Some of the dingbats/swirls I have on my computer and use often are Kfon, Nymphette, WW Floral Corner.
For example, here is the banner I created for Orphan Journeys:
You can see it on the top of Journey to Love.
Compare the new Orphan Journeys series banner to my former thought (which was...no banner).
How did I create the new and improved? Let me introduce you to my favorite "font," Nymphette. I probably overuse it, I like it so much!
First, I kept "Orphan Journeys" in the font Cinzel. Then, using good ol' font Times New Romans I placed a line on top and on bottom of my text (yeah, I could have just drawn a line, but this is just how I do things the hard way).
It is simple, but adds so much! Here are a couple of other designs in which I've used Nymphette to embellish:
Do you have a link to something you've designed? Share it in a comment--I'd love to stop by and see it!
This is great to know! I always wondered how people did those. Now I know and can use them for my own! :D
ReplyDeleteHappy to give you something to use on your own designing journey, Faith! ;)
ReplyDelete~Amanda
I really like how you "re-did" your cover! I love your finished one (the other was good, too, though). The first one had a little too much distraction, but you toned it down perfectly! I love looking at your work. You have amazing talent. :)
ReplyDeleteI just finished my latest novel and am "thinking" on the cover plan. I've kind of decided to get a picture of an old-fashioned gun, and somehow fade in a letter or something. I kind of have my heart set on only using my own photos, which kind of limits me on what I can do. Also, I'd really like to have a person on the cover, but I don't know who to use. What do you do? I know you said the JTL girl was your friend, but I don't have any friends or acquaintances that even look like my characters, you know? In the past, I've pretty much used myself, but that won't always work. I don't look like all my characters.
Sorry if my comment was too long, and thanks for the post! :) Any advice or ideas will be welcomed! :)
@ Willowy,
ReplyDeleteThank you! I like the final cover much better too! :) Praise the Lord -- for He has definitely given me that talent! :)
Ah, yes, I know how limitations are (which is WHY I use my own pictures). First off, I pray about it. Sometimes, I've not even had an IDEA for a cover when I needed one. Then, like you mentioned, I DO need to have a "model." Otherwise, I look online for royalty free images. You might want to check and be sure these are all free, but I've used images from morguefile.com and freerangestock.com. I know that Shutterfly has a lot of royalty free images, but you usually have to pay for those. If it's a cover that's going to be making money, though, it may be worth it if you have no other choice.
Another thought is to use the back of your model. I actually like the professional covers that have this, because then I can "create" the image of the character in my mind.
I don't know if that helps or not--hope so. :) So far, your covers have been very neat! :D And no worries about lengthy comments. ;)
Oh, thank you! That's a neat idea about using their back, and I'll check out those websites. :) Hopefully I can create the cover I'm really wanting. :)
ReplyDelete@ Willowy - You're welcome! I hope you can create it too! Sometimes it's a little tough to get from vision to product. :)
ReplyDelete