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10+ Children’s Book Cover Templates
We laughed and cried with Roald Dahl’s Matilda, gone on walks with Christopher Robin and Pooh, dined with Madeline in France, and got stuck on a train with Paddington, because the best of children’s literature also gave us the best times of our childhood, when some of us begged for bedtime stories that made us forget where we were, not to mention getting hopeful for that happy-ever-after in our favorite fairy tales.
Elements of a Good Children’s Book Cover
If you are a writer wanting to recreate the same kind of magic in children’s books you hope to publish, you ought to understand early on, that books, especially those for children, do get judged by their covers. With the likes of Katniss Everdeen and Harry Potter taking up much of pop culture discourse because of the over-hype in a young adult genre, you have work to do in coming up with a book cover that would sell to young readers and their parents. Here are the key elements to remember:
- Cover Design. The design is made up of texts and photos or illustrations. In order to have a great layout for the cover, you need to convey a message or idea. Whatever that message turns out to be, make sure that each part starting from the image to the color, type and text can support it. In children’s books, the illustration usually dominates but every element should be relevant.
- Front Cover. The front cover comes first in a book’s anatomy although it comes last when putting the entire book together since it is dependent on the final manuscript. However, a designer has to remember that this is what gets seen on the shelves and not the contents. Therefore, it has to be attractive and appealing enough for a child to pick it up. Your front cover would include the name of the author and the title of the book.
- Imagery. This is never more important in any book genre than in children’s book covers. The imagery in the visual sense is what draws a child in, which means you need an illustration that would attract children. Your readers are the most visual out of any other market. You have to use visual representation in setting the mood or the reader’s expectations as well as anticipation. Make a child clap with glee, in choosing your book out of many others in the bookstore.
- Typography. Choose your fonts wisely because they communicate to the readers more than text that is spelled out. Your selection of fonts should be according to what the story is about and the tone you’re going for. Be careful not to overdo it, otherwise, you might confuse the reader with too much going on.
10 Children’s Book Cover Templates
Children’s Non-Fiction Book Cover
Children’s Story Book Cover Template
Free Kid’s Fiction Book Cover Template
Fiction Book Cover Template
Classic Children’s Story Book Cover
Chapter Book Cover Template
Children’s Book Cover Template
Free Children’s Funny Book Cover
Children’s Book Cover
Children’s Fiction Book Cover
Steps to Design a Good Children’s Book Cover
Children’s books have changed over the years. Today, you’ll notice that they’re more sophisticated, with cover designs that reach out to a diverse audience. Other covers are designed with powerful, unifying themes and values that parents want their children to develop. Then there are simple illustrations with a message that connects to the cover. Here are some basic steps you can follow to end up with a strong cover design:
- Put Yourself In Your Reader’s Shoes. Empathy is a basic human trait that we often forget to apply in our profession. It seems pretty easy to just throw in any design as long as they’re visually appealing. Aesthetics isn’t everything. Too much sentiment won’t work with today’s market either. Think of your audience. In this case, think of children. What age bracket does your target readers fall under? You can determine the best direction for your book cover based on its grade level and story.
- Research The Market. You can do a brief market analysis. Knowing just how much competition you have and what currently sells on the shelves will give you a general idea of how to create a cover that entices readers.
- Choose A Style. Walking into a local bookstore and checking the children’s section will make you see a variety of styles for book covers. Some would put an image to good use. Others will be made up of clever typography and the rest would have unique illustrations, giving you an idea of what the book is about. The style you choose would be based on the age range of who your potential readers are, but you’ll find that covers for children’s books tend to be illustrated, using sketches, cartoons, and graphics in dominant popping colors.
- Never Underestimate Typography. Artists often rely too much on images and illustrations for the cover, forgetting that text and illustration should go together to make up a whole. Typography shouldn’t be put as an afterthought because you never know, the fonts you choose may just make a big difference in the final cover design.
- Keep It Brief. Avoid squeezing the story into your front cover, with all the elements of the content already there. Not only is it unnecessary. It also loses the value of the book’s content. A simple cover design can still be creative and compelling. You don’t have to overdo it just to sell.
Tips for an Excellent Children’s Book Cover
- Mind the Child. You already know you’re trying to sell a children’s book. But which group of children is this targeted to? Knowing your reader demographics allows you to come up with a design that would convince that child instantly that this book right here—the one you designed or wrote—is made just for him or her.
- Enjoy Yourself. It’s challenging to take a whole story and try to translate the message into text and illustrations in one limited space. But it’s a healthy challenge that makes you learn so much more about the design process and the pre-press process as a whole. You can either complain or you can welcome that challenge. Your choice will tell just how determined you are to make it.
Types of Children’s Book Covers
We tend to choose books based on factors that match the kind of readers we are. Children and their parents are no exception. Are there enough elements on the cover? Is the illustration a tad much for a little girl? You have to be able to distinguish the difference between these different book cover categories for children:
- Board Book Covers. Intended for the earliest readers (babies to toddlers), the text on the cover and content should be short enough to handle short attention spans.
- Picture Book Covers. These are often written for parents or teachers to read with or to their children. The cover should have a full illustration, supporting the story which isn’t presented in the text.
- Chapter Book Covers. The illustration would be fewer here than those of picture books.
- Middle-Grade Book Covers. Because the audience would be slightly older children, the cover design can venture into deeper themes or messages.
- Young Adult Book Covers. Your audience would obviously be teenagers with teenage protagonists. You would also have to consider adult readers who mostly read YA titles in designing the cover.
Children’s Book Cover Sizes
We all have personal visual preferences. But not all of us have an unlimited budget to spare for print, so you have to take note that choosing a trim size for your book would also determine the printing costs. For children’s books, the cover’s standard size may fall under 7.5″ x 7.5″, 7″ x 10″, 10″ x 8″ and 8.5 x 11, which would also depend on the format you want.
Children’s Book Cover FAQs
How many pages should a children’s book be?
Children’s books usually picture books and the average number of pages is 32 pages long. Assuming your front matter (title page, copyright page, etc.) would take up about 4 pages, you’ll have 28 pages left for the text or interior.
What is a board book format?
A board book is intended for children who are at an age where they tend to be less gentle with everything they can get hold of. It is printed on thick paperboard which is used for both the cover and interior pages.
How do you get a children’s book published?
Getting a children’s book published means making your manuscript great even if it’s for children and even if it’s short. You have to remember that parents have standards when choosing books for their kids. Make sure yours fall under those standards. Then learn what you can about the children’s market and submit your work to publishing houses that can give you a great package.
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