The Wattpad Guide

Part One - Book Covers

NOTE - Please keep in mind that is VERY outdated. I strongly recommend you do NOT use photo editing websites, despite what this says. I will update this with better advice sometime! Some of it may be good, but the sites are bad. I use Photoshop and GIMP now. I suggest downloading a program like one of those and learning how to use them!

Part One- Book Covers

A great man (I'm assuming) once said, "Don't judge a book by it's cover." Not bad advice. But do any of us follow it? No, not really.

Hi everyone, my name is Kelly, and I will be your guide through the wonderful world of Wattpad book covers! *grins and waves*

So, I have been asked a few times how do I make my covers? Here is the answer!

What's the first thing that catches your eye when looking through rows and rows of books at a book store? The cover, of course. So, on Wattpad, just like the book store, great covers give you an advantage over someone with no cover.

The main problem with book covers on Wattpad is sizing. Thats the first problem I always notice. It always baffles me because that is the easiest part to fix. And unlike other websites, Wattpad tells you what the recommended size is on the page where you add your cover.

When making your cover always remember to resize it to: 256x400.

I know what some of you may be thinking; how do I resize it?

Well, you have a variety of options. There are many, many, many photo editing websites that can do this for you. Here are a few:

1. www.phixr.com -I highly recommend this one. It has great fonts, and editing tools-

2. www.fotoflexer.com

3. www.lunapic.com

4. www.picnik.com -This one is great as well, but for some reason, has stopped working for me. Maybe you will have more luck though-

I don't know why, but covers that are too big, irk me. Like when you can't see part of the title or author name, or any other words that are supposed to be shown. Maybe I have OCD... Who knows. But thats just me. I don't know if that ever bothers anyone else.

On those websites, you will find a place where you can resize. They may use different words, like scale. Just click there and uncheck keep proportions then type in 256x400.

Take a moment to look at my cover for my book "Before I Wake". You see the the black transparent block where the title is? Yes, that. Well I did that my friends with the paint on my computer. Yes, I sometimes go back and forth between programs to make covers.

The key to any good book covers are the pictures. 

Find a picture that goes along with your story. Or you can find a picture of one of your characters. Maybe a picture of the actor who you envision playing it. Or just someone who has similar looks.

www.weheartit.com -use this website to find your pictures! You can find many great and beautiful pictures here.

Tags- Use it! Type in a key word that relates to your story.

Example: If you're writing a love story, type in the word love. TA-DA! Many great pictures will be at your fingertips. OR, you could type in the word couple.

Photo Cropping: This is a good tool when dealing with picture. Sometimes when you try to resize a photo it turns out really bad. Like sometimes the picture will turn out stretched out or smushed in. By cropping you can fix this problem. Crop out anything in the photo you deem unnecessary. Maybe you can try to crop it to where it looks like its the right size and when you do go to resize it, it won't look stretched or smushed. But sometimes it could turn out blurry because the picture was small. When that happens start over with the picture or find a new one.

Word Placement: Don't be lazy about where you put your title and your author name. I always try my best to find the perfect spot for the title. Test it! You can always undo it. Keep testing, and once you find the right spot, you'll know. Luckily on phixr.com you can move around your title before you execute.

Author Names: My OCD kicks in here. While I understand alot of people don't want their real names known, they look alot more professional than your username. I've used my real name the whole time I've been on wattpad, and noone has tracked me down and slit my throat in my sleep, obviously. I understand your wariness though, so do whatever makes you comfortable. I, for one, think real names look better. See what I mean? OCD

Opacity- Don't know what that is? Thats where you can make a object or a photo more transparent. Like on phixr.com you can add objects that they give you, then rotate them, resize them, change their hue, and opacity. There will be a bar you can slide to adjust it.

Plain and simple, covers do matter. It could mean the difference between 1,000 reads and 1,000,000 reads for some people.

Still confused? -face palm!-

Well, if you still feel hopeless, there is still hope! There are many wattpad members out there willing to make covers. This is where is Book Cover Club comes in handy.

ADVICE- It's always best to see examples of the artists work before submitting a request. If you don't, its your own fault for being disappointed with the result. I would suggest straying away from people who don't give examples. But if you do, go to their profile and look at their covers to see if they're any good. If they don't have any, then DON'T ASK! And always make sure to check and see if they know what the proper cover size is. If you don't, then you might end up with a banner.

I make covers by request. If you can't do it on your own, you can ask me. I can try my best to help. I can't gaurantee I will always be able to help. My specialty is teen-fiction romance.

If you would like one, drop me a request in the story group- Book Covers.

If you have any further questions about creating covers, just ask. I will help to my best ability!

Have a great day everyone!

--Kelly

PS: The next part of this will be writing tips.