminated manuscripts from the medieval times, and make the illustration feel like a woodcut print. I also decided to bring back the dragon imagrey from the 2017 cover, since dragons are a large part of the book. The final chapter-header image (right) solidified the look, and I used it to create my interior design.
Final Design
by Rainbow Rowell
Interior Inspiration
Dragon from an illuminated manuscript (left) and woodcut print (right)
Percy Jackson and the Olympians:
The Sea of monsters
Why This Book?
Percy Jackson was inevitable when it came to this project. Especially since I’m looking to work in middle grade and YA books, I wanted to try my hand at a book from the Percy Jackson series. I started this design soon after season two premiered on Disney+, and I was in the midst of rereading The Sea of Monsters. I was always a big fan of the original and updated covers of this book, so I had a hard time figuring out how I wanted mine to stand apart. While rereading the book, I realized how closely of a retelling it was to Homer’s Odyssey, since I read parts of it in high school and college. I decided to emphasize more of those mythological elements in my design. I also wanted to make sure the golden fleece made some sort of appearance, since that is the driving force behind the story. I experimented with a continuous design that spanned across the front, spine, and back cover, and decided to emphasize both the cyclops, and the intense scene with Scylla and Charybdis. I thought it’d be fun to contrast the intense scene crossing between these creatures on the front cover, and an idyllic beach scene for the back cover, since the fleece is described in the book to let vegetation thrive and beautify the island, in contrast to the dark cave the cyclops lives in (featured below the fleece). Overall, I’m happy with my experiment, and want to continue to create a continuous book design between the front and back covers.
Expanding on the same concept
With the goals set, I created a painting for this design. Once I had my final piece, I wanted to expiriment with different text layouts and ways of collaging the original painting to make various designs. I started with the painting (bellow) and explored different avenues for cover designs, using this image as a basis.
by Rick Riordan
