Prices for having a book cover completed vary anywhere from $100-$400 dollars, depending on several factors... Should you want something straight-forward and simple, a low price will reflect that. Should you require something ultra-detailed or something that requires me to do hours of research, hunting down examples of period clothing, scenery, props, etc., however, will raise the price. For instance, a sparse design featuring perhaps one or two characters, some backgrounds, and the necessary titling will cost about $100. (Note: The majority of the covers in my “Gallery” are $100 covers.) On the other hand, me slaving away over something like “An Indian princess from the 12th Century wearing full royal garb in the outer reaches of Siberia being chased on horseback by 10,000 soldiers all with period weapons including spears, guns, and swords while the sun is sinking but there’s a space ship from the planet Zardoz looming overhead and....” will not only cost much more, but will most likely be something I will not even consider tackling anyway. This will not only require too many hours of research, but the picture will end up too cluttered and, trust me, you and/or your publisher will hate it. Therefore, simple is not only better from my end, but will, in all likelihood, better attract a potential reader’s eye. If the work required is only for a front cover of an e-book, the above section on prices applies. If, however, the cover is for a paperback or hardcover edition of the book, then there is a minimum charge of $25 for the spine creation, as well as an additional $50 minimum charge for creation of the back cover. Book flaps needed for hardcover editions are an additional $50 as well. Please indicate during your initial query whether the work is for an e-book (front cover) only or for a paperback or hardcover. Please note: should the printer specifications you initially provided be altered after the cover art flat has been completed, an additional charge of at least $100 is required for revisions to the final file. Deadlines have an effect on most businesses, and this one is no exception. A deadline of several weeks/months is much easier to work with than a period of several days. Therefore, the tighter the deadline, the higher the price. This is not always the case, but it could play a role in the overall price, depending upon my availability. This is the final factor to influence the price. If an author provides me with a fairly detailed summary of what they envision on the cover, but then when that cover is completed and the author requests major revisions based on a “Maybe this would look nice instead” brainstorm, the price will reflect this. Minor changes to the overall end-product are usually not a problem and normally have no bearing on cost, but when three or more individual requests for alterations are given, this will impact the final price. Therefore, please be as specific as possible when sending your initial query and you shouldn’t have any problems whatsoever. When I provide you with a test viewing, please do not rush to make corrections...think about it for several days, detail all you’d like altered, and then send me the list of changes in one email. In other words, piecemeal requests, more likely than not, have a bearing on each other, which can cause delays and confusion. NOTE: Be sure to check my FAQs page for a list of what I require to begin. As mentioned above, all cover art (front cover only) is started at $100 and expected to stay at or near that amount, therefore, the basic cover prices listed below will apply in the majority of cases. Should any of the above factors come into play, however, I will notify you either after the initial query (prior to the work beginning) or while the work is in progress that something is causing me problems and that the cost will likely be higher than $100. In other words, I will keep you informed throughout the entire creative process, detailing where exactly I am running into trouble, provide possible alternatives, and stopping work on the project so as not to incur any additional costs until you decide how to proceed. Should you chose to have me forego the original cover concept and stay near the $100 cost for the front cover or have me strive ahead and incur extra charges is entirely up to you. Just know that no work will proceed without your official “okay.”
Once a final cover is agreed upon, I will simply email an invoice providing you with my snail-mail address and the total amount due, which should then be sent to me within 30 days (personal or commercial checks or money orders, American only, please). We also accept payments through Paypal (preferred). Once the cover is completed and payment has been made, the author/publisher owns all rights to the work and may use it for any and all purposes. Although I would truly love a “by line” for creating the cover, and even have a link to this website accompany the cover when it's displayed on author homepages, this is not a requirement. I will send you a JPG file of the cover in any and all sizes you require for promotion or production purposes. Additionally, if the cover is needed in another format—for instance, a grayscale .TIF file for a magazine ad—I will happily provide these files free of charge. Important note: ThunderArt retains all rights/ownership to the cover art until payment is received in full. Only then do all rights of usage and ownership revert to the client. If payment is not received, ThunderArt has the absolute right to request immediate removal of cover art from all published works, from any and all promotional materials featuring the cover art, etc. until payment is received in its entirety. Any unauthorized usage of the cover art is punishable by law.
All the above applies, except... The prices listed above are negotiable, especially if a group of covers is needed. Also, if your company policy is to pay cover artists in royalties as opposed to flat fees, please note I rarely take jobs based on royalty payments. Please just indicate which you would prefer during your initial query. Also let me know for my records the percentage amount you offer, payment schedules, and when I can expect a contract for the completed work. Moreover, since contracted work is basically “on loan” during the contracted period, use of the cover for any promotional purposes is granted only under the terms of the contract. All other use of the work for promotional purposes not covered within the contract requires written permission.
All questions pertaining to any area of ThunderArt, or its parent company By Thunder, should be directed to the owner Trace Edward Zaber.
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